Add Header & Footer

Add customizable headers and footers to your PDF documents with dynamic page numbers.

Click to select a file or drag and drop

PDF file

Your files never leave your device.

What are PDF Headers & Footers?

Headers and footers are recurring text elements that appear at the top and bottom of each page in a PDF document. They're essential for professional document formatting, providing consistent information across all pages.

Why add headers and footers to PDFs?

  • Professional Formatting: Add document titles, chapter names, or company information
  • Page Numbering: Insert automatic page numbers in various formats (1, 2, 3 or i, ii, iii)
  • Document Identification: Include file names, dates, version numbers, or confidentiality notices
  • Brand Consistency: Add company logos, taglines, or contact information
  • Legal Compliance: Include required disclaimers or legal information on every page
  • Meeting Standards: Format documents according to academic, corporate, or publishing standards

Key Features

  • ✓ Dynamic page numbers
  • ✓ Custom font size and color
  • ✓ Left, center, right positioning
  • ✓ Page range selection
  • ✓ No watermarks added
  • ✓ 100% free forever

How to Add Headers & Footers to PDF

1

Upload PDF

Select your PDF document. All processing happens locally - your files never leave your device.

2

Customize Layout

Configure header and footer text for left, center, and right positions. Set font size, color, and page range.

3

Download PDF

Download your updated PDF with professional headers and footers. Original content remains unchanged.

Best Practices for Headers & Footers

Recommended Uses

  • Use [Page #] for automatic page numbers
  • Left: Document title, Center: Chapter name, Right: Page number
  • Footer for confidentiality notices or copyright information
  • Use page ranges for front matter (i, ii, iii) and main content (1, 2, 3)

Tips & Warnings

  • Font size 8-12pt is optimal for most documents
  • Leave margins of at least 0.5 inches for headers/footers
  • Use Page Numbers tool for simple numbering

Frequently Asked Questions

Simply type [Page #] in any header or footer field. The tool will automatically replace this with the correct page number for each page.

  • [Page #] = Regular numbers (1, 2, 3)
  • You can combine with text: "Page [Page #] of [Total #]"
  • Supports different numbering formats for different page ranges

Yes, you can use the page range feature to apply different headers/footers to specific sections:

  • Use Roman numerals for front matter: pages 1-5
  • Regular numbers for main content: pages 6-50
  • Different text for appendices: pages 51-60
  • Process your document multiple times with different ranges

Our tool offers full customization of font properties:

  • Font size: 6pt to 24pt (10-12pt recommended for most documents)
  • Any color via color picker or hex code
  • Standard PDF fonts (Helvetica, Times, Courier)
  • Consistent across all pages

No, headers and footers are added to the margin areas:

  • Headers placed in top margin (0.5-1 inch from top)
  • Footers placed in bottom margin (0.5-1 inch from bottom)
  • Existing document content remains untouched
  • No risk of overlapping with text or images

Yes, you can remove headers/footers using our related tools:

  • PDF Editor - manually edit or remove headers/footers
  • Remove Annotations - strip added elements
  • Process the document again with empty header/footer fields

Related PDF Tools

Page Numbers

Add page numbers to PDFs

Add Watermark

Stamp text or images

PDF Editor

Full PDF editing suite