More than a page number
Add Page Numbers writes exactly one thing — a bare number, in one corner. That covers the common case, and it is not enough for a document that needs a title on every page, a confidentiality notice, a revision date, or a page count alongside the number rather than instead of it. This writes any text you choose, independently in all four corners of the running header and footer, so "Q3 Board Report" can sit opposite today's date at the top while "Page 4 of 12" sits at the bottom.
Placeholders that expand per page
| Placeholder | Becomes |
|---|---|
| {page} | The current page number, starting at 1 |
| {pages} | The total number of pages in the document |
| {date} | Today's date, spelled out |
| {filename} | The document's file name, without the extension |
A field can mix placeholders with ordinary text — Draft — page {page} of {pages} produces exactly that, with the two numbers filled in separately on every page. Any of the four fields can be left empty; nothing is drawn for a blank field.
Where each field lands
The header sits near the top of every page, the footer near the bottom, each split into a left and a right position with a fixed margin from the edge. Left-aligned text grows rightward from the margin; right-aligned text grows leftward from the opposite margin, so it stays flush to the edge whatever its length. This is the layout most templates use — a title or document name on one side, a date or page count on the other — without needing to calculate any coordinates yourself.
Practical combinations
- A standard report footer: footer left
Page {page} of {pages}, footer right{date}. - A confidentiality marking: header right
CONFIDENTIAL, repeated on every page regardless of content. - A document reference: header left
{filename}, so the file always identifies itself even once printed and separated from its original name. - A draft watermark alongside a real header: combine this with PDF Watermark, which tiles or rotates text across the whole page rather than sitting in a corner.
Where this stops, and what to use instead
- Just a page number, nothing else. Add Page Numbers is simpler for that one case and has its own position and starting-number controls.
- Large text across the page, not a corner. PDF Watermark is built for a stamp like DRAFT or SAMPLE at size and rotation, tiled if you want.
- Replacing existing header or footer text. This adds new text on top of the page; it does not remove or edit anything already printed there. If the document already has a header you need gone, that content was set when the document was created and there is no reliable way to strip it selectively.