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Add Header & Footer

Add consistent document context without editing every page

Headers and footers are useful for filenames, project codes, dates, confidentiality labels and document titles. Users should configure left, center and right zones independently and apply content to all pages or a selected range.

  1. 1. Choose
  2. 2. Prepare
  3. 3. Process
  4. 4. Review & export
Choose a PDFDrop a file here or browse. Files stay on this device — nothing is uploaded to run this tool.

Add Header & Footer runs locally in this browser tab. Known limits: Header/footer text becomes permanent page content

The tool should support tokens such as filename, current date and page number where appropriate, while previewing overlap with existing page content. A “different first page” option prevents headers from cluttering covers.

What this tool does and does not change

  • Preserved where the source file allows it: text, vectors, links, annotations, forms, bookmarks, metadata.
  • Header/footer text becomes permanent page content

Questions about Add Header & Footer to PDF

What can I add to a PDF header or footer?
Use custom text, document title, filename, date and supported dynamic tokens such as page number. The interface should provide separate left, center and right positions so a project name and page count can coexist cleanly.
Can I skip the first page or cover?
Yes. “Different first page” and “start from page” controls should be built in. This is common for reports where the cover should remain visually clean.
Can I add different headers to different page ranges?
Yes as an advanced option. A user may need one section label on pages 1–10 and another on pages 11–20. Range rules must be shown in a list so overlapping configurations are obvious before export.
How do I prevent a footer from covering existing text?
Use the live preview and margin controls. If the source document already uses the bottom edge heavily, crop or expand page geometry only if the implementation supports it safely; otherwise choose a different position rather than hiding content.
Can I add page numbers through the header/footer tool?
Yes, a page-number token can be available, but users whose only goal is pagination should be directed to Add Page Numbers because it provides simpler controls for starting numbers, skipped pages and total-page formats.
Does adding a header or footer change PDF quality?
No. Repeating text can be added as normal PDF text objects without rasterizing the existing pages.
Can I use the same footer on a batch of PDFs?
Yes. Batch PDF can apply a shared header/footer template to multiple files, with dynamic tokens such as each file’s filename resolved separately for every output.

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