How to Add Headers and Footers to PDF Online Free

Headers and footers give PDF documents a professional, organized look. Page numbers, document titles, dates, company names, and confidentiality notices all belong in the header or footer area. Adding them does not require recreating the entire document. Free tools can insert headers and footers into existing PDFs quickly.

What You Can Add to PDF Headers and Footers

Page numbers: Sequential numbering in various formats (1, 2, 3 or Page 1 of 10)
Dates: Current date, creation date, or a custom date in your preferred format
Document title: The name of the document or report
Author or company name: Organization branding in every page
Confidentiality notices: CONFIDENTIAL, INTERNAL USE ONLY, DRAFT
Custom text: Any text you need repeated on every page
Images or logos: Company logos in the header area

Method 1: Add Headers and Footers Online

Online tools are the fastest way to add headers and footers to a PDF without installing software.

Using PeacefulPDF

PeacefulPDF offers a header and footer tool that handles common use cases:

Open the PeacefulPDF header and footer tool
Upload your PDF file
Choose what to add: page numbers, date, title, or custom text
Select the position: left, center, or right in the header or footer
Customize the font, size, and formatting
Preview the result and download the updated PDF

The tool adds headers and footers to all pages by default, with options to exclude the first page or apply different content to odd and even pages.

Other Free Online Tools

PDF24 Tools: Free header and footer tool with page number, date, and custom text options. No daily limits.
Sejda PDF: Add page numbers and custom text to headers and footers. Free for documents up to 200 pages.
ILovePDF Page Numbers: Add page numbers in various positions and formats. Free for standard file sizes.

Method 2: Add Headers and Footers on Desktop

Adobe Acrobat Reader (Free)

While the free version of Acrobat Reader has limited header and footer tools, you can use the Print to PDF workaround:

Open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat Reader
Go to File then Print
Select Adobe PDF as the printer
Click Properties and look for header and footer options in the print settings
Print to create a new PDF with added headers and footers

LibreOffice Writer (Free)

LibreOffice Writer can add headers and footers to PDFs:

Open LibreOffice Writer
Go to File then Open and select your PDF (LibreOffice will import it)
Click Insert then Header and Footer then All Pages
Type your header or footer text directly into the header or footer area
Insert page numbers using Insert then Field then Page Number
Export as PDF via File then Export as PDF

This method works well for text-heavy documents but may affect complex layouts during the import process. Always compare the output with the original.

PDFtk (Command Line)

For batch processing, PDFtk can add header and footer content to multiple PDFs:

Create a single-page PDF with your header and footer content
Use PDFtk to stamp or background the header and footer onto every page
Process multiple files in a batch script

Page Number Format Options

When adding page numbers to PDFs, you have several format choices:

Simple: 1, 2, 3, 4...
With total pages: Page 1 of 10, Page 2 of 10...
Roman numerals: i, ii, iii, iv... (common for front matter)
Custom start number: Start numbering from page 5 as page 1 (useful for documents with a title page and table of contents)
Section numbering: 1-1, 1-2, 2-1, 2-2... for multi-section documents

Most tools support all of these formats. Choose the one that matches your document structure and style guide.

Advanced Header and Footer Customization

Different First Page

Many documents need a different header or footer on the first page (or no header at all). Most tools let you exclude the first page or apply different content to it. This is common for title pages, cover letters, and reports.

Odd and Even Pages

For documents that will be printed double-sided, different headers and footers on odd and even pages create a professional book-like layout. Page numbers typically go on the outside edge: right side for odd pages, left side for even pages.

Margin Considerations

Headers and footers need sufficient margin space to display without overlapping the document content. If the original PDF has tight margins, the header or footer may overlap the body text. Most tools detect this and adjust positioning automatically, but check the result.

Adding a Logo to PDF Headers

To add a company logo to every page of a PDF:

Create a transparent PNG of your logo at header size (approximately 150 by 50 pixels)
Use a PDF stamp tool to place the logo in the header position on every page
PDF24 Tools and Sejda support image stamps that can serve as header logos

Alternatively, create a header PDF page with the logo, then use PDFtk to overlay it on every page of your document.

Common Issues

Text overlaps body content: The margins are too tight. Use a tool that checks for overlap or manually position the header text higher in the margin area.
Page numbers are wrong: Some tools count pages differently when the document has blank pages or non-numbered sections. Verify the numbering after applying.
Font does not match: Free tools often use a default font for headers and footers. If you need a specific font, create the header as a separate PDF and overlay it.
Headers appear on wrong pages: Check your page range settings. Some tools default to all pages, while others need explicit ranges.

Which Method Should You Use?

Quick page numbers: Use PeacefulPDF or ILovePDF online. Fast and free.
Custom headers and footers: Use PDF24 Tools for the most free options.
Already have LibreOffice: Import the PDF, add headers and footers, export.
Batch processing: Use PDFtk command line for adding headers to many files.
Company branding: Create a header PDF with your logo and overlay it.

Adding headers and footers to PDFs is a simple process with free tools. Whether you need page numbers, dates, or custom text on every page, you can do it without paying for software. Start with the online tools for convenience and move to desktop or command-line tools for batch processing.