Add Bates numbers to a PDF

FreeNo uploadNo signupWorks offline

Bates numbering puts a unique, sequential stamp on every page so that any page in a production can be cited exactly. Drop one file or a whole set: the sequence runs straight through them in order, zero-padded to a fixed width, with whatever prefix your matter uses. The files are stamped on your device and never uploaded, which for documents under discovery is the point.

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How to use Bates Numbering

Bates Numbering – Stamp sequential Bates numbers across a whole set of PDFs. Free, no upload.

Drop your PDFs in the order the production should run.
Set the prefix, the starting number and how many digits.
Click Add Bates numbers and download the stamped files.

Supported formats

Input: PDF
Output: PDF

The sequence runs across files, not within them

This is what separates Bates numbering from page numbering, and what most free tools get wrong. A Bates number identifies one page out of the whole production, so if the first document ends at ABC000042 the second one starts at ABC000043 – it does not restart at 1. Drop the files together and the counter is threaded through them in the order you dropped them. The result lists the range each file received, so you can check the hand-off before anything goes out.

Why the zeros matter

Padding to a fixed width is not decoration. ABC000042 and ABC000420 sort correctly next to each other in a file listing and in a document index; ABC42 and ABC420 do not. Six digits is the usual choice and covers a million pages, which is more than most matters need and cheap insurance against the production that grows. Pick the width before you start: renumbering a set halfway through is how pages end up cited two different ways.

Every page, no ranges

There is deliberately no option to stamp only some pages. An unnumbered page in a production is precisely the problem Bates numbering exists to prevent – it cannot be cited, and its absence is hard to spot later. If a document should not be produced, leave it out of the set rather than leaving its pages unstamped.

What the stamp does and does not do

The number is drawn onto the page as text at the position you choose, respecting any rotation the page already has, so it reads the right way up on a landscape or rotated scan. It is drawn on top of the existing content: on a page with no margin it can land over text, so check one before stamping a thousand. This is not redaction and not a seal – it adds an identifier and changes nothing else about the document.

Limitations

Every page is stamped; there is no page range, by design.
The stamp is drawn over existing content and can overlap text on a page with no margin.
It is an identifier, not redaction or a seal, and it does not lock the document.

Privacy

Files you choose are read into your browser’s memory and processed on your device; they are not uploaded to a server. Temporary download links are released after use, and the offline cache never stores your documents. More about privacy and limits.

Frequently asked questions

What is Bates numbering?

A unique sequential identifier stamped on every page of a document production, so any page can be referred to exactly. It is standard practice in US litigation discovery, and is also used for medical records and other numbered sets.

Does the numbering continue across several PDFs?

Yes – that is the whole point, and it is why dropping the files together matters. The sequence runs through them in the order you dropped them, and the result shows the range each file got.

Can I start at a number other than 1?

Yes. Set the starting number to carry on from an earlier production – for example at 1001 if the previous set ended at 1000.

Can I add a prefix?

Yes, and a suffix. A prefix is usually the matter or party name, giving stamps like SMITH000001. Both are optional.

Will it cover my text?

It can, on a page with little or no margin. The stamp is drawn on top of the existing content at the position and margin you choose, so check one page before stamping a large set.

Are my documents uploaded?

No. They are opened and stamped inside your browser and never sent anywhere – which matters more than usual for documents under discovery.

Is it free?

Yes – free, no signup, no watermark, no page limit.