# Add Bates Numbers to PDF

> Add Bates numbering to PDF documents for legal and business document identification and tracking.

Live tool: https://lofttools.com/tools/pdf-tools/pdf-bates-numbering

Category: PDF & Documents

## How it works

1. **Select PDF** — Drop the PDF that needs Bates stamps, or click to choose one
2. **Configure numbering** — Set prefix, starting number, digit count, and position on page
3. **Download** — Download your Bates-numbered PDF instantly

## FAQ

### What is Bates numbering?

Bates numbering assigns unique sequential identifiers to each page in legal documents for easy reference and tracking.

### Does this preserve bookmarks and form fields?

Yes. Bates stamps are added as annotations on top of each page; bookmarks, form fields, and existing annotations are not touched.

### What PDF versions are supported?

PDF 1.0 through 2.0 accept Bates stamps. PDF/A files keep their PDF/A flag if the stamp font is embedded.

## Privacy

This tool runs entirely in the browser. Files are not uploaded to a server. They never leave the user's device.

## More

- All tools: https://lofttools.com/tools
- Category: https://lofttools.com/tools/pdf-tools
- LLM index: https://lofttools.com/llms.txt