File

PDF Watermark

Add a text or image watermark to a PDF in your browser. The PDF stays on your device — nothing is uploaded. Pick from 9 grid positions or tile across the page with adjustable rows and columns. Tune opacity, rotation, font size, and color, and choose whether the watermark sits above or below the page content. Text watermarks work with English, Chinese, and Japanese — the tool picks the right font automatically based on the text. A page-by-page preview lets you check every page before exporting. Common uses include CONFIDENTIAL or DRAFT markers, company logos, copyright lines, INTERNAL USE ONLY tiles for leak prevention, and signature placement on contract pages.

  • Text and image watermark types, each with a full set of style controls.
  • Pick a 9-grid position preset or tile across the page with configurable rows and columns.
  • Independent controls for opacity, rotation, font size, and color.
  • Layer selector to place the watermark above or below the existing page content.
  • Apply to all pages or to a custom range using 1-3, 5, 7-9 syntax — useful for skipping covers or marking only signature pages.
  • Text watermarks pick a font automatically based on the content, so English, Chinese, and Japanese all work without manual switching.
  • Page-by-page preview with live updates as you tweak parameters.
tools/PDF Watermark

Drop a PDF here or click to choose a file

Pick one PDF file. Everything is processed locally in your browser.

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After picking a PDF, the page preview will appear here.

Commands

Overview

Adds a text or image watermark to every page or a chosen subset of pages, with full control over position, density, rotation, and layering.

  1. 01

    Text watermark

    Type any text and tune font size, color, opacity, and rotation. Common uses include CONFIDENTIAL, DRAFT, INTERNAL USE ONLY, and copyright lines.

  2. 02

    Image watermark

    Upload a PNG or JPG and place it at the configured width with independent opacity and rotation. Suits company logos, stamps, and scanned signatures.

  3. 03

    9 position presets

    Top-left, top-center, top-right, middle-left, center, middle-right, bottom-left, bottom-center, bottom-right. Covers most layouts without manual coordinate math.

  4. 04

    Tile mode

    Tile the watermark across the page using configurable rows and columns. Useful for screenshot deterrence in distributed documents.

  5. 05

    Opacity and rotation

    Opacity from 0 to 100%, rotation from -180 to 180 degrees. Enough for the classic diagonal CONFIDENTIAL stamp look.

  6. 06

    Layer control

    Place the watermark above the page content to cover the text, or below it to sit behind the text. Pick whichever fits the use case.

  7. 07

    Page range

    Default applies to all pages, or use 1-3, 5, 7-9 syntax to mark only specific pages — handy for skipping covers or watermarking only signature pages.

  8. 08

    Automatic font

    The tool picks Helvetica, Noto Sans SC, or Noto Sans JP based on the input text, so English, Chinese, and Japanese all work without manual switching.

  9. 09

    Page-by-page preview

    Step through the document in the preview pane. Parameter changes update the current page immediately so you can compare layouts before exporting.

How to use

From upload to download is usually under a minute.

  1. 01

    Click Select PDF or drop a PDF onto the upload area. The total page count is read and the first preview page renders.

  2. 02

    Pick a watermark type. For text, enter the content along with font size and color. For image, upload a PNG or JPG and set the width.

  3. 03

    Choose a position. Pick one of the 9 grid presets, or switch to Tile mode and set the rows and columns.

  4. 04

    Adjust opacity and rotation. A typical diagonal CONFIDENTIAL stamp uses -45 degrees and 25 to 35% opacity.

  5. 05

    Choose a layer. Use above content for prominent stamps. Use below content when you want the text on top to stay readable.

  6. 06

    Pick which pages to apply to. The default is all pages. Switch to custom and use 1-3, 5, 7-9 syntax to mark only specific pages.

  7. 07

    Step through the preview to check different page layouts. Adjustments update in real time.

  8. 08

    Click Generate PDF. When processing finishes, click Download PDF to save the file locally.

Details

Built around the day-to-day flow of watermarking PDFs.

  • Text and image watermark modes
  • 9-position grid or full-page tile layout
  • Tile mode with independent rows and columns
  • Opacity slider from 0 to 100%
  • Rotation from -180 to 180 degrees
  • Free-form font size, color via HEX input or picker
  • Image watermark scales proportionally from a configured width
  • Layer selector for above content and below content
  • Page-range syntax for selective application
  • Automatic font selection for English, Chinese, and Japanese input
  • Page-by-page live preview with real-time updates
  • Edge positions automatically inset so watermarks are never clipped
  • Custom output filename
  • All processing in the browser; nothing is uploaded
  • Clear error message when an encrypted PDF is loaded
  • Works on Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari, and Brave, plus mobile browsers

Use cases

Everyday situations where a PDF needs an overlay.

  1. Confidentiality marker

    Add a large CONFIDENTIAL stamp at -45 degrees with semi-transparency on internal materials, financial reports, or unsigned contracts to remind recipients not to forward them.

  2. Draft indicator

    Apply a grey DRAFT mark to review copies so they are not mistaken for the final version.

  3. Copyright lines

    Add a small copyright line at the bottom of ebooks, whitepapers, or training materials.

  4. Company logo

    Place a company logo as an image watermark in the top-right corner of outbound reports, proposals, or whitepapers.

  5. Signature placement

    Drop a scanned signature (transparent PNG) onto the signature page of a contract at a fixed position.

  6. Internal-only tiles

    Tile INTERNAL USE ONLY across pages of restricted material so any screenshot still carries the warning.

  7. Anti-leak tagging

    Embed the subscriber email, order ID, or timestamp as a watermark so leaked copies can be traced back to the source.

  8. Sample and training material

    Mark sample PDFs in training packages with a SAMPLE watermark to distinguish them from real documents.

  9. Legal exhibits

    Add a case number, date, or Exhibit A label to evidence PDFs submitted to courts or insurers for clean filing and citation.

See also

Watermarking is usually one step in a larger flow. Run a few PDFs through PDF Merge first to combine them, or use PDF Split to extract just the pages that need a watermark. After watermarking, pair with File Encryption to add password protection before sharing. For image watermarks, you can shrink the logo or stamp with Image Compressor before uploading. More related tools live on the File category page.

Best practices

Style, density, and layering shape the final result. These tips are specific to watermarking.

  • For a diagonal CONFIDENTIAL stamp, -45 degrees with 25 to 35% opacity in dark red or grey reads well without overpowering the page.
  • For copyright lines, bottom-center placement at 8 to 12 pt with 50 to 70% opacity is unobtrusive yet readable.
  • For tile mode, start with 3 columns by 4 rows and adjust based on page density. Too dense hurts readability; too sparse misses screenshots.
  • Export image watermarks as PNG with a transparent background. JPG leaves visible white rectangles.
  • If you need a visible mark that does not block text, pick below content so the watermark sits behind the body copy.
  • For per-page targeting (signature pages only, for example), use page-range syntax like 5, 12, 20 instead of marking every page.
  • Chinese watermarks usually read better at 20 to 30% larger font than the equivalent English, due to denser strokes.
  • Step through the preview before generating — rotated text occupies more visual space than it appears at rest.
  • For PDFs over 100 MB, process in batches or compress the source first to keep browser memory in check.
  • When handling sensitive documents, use a private browsing window or offline environment, and clear your browser download history afterwards.

Limitations

Side effects and edge cases worth knowing before a critical workflow.

  • Password-protected PDFs cannot be watermarked directly. Decrypt them first with a PDF unlock tool or Adobe Acrobat.
  • Watermarking rewrites each page's content stream. Document outlines, cross-page bookmarks, form fields, and digital signatures may be lost or invalidated.
  • Pre-existing watermarks in the source PDF are not removed. The new watermark is layered above or below the existing content. Use a dedicated cleanup tool first if needed.
  • Image watermarks are embedded into every targeted page, which can grow the file size, especially in tile mode. Compress the image to a reasonable size first.
  • Chinese and Japanese fonts are fetched from a public font CDN on first use. The PDF itself is never sent — only the font is downloaded. Browsers cache the font for subsequent runs.
  • Font subsetting is enabled by default, so the final PDF only embeds glyphs actually used. To edit the watermark text later in a professional tool, re-embed the full font.
  • Very large PDFs (combined input over 1 GB) use a lot of browser memory. Batch the work or compress the source.
  • Corrupted, incomplete, or non-standard PDFs may fail. Repair them with Adobe Acrobat, Preview, or similar tools first.

FAQ

Common questions about watermark behavior, fonts, privacy, and compatibility.

Is my PDF uploaded during processing?

No. Parsing, drawing, and rewriting all happen in the browser. Chinese and Japanese fonts are fetched from a public font CDN on first use, but that is a static asset request — it does not include your PDF.

Where do the Chinese and Japanese fonts come from?

Google Noto Sans SC for Simplified Chinese and Noto Sans JP for Japanese. They are fetched from a font CDN on first use and cached by the browser afterwards.

Why do English-only watermarks need no extra font download?

The tool defaults to Helvetica, a standard PDF font built into every PDF reader. It does not need embedding or downloading. Only CJK text triggers a font fetch.

Can the watermark cover the text, or only sit behind it?

Either. The Layer control switches between above content and below content. CONFIDENTIAL stamps usually look better on top; copyright lines often go below.

How does tile mode work?

The page is divided into a rows by columns grid, and one watermark instance is drawn in each cell. For example, 3 columns by 4 rows places 12 watermarks per page. It is commonly used to defeat screenshots — any crop still carries the mark.

Can I remove existing watermarks from a PDF?

No. This tool only adds watermarks; it does not detect or remove existing ones. For removal, use a dedicated cleanup tool or regenerate the PDF.

Is the text in the PDF still searchable after watermarking?

Yes. The original text layer is not modified. The watermark is added on a separate content stream, so existing text remains searchable and copyable.

Why is the output PDF larger than the source?

Image watermarks are embedded into every page they appear on. In tile mode, that is pages times rows times columns instances. Text watermarks add little except the embedded font subset, usually tens of KB.

Can I watermark encrypted PDFs?

No. Password-protected PDFs must be decrypted first. Use a dedicated PDF unlock tool or Adobe Acrobat to remove the password.

Can I watermark only some pages?

Yes. Switch Apply to from All pages to Custom and enter a range like 1-3, 5, 7-9. The syntax matches the PDF split tool.

Will watermarks at the edge get clipped?

No. The tool automatically insets edge positions by the watermark's own size, including rotation. The full watermark stays inside the page regardless of angle.

Can I watermark several PDFs at once with the same settings?

The current version processes one PDF at a time. For batch work, merge the PDFs first with the PDF merge tool, apply the watermark, and split them back apart with the PDF split tool.

Can I preview every page?

Yes. The preview pane has previous and next buttons, and you can also use arrow keys to step through pages. Parameter changes refresh the current page in real time.

Are there recommended opacity and rotation values?

Diagonal CONFIDENTIAL stamps: -45 degrees at 25 to 35% opacity. Bottom-line copyright: 0 degrees at 50 to 70% opacity. Tile backdrops: -30 degrees at 15 to 25% opacity.

How does this compare to iLovePDF or SmallPDF?

The main difference is processing: this tool runs locally in your browser; online services usually upload the PDF to a server and return the result. Feature-wise, this tool focuses on watermarking and does not include OCR or conversion features.

Related tools

Pair with PDF merge, PDF split, file encryption, and image compression to make watermarking one stage in a complete document pipeline.