How to use the Watermark PDF
- Drop your PDF onto the box or click to choose it.
- Choose Text and type your wording, or choose Image or logo and pick a PNG or JPG file.
- Adjust size, color, opacity and angle, and choose whether the mark appears once in the center or tiled across the page.
- Optionally limit it to certain pages, check the live preview, then click Add watermark.
Features
- Text or image watermarks with live preview
- Font, size, color, opacity and angle controls
- Corner-to-corner diagonal that adapts to each page’s shape
- Centered once or tiled across the whole page
- Apply to all pages or a typed page range
- Any language: non-Latin text is added as a sharp image
What a watermark is for
A watermark is a faint mark over the page that tells readers something about the document’s status or origin without hiding the content. “DRAFT” stops an unfinished proposal being mistaken for the final version. “CONFIDENTIAL” or “INTERNAL” reminds recipients how to handle a file. “COPY” or “SAMPLE” marks documents that are not originals, and a logo shows who produced a report. Because the mark sits on every page, it survives printing, screenshots and forwarding.
Text or image?
Text watermarks are written in a standard PDF font (Helvetica, Times or Courier, in bold), so they are crisp at any zoom and add almost nothing to the file size. These fonts cover English and other Western European languages. If your text uses other scripts, such as Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, Chinese or emoji, the tool draws it with your device’s fonts and adds it as a high-resolution transparent image instead, so every language works.
Image watermarks are ideal for logos and signatures. A PNG with a transparent background blends into the page; a JPG always has a solid rectangle behind it. The width slider sets the logo’s size as a share of the page width, so it looks the same on Letter and A4 pages.
Choosing the look
| Setting | Good starting point | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Opacity | 15–30% | Visible but leaves the text underneath readable |
| Angle | Diagonal | Crosses the text instead of lining up with it |
| Size (centered text) | 60–100 pt | Spans most of the page width |
| Size (tiled text) | 24–40 pt | Leaves space between repetitions |
| Color | Red or mid-gray | Red signals a warning; gray is more neutral |
The Diagonal angle runs from the bottom-left corner to the top-right corner of each page, about 52 degrees on a portrait Letter page, 55 degrees on portrait A4 and 35 to 38 degrees on landscape pages. A tiled layout repeats the mark in staggered rows, which makes it much harder to crop out of a screenshot.
How the watermark is applied
The mark is drawn on top of the existing page content with the opacity you choose, using the PDF’s own transparency settings, so the original text, images and links stay intact underneath. Rotated and landscape pages are measured as they appear on screen, so the watermark is centered and angled correctly on every page. You can limit the watermark to a page range, for example only the pages of an appendix.
An honest note on protection
A watermark is a label, not a lock. Anyone with a full PDF editor can remove a mark added to the page content. For stronger deterrence, use a tiled layout and a higher opacity; to control who can open a file, share it through a service with access controls. To mark pages with numbers instead, use Add Page Numbers, and to sign a document, use Sign PDF.
Frequently asked questions
How do I add a CONFIDENTIAL watermark to a PDF?
Load the PDF, keep the Text option, type CONFIDENTIAL, choose a color and an opacity around 25%, and click Add watermark. The preview shows the result first.
Can I use my logo as a watermark?
Yes. Choose “Image or logo” and pick a PNG or JPG. A PNG with a transparent background gives the cleanest result.
Will the watermark cover my text?
It is drawn semi-transparently on top of the page, so the content stays readable. Lower the opacity if it feels too strong.
Can I watermark only some pages?
Yes. Type the pages in the Pages box, for example 1-3, 8. Leave it empty to watermark every page.
Is my PDF uploaded?
No. The watermark is added by your browser on your own device, and the file never leaves it.