Bates Numbering
Add unique, sequential identification numbers to each page. The industry standard for legal, medical, and business indexing.
Choose PDF files
or drag and drop them here
What Bates numbering does — and who relies on it
Bates numbering stamps a short, unique identifier on every page of a document so each sheet can be cited individually. The tool builds each stamp from three parts you define: a prefix such as a case or matter code, a zero-padded sequential number, and an optional suffix. A setup with the prefix DEMO-, six-digit padding, and a -CONF suffix produces stamps reading DEMO-000001-CONF, DEMO-000002-CONF, and onward through every page of the file.
This convention comes from litigation, where productions exchanged between parties must reference every page unambiguously, but it is used far more widely today. Law firms Bates stamp discovery productions, hospitals and insurers index medical records, auditors number working papers, and compliance teams label archived correspondence. Any workflow where someone might later need to say look at page 4,217 of the production benefits from a proper Bates sequence instead of ordinary pagination.
Stamps are drawn in bold red ink in the lower right corner of each page, the traditional placement that avoids covering body text, and a live preview shows your exact format before anything is applied. As with every tool on this site, the entire process runs in your browser, so privileged attorney-client material, patient records, and audit files are processed in local memory and never uploaded.
How to Add Bates Numbers to PDF Documents
Apply legal Bates stamps to PDF pages sequentially.
- 1
Upload Legal or Audit Document
Select or drag and drop the PDF file requiring Bates indexing.
- 2
Configure Bates Parameters
Enter prefix (e.g., 'DOC-'), start number (e.g., '1'), number of digits (e.g., '6' for '000001'), and adjust stamp position.
- 3
Apply Bates Stamp
Click 'Apply Bates Numbering' to stamp every page sequentially and download the indexed PDF.
How to Bates stamp a PDF, step by step
Configure your prefix, numbering, and padding once, check the preview, and the tool stamps the whole document in one pass.
- 1
Open the Bates Numbering tool
Load the page and drop your PDF into the upload area. One file is processed per pass, so start with the first document in your set.
- 2
Enter your prefix
Type the case code or matter identifier that should open every stamp in the Prefix field, for example SMITH- or 2026-048-. Prefixes keep pages from different matters distinguishable when documents are later combined, so pick something unique to this production.
- 3
Add a suffix if your protocol requires one
Suffixes are optional and appear immediately after the number, as in 000123-A or 000123-CONF. Some filing protocols mandate them, so follow whatever convention your court, client, or records policy specifies; otherwise leave the field empty.
- 4
Set the start number and digit padding
Start At determines the first number in the sequence, which matters when continuing a series from an earlier document. Zero Padding controls how many digits the counter occupies, so a padding of six turns 1 into 000001 and keeps every stamp the same width.
- 5
Confirm the preview format
A preview panel renders your exact stamp using the current settings, updating live as you edit. Read it carefully: this string will appear on every page, and a typo in the prefix would be repeated hundreds of times over.
- 6
Apply the stamps and download
Click Apply Bates Numbering and the tool stamps every page sequentially in bold red at the bottom right. The finished file downloads automatically as Bates followed by your original file name, and the success screen lets you download it again if needed.
100% Client-Side Privacy Guarantee
Unlike other online PDF converters, Rupix operates on a zero-upload architecture. All PDF processing occurs locally in your browser memory using WebAssembly. No document bytes are ever uploaded to any server.
Engine Specifications
Supported Input
Standard PDF (.pdf)
Stamp Style
Prefix + Zero-Padded Sequence + Suffix
Engine
pdf-lib Vector Typography Engine
Compliance
Legal E-Discovery & Audit Ready
Privacy
100% In-Browser Client Sandbox
File Limit
Unlimited (Device RAM Bound)
Why use Rupix Bates Numbering PDF?
Industry-standard legal Bates stamping (e.g. 'CONF-000001')
Customizable alphanumeric prefix, suffix, and starting integer
Zero-padding digit configuration (3 to 8 digits)
Six standard page stamp positions (Header & Footer zones)
100% confidential — processed in local browser memory with no uploads
Ideal for legal discovery, medical records, and audit compliance
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Bates numbering used for?
Bates numbering (or Bates stamping) is a method used in legal, medical, and financial fields to sequentially number and index pages for identification during litigation discovery and audits.
Is client confidentiality protected?
Yes, 100%. Because all processing runs locally inside your browser, privileged attorney-client documents and confidential records are never uploaded to any remote server.
Can I customize the number of leading zeros?
Yes, you can set the zero-padding length from 3 to 8 digits (e.g., '001' vs '00000001').
Can I add prefix and suffix codes?
Yes, you can add custom prefixes like 'PLTF-' or suffixes like '-CONF' to every generated Bates stamp.
How do I continue one Bates sequence across several documents?
Each pass processes a single PDF, so chain documents manually. If your first file contains twenty pages starting at 000001, it ends at 000020; load the second file and set Start At to 21, keeping the prefix, suffix, and padding identical. Repeating the preview check on each file confirms the sequences join up without gaps or overlaps.
Can I choose where the Bates number appears on the page?
Placement is deliberately fixed in the bottom right corner, which is the convention in legal and records workflows and the spot least likely to obscure signatures, exhibits, or body text. You can adjust the font size if a stamp needs to be more or less prominent, but the position itself cannot be moved, keeping every page in a production consistent.
Are Bates stamps real text or images?
They are genuine vector text drawn with an embedded bold Helvetica font, not pasted pictures. That means the stamps remain razor sharp at any zoom level and print cleanly, and most PDF viewers can find and select them with the search function. Vector text also keeps the added file size negligible compared with image-based stamping approaches.
Why are the Bates numbers red instead of black?
Red ink is the traditional color for Bates stamps precisely because it stands out against black body text, making each identifier easy to spot when flipping through hundreds of pages and easy to tell apart from the document's own content during review. The tool follows that convention, so your stamps look familiar to attorneys, auditors, and records managers.