How to add bookmarks to a PDF
Open Bookmarks, add the PDF, tap Add a bookmark, type a title and the page it opens, and press Save the bookmarks. Readers then list them as the document’s contents, and a tap jumps straight to that page.
BookmarksFree. Nothing is uploaded.
How to do it
- Open Bookmarks and add the PDF; any bookmarks it has appear as a list.
- Tap Add a bookmark, type its title, and type the page it should open.
- Use the arrows to move a bookmark up or down, or in a level to put it under the one above.
- Rename or delete any bookmark that is wrong.
- Press Save the bookmarks and save the new file.
Why bookmark a long PDF
A 150-page report, a thesis, a tender or a court bundle is slow to get around by scrolling, especially on a phone. Bookmarks give it a contents list that readers show in a side panel, often called Bookmarks, Outline or Contents: tap Chapter 4 and you are there. They print nothing and change nothing on the pages; they only add a way to move about.
Page numbers: count from the first page
The page you type is the page’s position in the file, counting the first page as 1, not the number printed on it. In a report whose printed numbering starts after a cover and four pages of contents, printed page 1 is the sixth page of the file, so its bookmark needs 6. Open the file in Read in another tab and step through it to find where each chapter starts.
If you would rather the reader’s own page box agreed with the printed numbers, so that typing 1 lands on printed page 1, set that with Page labels.
Chapters and sections
A bookmark moved in a level sits under the one above it, as a section of that chapter; readers show it indented and let you fold it away. Keep the top level for the big divisions, such as chapters, annexures or each document in a bundle, and put sections inside them. Short titles that match the headings printed in the document read best: Chapter 3, Annexure B, Salary slips 2026.
Top-level bookmarks have a second use: Split can cut a file at each one with At each chapter, naming every part after its bookmark.
Tidying bookmarks a file already has
Files made by word processors and scanners often arrive with messy bookmarks: every heading at one level, titles cut short, entries pointing at the wrong page. They all appear in the list, where you can rename, move, nest or delete them. A bookmark that opens a web page rather than a page of the document is kept as it is, unless you type a page for it. Saving an empty list removes every bookmark.
From Word, and after merging
If you still have the Word file, Word’s own Save as PDF can create bookmarks from the headings, in its options, which is quicker for a long document with proper headings. After joining several files with Merge, each file’s own bookmarks come along in order; adding one top-level bookmark per original file, such as Agreement, Annexure A and Annexure B, makes the merged bundle easy to move around.
A worked example
Divya merged a 96-page project report from six chapter files and wants a contents panel for the examiners. She opens Bookmarks and adds it; the list shows a few stray entries carried over from the chapter files, which she deletes. She taps Add a bookmark six times, typing Chapter 1 Introduction with page 5, Chapter 2 Literature review with page 14, and so on, checking each position in Read. She puts two sections under Chapter 4 with the arrow that moves a bookmark in a level, presses Save the bookmarks, and the report now opens with a contents list in any full reader.
Questions people ask
Will the bookmarks show on a phone?
In most full PDF readers, yes, usually behind a contents or outline button. Some very simple viewers ignore them; the bookmarks are still in the file.
Is my PDF uploaded?
No. The bookmarks are written into the file in your browser, on your device.
Do bookmarks change the pages or the file size?
They change nothing on the pages and add very little to the size.
Can bookmark titles be in Malayalam or Hindi?
Yes. Titles are stored as text in any script, and readers show them as typed.
Does a locked PDF stay locked?
Yes. Type its password when asked; the new file keeps the same password.
Your file stays on your device. Foolscap does the work inside your browser, so nothing is uploaded and there is nothing for anyone to keep. How you can check