5 Ways to Add Text/Image Watermark to a PDF

There are lots of reasons why you need to add a watermark to a PDF, for example, proving your ownership of a PDF document, stopping anyone from using content from your PDF, promoting your brand, or increasing brand awareness.

No matter what situation you are in, inserting a watermark benefits more than you can ever think of. No more hesitation! Check the step-by-step guide on putting a watermark in a PDF.

Quick Solution to Watermark PDF Offline for Free

You can use PDFgear to easily add a watermark to your PDF. This tool lets you stamp an image or text onto your PDF quickly. You have the option to select the font style, transparency level, and placement of the watermark within seconds.

How to Add Watermark to PDF in PDFgear

Download PDFgear and experience all PDF editing tools like editing text, adding highlights, AI summarizing, and most importantly, adding watermarks. As for textual watermarks, you can choose text color, size, opacity, or page ranges to insert.

As for image watermarks, you can set any image as a watermark and make them transparent. No matter what kind of watermark you are adding, a watermarked PDF is only a few clicks away.

Check the steps below to add a watermark to a PDF with PDFgear.

Step 1. Open a PDF in PDFgear

Download PDFgear to your computer and then follow the prompts to launch it. PDFgear is a completely green & safe software. Do feel free to use it.

Click on the Open File icon, and choose a PDF from any local folder of your computer.

Step 2. Add Text Watermark to Your PDF

To input a text watermark, go to Edit> Watermark > Create a Watermark option.

Enter the text you want to use as a watermark, set size, color, rotation angle, opacity, alignment, and more. Confirm the changes.

Step 3. Add an Image Watermark to PDF

Inserting an image watermark to PDF is simple too. You just need to go to Edit > Stamp > Custom Stamp.

Switch to Picture, then upload an image. Check the box of Remove Background. Confirm the change, and you will soon have a watermarked PDF. Adjust its appearance and position.

How to Add Watermarks to PDFs in Adobe Acrobat

Adobe Acrobat is one of the most popular choices for editing PDFs due to its rich tools like AI OCR, adding reviews and comments. Both text and image watermarks can be added to a PDF with Adobe Acrobat. Even Adobe Acrobat is a paid software, it comes with more watermark adjustment features.

Here are the detailed steps on how to add watermarks to a PDF.

Step 1. Get Adobe Acrobat to your PC or Mac and launch it. It might take a few while for this large software to get started.

Step 2. Go to Files > Open. Choose a PDF from your computer. Choose Tools > Edit PDF. Then go to Watermark > Add.

Step 3. To create a text watermark, type the text in the empty box. Adjust the text formatting.

You can also upload an image as a watermark. Select File, click Browse, and then select an image file. After that, change the size of the image watermark, and adjust its appearance.

How to Add a Watermark to PDF in Foxit

Similar to Adobe Acrobat, Foxit is also one of the mainstream PDF editors. It is a big software that might take lots of CPU and a paid software that takes $9.17 per month, but advanced features like redacting PDF are worth the price.

You can add a watermark to any PDF with Foxit in the following way.

Step 1. Download Foxit to your computer. Follow the prompt to launch it. It might take a while to complete this process.

Step 2. Go to File > Open. Select a PDF from your computer to open. You can also right-click on the PDF, and choose Open With > Foxit.

Step 3. Do the following to add a text watermark. Go to the Organize tab, and click over Watermark. Choose Add.

Enter any text you want to use as a watermark. Change the text font, size, rotation, opacity, and more to make the text watermark on your PDF look natural. Confirm the settings.

Instead, you can click on the File icon, upload an image, and set it as a watermark. Click OK, and your image is now added as a watermark.

How to Insert a Watermark in PDF Online for Free

If you are sick of downloading PDF editing software, the PDFgear Online tool might be a better option for you. Upload a PDF online, and use the online PDF watermark creator for free. You don’t even have to register. Yet, you can only add an image watermark via PDFgear Online.

Follow the steps below to insert a watermark in PDF online.

Step 1. Upload a PDF to PDFgear Online

Visit the PDFgear online PDF editor , click on the Upload PDF Files button, and choose a PDF file from your computer. You can also drag and drop your PDF document to upload.

Step 2. Add Watermark to PDF

Click on Add or Edit Annotations. Click on the Add Stamp icon, and choose Custom Stamp from the drop-down menu. Choose a picture from your computer and upload it. Change its position or size if necessary.

Step 3. Save the Watermarked PDF

Click the Download icon to save the watermarked PDF to your computer.

How to Add Watermark to PDF on Mac with Preview

Preview is a default software on all Mac devices used to view photos and PDFs. You can’t edit PDF texts with Preview, but there are some PDF markup tools ready to be used. With the Text Box tool under the Markup option, you can easily add text to the PDF. Even though the text you added is not a real watermark, it still protects your PDF.

Let’s take a look at how to add a watermark to a PDF with Preview.

Step 1. Right-click on the PDF, and go to Open With > Preview. Your PDF will soon be opened.

Step 2. Click on the Markup icon to display all markup tools. Select the Text tool to add a text box. Click on the A icon to enter the text. After that, change the text color and font to make it look like a watermark.

FAQs

How do I permanently watermark a PDF?

There is a simple solution, add a PDF watermark with Adobe Acrobat, then export to JPEG, then recrate a new PDF from JPEG files using Adobe Acrobat. You can’t remove watermarks if it’s created from an image, especially if the watermarks are slightly different on each page. (Answer from Quora)

How to  watermark a PDF without Adobe?

PDFgear is a great tool for adding watermarks to PDFs without using Adobe Acrobat. You can use it online or offline for free, and it provides an easy way to insert watermarks into your PDF documents.

Why is my watermark not showing up in PDF?

To ensure your watermark appears in your PDF, adjust its opacity to a suitable level for visibility. Place the watermark on a visible and printable layer, not a hidden one. Position it within the visible area of the PDF page. Use a contrasting color if the watermark blends with the background. These steps will help make your watermark clearly visible in the PDF.

Conclusion

Watermark is a great way to protect your PDF content. Now, you’ve learned how to add a watermark to any PDF in 5 ways. Try it for yourself right now!

Finally, we’d like to recommend PDFgear again due to its rich features and free price. Download it right now and let PDFgear help handle your PDFs.