How to Watermark a PDF for Free (DRAFT, CONFIDENTIAL, Name)

To watermark a PDF for free, open watermark PDF, choose your file, type the text (CONFIDENTIAL is filled in by default), pick the size, colour, opacity and angle, and press Add watermark. The text is stamped across the centre of every page, diagonally unless you choose horizontal. It takes a few seconds and the PDF is processed in your browser, never uploaded.

That covers most needs: marking a document as DRAFT, CONFIDENTIAL, SAMPLE or COPY, or stamping your name on a file you share so it is clear where it came from.

Step by step: how to watermark a PDF

1. Open watermark PDF and choose the PDF.
2. Type your Text, for example DRAFT, CONFIDENTIAL, FOR VISA PURPOSE ONLY or your name.
3. Set Font size. 48 suits a single word on A4; for a longer phrase, drop to 28–36 so it fits across the page.
4. Set Opacity %. 15–25% is visible without hiding the text underneath.
5. Pick a Colour. Grey is discreet; red signals "do not treat as final".
6. Choose Angle: Diagonal or Horizontal.
7. Press Add watermark, download, and open the result to check.

Your original PDF is untouched; the tool gives you a new copy with "-watermarked" in the file name.

DRAFT and CONFIDENTIAL watermarks

DRAFT tells readers the content may change. Typical settings: grey or light red, 20% opacity, diagonal, font size 72 for a short word on A4. It should be obvious at a glance but not stop anyone reviewing the text.

CONFIDENTIAL signals that the document should not be forwarded. Use a stronger colour such as red at 20–30% opacity. A watermark is a label, not protection: anyone with the file can still read, print or forward it. For real control, share it through a system that manages access, or password-protect it in a full PDF editor.

Your name or "Copy for [purpose]" is useful when you send ID documents to landlords, employers or agents. Something like Copy for rental agreement only - 23 Oct 2026 makes it harder to reuse the copy for anything else. Keep the opacity high enough (25–35%) that it cannot simply be cropped out of a key area.

Watermark PDF on Mac: Preview vs online

Preview, the PDF viewer built into macOS, does not have a watermark feature. What you can do in Preview:

• Use Tools > Annotate > Text to place a text box on a page, then style it with the Markup toolbar. You have to repeat this on every page, and an annotation can be moved or deleted by anyone who opens the file in an editor.

Better options on a Mac:

• A browser tool like ours: every page in one step, works in Safari or Chrome.
• Pages or Word: if you still have the source document, add the watermark there and export to PDF.

Watermark in Word before making the PDF

If the PDF comes from a Word document, Word's own watermark often looks the neatest:

1. In Word, go to the Design tab and click Watermark.
2. Pick a preset such as CONFIDENTIAL or DRAFT, or choose Custom Watermark to type your own text.
3. Save as PDF (File > Save As, or File > Export, and choose PDF).

This only works when you have the original document. For PDFs you received, scanned or downloaded, add the watermark to the PDF directly.

Watermarking images and photos instead

If what you are sharing is a photo, for example a picture of your Aadhaar or a product image, you do not need to make a PDF first. Use add watermark to image on the photo itself. If you need it as a PDF in the end, watermark the image and then convert it with JPG to PDF.

What the PDF watermark tool can and cannot do

What it does:

• Adds your text as real text on every page, centred.
• Lets you set font size, colour, opacity and diagonal or horizontal angle.
• Keeps the rest of the PDF as it was, including selectable text.

What it does not do:

• Image or logo watermarks. Only text. To place a logo, add it in your source document before creating the PDF.
• Different text per page, or only some pages. The same watermark goes on all pages. To watermark only some pages, split the PDF with split PDF, watermark the part you want, and recombine with merge PDF.
• Tiled or repeated watermarks. It is one stamp per page.

Does a watermark make the PDF bigger?

Barely. A text watermark adds a few kilobytes at most. If the file was already near an upload or email limit, compress it afterwards with compress PDF. Compression rebuilds pages as images, so the watermark becomes part of the picture, which also makes it harder to strip out.

How to remove a watermark from a PDF

Honest answers, depending on the situation:

• You added it yourself: open your original, unwatermarked file. This is why you should always keep it.
• It was added by Acrobat or another editor as a separate watermark object: Adobe Acrobat Pro has an option to remove watermarks it recognises. Our tools cannot remove watermarks.
• It is part of the page image (for example a scanned or compressed document): it cannot be cleanly removed.
• It is someone else's watermark on a document, sample or stock image: removing it to use the content without permission usually breaks the owner's terms or copyright. Ask them for a clean copy instead.

Common mistakes

• Opacity too high. At 60% and above, the watermark can make text unreadable, especially once the file is compressed.
• Text too long for the page. A long phrase at size 48 can run off the edges. Lower the font size.
• Watermarking before merging. Fine if you want every part marked, but if only one document should carry it, watermark that file alone, then merge.
• Treating a watermark as security. It deters casual reuse; it does not stop anyone reading or sharing the file.

For more on keeping sensitive documents private, see whether online PDF tools are safe.

Questions