How to change the color, font size and name of PDF annotations

Key points of this article

Determine the comment type and file permissions first. Notes, text boxes, and highlights have different properties that can be changed. Read-only files may not be able to save modifications.
Prioritize dark colors when changing colors, and check in black and white preview to ensure that they are legible for both printing and screen reading.
The default user name only affects newly created comments. The author names of old comments need to be modified or re-added one by one.
Hiding time does not mean clearing file information. When sending sensitive files externally, you can export them as flattened copies before sending them out.
Changing the author information commented by others can easily mislead others. You should ask the original author to modify it, or write a separate reply.

When working on a paper, reviewing a contract, or exchanging revision opinions with colleagues, the annotations on the PDF are often inappropriate: the red color is too eye-catching, the fonts are too small to see clearly, the author's name is still his old nickname, and the time is not something the other party can see. These problems all belong to "modifying the appearance and properties of existing annotations", which are two different things from creating and deleting annotations.

This article talks about how to change the color of pdf annotations, how to adjust the text size, how to change the name, and how to hide the time. After reading, you will know what to confirm before taking action, what type of settings to change, how to check after making changes, and what to do if you encounter a situation where changes cannot be made.

The functions currently listed in the PDF editor of the OmniDoc desktop client include changing paragraph text, signing, filling out forms, blackening, page manipulation, OCR, comparison and export, but annotation styles are not among them. Therefore, the following steps are mainly based on general methods, and the parts that OmniDoc can help will be explained separately.

How to change the color, font size and name of pdf annotations? One sentence conclusion

Let me start with the conclusion: If you can select the annotation in the reader and open the attribute settings, change the attributes directly; if you cannot open or change it, add the annotation again, or export a clean copy before sending it out.

your situation	Recommended practices	reason
Just want to see it clearly, change the color or font size	Modify the annotation's properties in the reader	You can change it back at any time without changing the text content.
Want to change your nickname or author name?	First change the default user name of the reader, and then modify the existing comments one by one.	New comments will automatically use new names, and old comments need to be processed separately.
Send to others, don’t want to show the comment time	Export a flattened copy before sending it	The annotation becomes the page content and no longer carries the time attribute, but it cannot be modified anymore.
The comment was written by someone else. I want to change it to my own name.	Not recommended to modify	Changing the author information commented by others will mislead others, so please ask the original author to deal with it.

Before you start: Confirm these points first

Confirm the annotation type. The attribute items of highlight, underline, text box and sticky note are different. Notes usually only have adjustable colors and icons, and only text boxes have font size options, so first figure out which one you want to change.
Confirm whether the file is writable. PDFs that are encrypted or set to read-only may not be able to save attribute modifications. You need to obtain editing permissions or ask the sender to provide a modifiable version.
Confirm whether to keep the original. Modifying the attributes will change the file content. It is recommended to save a copy first, for example, name it "Thesis_Annotation Modified Version.pdf" so that you can return to the original copy if an error occurs.
Confirm the attribution of author information. Author name and date indicate who wrote when. There is no problem in changing your own comments, but changing others' comments will distort the record.
Confirm what software the recipient uses to open it. The color and font size may be displayed differently in different readers. Try to open it with a common reader and read it before sending it out.

Steps to modify the color, font size and name of a single comment in the reader

Open the PDF and select the annotation. Click on the comment you want to modify and confirm that it is selected and an edit box or control point appears around it.
Open the comment's properties or style settings. In most readers, after selecting an annotation, you can find the attribute entrance by right-clicking or on the toolbar. The name varies from browser to browser. Just look for the option with the words "Attribute" or "Style".
Modify the color. Choose a high-contrast color from the color picker, such as dark blue or black, to avoid blending with the original highlight color of the page.
Adjust the font size. Text box annotations usually have a font size value, which can be changed directly to smaller or larger sizes. If there is no font size option, it means that the annotation type is not supported and can only be deleted and re-added using the text box.
Modify the author name. Find the author or title field in the properties and rewrite it directly. If there is no such field, go to the reader's preferences or user settings to modify the default user name, and then the newly created annotation will take effect.
Processing time display. Some readers allow turning off the time display in properties or display settings. If you can't find the switch, just use the flattening method below.
Save as new file. Change the file name when saving and keep the original to avoid overwriting.

If you are using the OmniDoc desktop client (available for download at download.omnidoc.top), what its PDF editor can currently do is change paragraph text, sign, fill in forms, black out, page manipulation, OCR, comparison and export. If the annotation content needs to be written into the text, you can directly modify the paragraph text in the editor; if you need to give others a fixed version, you can export it first. The color, font size and author information of the annotation itself are still processed according to the general steps above.

Check each item after completion

Check items	How to see	What to do if there is a problem
Is the color clear?	Zoom in to a common ratio and print preview in black and white to see if you can tell the difference.	If the color is too light, change it to a darker color to avoid being close to the background color.
Is the font size readable?	View with normal display ratio, once on computer and once on mobile phone	If the font is too small, make it bigger; if the content covers the original text, make it smaller appropriately.
Is the author's name correct?	Click on the comment to view the author field in the properties	The old name is still there, which means that only the default settings have been changed and need to be modified one by one.
Whether the time is hidden on demand	Open the copy on another device or another reader	The time is still displayed, indicating that the setting has not taken effect. Use a flattened copy to send instead.
Is the original in good condition?	Compare the number of pages and text content of the original document and the copy	The number of pages or content is inconsistent. Check whether the page has been deleted or modified by mistake.

📊 Core comparison

practice	What can be changed	Can I adjust it again after making the changes?	Suitable for the scene
Modify comment properties	Color, font size, author name (depending on the annotation type)	able	Read and annotate by yourself, you need to adjust the display effect
Delete and then add again	Can be redone in new types and colors	Yes, but the original comment record will disappear	When the annotation type does not support modifying attributes
Export a flattened copy	Comments become page content and no longer carry author and time attributes.	cannot	To send externally, only the final opinion needs to be presented

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. The color of the annotation cannot be changed. Is it a problem with the file?

It may be that the file has read-only or permission restrictions, or it may be that the annotation type does not support color change. First confirm whether you can save a copy, and then try opening it in a different reader.

2. After changing the default user name, why do the old comments still have the original name?

The default username only takes effect for new comments created later. The author information of old comments is written in the comment itself and needs to be modified one by one, or deleted and re-added.

3. The font size option is grayed out, what should I do?

Explanation: This annotation type does not support font size adjustment. Generally, you can only change the color and icon of sticky notes. If you need a different font size, you can delete it and add it again using the text box.

4. Will the information in the file be cleared after the hiding time?

uncertain. Hiding the display is not the same as clearing the file attributes. Before sending sensitive files, it is recommended to check the file attributes and export as a flattened copy if necessary, keeping only the content that needs to be seen by the other party.

📝 Summary

How to change the color, font size and name of pdf annotations? The key is to first determine the annotation type and file permissions, and then adjust them one by one in the properties. Time and author information involve attribution and privacy. Think carefully before making changes, and check with a copy when sending it out.

Open OmniDoc and use the PDF editor to work with your document