How to set odd and even pages to one left and one right for PDF page numbers?

Key points of this article

Odd and even pages, one on the left and one on the right, means that the page numbers of the odd pages are on the lower right and the even pages are on the lower left. The page numbers are on the outside of the book, which facilitates double-sided reading and binding.
When you have source files such as Word, you should set different footers for odd and even pages in the source file, and then export the PDF to ensure stability.
When there is only PDF, you can use the PDF editor of the OmniDoc desktop client to export to Word, set the page number and re-export the PDF.
After exporting, turn to pages 2 and 3 to check the page number position, and check whether charts, formulas, and page margins are deviated due to conversion.

If you want to print a double-sided report, paper or manual and want the odd-numbered pages to be numbered in the lower right corner and the even-numbered pages to be numbered in the lower left corner, which is often said to be "one on the left and one on the right", this article is for you. Many people directly look for the "Odd and Even Page Numbering" setting in PDF, but cannot find the corresponding option. So they try again and again, and the result is that the page numbers are either all on one side, or in a disordered position.

The root of the problem is that odd and even page numbers are usually set during the document generation stage: the typesetting software applies different footer layouts depending on the odd and even oddities of the page. PDF is a fixed layout after export, and the page numbers have been "painted" on the page. Therefore, the solution is generally to go back to the source file settings, or restore the PDF to an editable document first, then re-export it after setting it up.

After reading this article, you will be able to determine which path you should take, follow the steps to complete the setting of odd and even page numbers, and know where to check after exporting.

How to set one left and one right for odd and even pages? One sentence conclusion

One sentence conclusion: If you can get the source file, set different footers for odd and even pages in the source file, and then export it to PDF; if there is only PDF, convert it to Word for processing first. The table below lists common situations.

your situation	Recommended practices	reason
Have source files such as Word in hand	Enable odd and even pages in the source file to use different layouts, set footers respectively, and then export to PDF	The page number is generated with the page, the position is accurate, and subsequent changes are easy to make.
Only PDF, the document is not long and the page numbers need to be changed	Use the desktop client's PDF editor to export to Word, and then re-export the PDF after setting it up.	The PDF editor supports exporting Word and can set page numbers in the text version of the document.
Scanned PDF	First use OCR to recognize text, and then export it to Word for processing.	The scanned document itself is a picture, and the page number cannot be modified in the document without first identifying it.
Page numbering rules need to be applied to some pages	First use page operations to split the files, process them separately and then merge them	When only adjusting partial pages, splitting and merging can reduce the impact on other pages.

It should be noted that OmniDoc's PDF editor currently provides functions such as modifying paragraph text, signatures, filling out forms, blackening, page operations, OCR, comparison and export, and does not have a separate "odd and even page number" setting item. Therefore, page numbering rules must be completed by "source file settings" or "settings after converting to Word".

Before you start: Confirm these points first

Before taking action, take a few minutes to confirm the following things, which can save you a lot of detours.

Confirm the specific requirements of "one left and one right". The page numbers of odd-numbered pages are on the lower right, and the even-numbered pages are on the lower left. The page numbers are on the outside, corresponding to the blank space on the inside when binding. If you plan to bind it into a book, also check how wide you want to leave on the binding side.
Confirm if there is an editable source file. If you have Word or other editable documents, set it in the source file first. The PDF exported in this way has a clean layout, and subsequent modifications do not require repeated conversions.
Confirm whether the cover and table of contents are included in the page numbers. It is common practice for the cover to not show page numbers and for the main text to start counting from page 1. If there is no advance planning, it will be troublesome to adjust the starting number after exporting.
Confirm file type. Digital PDF can be directly exported to Word; scanned PDF requires OCR first. The steps to deal with the two situations are different and must be distinguished first.
Confirm page margins. Odd and even pages have page numbers on the outside, which means the left and right margins are symmetrical and mirrored. If the margins are wrong, the page numbers will be too close to the edge or squeeze into the binding area.

Steps to set odd and even page numbers in source files

This section applies to situations where you have editable source files such as Word. The menu names of different software are slightly different. Only common operations are described below.

Open the source document, and in the page settings or header and footer settings, turn on options such as "Use different layouts for odd and even pages".
Enter the footer editing area of odd-numbered pages and set the page number to right-aligned so that it appears in the lower right corner.
Enter the footer editing area of even-numbered pages and set the page number to left-aligned so that it appears in the lower left corner.
If the cover or table of contents does not require page numbers, first set up sections between them and the main text, and then let the main text page numbers start counting from 1.
Check the page numbers on the first and last pages to make sure there are no omissions or duplications.
Save the document and export it as PDF. When exporting, select PDF format and do not change to other formats.
Open the exported PDF and read it page by page to confirm that the page number position meets the requirements.

If you have a Word file in hand but need to continue editing on the web page, you can open it in the UniDoc web page editor (app.unidoc.top), which supports Word-compatible editing, but the final setting of the page number is still subject to your version.

When there is only PDF, use OmniDoc to convert it to Word and then set it

If you only have a PDF and no source file, you can use OmniDoc to restore the PDF to an editable document first, set the page numbers, and then export the PDF.

Open the PDF file in the desktop client and enter the PDF editor. If it is not installed yet, you can download it from download.omnidoc.top.
If it is a scanned PDF, first use the OCR function to recognize the text so that the text on the page can be selected and edited.
Export PDF to Word format.
Open the exported Word file and check whether the paragraphs, tables, pictures and formulas are complete.
In Word, follow the method in the previous section to set different footers for odd and even pages, and insert page numbers at the bottom right of odd pages and the bottom left of even pages.
Save the file and export to PDF.
View the exported PDF and confirm the page number position and layout effect page by page.

If you only need to adjust the page numbers on a few pages, you can also use page operations to split the file first, process the parts that need to be modified separately, and then merge them back into the complete file. This reduces the impact on other pages.

Check each item after completion

After getting the results, it is recommended to check them one by one according to the table below. When you find a problem, you can mostly go back to the source file or Word file to make adjustments and then export it again.

Check items	How to see	What to do if there is a problem
Odd and even page positions	Turn to pages 2 and 3 and see if the page numbers on even-numbered pages are on the lower left and on odd-numbered pages on the lower right	Go back to the source file, check the different settings for odd and even pages, and adjust the footer alignment respectively
Start of page number	Look at the numbers displayed on the first page of the text to see if they comply with your counting rules.	Adjust the section or starting number and re-export
Complete layout	Check whether tables, pictures, and formulas are misplaced or missing	There may be layout deviations when converting from PDF to Word. It is recommended to manually correct it in Word and re-export it.
Accurate writing	Randomly check a few paragraphs of text to see if there are any garbled characters or sentence segmentation errors.	Please check the important contents of the scanned copy against the original. The results of machine translation or OCR also require manual review
page margins	Check whether there is enough space on the binding side and whether the page numbers are close to the edge	Adjust the margins and re-export, and check the page number position again

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. What is the difference between odd and even page numbers and centered page numbers?

For odd-even page numbers, the page numbers are placed in the lower right and lower left respectively, and the page number position changes with the parity of the page; if the page number is centered, all pages are in the middle. Documents printed on both sides and bound in a volume are generally better suited to odd-even page numbers.

2. Should the cover and table of contents be included in the page number?

This depends on the document usage. Common practice is to not display page numbers on the cover, use Roman numerals for the table of contents, and start counting from 1 in the text. You can use sections in the source file to distinguish them.

3. Can the odd and even page numbers be directly set for the scanned PDF?

Each page of the scanned PDF is essentially a picture, and the page number cannot be modified directly. Usually you need to use OCR to recognize the text, convert it into an editable Word file, then set the page number and re-export it. Please check the important content after identification.

4. What should I do if the page numbers are off after exporting PDF?

First check whether the different settings for odd and even pages in the source file are turned on, and then check whether the footer alignment of odd and even pages is opposite. If there are deviations after converting from PDF to Word, you can manually correct them in Word and then export again.

📝 Summary

The key to having odd and even pages numbered on the left and right is to set different layouts for odd and even pages during the document generation stage. If there is a source file, set it directly and then export the PDF; if there is only PDF, first use OmniDoc to convert it to Word for processing, set it up and then export it, and check it page by page.

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