What settings work well for a "DRAFT" stamp?

Center position, a 45° rotation, moderate size, and low opacity (roughly 20-30%) is a common combination.

My watermark is too bold and covers the text. What should I change?

Lower the opacity slider. You can also reduce the size if the watermark is too large relative to the page.

Why did my watermark move after I rotated it?

Rotation pivots around the watermark's placement point rather than its visual center, so corner positions can shift more noticeably than center placement when rotated.

Does size scale the same way on every PDF?

Size is calculated relative to each page's dimensions, so the same setting looks proportionally consistent across PDFs of different sizes.

Can I preview the watermark before downloading?

Adjust the controls and the labels update immediately to reflect your settings; the final stamped result appears in the downloaded PDF.

Illustration of watermark position markers at the corners and center of a PDF page with an opacity slider

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Watermark PDF: Position, Opacity, and Size Explained

Watermark PDF gives you four controls that work together — position, opacity, rotation, and size — and getting a legible result usually means balancing all four rather than maxing any one of them out.

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Position

Choose center or one of the four corners. A center placement (often combined with rotation) suits a full-page "DRAFT" or "CONFIDENTIAL" stamp, while a corner placement suits a smaller logo or attribution mark that shouldn't interfere with body content.

Opacity

Lower opacity keeps the underlying text and images readable through the watermark. A common pattern for document stamps is a low opacity (around 20-30%) combined with a large, centered, diagonally rotated watermark — visible but not distracting.

Rotation and size

A 45° rotation is a common choice for diagonal document stamps like "DRAFT". Size scales the watermark relative to the page, so the same setting produces a proportionally consistent result across PDFs with different page dimensions.

Rotation pivots around the watermark's placement point, so large rotation angles combined with corner positions can shift the watermark visually — center placements are more predictable for rotated watermarks.

Watermark Position & Opacity FAQ

What settings work well for a "DRAFT" stamp?: Center position, a 45° rotation, moderate size, and low opacity (roughly 20-30%) is a common combination.
My watermark is too bold and covers the text. What should I change?: Lower the opacity slider. You can also reduce the size if the watermark is too large relative to the page.
Why did my watermark move after I rotated it?: Rotation pivots around the watermark's placement point rather than its visual center, so corner positions can shift more noticeably than center placement when rotated.
Does size scale the same way on every PDF?: Size is calculated relative to each page's dimensions, so the same setting looks proportionally consistent across PDFs of different sizes.
Can I preview the watermark before downloading?: Adjust the controls and the labels update immediately to reflect your settings; the final stamped result appears in the downloaded PDF.

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