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How to Bates Number Mixed Document Productions: PDFs, Scans, Photos & Drawings

Upload a mixed production containing standard PDFs, supported Word documents, scanned PDFs, supported images, photographs, and PDF drawings with varied page sizes while maintaining one continuous Bates sequence across the entire set.

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Quick notes
Tip: Many PDF tools can stamp page numbers, but legal and production workflows often need consistent Bates prefixes, padding, placement, and sequence control.

Step-by-step

Step 1
Gather the PDFs, supported Word documents, scanned PDFs, supported images, photographs, PDF drawings, and other supported production files that belong in the same Bates sequence.
Step 2
Upload the supported files individually or use a ZIP document set when preserving folders and production organization is useful.
Step 3
Review document order before numbering so the Bates sequence follows the intended production from beginning to end.
Step 4
Choose one starting number, prefix, padding, placement, and formatting standard for the production.
Step 5
Preview representative documents and page types, then generate the final Bates-numbered output and verify the completed range.

See the workflow in action

Prefer to see how this works in practice? Here’s a quick walkthrough showing how Bates numbering is applied across real PDF files, including setup, preview, and final output.

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This walkthrough demonstrates a real workflow with multiple PDFs, ZIP uploads, continuous numbering, and production-ready output.

You can apply the same workflow to your own documents in just a few steps.

Try this workflow on your own files

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Files deleted per retention policy • No software install • Pricing shown before checkout • Built for legal document workflows

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Common mistakes to avoid

Assuming every document has the same page characteristics
Mixed productions may contain portrait pages, landscape pages, scans, photographs, and oversized PDF drawings, so a setup that looks good on one document should be checked against other representative page types.
Flattening the production into one large PDF unnecessarily
Separate documents can remain separate while sharing one continuous Bates sequence, and ZIP uploads can preserve useful folder organization.
Previewing only the first document
The first PDF may not represent the scans, images, drawings, rotated pages, or unusual page sizes that appear later in the production.

FAQ

Can one Bates-numbering job contain different types of documents?
Yes. BatesNumbers can process productions containing multiple PDFs, supported Word documents, and supported image formats, including mixed document sets uploaded individually or inside ZIP files.
Can scans, photos, and normal PDFs share one continuous Bates sequence?
Yes. The production can contain different document and page types while maintaining one continuous Bates numbering sequence across the ordered set.
What if some PDFs contain oversized drawings or unusual page sizes?
Mixed page dimensions can be handled within the production. Preview representative page types before final processing so Bates placement and formatting can be reviewed before the full job is finalized.