PDF bookmarks and outline
A clickable outline to navigate your long documents.
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How to add or edit a PDF’s bookmarks, step by step
This tool reads the bookmarks already present in a PDF and shows them as an editable list, to build or fix the document’s navigation outline.
Drop your PDF
Drag the file in, or click to browse for it. Any existing bookmarks appear straight away in the list.
Add a bookmark
Click “Add a bookmark”: a new entry is placed at the end of the list, with a title and a target page to fill in.
Set the title, page and level of each entry
The text field holds the title, the number field the target page; the left and right arrows lower or raise an entry by one level, to nest a subheading under a heading.
Reorder the list if needed
The up and down arrows move an entry within the list; the cross deletes it.
Click “Save bookmarks”
VellumPDF rewrites the document’s bookmark tree and offers it for download.
A title left empty when you save is automatically replaced with the generic name “New bookmark”, so no invisible line appears in the navigation panel.
Frequently asked questions
How do I create a clickable outline in a PDF that has none?
A document with no bookmarks starts from an empty list: add your own entries, each with a title and the page it points to, until you have a clickable outline.
Can I edit a PDF’s existing bookmarks, not just create new ones?
Yes, every bookmark can be renamed, pointed at another page, indented one level, moved or deleted; the document’s text, images and fonts stay untouched.
Does editing a PDF’s bookmarks send the document to a server?
No, reading and writing the bookmarks both happen on your own device; the document is never sent to a server, and the tool is free.
What is the difference between bookmarks and a table of contents?
Bookmarks live in the reader’s side panel: they are there to navigate, but they do not print and do not appear in the document. A table of contents is a real page added to the file, printed with the rest. The two complement each other, and VellumPDF has a tool for each.
Can I create sub-levels in the bookmarks?
Yes. Each entry carries an indent level, and an indented entry becomes the child of the one above it. That is how you build a hierarchy — parts, chapters, sections — which the reader shows as a collapsible tree.
Why do some imported bookmarks point to the first page?
Because their destination cannot be read in the source file: a purely decorative bookmark, an external link, or a target broken by the program that produced the PDF. Rather than lose the title, VellumPDF keeps it and points it at the first page. You can then fix the target page by hand.