How to insert a blank page into a PDF for double-sided printing

If you searched "insert blank page in PDF" because a double-sided printout came out with chapters on the wrong side of the paper, here is the fix. Open the file in our free Organize PDF Pages, tap the ⋯ button on the page just before where the gap should be, choose Insert blank page after, then download. The new page copies the size and orientation of the page before it, and the whole job happens in your browser without uploading the file.

Why double-sided printing needs blank pages

When you print on both sides, page 1 goes on the front of the first sheet, page 2 on its back, page 3 on the front of the second sheet, and so on. So every odd page number lands on a front, and every even one on a back. Once the sheets are bound or stapled, the fronts are the right-hand pages. Printers and publishers call a right-hand page a recto, and in Western-style books it carries an odd page number.

That simple rule causes three everyday problems:

Situation	What goes wrong	Where the blank page goes
Chapters or sections should start on a right-hand page	A chapter that ends on an odd page makes the next one start on the back of the same sheet	After the last page of the chapter that ends on an odd page
Several documents printed in one go, each meant to start on its own sheet	A document with an odd page count makes the next document start on the back of its last sheet	At the end of each document with an odd page count
A folded booklet	Each folded sheet makes four pages, so the total must be a multiple of 4	At the back, 1 to 3 blank pages as needed

Starting each chapter on a right-hand page is a long-standing convention in books, theses and formal reports. It is not compulsory, and fiction often ignores it, but if your college, office or print shop asks for it, blank pages are the way to do it.

Insert blank page in PDF, step by step

1. Open the PDF. Go to Organize PDF Pages and choose the file. Every page appears as a numbered thumbnail.
2. Find the page before the gap. For example, if chapter 2 starts on page 8, the blank page goes after page 7.
3. Insert the blank. Tap or click the page's ⋯ button and choose Insert blank page after. A white page labelled "Blank page" appears right after it, and the numbers after it shift by one.
4. Need one at the very end? Open More options below the pages and choose Add a blank page at the end.
5. Need one at the very start? Insert it after page 1, then drag it to the front or use Move to start in its ⋯ menu.
6. Need several in a row? Insert one, then use Duplicate in its ⋯ menu.
7. Review all blanks. Open Select and choose Blank pages to highlight every blank page you have added.
8. Download. Click Download PDF. The new file has -organized added to its name; the original is not changed.

A worked example

Say you have a 14-page project report. The cover is page 1 and the contents page is page 2. Chapter 1 runs from page 3 to 7, chapter 2 from page 8 to 11, and chapter 3 from page 12 to 14.

• Chapter 1 starts on page 3, an odd page. Fine.
• Chapter 2 would start on page 8, an even page, so on the back of a sheet. Insert a blank page after page 7. Chapter 2 now starts on page 9.
• Chapter 3 has moved too: it now starts on page 13, an odd page. Fine.

The quick rule: work from the front, check each chapter's first page number after the blanks you have already added, and insert a blank only before chapters that would begin on an even page. Each card in the tool shows its current position, so you can read the new numbers straight off the screen.

The document is now 15 pages. For a stapled set that is fine, since the last page simply has an empty back. For a folded booklet you would add one more blank at the end to reach 16, a multiple of 4.

What the inserted page is like

• Same size and orientation as the page it follows. An A4 portrait page gets an A4 portrait blank; a landscape page gets a landscape blank.
• Completely empty. No page number, header or "intentionally left blank" text is added. If you want that wording, add it with the text tool in PDF Studio.
• The rest of the file is untouched. Other pages are copied as they are, so text stays selectable and images keep their quality.

Doing it in PDF Studio

If you are already editing the file in PDF Studio, you don't need to switch tools. Open the Organize pages tab, select the page before the gap and press Blank page. Then carry on adding text, a signature or page numbers, and save everything in one file.

Printing tips

• Choose the right flip. For portrait pages, printers usually call it "flip on long edge" or "long-edge binding"; short-edge flipping turns every back page upside down.
• Turn off any "skip blank pages" option in your printer settings, if it has one. Some printers and print dialogs leave out empty pages, which undoes your work.
• Print a test first. Print the first few sheets double-sided and check that chapter starts land on the front before printing the whole file.
• Combining files? Add the blank pages before or while you combine them. In Organize PDF Pages you can open several PDFs at once and insert blanks between them; PDF Merge joins whole files when no blanks are needed.

Removing blank pages again

If the same file will also be printed on one side only, or read on screen, the blanks just waste paper and scrolling. Keep two copies, or remove them later: select the blank pages and press Delete. For empty pages that came from a scanner rather than from you, see how to remove blank pages from a scanned PDF. To pull out just one chapter as its own file, use Split PDF.

Quick checklist

• Each chapter's first page number checked from the front, after earlier blanks
• Blank inserted after any chapter that ends on an odd page
• Blank added at the end of each odd-length document printed in one job
• Total made a multiple of 4 for a folded booklet
• "Skip blank pages" turned off and long-edge flip chosen for portrait pages
• First few sheets test-printed before the full run