# Number a records set without a gap

> Paste your sources and page counts. Get the Bates range for each one, plus warnings for duplicates and overflow.

Source: https://imecore.com/tools/bates-numbering-generator

This tool runs entirely in the browser. Nothing is uploaded and no account is needed.

## How to use it

1. **Set the prefix and start number.** The prefix usually names the party or the file. The start number continues an existing set.
2. **Choose the padding.** Six digits is common. The tool warns you if your total will overflow it.
3. **Paste your sources.** One per line, as source name then page count, separated by a comma.
4. **Copy the index.** Take the table into your bundle, or export it as CSV.

## Why the index matters more than the stamps

When counsel asks what the examiner actually saw, the answer is the index, not the PDF. A source, a date, and a page range for every document is the difference between a five-minute answer and a day of a paralegal's time.

## Common ways numbering goes wrong

The three that recur: a source added late and appended out of order, a page count taken from the PDF viewer rather than the document, and a padding width chosen before anyone knew the file would run past 100,000 pages. The tool flags the third and the first.

## Nothing leaves your browser

You paste source names and page counts, not documents. Even so, remove identifying names before you paste. Use a description like 'GP clinical records' rather than a patient name.

## Questions people ask

### What is Bates numbering?

A sequential number stamped on every page of a document set, so any page can be cited exactly. It is standard in litigation disclosure.

### How many digits should I use?

Six digits covers 999,999 pages and is the common default. Use more only if you know the set will be larger.

### Can I continue an existing set?

Yes. Set the start number to the next unused number and keep the same prefix and padding.

### Does this stamp my PDFs?

No. It produces the ranges and the index. Stamping happens in your document software.