Marking Drafts and Review Copies with DRAFT to Avoid Version Mix-ups

Published: Oct 19, 2026 | Updated: Oct 19, 2026 | About (Japanese)

Key points

Put "DRAFT" or "Proposal" on every page
Put the version and date in the file name too
Use the unwatermarked original for the final

Drafts of reports, review copies of proposals and proposed club rules are easy to confuse with the final version.

Distinguish with a watermark

In Add a Text Watermark to PDF, add "DRAFT", "Proposal" or "For review".
Diagonal, gray, on every page, it is recognizable at a glance.
Tell reviewers that "the watermarked one is for review".

Distinguish by file name too

Include the version and date, such as "Proposal_draft_20261020.pdf".
Watermarked PDFs automatically get "_watermark" added. Rename it when saving if needed.

When making the final version

A watermark cannot be removed afterwards. Make the final from the unwatermarked original.
Always keep the original separately.

When circulating

After review is done, delete old versions or move them to another folder.
When emailing, say "for review" in the message too.

Summary of the flow

Turn the original into a PDF.
Add the watermark to make the review copy.
Circulate the review copy.
Revise and fix the original file.
Make the final as a PDF without a watermark.

Combining several review documents

To combine several review documents into one, you can use Merge PDFs.

Use "Add a Text Watermark to PDF" (free)

Tools that go well with this

Add Page Numbers to PDF: Add page numbers to a PDF, choosing position and style.
Compress PDF: Shrink a PDF to fit under a size you choose, for upload limits.
Merge PDFs: Combine several PDF files into one, in the order you choose.

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