How to Automatically Insert Page Numbers in QuarkXPress

Set up Master Pages of the Document

QuarkXPress is a high-end professional page layout program similar to Adobe InDesign. It has an enormous number of options and capabilities available for complex document construction.

Among its features is the ability to automatically number the document pages in the style you designate when the proper page numbering code is placed on the Master Pages of your document.

In QuarkXPress, Master Pages are like templates for document pages. Anything placed on a Master Page appears on every document page that uses that Master.

These steps apply to QuarkXPress 2019 and 2018, but might also work for older versions.

Set Up Automatic Page Numbers on a QuarkXPress Master Page

Here's how to set up QuarkXPress for automatic page numbering using Master Pages:

  1. Open the Page Layout palette if it isn't already showing: go to Window > Page Layout.

  2. From the Page Layout palette, drag the Blank Single Page icon (the second icon from the left) to the white space just below A-Master A. This will create a new master page called B-Master B.

    A screenshot of QuarkXPress with the Blank Facing Page icon highlighted
  3. Double-click B-Master B to display the new master page in a way that lets you edit it.

  4. Draw two text boxes on the spread using Text Content Tool from the Tools pane. You can position them anywhere you like, but they're typically on a bottom corner.

    A screenshot of QuarkXPress with the text took highlighted
  5. Select one of the text boxes and go to Utilities > Insert Character > Special > Current Box Page #. This will insert a special character that represents the current page.

    A screenshot of QuarkXPress with the Current Box Page # command highlighted
  6. Highlight the character and format it however you like that works best for the page design.

    For example, you might add text or embellishments in front of, behind, or on both sides of the character that represents the page number, or make the number a unique font or size.

    QuarkXPress character customization

    You might have to zoom up to see the character before editing.

  7. Link the text boxes to the automatic text chain. To do that, select Text Linking Tool and then click the broken-link icon on the top left of the page, and then click the text box on the left page, and continue by clicking a blank part of the page and then the broken-link icon on the top of the right page, and finally the text box on the right page.

    A screenshot of QuarkXPress with the Text Link button highlighted
  8. With the text boxes on the master pages now linked to the text chain, double-click B-Master B in the Page Layout palette and change it to B-Body Spread.

    A screenshot of QuarkXPress with a page highlighted
  9. Switch to the layout pages through Page > Display > Layout.

  10. As you work on your document, apply the new spread to the pages so that they reflect the correct automatic numbering sequence. You can do that through Page > Insert; select B-Body Spread.

    Insert pages dialog box in QuarkXPress 2019
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Your Citation
Bear, Jacci Howard. "How to Automatically Insert Page Numbers in QuarkXPress." ThoughtCo, Jul. 30, 2021, thoughtco.com/insert-page-numbers-quarkxpress-1078841. Bear, Jacci Howard. (2021, July 30). How to Automatically Insert Page Numbers in QuarkXPress. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/insert-page-numbers-quarkxpress-1078841 Bear, Jacci Howard. "How to Automatically Insert Page Numbers in QuarkXPress." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/insert-page-numbers-quarkxpress-1078841 (accessed March 28, 2024).