Number text lines

Add a running number to the start of every line, with your own starting value and separator. Blank lines are numbered too, and there is no zero padding.

Output
1.

What to know

This operation puts a counter in front of every line, starting from the First number field and followed by the text in the Number separator field. The defaults are 1 and a period plus a space, so milk, eggs and bread become 1. milk, 2. eggs and 3. bread.

Every line receives a number, including blank ones. A list of milk, a blank line and bread with a start of 10 and a bracket-plus-space separator gives 10) milk, then 11) followed by a space, then 12) bread. Remove empty lines first when you do not want numbers on gaps.

The starting value is read as a whole number: 2.9 becomes 2, and a value of 0 or something that is not a number falls back to 1. No padding is added, so 9. and 10. do not line up in a monospaced view, and in that case a separator with extra spaces can compensate by hand.

Typical uses are numbering the steps of a script, giving each line of a transcript a reference for review comments, or creating a numbered shopping list before pasting it into a message. The separator can be anything, such as a colon, a tab-like run of spaces or a dash.

Choose a specific task 10
Related tools 4
How to use Number text lines
  1. Paste your lines, for instance five steps of a procedure, into the Text input box.
  2. Set First number to 1, or to 6 if these lines continue an earlier list that ended at 5.
  3. Change Number separator from the default period and space to a bracket and space if you prefer 1) style.
  4. Copy the numbered list from the Output panel and paste it into your document.

Quick answers

Are blank lines numbered as well?

Yes, every line gets a number, which can leave an entry with a number and no text. Use remove empty lines first to avoid that.

Can I start numbering at 0?

Not directly, since a value of 0 falls back to 1. Start at 1 and subtract one when you use the numbers, or number from 1 and edit the first line.

How do I get numbers like 01, 02, 03?

There is no zero padding. One workaround is to number normally, then use find and replace to add 0 in front of single-digit entries.

What happens if I type 3.7 as the first number?

The value is rounded down to a whole number, so numbering starts at 3.