---
title: "Retrieve or set annotation bounding box on Android | Nutrient"
canonical_url: "https://www.nutrient.io/guides/android/annotations/position-and-size/"
md_url: "https://www.nutrient.io/guides/android/annotations/position-and-size.md"
last_updated: "2026-06-18T07:25:36.428Z"
description: "Discover how to use bounding boxes in annotations effectively. Enhance your data visualization and improve accuracy with our comprehensive guide."
---

# Retrieve or set the annotation bounding box on Android

When working with PDF annotations, you’ll quickly come across a property called the bounding box. This article provides an overview of bounding boxes and their corresponding rects.

A bounding box is the rectangular area that surrounds an annotation. It’s represented by four attributes that are used to calculate the rectangle’s position and size in PDF page coordinates.

## Accessing the bounding box

Each annotation has a size and a position, known as the annotation’s bounding box. To access the bounding box, call [`Annotation#getBoundingBox`](https://www.nutrient.io/api/android/nutrient/com.pspdfkit.annotations/-annotation/get-bounding-box.html). This will return a [`RectF`](http://developer.android.com/reference/android/graphics/RectF.html) instance, which holds the annotation’s size and position in PDF coordinates:

### KOTLIN

```kotlin

Log.d(TAG, "The annotation sits at coordinates [${annotation.boundingBox.left}, " +
    "${annotation.boundingBox.bottom}].")

Log.d(TAG, "The annotation is " +
    "${annotation.boundingBox.width()} x ${annotation.boundingBox.height()} PDF points large.")

```

### JAVA

```java

final RectF boundingBox = annotation.getBoundingBox();

Log.d(TAG, String.format("The annotation sits at coordinates [%f, %f].",
    boundingBox.left, boundingBox.bottom));

Log.d(TAG, String.format("The annotation is %f x %f PDF points large.",
    boundingBox.width(), boundingBox.height()));

```

## Calculating screen coordinates

The bounding box returned by [`Annotation#getBoundingBox`](https://www.nutrient.io/api/android/nutrient/com.pspdfkit.annotations/-annotation/get-bounding-box.html) is in the PDF coordinate space. If your app needs screen coordinates, convert the bounding box using the [coordinate conversion API](https://www.nutrient.io/../../../faq/coordinate-spaces):

### KOTLIN

```kotlin

// Retrieve a copy of the annotation's current bounding box.
val boundingBox = annotation.boundingBox

// After conversion, the `boundingBox` will be in screen coordinates.
fragment.convertPdfRectToViewRect(boundingBox, annotation.pageIndex)

Log.d(TAG, "The annotation's screen size is " +
    " ${boundingBox.width().toInt()} x ${boundingBox.height().toInt()} pixels")

```

### JAVA

```java

// Retrieve a copy of the annotation's current bounding box.
final RectF boundingBox = annotation.getBoundingBox();

// After conversion, the `boundingBox` will be in screen coordinates.
fragment.convertPdfRectToViewRect(boundingBox, annotation.getPageIndex());

Log.d(TAG, String.format("The annotation's screen size is %d x %d pixels",
    (int) boundingBox.width(), (int) boundingBox.height());

```

Since [`Annotation#getBoundingBox`](https://www.nutrient.io/api/android/nutrient/com.pspdfkit.annotations/-annotation/get-bounding-box.html) returns a copy of the annotation’s bounding box, you have to call [`Annotation#setBoundingBox`](https://www.nutrient.io/api/android/nutrient/com.pspdfkit.annotations/-annotation/set-bounding-box.html) again if you want to modify its value. See the next section for more information on correctly altering the bounding box.

## Changing the bounding box

To change the annotation’s bounding box, call [`Annotation#setBoundingBox`](https://www.nutrient.io/api/android/nutrient/com.pspdfkit.annotations/-annotation/set-bounding-box.html) and provide a [`RectF`](http://developer.android.com/reference/android/graphics/RectF.html) instance holding the desired size and position (in PDF coordinates). You can safely reuse the existing bounding box instance in this situation:

### KOTLIN

```kotlin

// Retrieve the current bounding box from the annotation.
val boundingBox = annotation.boundingBox

// Move the bounding box 100 points up.
boundingBox.offset(0, -100)

// Write the new position back to the annotation.
annotation.boundingBox = boundingBox

// Make the changes visible on the screen.
fragment.notifyAnnotationHasChanged(annotation)

```

### JAVA

```java

// Retrieve the current bounding box from the annotation.
final RectF boundingBox = annotation.getBoundingBox();

// Move the bounding box 100 points up.
boundingBox.offset(0, -100);

// Write the new position back to the annotation.
annotation.setBoundingBox(boundingBox);

// Make the changes visible on the screen.
fragment.notifyAnnotationHasChanged(annotation);

```

> **❗Important:** If you forget to call [`Annotation#setBoundingBox`](https://www.nutrient.io/api/android/nutrient/com.pspdfkit.annotations/-annotation/set-bounding-box.html), your changes to the bounding box won’t be applied, meaning they can’t be rendered or saved back to the document.
---

## Related pages

- [Supported PDF annotation Types on Android](/guides/android/annotations/introduction-to-annotations/annotation-types.md)
- [Choosing the right annotation format for Android](/guides/android/annotations/introduction-to-annotations/data-formats.md)
- [What are PDF annotations?](/guides/android/annotations/introduction-to-annotations/what-are-annotations.md)