Track Changes in Word: How to Update and Review Edits

To update tracked edits in Word, open the document, go to Review, turn on Track Changes for new edits, then use the review controls to show, accept, or reject existing changes. Save a separate copy first if you may need the original wording. Track Changes records edits; it does not automatically approve them or refresh a document from another source.

What You’ll Need

A Word document that contains tracked changes, or a document where you want to start recording edits.
Microsoft Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows for the steps below. Word for Mac has similar Review controls; notes below explain the main differences.
Editing permission if the document is shared or protected. If you only have read access, ask the owner to grant editing access.

Step-by-Step

Open the document and make a safety copy. In Word, choose File > Save As and save a copy with a clear name, such as Project draft before review. This gives you a fallback before you accept or reject edits, since those decisions change the document text. For a file stored in OneDrive or SharePoint, you can also check its version history, but a separate copy is easy to identify and share.
Check whether tracking is already on. Select the Review tab and look at Track Changes. If the button appears selected or highlighted, Word is recording new edits. If it is not selected, click Review > Track Changes to turn it on. In some Microsoft 365 layouts, the button has a small arrow or menu: use it to choose whether tracking applies to everyone editing the file or only your edits. Choose the option that matches how the document is being reviewed.
Choose how you want to see the existing edits. On the Review tab, open the Display for Review menu. Choose All Markup to see insertions, deletions, formatting changes, and comments as fully as the current Show Markup settings allow. Simple Markup shows a less detailed view, often with a line in the margin where changes occur. No Markup hides the visible revision marks, and Original displays the document as it was before the tracked edits. These display choices do not accept or delete changes; they only change what is shown on screen.
Make sure the relevant kinds of markup are visible. Select Review > Show Markup and check the categories you need, such as Comments, Insertions and Deletions, and Formatting. If changes by a particular reviewer are filtered out, use the same menu’s Specific People option, where available, to select that person’s name. In Word for Mac, use the Review tab’s markup display controls; their arrangement can differ from Windows. A missing change may be hidden by a display filter rather than removed from the file.
Move through the changes one at a time. On Review, use Previous and Next in the Changes group to move between revisions. Read the affected sentence or paragraph in context, not just the colored mark. A deletion may be shown with a strike-through or in a balloon, while an insertion may have an underline or a different color. If the Reviewing Pane is useful, select Review > Reviewing Pane to see a list or summary of revisions. Select an item there to move to its location in the document.
Accept or reject each revision you have reviewed. Click inside a change, or select it in the Reviewing Pane, then choose Review > Accept or Review > Reject. Use the main button to act on the selected change; use its dropdown to see options such as moving to the next change. Accept keeps inserted text and removes deleted text. Reject removes inserted text and restores deleted text. Check the result in the sentence to make sure it reads as intended, especially when a change includes punctuation, formatting, or several words.
Keep tracking on if you are still editing collaboratively. With Track Changes enabled, make your revisions normally. Word will mark your additions, deletions, and some formatting changes so other reviewers can decide what to keep. If you need to make a correction that should not appear as a revision, turn tracking off temporarily using Review > Track Changes, make the change, and turn it back on afterward. Coordinate this with collaborators so they know why an edit may not be marked.
Finish the review and verify the saved document. Review unresolved changes and comments before distributing the file. If the content is approved, you can accept changes individually or use the Accept dropdown for a document-wide option. Only use Accept All Changes when you have authority to approve every pending revision. Turn off Track Changes if you do not want to record further edits; turning it off does not remove existing marks. Save with Ctrl+S on Windows or Command+S on Mac, then reopen or inspect the saved copy and confirm the final text and markup state.

Common Mistakes

Assuming No Markup means the changes are gone. It only hides revision marks in the current view. Switch to All Markup to inspect them, or choose Original to view the earlier text. Do not send a supposedly clean document until you have checked whether revisions remain pending.

Turning off tracking and expecting it to clear old revisions. The Track Changes button controls whether Word records future edits. It does not accept or reject changes already in the document. Review existing revisions separately.

Accepting everything before reading it. A document-wide accept action can keep a typo, an unwanted rewrite, or a change that was meant only as a suggestion. Review high-impact passages and confirm that you are the person responsible for approving the edits.

Editing a tracked change without checking the result. A new edit can alter or add to the marked text, making the revision harder to interpret. Review the whole sentence afterward and, if necessary, reject the original change before making a clearer replacement.

Tips

Use All Markup while reviewing, then use Simple Markup only when the full set of marks makes reading difficult. Display modes are reversible and do not change the underlying revisions.
Review edits in context. Read the paragraph before and after a marked passage to catch changes that affect meaning, references, or agreement.
Agree on a review process with collaborators: who is making suggestions, who approves them, and whether edits should be tracked by everyone or only by the current editor.
Use comments for questions or explanations rather than changing wording when you are not sure what the author intended. Comments and tracked edits are separate, and resolving or deleting a comment does not accept a revision.
If you need to share a clean reading copy while keeping a review record, save a separate copy and decide deliberately whether to accept revisions in that copy. Keep the review version with its markup rather than overwriting it.
On Windows, Ctrl+Shift+E toggles Track Changes in Word. On Mac, the corresponding shortcut is Command+Shift+E. If a shortcut does not work, use the Review tab because keyboard mappings can be customized.

Troubleshooting

Track Changes is unavailable or cannot be switched on: Check whether the document is read-only, opened in Protected View, or restricted by editing permissions. If a yellow security bar appears, enable editing only if you trust the file. For a protected document, ask its owner to remove or adjust the restriction; do not try to bypass it. Also check that the document is open in the desktop Word app if a browser version does not offer the control you need.

You cannot see any revisions: Set Display for Review to All Markup, then open Show Markup and enable the relevant change categories and reviewers. Check that the Reviewing Pane has not been closed or filtered. If the document still appears unchanged, the edits may already have been accepted, or you may have opened an older copy. Compare the file name and location, and check version history if the file is in OneDrive or SharePoint.

New edits are not being marked: Return to Review and confirm Track Changes is on. In a shared document, make sure the selected tracking scope includes your edits rather than only another editor’s changes. Check that you are editing the intended file and have permission to edit it. If necessary, save, close, and reopen the document, then test with a small edit that you can undo.

Changes or colors look different from a colleague’s screen: Word can display revisions with different colors and layouts depending on reviewer, view, and version. That does not necessarily mean the edits differ. Compare the actual text and reviewer names, and use All Markup and the Reviewing Pane to inspect the recorded revisions. If a review control is missing on Mac or Word for the web, look under Review; the ribbon layout and available options vary by platform.

You accepted or rejected the wrong change: If the action was just made, use Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac to undo it, then confirm the revision is back. If you have since made other changes or saved and closed the file, restore the safety copy or an earlier version instead. Avoid making more edits until you have recovered the correct review state.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I update Track Changes in Word?
Turn tracking on from Review > Track Changes to record new edits. To update the status of existing revisions, review them and accept or reject each one. Merely changing the display does not update the revisions.

Can I edit a tracked change after someone else made it?
Yes, if you have editing permission. Your edits may be recorded as additional revisions when tracking is on. For a clear review trail, make the correction carefully and check how Word marks the revised passage.

How do I remove all Track Changes from a document?
To remove revisions from the document text, accept or reject them. Accepting keeps proposed insertions and deletions; rejecting discards them. Turning off tracking or selecting No Markup does not remove pending revisions.

Does accepting a change turn off Track Changes?
No. Accepting a revision resolves that change but does not normally stop Word from recording later edits. Turn off Track Changes separately when you are finished reviewing or no longer want new revisions recorded.

Can I use Track Changes in Word for Mac?
Yes. Open the Review tab and use Track Changes and the review controls there. The buttons may be arranged differently from Word for Windows, and some options can vary by version. The Mac shortcut to toggle tracking is Command+Shift+E.

Can I update revisions in Word for the web?
Word for the web supports basic reviewing and tracking, but some detailed controls may be different or unavailable compared with desktop Word. If you cannot find a needed accept, display, or filtering option, open the document in the Word desktop app and use the Review tab.

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