Compare Documents in Word: See Every Change

To compare two versions of a document in Microsoft Word, open Word and choose Review > Compare > Compare, select the original and revised files, then click OK. Word creates a separate comparison document that marks additions, deletions, and other differences, leaving both source files unchanged. You’ll need access to both versions and the desktop version of Word for the comparison feature.

What You’ll Need

Two Word documents: One should be the earlier version (the original) and the other the later version (the revised document). They can be DOCX files or other formats Word can open.
Microsoft Word for desktop: The instructions below are for Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows. Word for Mac has a similar Compare feature, though the ribbon layout can vary. Word for the web does not provide the full document-comparison command; open the files in the desktop app.
Permission to open the files: If a document is password-protected, restricted, or stored in a location you cannot access, resolve that first. Save a working copy if you need to preserve the originals exactly.

Step-by-Step

Identify which file is original and which is revised. The original should be the earlier version, and the revised document should be the one you want to check against it. If the filenames are unclear, open each file and check its date, title, or version notes. This matters because Word uses these roles to label inserted and deleted content in the comparison.
Open the Compare command. In Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows, open Word and select the Review tab. In the Compare group, select Compare, then choose Compare from the menu. Depending on the ribbon width or Word build, the command may appear as Compare Documents or Compare…. If you do not see it, expand the ribbon or look in the Review tab rather than the Home tab.
Choose the two documents. In the Compare Documents dialog, use the file or folder buttons beside Original document and Revised document to browse to the files. Check each filename and make sure the earlier version is in Original and the later version is in Revised. You can also select a document already open in Word from the corresponding list, if it appears there.
Set labels for the changes. In the Label changes with box, enter a short label such as a reviewer’s name or a version date. This label helps identify the comparison’s markup; it does not change the source documents. Use a meaningful label if you expect to compare several versions or share the result with someone else.
Review the comparison options. Select More in the dialog to show additional settings. Word can compare items such as text, formatting, comments, tables, headers and footers, footnotes and endnotes, text boxes, fields, and whitespace. Leave relevant categories selected. Turn off categories that would create distracting markup—for example, formatting if you only care about wording. The available options can vary slightly by Word version.
Choose how Word checks text and displays the result. Under Show changes at, choose Word level for changes grouped by word or Character level for fine-grained edits within words. Under Show changes in, choose New document to keep the comparison separate from both source files. This is usually the safest choice. The other display locations put the result into one of the source documents, so use them only when that is what you intend.
Run the comparison. Select OK. Word creates a comparison document showing differences as tracked changes. Depending on your display settings, inserted text may be underlined or shown in a color, and deleted text may appear crossed out or in balloons. The exact appearance depends on your markup settings and Word version.
Read the result and inspect each change. Review the comparison document from beginning to end. Use the navigation controls in the Review tab, such as Previous and Next in the Changes group, to move between revisions. Look at the surrounding sentences, not just the highlighted text: a small wording change can alter a sentence’s meaning, and moved material may be easier to understand in context.
Choose whether to keep or reject changes in the comparison copy. If you want to turn the comparison into a clean final document, select individual revisions and choose Accept or Reject on the Review tab. You can also use the menu on either button to accept or reject all changes, but do that only after checking the result. Save the reviewed file with a new name so it is clear that it is the comparison or final copy.
Save the comparison separately. Use File > Save As and choose a descriptive filename, such as Contract comparison – 3 November. If you need an easy-to-share record, export a PDF from the comparison document, but retain the editable Word file if reviewers still need to respond to tracked changes.

On Word for Mac: Open the desktop app, select the Review tab, and look for Compare or Compare Documents. Select the same original and revised files and review the available options before running the comparison. The command’s placement and dialog wording can differ between Mac releases. Word for the web may let you view or edit tracked changes, but use the desktop app to create the comparison.

Common Mistakes

Reversing the original and revised files. Word can still produce a comparison, but additions and deletions may be described in the opposite direction from what you expect. Confirm the filenames and dates in the dialog before selecting OK.
Comparing the wrong copies. Files with names like “final,” “final2,” or “latest” are easy to mix up. Open the files first, confirm their contents, and consider renaming copies with dates or version numbers before comparing.
Editing a source instead of the comparison. If you choose to show changes in the original or revised document, the result is placed in that selected file. Choose New document when you want to leave both sources untouched.
Assuming every visual difference is a content change. Formatting, whitespace, comments, and layout elements can all create markup. Check the selected comparison options and remember that pagination can shift even when the wording has not changed.
Accepting all revisions without checking them. Accept All can remove the visible change history and keep wording you have not reviewed. Inspect the marked-up text first, particularly in legal, technical, or policy documents.
Expecting the comparison to explain why something changed. Word identifies differences, not the author’s intention. A reviewer still needs to decide whether an edit is correct and whether it should be kept.

Tips

Use Word-level comparison for ordinary editing. It groups a changed word or phrase into readable edits. Character-level comparison is useful when you need to see a small spelling, punctuation, or number change, but it can produce more detailed markup.
Limit the categories to your goal. For a copy-editing review, focus on text and perhaps comments. For a layout or template check, include formatting and relevant structural elements. Reducing unrelated categories makes the result easier to scan.
Save the comparison before making decisions. The new document is a working record of the differences. Saving it first gives you a reference point before accepting, rejecting, or adding comments.
Use the Reviewing Pane for a compact list. On the Review tab, open the Reviewing Pane if it is available in your build. It lists revisions and can make it easier to move through a long document than searching visually for every mark.
Keep a clear version trail. Include dates or version numbers in the source and result filenames. If several people will review the file, put the comparison label in the dialog and explain which version is the baseline.
Check both markup and clean reading view. Use the display options in the Review tab to change how markup is shown, but do not mistake hidden markup for removed changes. If you need a final clean copy, accept or reject the revisions deliberately and save that copy under a separate name.

Troubleshooting

The Compare command is missing or unavailable. Confirm that you are using the desktop version of Word, not Word in a browser. Select the Review tab and expand the ribbon if it is collapsed. If your organization manages Office settings, an administrator may also limit available commands. On Mac, check the Review tab for a Compare command; its location can differ from Windows.

Word says it cannot open a file. Open each source document separately to check whether it is damaged, password-protected, or in an unsupported format. If it opens in another application or an older format, use File > Save As in Word to save a DOCX copy, then compare those copies. Make sure you have permission to access the folder or cloud location.

The result shows too many changes. Run the comparison again and use More to turn off categories you do not need, such as formatting, whitespace, or comments. Also try Word level instead of character-level comparison for a clearer view of ordinary text edits.

Some changes seem to be missing. Check that the correct files were selected and that the relevant categories were enabled. Also inspect the markup display: changes may be hidden by the current view or appear in balloons rather than inline. If one source already contains tracked changes, accept or reject those revisions in a copy before comparing, or carefully compare the resulting markup with the original files.

The comparison is hard to read or shows unexpected layout shifts. Switch between the available markup display options on the Review tab, widen the Word window, or open the Reviewing Pane. Page breaks can move when text is added or removed; compare the actual content and formatting rather than relying only on page numbers.

You accidentally changed a source document. If the file is still open and the edit is recent, use Undo where appropriate. If you saved over a source, check Word’s version history if the file is stored in OneDrive or SharePoint, or restore a backup. To avoid this problem next time, choose New document in the comparison dialog and work from copies.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Word compare two documents automatically?
Yes. Use Review > Compare > Compare, choose the original and revised documents, and select OK. Word generates a marked-up comparison; you still need to review the changes and decide what to keep.

Will comparing documents change either original file?
Not if you choose New document under Show changes in. Word creates a separate result. Save that result under a new name to preserve a clear distinction between the source files and the comparison.

Can I compare documents in Word Online?
The Word web app does not include the full Compare Documents command. Open the files in the desktop version of Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows or Mac, run the comparison there, then save the result to a location you can access.

What is the difference between Word-level and character-level comparison?
Word-level comparison groups changes by word, which is generally easier to read for sentence edits. Character-level comparison marks smaller differences inside words and is helpful for checking spelling, punctuation, or small numeric edits.

Can Word compare PDFs?
Word may be able to open and convert a PDF into an editable Word document, but the conversion can affect layout or formatting. Convert each PDF to a Word file, check the converted text, and then compare the DOCX copies. For visually complex PDFs, inspect the pages as well as the comparison markup.

Can I compare more than two versions at once?
The Compare command compares two documents at a time. To follow several versions, compare them in sequence—for example, compare version 2 against version 1, then version 3 against version 2—and save each result with a clear filename. This keeps each set of changes tied to the correct pair of versions.

Try it: the Date Difference Calculator: days, months, years and weekdays between two dates, with the DATEDIF formulas.

More in How-to basics

Sources: Function behaviour and menu paths: Microsoft Support documentation for Excel. Method & sources

Spotted an error in this guide? Let us know.