Track Changes in Word: Turn It On, Review, and Accept Edits

In Microsoft Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows, open the Review tab and click Track Changes to record edits; click it again to stop tracking. On a Mac, use Review > Track Changes as well. The feature marks insertions, deletions, and some formatting changes so a reviewer can inspect and accept or reject them.

Where to Find the Track Changes Button

In the desktop version of Word, the Track Changes control is on the Review tab of the ribbon. Look in the Tracking group. Depending on the window size and ribbon layout, the control may appear as a labeled button or as an icon with a drop-down arrow. If you do not see it, maximize the Word window or expand the ribbon, then check the Review tab again.

Word for the web also has a Review tab with a Track Changes control. Its available choices can differ from the desktop app, and the labels may shift as Microsoft updates the interface. The key distinction is the same: Track Changes records future edits; display options determine how existing edits appear on screen.

Track Changes is a document feature, not a general Word setting. Turning it on affects edits made in that document while tracking is active. It does not retroactively mark changes made before it was enabled.

How to Turn Tracking On and Off

To begin recording edits in Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows:

Open the document you want to revise.
Select Review on the ribbon.
Click Track Changes. If a menu opens, choose the command that turns tracking on.
Edit the document. Word marks the changes instead of silently replacing the original text.

Click Track Changes again when you want to stop recording your own subsequent edits. The revisions already recorded remain in the document until someone accepts or rejects them. Turning tracking off is therefore not the same as approving the changes or removing their markup.

On Windows, Ctrl+Shift+E toggles Track Changes. In Word for Mac, the equivalent shortcut is Command+Shift+E. Keyboard shortcuts can be affected by customization or application context, so the Review tab is the dependable way to check the current state. If the shortcut does not seem to work, click the ribbon control and confirm that tracking has changed.

What Word Records

With Track Changes active, Word marks additions and removals. Inserted text is typically underlined or shown in a distinctive color, while deleted text may appear crossed out or in a margin balloon. The precise appearance depends on the current markup view and settings. These visual styles are signals, not part of the document’s ordinary wording.

Word can also mark formatting edits, such as changing a paragraph’s alignment or applying bold. Depending on the document and tracking options, changes to formatting may be shown in balloons or described in the markup. A revision is associated with an author name and time information; the displayed author name is based on Office identity or Word’s user information, and should not be treated as a guaranteed identity check.

For example, if a reviewer changes “The report is due Friday” to “The report is due Thursday,” Word can show the removed word and the replacement. The original wording has not simply vanished from the review record. A recipient can decide whether the change should be accepted, rejected, or left unresolved for later discussion.

Show, Hide, and Filter Markup

The Review tab includes display controls that change how revisions look without deciding their outcome. In desktop Word, use the Display for Review menu to switch among views such as Simple Markup, All Markup, No Markup, and Original. The names may be arranged differently in some versions, but the purpose is to control what is visible.

Simple Markup reduces visual clutter and uses indicators to show where revisions are present.
All Markup shows the recorded insertions, deletions, and other tracked changes in detail.
No Markup displays the document as it would look with revisions applied, but does not accept those revisions.
Original shows the text as it was before the tracked revisions, without deleting the revision history.

This is a common source of confusion: choosing No Markup does not clean the document. It only hides the visible revision marks in that view. A recipient who opens the file can change the view and reveal unresolved revisions. To finalize the text, accept or reject the revisions, then save the document.

Word also lets reviewers narrow which markup is displayed, for example by showing changes from particular reviewers or types of markup. Filtering is useful in a large review, but hiding a reviewer’s changes does not remove them. Before concluding that a file has no pending edits, switch to All Markup and inspect the document.

Accept or Reject Changes

When reviewing, select a revision and use Review > Accept or Review > Reject. Word applies an accepted insertion or deletion to the document’s text; rejecting a revision restores the prior wording or removes the proposed insertion. The exact result depends on what was changed. You can move through revisions one at a time with the navigation commands on the Review tab.

The Accept and Reject controls have menus that can offer options to handle multiple revisions, such as accepting or rejecting all changes. Use an all-changes command only after reviewing the document and confirming that every pending revision should receive the same decision. For a shared draft, accepting everything without inspection can remove a colleague’s proposed deletion or keep text that was meant to be removed.

Comments are separate from tracked changes. Accepting revisions does not automatically resolve or delete comments. Review comments separately, reply where needed, and use the comment controls to resolve or delete them according to the document’s review process.

Tracking Options and Collaboration

Track Changes can be used for your own proofreading or for a group review. When several people edit a shared file, Word can attribute tracked revisions to different names, helping the document owner distinguish suggestions. Each reviewer should check the name shown in Word before editing; shared accounts or generic computer profiles can make attribution unclear.

In desktop Word, the Track Changes menu includes options for controlling how tracking works. Some versions provide a way to lock tracking or require a password to turn it off. This can discourage accidental changes to the tracking state, but it is not a substitute for access controls, a backup, or careful handling of sensitive files. Do not assume a password-based tracking lock makes document contents confidential.

When collaborating through OneDrive or SharePoint, coauthoring and tracked revisions can be used in the same general workflow, but they serve different purposes. Coauthoring allows people to work in a shared file; Track Changes marks proposed edits for review. A document may be shared without tracking, and tracking may be enabled in a document that is not being edited simultaneously. Agree with collaborators on whether to track every edit and who will make final decisions.

Track Changes Compared with Compare Documents

Track Changes records edits as they are made after tracking is enabled. Word’s Compare feature is for identifying differences between two existing versions. If someone edited a copy while tracking was off, you can use Review > Compare > Compare in desktop Word to compare the original and revised documents. Word can create a comparison that presents differences as revisions in a new document.

These tools solve related but different problems. Use Track Changes when you can turn on recording before editing or want reviewers’ future revisions marked. Use Compare when you already have two files and need Word to find their differences. Keep both source files unchanged until you have checked the comparison; selecting the wrong original or revised file can make the result confusing.

Common Problems and Fixes

The button looks off, but revisions still appear: The visible marks may be older unresolved changes. Turning tracking off does not remove them. Use All Markup to inspect, then accept or reject the revisions.
The document looks clean, but a colleague sees edits: You may be viewing No Markup or a filtered view. Switch to All Markup and check that no revisions remain.
New edits are not being marked: Check the Track Changes control on the Review tab. Confirm that tracking was not toggled off, and consider whether the edit is in a part of the document or content control that behaves differently.
The wrong author name appears: Check Word’s account or user information and make sure each reviewer is signed in with the intended identity. Existing markup may keep the name recorded when the edit was made.
There are too many marks to read: Try Simple Markup for a cleaner overview, then use All Markup when you need to inspect the details. Avoid using No Markup as proof that the changes have been finalized.

If a control is missing, check that the document is open in an editable mode rather than a restricted or read-only view. In an organization, permissions or document protection can limit editing. The exact ribbon arrangement can also differ between Word on Windows, Word for Mac, Word for the web, and older releases.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know whether Track Changes is on? Open the Review tab and inspect the Track Changes control; Word’s active state is indicated by the button or menu appearance. Make a small, easily reversible test edit if you need confirmation, then undo it or reject the resulting revision.

Does turning off Track Changes remove existing edits? No. It stops recording new edits but leaves already tracked revisions in the document. Accept or reject those revisions to finalize them.

Does No Markup accept all changes? No. No Markup hides revision marks and shows a clean-looking version of the text. The revisions remain available until accepted or rejected.

Can I use Track Changes in Word for the web? Yes. Word for the web provides tracking controls under the Review tab. Some advanced review and configuration options may differ from the desktop version, so use desktop Word if a control needed for your workflow is unavailable online.

How can I compare two files if tracking was off? In desktop Word, choose Review > Compare > Compare, then select the original and revised documents. Word identifies their differences in a comparison document; inspect the result before accepting any changes.

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

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