How to Compare Documents in Word

To compare two documents in Microsoft Word, go to the Review tab, click Compare, and choose Compare again. Pick the Original document and the Revised document, then click OK. Word creates a new document that shows every difference as a tracked change: insertions, deletions, formatting changes, and moved text. You can then accept or reject each one. This guide covers the comparison settings, combining copies from several reviewers, and reviewing the results.

How to compare two versions

1. Open Word. You don’t need either document open first.
2. Go to Review > Compare > Compare.
3. Under Original document, click the folder icon and choose the older version.
4. Under Revised document, choose the newer version.
5. In Label changes with, type a name, such as the author of the revised version.
6. Click OK.

Word opens a new window with three panes: the compared document with tracked changes in the middle, a list of revisions on the left, and the original and revised documents on the right. Your two source files are not changed.

Choose what Word compares

In the Compare dialog, click More to see the settings:

• Comparison settings: tick or untick items such as formatting, case changes, white space, tables, headers and footers, comments, and moves. Untick Formatting if you only care about wording.
• Show changes at: Word level highlights whole words, which is easier to read. Character level shows single-letter changes.
• Show changes in: choose to show the result in a new document (recommended), the original, or the revised document.

Review the differences

1. Click in the compared document and use Review > Next (in the Changes group) to jump between changes.
2. Click Accept or Reject for each change, or use the drop-downs to accept or reject all.
3. Save the compared document under a new name.

To control how changes are displayed, use Review > Display for Review and choose All Markup, Simple Markup, or No Markup. See how to use Track Changes in Word.

Combine edits from several reviewers

If you sent the same document to several people and each edited their own copy:

1. Go to Review > Compare > Combine.
2. Choose the original and one reviewer’s copy, then click OK.
3. Save the combined result, then repeat Combine with that result and the next reviewer’s copy.

Each reviewer’s changes are labeled with their name, so you can see who changed what.

Compare documents in Word for Mac

The steps are the same: Review > Compare > Compare Documents. If you’re using Word for the web and don’t see Compare, open the files in the desktop app, which has the full feature.

Tips

• Accept or reject tracked changes in the originals first. If either file already contains tracked changes, Word treats them as accepted for the comparison and warns you.
• Compare PDFs by converting them. Open each PDF in Word (File > Open), let Word convert it, save as .docx, then compare. Layout may shift, but the text comparison works.
• Use version history for cloud files. For documents in OneDrive or SharePoint, File > Info > Version History lets you open an older version and compare it with the current one.

Troubleshooting

Compare is greyed out

The current document is protected or you’re in Read Mode. Switch to View > Print Layout or unprotect the document. See how to unlock a document in Word.

Every line shows as changed

Formatting or spacing differs throughout, often after a conversion. Untick Formatting and White space under More and compare again.

Comments are missing

Tick Comments under comparison settings. To move comments between documents, see how to copy comments from one Word document to another.

Frequently asked questions

Can Word compare more than two documents at once?

No. Compare works on two files at a time. For several versions, compare them in pairs, or use Combine repeatedly to merge them into one.

Does Compare work with older .doc or .rtf files?

Yes. Word opens and compares them like .docx files. Saving the result as .docx keeps all the tracked changes.

Is there a way to see only the changes, not the whole document?

Yes. The Revisions pane on the left lists every change on its own. Click any entry to jump to it in the document.

Summary

Use Review > Compare > Compare, choose the original and revised files, and Word shows the differences as tracked changes in a new document. Use Combine to merge several reviewers’ copies, then accept or reject changes on the Review tab.

Related: How to Lock a Word Document from Editing.

Related: How to Create a Link for a Word Document.

Related: How to See Previous Versions of a Word Document.