Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Using Track Changes.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 21, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365
Word includes a feature that allows you to see what changes have been made to a document. These changes, known as markup, are primarily created using the Track Changes feature of Word. To turn on Track Changes, all you need to do is display the Review tab of the ribbon. In the Tracking group, click the Track Changes tool.
From this point, as you make changes to your document, your changes are shown on-screen using marks that are very similar to those used manually by editors for years. The essence of markup (depending on which version of Word you are using) is that added text is shown as underlined and deleted text is displayed with a strikethrough line drawn through the text. Added comments or text that has had a format change is shown at the right of the document in elements called "balloons."
If desired, you can change the way in which Word shows the markup. To specify how the edits should be noted, follow these steps if you are using Word 2007 or Word 2010:
Figure 1. The Track Changes Options dialog box.
If you are using Word 2013 or a later version, the steps are a bit different. The biggest difference is in how you display the correct dialog box to make changes.
Figure 2. The Track Changes Options dialog box.
After you are through making changes in the document, or if you receive a document from someone else that is marked up, you need to go through a process of examining each revision and deciding whether to keep it or toss it out. This is done by searching for the changes and then making your decision on a case-by-case basis. You do this in the following manner:
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (6112) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Using Track Changes.
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2018-04-30 11:00:43
Andrew
Marilyn, I believe there is a facility within the Document Inspector to anonymize the authors of Tracked Changes. At the very least you can recreate a document by rejecting all changes in a copy, and then re-redlining against the "original" copy--but this can be less than perfect given that it would show "changes to changes," only the net changes are shown.
2018-04-28 03:30:33
Ken
Marilyn
The Author property to a Revision object is read only and cannot be changed.
2018-04-27 10:20:26
Marilyn Williams
Is there a way to remove all author names so the document keeps track changes but they are no longer attributed to specific people?
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