Last Updated on October 25, 2026
You may run across a situation where you have two Microsoft Word documents that look similar, but you are not sure which one has the information you want to use. So rather than read each document line by line and try to manually spot the differences, you can use the Word compare feature to find the differences between the 2 documents for you.
By using a tool like this, you can then find out which document is the one you want to keep, or you can also use it to edit or combine the two documents into one final file. Then you will have the correct information from each document combined into one complete file.
Using the Compare Feature in Microsoft Word
1. Open the Compare Tool
The Microsoft Word Compare feature works by opening 2 documents at the same time side by side and highlighting the differences between them. To start the process simply go to the Review tab and then click on the Compare button and then on Compare once again.
2. Select Your Documents
Next you can open the original and revised document by selecting them from the dropdown list if they appear there. You can click the folder icon to browse your computer for the exact location of each file otherwise. Make sure you select the correct original file to make the comparison accurate.
3. Adjust the Comparison Settings
You can click the More button to reveal a massive list of advanced configuration options. Uncheck any of the comparison settings you simply do not want to use for this specific task. They will all be selected by default when you first open this window.
Configuring Word Comparison Settings
1. Choose the Tracking Level
The Show changes at setting determines exactly how finely Word highlights your new edits. Selecting Word level replaces entire words whenever an edit is made. This keeps the layout clean and easy to read for general text reviews.
2. Use Character Level Tracking
Selecting Character level pinpoints exact individual letters, numbers, or symbols. This highlights changes like a single digit modified in a long part number. This specific setting is ideal for technical specs or detailed code review sessions.
3. Set the Results Location
The Show changes in setting controls exactly where your comparison results are placed. The New document option creates a separate temporary file by default. Both of your original source files remain completely untouched and safe. Choosing Original document or Revised document will apply all the tracked markup directly into one of those existing files instead.
Reviewing Differences Side by Side
1. Analyze the Document Layout
Now that both documents are open, you can see the original document at the upper right side of your screen. The revised document sits right below it at the lower right. Technically either document can serve as the original or revised version depending on your needs.
2. View the Compared Document
The compared document in the massive left pane is a direct comparison of both files. It shows the exact differences or changes between them visually. This makes spotting massive paragraph rewrites incredibly simple.
3. Identify Specific Edits
If we zoom in closely, we can see the word Details was completely removed after the word Battery on the first line. You can see it was there in the original document but is completely missing in the revised document. We can also see that 320wh was changed to 350wh. This is indicated by the strikethrough over 320wh and the underline applied directly to 350wh.
Saving and Clearing Tracked Changes
1. Save the Combined Document
You might want to make manual changes to the version of the document containing the comparison information. You can simply make your edits directly from the left pane. Do a Save As and then save this combined document as a brand new Word file. You can then open the document later to continue editing it without affecting your original or revised versions.
2. Understand Saved Markups
You may notice that it will still contain the track changes formatting if you save it as its own document. It will continue to show all the edits in bright red text. It might also show the document authors name directly in the right margin.
3. Accept All Changes
You must clear these edits to finalize the document. Go directly to the Review tab to remove this markup permanently. Click on the Accept button. Choose Accept All Changes and Stop Tracking from the menu.
4. Verify the Clean Document
Your document will then be completely free of red markups. You can continue working on it normally as needed. The file is now ready to share or print without any confusing edit histories attached.
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