How to Disable Track Changes in Word
Not every change in your document needs to be tracked. You can turn off the Track Changes feature in Microsoft Word, even if your document is locked. Here’s how to stop tracking changes, remove existing tracked changes, and print your document without displaying them.
How to Stop Tracking Changes in Word
To stop tracking future edits in your document, open the Word app and load your document.
Once it’s open, go to the Review tab in the ribbon at the top of the screen.
What to Do If You Can’t Turn Off Track Changes
If the Track Changes option is grayed out and you can’t select it, the document’s author has locked this feature. To unlock it, you’ll need the password (if one was set) that was used to lock the feature.
Once you’ve obtained the password, in Word’s “Review” tab, click “Tracking” and choose the down-arrow icon next to “Track Changes.”
In the open menu, select “Lock Tracking.”
To now turn off the feature, select Tracking > Track Changes.
That’s it! The Track Changes feature is now turned off.
You can confirm this by making an edit to your document. You’ll notice that Word no longer tracks or highlights your changes.
How to Clear Existing Track Changes in Word
To remove all tracked changes from your document, you need to either accept or reject them.
Go to the Review tab in Word, then choose:
- Accept > Accept All Changes to keep the changes.
- Reject > Reject All Changes to discard them.
Important Reminder About Accepting or Rejecting Changes
Keep in mind:
- Accepting all changes makes every suggested edit permanent.
- Rejecting all changes removes all suggestions entirely.
If you accidentally select the wrong option, you can quickly fix it by pressing Ctrl+Z to undo.
How to Print a Word Document Without Showing Tracked Changes
If you want to print your document without displaying tracked changes but still keep them in the file, follow these steps:
- Open your document in Microsoft Word.
- Click the File menu in the top-left corner of the screen.
