How to Track Changes in Google Docs: A Comprehensive Guide

Tracking changes in Google Docs is a must-know skill for anyone who collaborates on documents. This feature lets you see edits made by others, making teamwork easy and transparent. With Google Docs track changes, you can see every edit made by your team, making it easier to manage and review documents. In this article, we'll explain how to track changes in Google Docs step-by-step. You’ll learn how to enable suggestions, accept or reject edits, and see who made what changes.

By turning on the "Suggesting" mode, you can make edits that appear as suggestions, allowing others to accept or reject them. This is perfect for group work, ensuring everyone’s contributions are visible and manageable. Stay up-to-date with this simple and practical guide to tracking changes in Google Docs effectively​

Whether you need to compare two document versions or track changes in Google Docs on your mobile device, these tools make it easy to keep everything organized and up-to-date.

What is Track Changes in Google Docs

Google Docs is a great tool for collaboration, used by businesses to gather ideas. Multiple users can edit files, and the Track Changes feature helps monitor these edits, such as additions, deletions, or replacements. Suggesting mode lets users propose changes without altering the original text, showing revisions with strikethrough.

How to Track Changes in Google Docs: A Step-by-Step Guide

Using track changes in Google Docs is easy and helps you keep track of all edits made by your team. Follow the below steps to know how to enable track changes on google docs:

Step 1: Open Your Google Docs File

Open the Google Doc file in which you want to track changes.

Step 2: Click on the Share button in the top right corner of the document.

Share your Google Docs file by clicking on the top right corner of the document.

Step 3: Make Changes to the Document

Now you can edit the document. People with editing access can write in the document while you're working on it. Google Docs saves changes automatically every few minutes and tracks which user made each change.

Step 4: Go to File tab and Click on Version History

To view the version history, click on "See version history" or use the shortcut "Ctrl + Alt + Shift + H."

Step 5: Preview Changes in the Document

Review the changes made to see additions, deletions, and modifications.

How to Use the Suggesting Mode in Google Docs

Suggesting Mode allows users to make changes that appear as suggestions rather than permanent edits. Here’s how to use this feature:

Follow the below steps to start working with the suggesting mode in Google Docs.

Step 1: Open the Document

Open the Google Docs file. To directly open the Google Docs Click here

Step 2: Go to Editing Option and Select 'Suggesting Mode'

Click on the drop-down next to this pencil icon and choose the 'Suggesting' option.

Step 3: Use the 'Suggesting Mode' or 'Track Changes' feature in Google Docs

For Example

• Deleting a sentence will stroke it instead of removing it.
• Replacing a sentence will add a new one in front of the stroked text.
• Adding a space will create a green box-like shape.
• Inserting new text will place it inside green lines.
• All suggestions will appear on the right-hand side.
  

How to Make Edits in Suggesting Mode

With Suggesting mode enabled, any modifications you make to the text—whether adding, deleting, or formatting—will appear as suggestions. These suggestions are highlighted and accompanied by a comment box in the margin.

Step 1: Comment Box Pop-up

The text of your document where any suggestions are made, will be marked in green in some way. Go over to the first such place and click on it. You will notice that a comment in the right pane will pop up giving the details of the suggestion.

How to Review Suggestions in Google Docs

Reviewing suggestions in Google Docs is simple. When someone makes a suggestion, it will appear in a different color with the editor’s name. You can click on the suggestion to see options to accept or reject it. Accepting will incorporate the change into the document, while rejecting will remove it. This feature helps you easily manage and approve edits made by others in your document. Here are the following steps to review suggestions:

Step 1: Navigate through the document

Look for highlighted text and associated comment boxes.

Step 2: Accept or Reject Suggestions

Click on the checkmark to accept a suggestion or the ‘X’ to reject it. If you would like to accept the suggestion, then click on the tick mark as shown in the picture and the change would be made in the actual text.

Step 3: Reply to comments

You can also reply to the comments for further discussion or clarification.

Shortcut Keys for Tracking Changes in Google Docs

• Turn on/off Suggestion Mode: Ctrl + Alt + Shift + Y (Windows/Linux) or Cmd + Option + Shift + Y (Mac)
• Accept Suggestion: Ctrl + Enter (Windows/Linux) or Cmd + Enter (Mac)
• Reject Suggestion: Ctrl + Backspace (Windows/Linux) or Cmd + Delete (Mac)

How to View Google Docs in Different Modes

You can view the document in different modes:

Editing mode: Shows the document as it would appear with all suggestions accepted.

Suggesting mode: Displays the document with all suggestions and comments.

Viewing mode: Shows the document as it is, without the suggestions highlighted.

How to Compare Two Document Versions

Google Docs automatically saves a version history, allowing you to review changes over time. Here’s how to access it:

Step 1: Click on ‘File’

Go to the menu bar and select ‘File.’

Step 2: Select ‘Version history’

Choose ‘See version history.’

Step 3: Review changes

Browse through different versions of your document to see the changes made over time.

How to Track Changes in Google Docs on your Mobile Device

Tracking changes in Google Docs on your mobile device is simple and useful for editing on the go. This helps keep track of all changes made to the document, making collaboration easy and efficient even when you’re not at your computer. Here are the following ways to track changes in google docs on your mobile device.

Step 1: Open Google Docs and Select a Document

Open the document you need to edit.

Step 2: Click on "Three Dots"

Tap the three dots in the top right corner to access additional options.

Step 3: Select Suggest Changes

Choose “Suggest Changes” to enable suggesting mode.

Step 4: Track the Changes Now

Monitor and manage changes from your mobile device as needed.

Tips for Effective Track Changes in Google Docs

Since Google Docs offers various other features like accessing the document in view mode and edit mode along with the option of seeing and restoring version history, a few things should be taken care of while using this feature.

Use comments for clarification: Apart from suggestions, use comments to ask questions or provide clarification.

Regularly review suggestions: If collaborating with others, regularly check for new suggestions.

Communicate with collaborators: Ensure all collaborators understand how to use Suggesting mode for consistent editing.

Conclusion

Learning how to Track Changes in Google Docs is essential for anyone who collaborates on documents. By using the Suggesting Mode in Google Docs, you can make edits that appear as suggestions, which can be easily accepted or rejected by others. This feature helps maintain a clear record of all changes, making teamwork more efficient. You can also use the shortcut to track changes in Google Docs by viewing the document’s version history. Additionally, you can view Google Docs in different modes to see who made what edits. Whether you need to compare two document versions or track changes in Google Docs on your mobile device, these tools make it easy to keep everything organized and up-to-date. Embrace these features to enhance your productivity and collaboration in Google Docs.