How to Turn Off and Remove Track Changes in Word

You open a Word file and it is covered in colored underlines, strikethroughs and side-bar notes. Someone left Track Changes on, and now every edit you make gets recorded too. Or you are about to send a contract or report, and the markup needs to go before it reaches the recipient. This guide covers how to disable Word track changes and then remove the markup that is already in the document.

Stopping the tracking and clearing the existing markup are two separate tasks. Turning off tracking only affects edits you make from that point on. The changes already in the file stay until you accept or reject them, and comments stay until you delete them. Both steps are covered here.

You will get a short answer, a list of checks to make before you start, a step-by-step process for the desktop version of Word, and a way to confirm that the document is clean.

How do you disable track changes in Word? The short answer

Turn off Track Changes so new edits are no longer recorded, then accept or reject every existing change and delete any comments.

Your situation	What to do	Why
You want to keep editing without markup	Turn off Track Changes in the review tools	New edits are no longer recorded
The edits are final and should stay in the text	Accept all changes	The markup is removed and the edited text remains
The edits should be discarded	Reject all changes	The text returns to its original version
Tracking can't be switched off	Remove document protection, or ask the author	Restricted editing can block the Track Changes setting
Comments are still in the margin	Delete comments	Comments are stored separately from tracked changes

Before you start

Check these points so you don't have to undo work later.

Save a copy. Accepting and rejecting changes is hard to reverse once you save and close the file. Keep the original so you can compare against it.
Find out who made the edits. If other people's changes are in the file, accepting or rejecting them may not be your decision. Check with the author or reviewer if you are unsure.
Check for protection. If the document is restricted, the Track Changes control may be greyed out. You can only remove that restriction if you know the password.
Confirm the version. Make sure you are working on the latest copy. Accepting changes in an older version can undo edits someone else made later.
Use the desktop app. The steps below describe the desktop version of Word. Menus and options may be arranged differently in other versions.

Turning off tracking and removing existing markup in Word, step by step

Open the .docx file in the desktop version of Word. Work on the copy you saved. This keeps the original file untouched while you clean up.
Open the review tools and turn off Track Changes. This stops new edits from being recorded. Existing markup stays visible until you handle it in the next steps.
Set the markup view to show everything. Make sure all markup is visible, including formatting changes and comments, so nothing is hidden from you while you review.
Go to the beginning of the document and step through each change. Working from the top keeps you from skipping a change in the middle of a long file.
Accept or reject each change. Accept keeps the edit as normal text. Reject restores the original wording or formatting. If you are sure all changes should be treated the same way, you can accept or reject them all at once.
Delete comments. Use the comment tools in the review area to remove comments one by one, or delete all of them if you no longer need the notes.
Run a document inspection and save as a new file. The inspection looks for hidden data such as comments, revision history and personal information. Save the result under a new name so the clean version is clearly separate from the original.

Check the result

Before you send or share the file, check these items.

Check	How to see it	If it's wrong
No markup remains	Scroll through the whole document with all markup showing	Repeat accept or reject from the top, including formatting changes
Tracking is off	Type a test word in a spare spot, see whether it is marked, then undo	Turn tracking off again. If the option is greyed out, check for document protection
No comments remain	Open the comment list or scroll the margins	Delete the remaining comments
The text is correct	Compare the key paragraphs with your saved copy	Reopen the backup and repeat the steps, rejecting any edit you did not intend to keep

A display setting that hides markup can make a document look clean when it isn't. Always check with all markup showing, not just the simplified view.

❓ FAQ

1. Why does Track Changes turn back on when I reopen the file?

Word saves the Track Changes setting inside the document. If the file was saved with tracking on, it will open that way. Turn tracking off, then save the file again.

2. Does turning off Track Changes delete the edits that are already there?

No. Existing edits stay in the document as tracked changes until you accept or reject them.

3. Can I remove track changes without accepting or rejecting them?

Not in a way that keeps the text as it is. Accepting keeps the edits as normal text, and rejecting restores the original. Either choice removes the markup.

4. What if the Track Changes option is greyed out?

The document is probably protected with restricted editing. If you know the password, you can remove the restriction. If you don't, ask the person who protected the file.

5. Do these steps work in Word for the web?

This guide covers the desktop version of Word. Other versions may place the controls differently, so check the review options if your steps don't match.

📝 Summary

To disable Word track changes, turn off tracking first, then accept or reject each existing change and delete the comments. Save a copy before you begin, and check the result with all markup showing before you share the file.

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