Turn on Track Changes to see who edited what and when

Track Changes in Google Docs records every edit made to a document — who made it, what changed, and when. When you turn it on, additions appear highlighted in one color, deletions in another, and you can see the editor's name and timestamp for each change. The document remains fully usable while tracking is active; people can still type and format normally, but nothing gets permanently saved until you accept or reject each change.

To start tracking, open any Google Doc and click the three-dot menu in the top right corner. Select "Version history" and then "Turn on Track Changes" from the dropdown. Once active, a small indicator appears near your name at the top of the document showing that tracking is on. Everyone with editing access to the document will see the same tracked changes, though each person's edits appear in their own color.

Key Takeaways

  • Track Changes records every addition, deletion, and edit with the editor's name and exact timestamp, visible to everyone with access to the document.
  • Turn on tracking through the three-dot menu, then "Version history," then "Turn on Track Changes" — it applies to the whole document, not individual sections.
  • Accept or reject changes one at a time using the checkmark and X buttons in the suggestions panel, or accept all changes at once from the menu.
  • Tracking stays on until you manually turn it off; closing the document does not stop it, and new edits will continue to be tracked.
  • You can view who made each change and when by hovering over any highlighted edit, which shows a tooltip with the editor's name and date.

Where to find the Track Changes panel

Once tracking is on, a panel appears on the right side of your screen showing all suggested changes in order. Each change displays the editor's name, what was added or removed, and the exact time it happened. If the panel is not visible, click the three-dot menu again and select "Show changes" to bring it back.

The panel lists changes chronologically from top to bottom. You can scroll through it to see every edit made since tracking started. Clicking any change in the panel jumps you to that location in the document and highlights it, making it easy to review edits in context rather than hunting through the text yourself.

Accept or reject individual changes

Next to each change in the panel, two buttons appear: a checkmark to accept the change and an X to reject it. Click the checkmark and the edit becomes permanent — the highlighting disappears and the text stays as edited. Click the X and the edit is undone — the document reverts to what it was before that change, and the highlighting disappears.

You do not have to decide on changes in order. You can jump to any change in the panel, review it in the document, and accept or reject it independently. This is useful when multiple people are editing and you want to approve some changes immediately while thinking through others.

Accept or reject all changes at once

If you have many changes and want to approve them all without reviewing each one individually, click the three-dot menu in the top right, then select "Accept all changes." Every tracked edit becomes permanent instantly. There is no undo for this action, so use it only when you are certain you want to keep everything.

Similarly, you can reject all changes at once by clicking the three-dot menu and selecting "Reject all changes." This removes every tracked edit and returns the document to its state before tracking began. Like accepting all, this action cannot be undone, so confirm you want to discard all edits before proceeding.

Turn off Track Changes when you are done reviewing

Track Changes does not stop automatically. Even after you accept or reject all changes, the feature remains on and will continue tracking new edits. To stop tracking, click the three-dot menu and select "Turn off Track Changes." The panel closes and new edits no longer appear highlighted or tracked.

Turning off tracking does not delete the changes you already accepted or rejected — those decisions are permanent. It only prevents future edits from being recorded. If you turn tracking back on later, only edits made after that point will be tracked; the history before you turned it off stays as is.

See who made each change and when

Hover your cursor over any highlighted change in the document text, and a small tooltip appears showing the editor's name and the exact date and time the change was made. This works for both additions (shown in one color) and deletions (shown in another). The tooltip disappears when you move your cursor away.

The changes panel on the right also displays this information for each edit. You can see at a glance which team member made which change and when, making it easy to follow the document's editing history or reach out to someone if you have questions about a specific edit.

Understand the color coding for different editors

Google Docs assigns a different color to each person editing the document. When you turn on Track Changes, your edits appear in your assigned color, your colleague's edits in theirs, and so on. This makes it simple to see at a glance who changed what, especially in documents with multiple editors.

The color assignment is automatic and consistent — the same person always gets the same color throughout the document. If you have trouble remembering who is who, the changes panel and the tooltips always show the editor's name, so you never have to guess based on color alone.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I turn off Track Changes for just one person's edits?

No. Track Changes is a document-wide setting — you cannot selectively track one person while ignoring another. However, you can reject any individual's changes one at a time, or use the "Reject all changes" option if you want to undo all edits made during a certain period and start fresh.

What happens to Track Changes if I share the document with someone new?

The new person can see all tracked changes that were made before they joined, and their edits will be tracked in their own color once they start editing. They can accept or reject changes just like anyone else with editing access. Sharing the document does not affect the tracking history.

Can I see Track Changes from a specific date or time?

Track Changes shows all edits since it was turned on, but you cannot filter by date within the changes panel. However, you can use "Version history" (the same menu where you turn on Track Changes) to see snapshots of the document at different points in time, which lets you compare versions from specific dates.

Does Track Changes work on mobile devices?

You can view and accept or reject changes on mobile, but the interface is more limited. The changes panel appears as a list rather than a side panel, and some formatting options may not display as clearly. Turning Track Changes on or off works the same way on mobile as on desktop.

What if someone edits while Track Changes is off?

Those edits are not tracked and appear as normal, permanent changes to the document. There is no way to recover the tracking information for edits made while tracking was off. If you need to track all changes, make sure Track Changes is on before people start editing.