When you’re working on an Excel sheet with others, it’s super useful to keep an eye on all the changes people make. Excel’s Track Changes tool is perfect for this! It lets you see exactly what was changed, who did it, and when, which is a lifesaver for team projects.
Excel doesn’t automatically keep track of edits, so you won’t see any changes unless you turn this feature on. Once it’s active, every edit will be highlighted so you can easily review what’s been done. Here’s how to get it set up:
How to enable track changes
Before you share your Excel file for review, you’ll want to enable the Track Changes feature. This way, you can monitor all modifications made by your colleagues, and then you can accept or reject these edits after the review process is done.
Keep in mind that this feature is kind of old-school, and might not be in the newer Excel versions like 2019 or Microsoft 365. It works perfectly in Excel 2016 and older, though. You’ll find it under the Review tab.
-
First, open your Excel file and go to the Review tab. Click on Track Changes, and then select Highlight Changes from the dropdown menu.
-
In the Highlight Changes box that pops up, check the box that says Track changes while editing.
-
Next, in the When area, you can pick the timeframe for tracking changes. You can track from the last time you saved, all changes, changes not yet reviewed, or changes from a specific date. To track everything, choose All.
-
In the Who section, select Everyone to see changes from all users. You can also pick specific people if needed.
-
If you want to track changes across the entire sheet, leave the Where field blank. Make sure that Highlight changes on screen is checked, and then click OK.
Note: If you only want to track changes in certain cells, enter those cells in the Where field before clicking OK.
-
Click OK to save the workbook with these tracking settings.
-
Now, go back to the Review tab and click on Share Workbook.
-
In the Share Workbook dialog box, make sure to check the option that says Use the old shared workbooks feature instead of the new co-authoring experience and then hit OK.
-
Staying on the Review tab, now click on Protect Shared Workbook. In the dialog box, check Sharing with track changes to prevent others from turning off tracking. Click OK to continue.
-
Save your workbook and then share it with your team so they can start making edits.
How to review and manage changes
After your team has made their changes to the file, you can review them and decide which ones to keep or reject.
Changes will show up as a colored outline around the edited cells, and a little triangle at the top left of the cell.
If you hover over a cell with that triangle, you’ll see a comment box that tells you what changed, who did it, and when. Each reviewer will have their own color for easy tracking.
-
To start managing changes, go to the Review tab, click Track Changes, and then select Accept or Reject Changes from the dropdown menu.
-
In the Select Changes to Accept or Reject dialog, either specify which changes to review or click OK to review all changes.
-
The Accept or Reject Changes dialog will appear. It shows each change, one at a time. You can Accept or Reject each change, or you can choose Accept All or Reject All if you like all or none of the edits. The box will show you which cell was modified, its original value, and its new value.
If you click Accept, that change is applied to your sheet. If you click Reject, the cell will go back to what it was before the edit.
Method 1: Creating a separate list of changes (most effective method)
If you want to see all the changes in a single list, Excel lets you create a separate sheet called “History”. It shows every edit ever made to the workbook. This is the most effective method because it compiles all changes in one place for easier review.
-
Go to the Review tab, click Track Changes, and select Highlight Changes.
-
In the Highlight Changes box, check the option that says List changes on a new sheet, then click OK.
Excel will create a new sheet called “History”. This sheet lists all changes, including which cells were changed, the old values, new values, who changed them, and when they did it.
To get rid of the History sheet, save the workbook again. Excel will remove it when you save.
How to turn off track changes
After you’re done reviewing changes, you can turn off Track Changes. This will stop tracking edits and remove all change markers from your sheet.
-
Before disabling it, you need to unprotect the shared workbook. Go to the Review tab and click on Unprotect Shared Workbook.
-
Go to the Review tab, click on Track Changes, and then select Highlight Changes.
-
In the Highlight Changes dialog box, uncheck Track changes while editing, and click OK.
Track Changes is now off, and Excel won’t keep track of any more changes.
That’s it! Using Excel’s Track Changes helps you collaborate smoothly and keep control over your workbooks. Knowing how to turn it on, manage changes, and turn it off makes teamwork a whole lot easier.