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    Home»Excel»How to Track Changes in Excel

    How to Track Changes in Excel

    AsmiBy AsmiFebruary 7, 2023 Excel 3 Mins Read

    When you share your workbook with other parties, you may have issues noticing the changes made in the workbook. To overcome this, Excel has the option to Track Changes made by other users, including or excluding you.

    The newer versions of Excel have the command to Track Changes hidden by default. You will have to first enable it from the Excel Options, then, start tracking changes.

    The Track Changes feature extends its functionality by allowing you to accept or reject the applied changes. Keep reading as we give you a detailed, step-by-step analysis of this feature and its application!

    Step 1: Unhide Track Changes

    You can skip this step if you can access the Track Changes option in the Review tab of the Excel program. If the section, however, isn’t available you’ll have to enable it from Excel Options.

    1. Head to File from the menu bar.
    2. From the sidebar, select Options.
      Excel Options
    3. Click Customize Ribbon.
      Excel Options Customize ribbon
    4. Under Main Tabs, expand Review.
    5. Click the New Group then, the Rename button.
      Rename button Excel
    6. Give your section a name. We named it “Changes”.
      Rename New Group as Excel
    7. Select OK.
    8. Under Choose commands from, choose All Commands.
      Choose All commands Excel
    9. Scroll down to select Track Changes.
    10.  Under Main Tabs, make sure your new custom tab is selected.
    11. Click Add >>.
      Add Track Changes to ribbon Excel
    12. Select the OK button.
      Exit Excel Options

    Step 2: Enable the Track Changes Feature

    After you unhide the option, you can finally enable tracking changes. You cannot identify who made what changes before you activate this feature. Keep in mind, enabling this feature automatically shares your workbook.

    1. Head to the Review tab.
    2. Click on Track Changes (Legacy) > Highlight Changes.
      Track Changes Highlight Changes Excel
    3. Select the box next to Track changes while editing…
      Enable Track Changes Excel
    4. Under Highlight which changes, select the drop-down menu for:
    • When: Set the timeline you wish Excel to highlight changes from.
    • Who: You can choose the user or users you wish to view changes for.
    • Where: Specify the range you wish Excel to track changes in. Leave it empty if you wish to track changes in the entire grid.
    1. Select OK.
    2. If you haven’t already, save your workbook.

    Step 3: View Changes

    After you enable tracking, Excel will highlight the cells with changes made by set users with borders. To see who made what change in the cell, simply hover your cursor over the cell. A comment box will appear showing the name of the user, and the change they made including the date and time the change was done in.

    If there are a lot of changes in your worksheet, you can view the set changes in a different sheet. 

    1. Save your workbook (Ctrl + S)
    2. In the Review tab, head to Track Changes (Legacy) > Highlight Changes. 
      Track Changes Highlight Changes Excel
    3. Select the box next to List changes on a new sheet.
      List changes on a new sheet Excel
    4. Click OK.

    Excel will create a new worksheet with 11 columns including the Action Number, Date, Time, Who, Change, Sheet, Range, New Value, Old Value, Action Type, and Losing Action.

    Step 4: Accept or Reject Changes

    If you’re the owner of the workbook, you have the option to accept or reject changes. This is a great added feature that helps greatly in data analysis to finalize your document.

    1. Head to the Review tab.
    2. Select Track Changes (Legacy) > Accept/Reject Changes.
      Accept or Reject Track Changes Excel
    3. In the window, specify which changes you wish to accept or reject.
      Select Changes popup Excel
    4. Click OK.
    5. Select Accept or Reject to make changes in the selected cell.
      Accept or Reject Changes
    6. If you wish to accept or reject all changes, click Accept All or Reject All.
      Accept or reject all changes excel
    Advanced Excel
    Asmi

      Asmi is a content writer specializing in MS Office. She loves writing Excel-related content to assist other users to learn their way around the program. She started using Excel when she first entered the industry as a marketing intern. Soon, she realized that learning the often-overlooked spreadsheet program was no piece of cake. In her articles, she attempts to brief out complex topics to help beginner to intermediate-level Excel users. Asmi uses Excel for everything, including creating a grocery list to managing her personal finance. She’s a bit dramatic when it comes to the Flash Fill feature; so much so that could write a eulogy out of it. When she’s not working, you’ll find her learning a new recipe, or cleaning up her mess (out of the failed recipe).

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      Table of Contents
      • Step 1: Unhide Track Changes
      • Step 2: Enable the Track Changes Feature
      • Step 3: View Changes
      • Step 4: Accept or Reject Changes
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