Yes, Excel has a built-in change tracker that records who edited what and when

Excel's Track Changes feature records every edit made to a spreadsheet — cell additions, deletions, formula changes, and formatting shifts. It shows who made each change, when they made it, and what the cell contained before and after. You turn it on before sharing the file, and it stays active until you accept or reject the changes or turn the feature off.

The feature works best when one person at a time edits the file, or when multiple people work on it in sequence and you review changes before the next person opens it. It does not work well if many people edit the same cells at the same time in real-time collaboration — for that, Excel's cloud version (Excel online or Microsoft 365) handles simultaneous editing differently.

Key Takeaways

  • Turn on Track Changes before you share the file by going to the Review tab and selecting Track Changes, then clicking Highlight Changes.
  • Every edit — cell value, formula, format — gets recorded with the editor's name, timestamp, and what changed.
  • You review changes one at a time and accept or reject each one, or accept all changes at once when editing is complete.
  • Track Changes does not work if multiple people edit the same file simultaneously; use Excel online or Microsoft 365 for real-time collaboration instead.
  • Once you accept all changes, the tracking history is erased and cannot be recovered, so save a copy of the tracked version first if you need to keep the record.

How to turn on Track Changes before sharing

Open the file you plan to share. Go to the Review tab at the top of the ribbon. Click Track Changes, then select Highlight Changes from the dropdown menu. A dialog box will open with three checkboxes: "Track changes while editing", "Highlight changes on screen", and "List changes on a new sheet".

Check the box for "Track changes while editing" — this is the only required step. The other two are optional: "Highlight changes on screen" puts a colored border around edited cells so you can spot them visually, and "List changes on a new sheet" creates a separate worksheet that logs every change in a table. Check both if you want a full record. Click OK. The file is now tracking changes.

Save the file. When you send it to others, they can open it and edit normally — every change they make will be recorded automatically. They do not need to do anything special; the tracking happens in the background.

What information gets recorded for each change

For every edit, Excel records the date and time, the name of the person who made the change, the cell address, what was in the cell before, and what is in it now. If someone deletes a row or column, the log shows which row or column was deleted and what it contained. If someone changes a formula, you see both the old formula and the new one.

The person's name comes from the user name set in Excel options — usually the name associated with their Microsoft account or the name their IT department set up. If multiple people use the same computer under the same account, they will all appear as the same person in the change log.

How to review and accept or reject changes

When editing is done, open the file. Go to the Review tab and click Track Changes, then select Accept/Reject Changes. A dialog box opens showing the first change. You see who made it, when, and what changed. You have three options: click Accept to keep the change, Reject to undo it, or Accept All to approve every change at once.

If you click Accept or Reject, Excel moves to the next change. This is useful if you want to review each edit individually — for instance, if you are checking work from a team member and want to catch errors. If you trust the edits or have already reviewed them with the person who made them, click Accept All to finish in one step.

Once you accept all changes, the tracking history is deleted. The file no longer shows who changed what or when. If you think you might need that record later, save a copy of the file with changes still pending before you accept them all.

When Track Changes does not work well

Track Changes assumes one person edits at a time. If two people open the same file and edit it simultaneously — even if they are editing different cells — Excel cannot track both sets of changes cleanly. One person's edits will overwrite the other's, or you will get a conflict that forces one person to save their version separately.

For real-time collaboration where multiple people work on the same file at the same time, use Excel Online (the free web version) or Microsoft 365 (the subscription version). Both handle simultaneous editing natively and show you who is editing which cells in real time. You do not need Track Changes for these versions — the collaboration is built in.

How to turn off Track Changes when you are done

Go to the Review tab, click Track Changes, and select Highlight Changes. Uncheck the box for "Track changes while editing". Click OK. The file will no longer record new edits. Any changes you have already accepted will stay in the file; any pending changes will remain pending until you accept or reject them.

If you want to discard all pending changes without reviewing them, go to Review > Track Changes > Accept/Reject Changes, then click Reject All. This removes every change that has not been accepted yet and turns off tracking in one step.

Saving and sharing a tracked file

A file with active tracking saves normally — just use Ctrl+S or File > Save. The tracking data is stored inside the file. When someone opens it, they see the tracked changes and can edit as usual. The file size grows slightly because Excel stores the change history, but not enough to cause problems for most spreadsheets.

If you want to send the file to someone else for further editing, save it and send it as you normally would. They will see all pending changes and can accept or reject them, or continue editing while tracking remains on. If you want to send a clean version without the change history, accept all changes first, then save and send.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I see who made a change without accepting it?

Yes. Go to Review > Track Changes > Accept/Reject Changes. The dialog shows the person's name, the date and time, and exactly what changed. You can review as many changes as you want before accepting or rejecting any of them.

What happens if I reject a change?

The cell goes back to what it was before that edit. If someone changed a value from 100 to 200 and you reject the change, it becomes 100 again. The change is removed from the log and cannot be undone.

Can I track changes in a shared Excel file on OneDrive or SharePoint?

Track Changes works in OneDrive and SharePoint, but it is not the best tool for real-time collaboration. If multiple people are editing at the same time, use the built-in co-authoring feature instead — it is automatic and shows you who is editing which cells live.

Does Track Changes work on Mac?

Yes, but the menu path is slightly different. Open the file, go to the Review tab, click Track Changes, then Highlight Changes. The process is the same as on Windows.

Can I recover the change history after I accept all changes?

No. Once you accept all changes, the history is erased permanently. If you need to keep a record of who changed what, save a copy of the file before you accept the changes.