PowerPoint's Track Changes feature lets you see who edited what and when

PowerPoint has a built-in Track Changes feature that records every edit made to a presentation — text additions, deletions, formatting changes, and slide rearrangements. When you turn it on, each change appears marked on the slide with the editor's name and timestamp. You can review changes one at a time, accept the ones you want to keep, and reject the ones you don't.

This is most useful when multiple people are working on the same presentation, or when you want a record of what changed between versions. Unlike manually comparing two files side by side, Track Changes shows you the exact moment each edit happened and who made it.

Key Takeaways

  • Turn on Track Changes in the Review tab before you or others edit the presentation, so all changes are recorded from that point forward.
  • Changes appear as colored boxes and balloons on slides, with the editor's name and the date and time of each edit.
  • You can accept or reject individual changes, or accept or reject all changes at once using the Review pane.
  • Track Changes works in PowerPoint on Windows and Mac, and in the web version of PowerPoint, though the interface differs slightly between them.
  • Turning off Track Changes stops recording new edits but does not erase changes that were already recorded.

How to turn on Track Changes in PowerPoint

Open the presentation you want to track. Go to the Review tab at the top of the ribbon. Click Track Changes — it is a toggle, so clicking it turns the feature on. You will see a checkmark appear next to it when it is active.

From that moment forward, every edit anyone makes to the presentation will be recorded. If you are sending the file to others to edit, turn Track Changes on before you send it. If you receive a file with Track Changes already on, edits you make will be added to the existing list.

On a Mac, the Review tab is in the same place. On the web version of PowerPoint (office.com), the Review tab is also present, though the button layout is slightly different — look for Track Changes in the Review section and click it to toggle it on.

What tracked changes look like on your slides

When Track Changes is on, edits appear as colored boxes or balloons in the margins of your slides. Text you add appears in a colored box. Text you delete appears struck through with a line. Formatting changes — like making text bold or changing a color — show up as small balloons on the side of the slide.

Each change includes the name of the person who made it, the date, and the time. If multiple people edit the same presentation, each person's changes appear in a different color, so you can tell who did what at a glance. The colors are assigned automatically and may vary depending on how many editors are involved.

How to review and accept or reject changes

Click the Review tab and then click Review Changes (or Show Comments on some versions). A pane opens on the right side showing all recorded changes in order. You can scroll through the list and see each change highlighted on the slide.

For each change, you have two options: Accept or Reject. Click Accept to keep the change and move to the next one. Click Reject to undo it and move on. You can also accept or reject all changes at once by clicking Accept All or Reject All at the bottom of the Review pane.

Once you accept a change, it becomes permanent and the colored marking disappears. Once you reject a change, it is removed from the presentation and the marking disappears. After you have reviewed all changes, the Review pane closes and the presentation shows only the final version.

Turning off Track Changes and saving your work

When you are done editing and reviewing, go back to the Review tab and click Track Changes again to turn it off. The checkmark disappears. Any changes you already accepted remain in the presentation. Any changes you rejected are gone. New edits made after you turn it off will not be tracked.

Save the file as you normally would. If you want to keep a record of the tracked version (with all the markings visible), save it once with the changes still marked, then accept or reject them and save again. That way you have two files — one showing the editing history and one showing the final result.

Track Changes in shared presentations and OneDrive

If your presentation is stored on OneDrive or SharePoint and multiple people are editing it at the same time, Track Changes works automatically in the background. You do not have to turn it on manually — the system records who changed what and when. You can view the change history by clicking File and then Version History to see a list of all saved versions and who edited them.

This is different from the Track Changes feature in a single file. Version History shows you complete snapshots of the file at different points in time, while Track Changes shows you individual edits within a single file. Both are useful, but they serve different purposes. Version History is especially helpful when you want to restore an earlier version of the entire presentation without reviewing individual changes.

When to call a professional

Track Changes is straightforward enough to use on your own for most presentations. However, if you are managing a large document with dozens of editors and hundreds of changes, or if you need to merge changes from multiple versions of the same file, you may want to ask someone with PowerPoint experience to help you organize and review the changes.

A colleague or IT support person can also help if the Review pane is not appearing or if changes are not being recorded as expected. They can troubleshoot whether Track Changes is actually enabled, check your account permissions if you are working in a shared file, and help you recover changes if something goes wrong during the review process.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I see who made each change?

Yes. Each tracked change shows the name of the person who made it, along with the date and time. The name comes from the account that is signed into PowerPoint on that computer. If you want to know who made a specific change, look at the name label next to that change in the Review pane.

What happens if I turn off Track Changes before reviewing all the edits?

The changes you already made are still there and still marked on the slides. Turning off Track Changes just stops recording new edits going forward. You can turn it back on later and continue reviewing the old changes whenever you are ready.

Can I undo accepting or rejecting a change?

Once you accept or reject a change and close the Review pane, you cannot undo it through the Track Changes feature. Your best option is to use Ctrl+Z (or Cmd+Z on Mac) when ready after rejecting a change you meant to accept, or vice versa. If you have already saved the file, you may need to reopen the previous version.

Does Track Changes work if I read the presentation and edit it offline?

Yes. Track Changes works the same way whether the file is on your computer or in the cloud. When you edit offline and then upload the file back to OneDrive or SharePoint, the tracked changes are preserved and visible to others.

Can I turn off Track Changes for one person but keep it on for others?

No. Track Changes is a file-level setting, not a per-user setting. When it is on, it records edits from everyone who opens the file. If you want to stop tracking edits from one person, you have to turn off Track Changes entirely, which stops tracking for everyone.