How to stop formatting showing in track changes (Word for Mac)

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How to stop formatting showing in track changes (Word for Mac)

Liz Evans 0

I am a Mac user. In Word, how can you permanently stop formatting showing in track changes? I have formatting unticked but when I save and re-open, the formatting changes are showing again.

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Bob Jones AKA CyberTaz MVP 438.5K

Please disregard the extensive diatribe provided by the AI bot which does not address the question,

Go to Word> Preferences – Track Changes then in the Output And Sharing – Track Changes group select None for Formatting in the Markup section.

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1 additional answer

Answer 1

On Word for Mac, formatting markup is not permanently removed just by unticking formatting in the display. That only changes how markup is shown.

To stop seeing formatting balloons and keep revisions inline:

Set the document to All Markup.
Go to Review > Markup Options > Preferences.
Change the Track Changes display so:
- Insertions show with underlines
- Deletions show with strikethrough
Use Show All Revisions Inline.

Important: these display settings do not travel with the document. They are specific to the local Word installation and user account, so formatting markup can appear again after reopening the file on another setup.

If the goal is to remove tracked formatting changes permanently from the document, the only way is to accept or reject the tracked changes. Word documentation states that tracked changes are removed permanently only when they are accepted or rejected.

To remove all tracked changes:

Select Reviewing > Accept.
Choose one of:
- Accept All Changes Shown
- Accept All Changes
- Accept All Changes and Stop Tracking

Or to discard them:

Select Reviewing > Reject.
Choose one of:
- Reject All Changes Shown
- Reject All Changes
- Reject All Changes and Stop Tracking