4 Easy Ways to Hide or Delete Comments in Microsoft Word

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Learn how to remove all comments in Word
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Do you collaborate with others on Microsoft Word? If you have a lot of markups on your document, you can easily delete all comments at once or a few at a time. If you don't want to completely remove them, you can hide the Comments pane temporarily. Here's how to hide or delete comments in Microsoft Word using your Windows or Mac computer.

Removing Comments from Microsoft Word

To delete comments in Word, show comments by clicking Review > Show Comments > Contextual . Right-click the comments and select Delete Comment . Alternatively, click the down arrow next to Delete in the Comments section. Click Delete All Comments in Document .

Method 1
Method 1 of 5:

Deleting Comments Using Review

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  1. If you don't see the Comments sidebar on the right side of the document, do the following:
    • Click the Review tab in the top toolbar.
    • Click the Show Comments drop-down menu in the Comments section.
    • Click Contextual or List .
  2. Doing so prompts a drop-down menu. [1]
    • On a Mac, hold down control while clicking the comment you want to delete.
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  3. It's in the drop-down menu. This will immediately remove the comment.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 5:

Deleting All Comments at Once

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  1. If you want to quickly delete every comment in the document, it's easy to do.
    • If you don't see the comments, you'll need to display them:
      • Click the Show Comments drop-down menu in the Comments section.
      • Click Contextual or List .
  2. It's on the right side of the "Delete" menu. If you're using Windows, you'll see it in the "Comments" section of the ribbon. A menu will expand.
  3. All comments in the document are now deleted.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 5:

Deleting Comments Using Inspector

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  1. This is in the top-left corner of your Word document.
    • This method will delete all comments on your Word document. If you want to reference the comments later, be sure to save a backup copy .
  2. You can find this in the left panel, above Save .
  3. This tile is next to the Inspect Document header. A drop-down menu will open.
  4. This is the first option. A warning will open.
    • Select Yes to save your file or No to proceed.
  5. Make sure the box is checked for Comments, Revisions, and Versions .
  6. This will be at the top, next to Comments, Revisions, and Versions . All comments will be deleted from your Word document.
    • If you don't see this, you don't have any comments to delete.
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Method 4
Method 4 of 5:

Hiding Comments

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  1. It's in the blue ribbon at the top of the Word document. A toolbar will appear at the top of the window.
    • Keep in mind that hiding comments does not remove them from the document.

    Note: Click Enable Editing at the top, if prompted.

  2. This is a drop-down box in the Tracking section of the toolbar. A menu will appear.
    • On Mac, click the Markup Options drop-down box instead.
  3. This will temporarily hide the comments from the Word document.
    • If you have the Comments sidebar open on the right, click the X to close it.
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Method 5
Method 5 of 5:

Changing Startup Settings

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  1. This is in the top-left corner.
    • Use this method if you want to prevent Microsoft Word from automatically showing markups when you first open your document.
  2. You can find this at the very bottom of the left panel.
  3. This is the last option on the left.
  4. You can find this button underneath the Microsoft Word Trust Center header. A new window will open.
  5. You can find this in the left panel, between File Block Settings and Form-based Sign-in .
  6. This option is underneath the Document-specific settings header.
  7. This will save your settings. When you open Word again, you won't see your markups.
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      Tips

      • You can click Resolve on a comment to mark it as addressed without deleting the comment. This is useful when working on a shared document where fellow collaborators need to be able to track the document's edit history.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/insert-delete-or-change-a-comment-5cb1af25-4dfe-4484-9713-2c80391ecf12

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Open the Word document.
      2. Find the comment you want to delete, right-click the comment, and click Delete Comment to delete a comment.
      3. Click the Review tab, click Show Markup , and uncheck the Comments option to hide comments.

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