The fastest way to remove all comments at once

Open the document in Microsoft Word, then go to the Review tab at the top. On the right side of the ribbon, you'll see a button labeled Delete with a small arrow next to it. Click that arrow and select Delete All Comments in Document. Word will remove every comment in one action.

If you're working in Word Online (the browser version), the process is slightly different. Go to Review, find Comments on the ribbon, click the arrow next to Delete, and choose Delete All Comments. The result is the same — all comments vanish when ready.

This method works whether you have 2 comments or 200. Word doesn't ask you to confirm; the comments are gone as soon as you click. If you realize you made a mistake, you can undo the deletion by pressing Ctrl+Z (or Cmd+Z on Mac) right away, but only if you haven't saved the document yet.

Key Takeaways

  • The Delete All Comments in Document button in the Review tab removes every comment at once, which is faster than deleting them one by one.
  • Word Online has the same feature but accessed through the Comments menu instead of a standalone Delete button.
  • Deleting all comments happens when ready with no confirmation prompt, so undo when ready if you change your mind.
  • If you want to keep some comments and remove only others, you can right-click individual comments and select Delete to remove them one at a time.
  • Comments are different from tracked changes — removing comments does not affect edits that were tracked during the document's revision history.

Removing comments one at a time

If you need to keep some comments and delete only specific ones, right-click directly on the comment text in the margin (the colored box on the right side of the page). A small menu will appear. Select Delete Comment from that menu.

In Word Online, the process is the same: click the comment in the margin, and a delete icon (usually an X or trash can) will appear near the top of the comment box. Click it to remove that single comment.

This approach takes longer if you have many comments to remove, but it gives you control over which ones stay. You might use this method if a document has feedback from multiple people and you want to keep comments from your supervisor while removing comments from colleagues.

Understanding the difference between comments and tracked changes

Comments and tracked changes are two separate features in Word, and removing one does not affect the other. A comment is a note attached to a specific word or section — it appears in a colored box in the margin and doesn't change the actual text. A tracked change is a record of text that was added, deleted, or modified, and it shows exactly what was altered.

When you delete all comments, the document text stays exactly as it was. Any edits that were tracked during the revision process remain visible (usually shown as strikethrough for deletions and colored text for additions). If you want to remove tracked changes instead, you need to go to the Review tab, find the Changes group, and use the Accept or Reject buttons to decide what to do with each edit.

Many people confuse these two features because they both appear in the Review tab. The key difference: comments are optional notes that don't alter the document, while tracked changes are a record of what was actually modified in the text.

Removing comments before sharing or printing

Before you send a document to someone else or print it, you should check whether it contains comments you don't want to share. Comments are visible to anyone who opens the file, so a comment meant as a private note to yourself will be seen by your recipient.

To see all comments in your document at a glance, go to the Review tab and look at the Comments section. You'll see a count of how many comments exist. If that number is higher than zero and you don't want those comments included, use the Delete All Comments in Document button before you share the file.

Some organizations require that all comments be removed before a document leaves the office, especially for contracts, proposals, or sensitive materials. Checking the comment count takes five seconds and prevents accidental disclosure of internal feedback.

What happens to comments when you save or convert the file

Comments stay in the document when you save it in Word format (.docx). If someone else opens that file, they will see all the comments you left, unless you delete them first. This is true whether you save locally on your computer or to OneDrive or SharePoint.

If you convert the document to a different format — such as PDF or plain text — comments are usually stripped out automatically because those formats don't support comments the way Word does. However, this varies depending on which conversion method you use. If you're converting to PDF through Word's built-in export feature, comments will not appear in the PDF. If you use a third-party converter, the result may differ.

The safest approach is to remove comments manually before converting, rather than relying on the file format to do it for you. That way you know for certain that no comments will appear in the final version.

Recovering deleted comments

If you delete comments and when ready realize you made a mistake, press Ctrl+Z (or Cmd+Z on Mac) to undo the deletion. This works only if you haven't saved the document yet. Once you save, the comments are permanently gone and cannot be recovered through the undo function.

If you've already saved the document after deleting comments, you may be able to recover an earlier version if you're using OneDrive or SharePoint. Right-click the file in OneDrive or SharePoint, select Version history, and look for a previous version that still contains the comments. Click on that version and select Restore to go back to it. This feature is not available for documents saved only to your local computer.

For documents stored locally with no cloud backup, there is no built-in recovery method. This is why it's worth taking a moment to confirm you want to delete all comments before you click the button.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I delete comments from just one person if multiple people left feedback?

Word does not have a filter to delete comments by author. You would need to delete them one at a time by right-clicking each comment and selecting Delete. If you have many comments from one person, this is tedious, but it's the only way to keep comments from others while removing one person's feedback.

Will deleting comments affect the document's revision history?

No. Comments and revision history are separate. Deleting comments does not change the tracked edits or the history of who modified the document. The revision timeline remains intact.

What if I delete all comments by accident and then close the document without saving?

When you close the document, Word will ask whether you want to save changes. Click Don't Save and the comments will still be there when you reopen the file. The deletion only becomes permanent once you save.

Do comments get removed if I save the document as a different file name?

No. Saving as a new file (using Save As) copies everything in the original document, including all comments. You must delete the comments before or after saving the new file if you don't want them included.