Making changes in a Doc can get confusing, especially if you don't know where to look for those changes! Rather than just leaving comments or making direct changes that are hard to track, you can use suggest changes. Suggest changes mode allows you to actively edit content so other team members know exactly what was changed, and where to find it. Teammates can then approve, reject, or easily ask a question about the changes to keep your collaborative ecosystem.
Within this article, you’ll find...
Start suggesting changes
To start suggesting edits, just follow these steps:
Click the small down arrow ( v ) next to the chat bubble in the upper-right corner of your doc
Note: If the doc is locked, you won’t see the chat bubble. You’ll need to first unlock the doc before you can enter suggest changes mode.
Select Suggest changes
Start making changes directly to the text on the canvas. You’ll notice your changes will be highlighted, with a change item logged for each edit you make. Any information deleted will be highlighted in red, and any information added will be in green.
Once you’ve made the necessary changes and are ready to switch back to normal editing mode, just click on the down arrow next to Suggesting edits at the top of your doc, and select Exit suggest changes.
Review and action suggested changes
When you view a doc, you will see any suggested changes in green or red highlights. You can either click directly on the highlighted text or click on the colored bubbles along the right edge of the doc. For each suggested change, you can Accept, Reject, or leave a comment to discuss. Accepting a suggestion will automatically implement it, whereas rejecting a suggestion will remove it and revert the text to the original state.
FAQs
How do I exit suggest changes mode?
How do I exit suggest changes mode?
To exit suggest changes mode, head to the top of your doc and click on the down arrow ( v ) next to Suggesting edits, then select Exit suggest changes.
How are comments different from suggest changes?
How are comments different from suggest changes?
Suggest changes allows you to directly edit text in a doc. Alternatively, you can leave comments - for yourself or your teammates - on existing pieces of content, without actually making any changes to the content. Comments are a great way to leave yourself a reminder, ask someone a question, or leave feedback, without actually making changes.
Who can use suggest changes mode?
Who can use suggest changes mode?
Anyone with edit access to the doc can use suggest changes, including both making suggestions and resolving suggestions.
Note that if the page is locked, you will not be able to make or review any changes until the page is unlocked.
Who can see the highlighted suggested changes?
Who can see the highlighted suggested changes?
As long as the page is unlocked, anyone with edit access to the doc will see the highlighted suggested changes. Anyone with comment-only access will also see the highlights and be able to comment on the suggested changes. Those with view-only access will not see any highlights.