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How to Print Word Tracked Changes Without Comment Balloons
Question details
The user needs to print a document showing tracked insertions and deletions but wants to hide comment balloons to save margin space.
- Product
- Microsoft Word
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Preparing a document for printing with selective markup elements visible.
- Observed behavior
- By default, the document prints all markup including comment balloons, altering the printed page layout and taking up extra space.
Before proceeding, save a backup copy of your document to preserve your current markup state, and ensure your printer is properly connected and online.
Customize Show Markup Settings
Adjust your markup display settings to hide comments and force all textual revisions to appear inline before printing.
By modifying what markup is displayed on the screen, you directly control what Word sends to the printer. Hiding comments and setting balloons to inline ensures that only your text edits appear on the printed page.
Navigate to the 'Review' tab on the main ribbon at the top of the Word window.
Click on 'Show Markup' and uncheck 'Comments' to hide them. Ensure that 'Insertions and Deletions' remains checked.
To completely remove the markup area from the margins, click 'Show Markup', select 'Balloons', and choose 'Show All Revisions Inline'.
Go to 'File' > 'Print' and preview the document to confirm that only tracked changes are visible without the comment balloons.
Adjust Modern Comments Settings
If the traditional comment hiding options are unavailable, you may need to disable Modern Comments in your Word settings.
Print Tracked Changes Customizations Easily with WPS Writer
WPS Writer provides an intuitive and hassle-free way to manage document markup. You can easily select which tracked changes or comments to display and print without navigating through hidden settings.
- 1. Open your document in WPS Writer: Launch WPS Office and open your .docx document containing the tracked changes.
- 2. Access the Review Tab: Click on the 'Review' tab located at the top ribbon menu.
- 3. Hide the Comments: Click the 'Show Markup' dropdown menu and uncheck 'Comments' to hide them from the display.
- 4. Adjust the Balloons: Click on 'Balloons' in the Review tab and select 'Inline' so your insertions and deletions do not take up the margin space.
- 5. Print the Document: Press 'Ctrl + P' to open the print dialog. Verify in the preview that your document prints exactly as displayed, then click 'Print'.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are my tracked changes still printing on the right margin?
You might still have the 'Show Revisions in Balloons' setting enabled. To fix this, go to the Review tab, click Balloons (or Show Markup > Balloons), and select 'Show All Revisions Inline'.
Will unchecking Comments delete them permanently from my document?
No. Unchecking Comments from the Show Markup dropdown merely hides them from your screen and printed output. The comments remain safely saved inside your document file and can be revealed again at any time.
How do I print only the comments without the main document text?
In the Print dialog box, click the first dropdown under Settings (which usually says 'Print All Pages'). Select 'List of Markup' to print a separate list of all tracked changes and comments independently from the document text.
