What is the Show Changes feature in Excel?
Show Changes is Excel’s modern audit tool. It records every edit made to a shared workbook stored in OneDrive or SharePoint, including who made the edit, the cell or range, the date and time, the new value, and the previous value.
It works automatically in the background once the file is in a supported cloud location. You don’t need to enable it. The Changes pane shows the last 60 days of edits. For older history, use Version History.
Show Changes is available in Excel for Microsoft 365 (Windows and Mac), Excel for the web, Excel 2024, and Excel 2021. Edits made in older one-time-purchase versions of Excel can clear the change history, so all collaborators should use a co-authoring compatible version.
Where did Track Changes go in Excel?
Track Changes was retired from the Excel Review tab in Microsoft 365. It depended on the legacy Shared Workbooks feature, which had limits like no tables, no conditional formatting, no merged cells, and no co-authoring.
The replacement is Show Changes plus co-authoring. Files in OneDrive or SharePoint track edits automatically. No setup, no workbook locking.
If your workflow still requires the old feature (for accept/reject review), Track Changes (Legacy) is still in Excel. You just have to add it back to the ribbon manually.
How to bring Track Changes (Legacy) back to the ribbon
- Go to File > Options > Customize Ribbon.
- In the right panel, right-click Review and select Add New Group.
- Rename the group if you want.
- In the left panel, set Choose commands from to Commands Not in the Ribbon.
- Find Track Changes (Legacy) and Share Workbook (Legacy). Click Add to move them into your new group.
- Click OK.
Caution: enabling Track Changes (Legacy) converts the file to a Shared Workbook, which disables tables, threaded comments, conditional formatting, and other modern features.
How do you use Show Changes in Excel?
The “Show Changes” feature in Excel helps you track changes easily. You can see details of who changed what, where, and when, along with the previous value of the cell for quick reversion.
You can narrow down the list of changes by selecting any sheet, range, or individual cell, to see all changes that were made, including bulk edits. You can see past changes for up to 60 days.
View changes for the entire workbook
- Open your Excel workbook.
- Go to the Review tab.
- Click on Show Changes.
Changes are shown in a pane with the most recent edits at the top.
You can see who made the changes, where, when, and what was changed.
You can also see the previous value of the cell for quick reversion.
View changes for a specific sheet, range, or cell
- Select any sheet, range, or single cell.
- Right-click and select Show Changes from the context menu.
This will display changes specific to the selected area. If new edits are made while the pane is open, click the See New Changes button to update the list.
Filter Changes from the Changes pane
- At the top of the pane, click the Filter icon.
- Choose Range or Sheet to filter the changes shown.
- Enter the range or cell in the text box and confirm.
Group and expand bulk edits
When many changes are made to a contiguous range of cells, the Changes list will group those changes into a single entry. You can click the “See Changes” link to expand the list to see the details.
How do I see older changes in an Excel workbook?
Show Changes only shows the last 60 days. For older edits or to roll back the entire workbook, use Version History.
Open Version History
If you need to revert back to a previous version of your workbook, you can do that with the Excel Version History.
- Go to File > Info.
- Select Version History.
- Browse through the available versions. Each version includes the date and time of the change and the name of the person who made the change.
Restore or save a copy of a previous version
Select the version you want to restore and click Restore.
This action reverts your workbook to a selected version, undoing unwanted changes. This way, you’ll recover your work.
To preserve the existing copy and generate a restored one, click Save a Copy instead of Restore.
What are the requirements for Show Changes to work?
- The workbook must be saved in OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, or SharePoint Online. SharePoint on-premises is not supported.
- The file format must be .xlsx, .xlsm, or .xlsb. Strict Open XML is not supported.
- All editors need a Microsoft 365 subscription and a co-authoring compatible Excel version: Excel for Microsoft 365, Excel for the web, Excel 2024, Excel 2021, Excel for Microsoft 365 for Mac, or the Excel mobile apps.
- Editors need edit permission on the file.
What changes does Excel not track?
The Changes pane does not record:
- Chart, shape, image, or other object edits
- PivotTable structural changes (new fields, layout updates)
- Formatting changes (fonts, colors, number formats, conditional formatting)
- Hidden cells, hidden rows, hidden columns, or filter states
- Sheet protection changes
- Edits made by VBA macros or add-ins (the previous value may be missing)
For these, use Version History to compare snapshots of the file.
For protection-related changes you can’t see in the pane, see our guide on how to lock and unlock cells in Excel.
Show Changes vs Track Changes vs Version History
| Feature | What It Does | Best For | Where It Lives |
|---|---|---|---|
| Show Changes | Records cell-level edits in real time, last 60 days | Day-to-day audit, finding who broke a formula | Review tab, modern Excel |
| Track Changes (Legacy) | Highlights edits, supports Accept/Reject | Workflows that need formal review and rejection | Hidden, must be added to ribbon |
| Version History | Snapshots of the entire file over time | Reverting to a known-good version, deep history | File > Info |
Use Show Changes for live collaboration. Use Version History to roll back. Avoid Track Changes (Legacy) unless you need accept/reject review and can live without tables, conditional formatting, and threaded comments.
Can Copilot help track edits in Excel?
Copilot in Excel does not currently expose Show Changes data directly. It can summarize a workbook, explain formulas, and flag anomalies, but it does not list who edited which cell.
For audit-style questions like “what changed in this sheet today,” open Review > Show Changes. For “is this number consistent with the rest of the file,” ask Copilot.
Edit with Copilot can write formulas and modify cells on your behalf. Those edits are tracked by Show Changes the same as any other user edit.
Copilot’s data analysis features pair well with Excel’s modern functions like FILTER for working with shared datasets.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I track changes in Excel?
Save the workbook to OneDrive or SharePoint, then go to Review and click Show Changes. The Changes pane shows every edit from the last 60 days with the user, cell, timestamp, and previous value. The legacy Track Changes feature was replaced by Show Changes in Microsoft 365.
Why is Track Changes missing from the Review tab in Excel?
Microsoft removed Track Changes from the Review tab because the underlying Shared Workbooks feature blocked tables, conditional formatting, and merged cells. The modern replacement is Show Changes, which works automatically in any workbook stored on OneDrive or SharePoint. Track Changes (Legacy) can still be added back through File, Options, Customize Ribbon.
How far back can Show Changes go in Excel?
Show Changes covers the last 60 days of edits. For older history, use Version History at File, Info, Version History. Version History stores full file snapshots and goes back further than the Changes pane.
Why is Show Changes greyed out in my Excel workbook?
Show Changes only works on files saved to OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, or SharePoint Online. It will be greyed out if the file is on a local drive, a network share, or SharePoint on-premises. Save the file to a supported cloud location, close and reopen it, and the option will activate.
What is the difference between Show Changes and Version History in Excel?
Show Changes lists individual cell edits with the user, time, and previous value, going back 60 days. Version History stores complete file snapshots and lets you restore the entire workbook to a previous state. Use Show Changes to investigate specific edits. Use Version History to roll back the whole file.
Can I track changes in Excel without OneDrive or SharePoint?
Not with Show Changes. The modern feature requires OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, or SharePoint Online. The only way to track edits on a local file is to add Track Changes (Legacy) to the ribbon and convert the file to a Shared Workbook, which disables tables, conditional formatting, and threaded comments.
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