They sent a clean copy: how to find what changed

Compare their clean copy with the exact version you last sent, and let the software mark the differences. Use desktop Word if both are Word files, Google Docs if you work in Docs, or a paid Acrobat plan if you only have PDFs. Then read every marked change yourself, and ask them to send tracked changes next time.

Which two files should you compare?

A compare needs two files: the exact version you last sent, and their clean copy. Take your version from the attachment in your sent email, not from your working folder. If you edited your copy after sending it, those edits will show up as differences too. An older round is no better, because changes you both settled will show up again.

Rename both files under one pattern before you start, for example Quorrell agreement 2026-11-03 R3 Tindleby.docx for yours and Quorrell agreement 2026-11-07 R4 Quorrell.docx for theirs. Our guide to keeping track of contract versions explains the naming rule.

If they sent only a PDF, ask for the Word file first, because it makes your own edits easier to send back. If they can't, compare the PDFs and send your changes as PDF comments or in a clause-by-clause email.

Word, Google Docs or Acrobat: which should you use?

Three common tools can compare two versions of a contract. Pick the one that fits the files you have. Each row is based on the maker's own pages, checked on November 10, 2026.

The other two tools take a few clicks:

• Google Docs. Open your version as a Google Doc, then choose Tools > Compare documents. Pick their file (a .docx must be stored in Google Drive), and under "Attribute differences to," type their company name so the suggestions aren't labeled with yours. If their comments matter, tick "Include comments from the selected document." Click Compare, then Open.
• Acrobat. Open the Compare Files tool, choose your version as the older file and theirs as the newer one, then review the results summary.

How do you compare two versions in Word?

Desktop Word's legal blackline compare is the main route when both files are Word documents. Microsoft's steps are written for Word for Microsoft 365 and other desktop versions of Word for Windows. Its page doesn't cover Word for Mac; on a Mac, look for Compare on the Review tab, or use Google Docs or Acrobat.

1. Open both files: the version you sent and their clean copy.
2. On the Review tab, in the Compare group, select Compare, then "Compare two versions of a document (legal blackline)."
3. Under Original document, choose the version you sent. Under Revised document, choose their clean copy. Swap them, and their additions show up as deletions.
4. Choose what to compare, and switch on every option shown.
5. Under Show changes, choose word level or character level. Word level marks whole words and is usually easier to read; character level marks each changed character.
6. Leave "Show changes in" set to a new document, which is the default. Choosing the original or revised document changes that file.
7. Select OK. If Word warns that a file has tracked changes, accept them to continue. Tracked changes in your version count as accepted, those in theirs show as changes, and the files themselves stay unchanged.
8. Read the new document from the top. Their edits appear as tracked changes against your version. Save it under a name like Quorrell agreement R3 vs R4 compare.docx.

Step 7 can tell you two useful things. If your version still had your own tracked edits, Word counts them as accepted, so any edit they quietly undid shows up as a change. If your version has no tracked changes and Word still warns you, their "clean copy" holds tracked changes, possibly hidden from view. Open their file with all markup showing and review those changes separately.

Here is what a result can look like. In a made-up example, Tindleby Studio sent version R3 to a client, Quorrell Freight. The client's reply said the new version held "a few tidy-ups," but the compare marked these three changes:

Each of the three moves money, scope or risk. To decide which ones to push back on, see what to push back on when a client redlines your contract.

What can a compare miss?

A compare reports differences between two files, set up the way you chose. Four gaps are worth watching.

• Change types you switched off. Word compares only the options you pick, and Acrobat's filter can hide whole types of change. Google says changes to column layout and table column widths won't be compared.
• Anything outside the two files. A statement of work sent separately, an exhibit, terms on a linked web page or a point settled by email isn't part of the compare. Check each one on its own.
• Real edits buried in noise. If they renumbered sections or moved a clause, expect long runs of marks. A moved clause may show as deleted in one place and inserted in another. Read those runs instead of skipping them, because a real edit can sit inside one.
• Meaning. A clause reworded with the same meaning still shows as changed. A small edit with a big effect, such as 30 days becoming 45, gets a mark no bigger than a typo fix. The compare can't tell you which changes matter.

Before you reply, check these five things:

1. You compared against the exact file you last sent, with your version as the original.
2. Every option was switched on in Word, or every change type in Acrobat's filter.
3. You read every mark, including long runs from renumbered or moved clauses.
4. Each attachment, linked document and email agreement was checked separately.
5. Every change is on your list as accepted, countered or pushed back, with its section number.

How do you ask for tracked changes next time?

A clean copy is often just habit, so ask politely and give a reason that helps them too. Send the changes you found, and ask them to confirm the list is complete. Their answer is a cross-check, not a replacement for your own compare.

Then add one line to the email that carries each new draft from you:

When should you get a lawyer?

You can run a compare yourself. A lawyer helps when you can't judge what it shows, or when the stakes are high:

• The compare shows whole sections rewritten, and you can't tell what the new wording does.
• An untracked change touches liability, indemnity, ownership of your work or termination, and the contract is large for your business.
• The two sides disagree about which version was agreed, or about whether a change was made at all.

When does finding changes by hand stop working?

One compare and a careful read work well for a short contract with a handful of edits. They start to slip when a long contract comes back with dozens of changes, when they only send PDFs, or when several clients or suppliers send clean copies every month. Each one means another compare, another full read and another list to write. At that point it's worth letting a tool find the changes and point out the ones that may cost you, for you to check.

DealMate is an AI contract assistant that takes a deal from first draft to final: describe the deal in a sentence and get a draft built from your templates and clauses; when they send their template, review it from your side and see what's risky; when their redlines come back, compare the versions and see every change and the risk it carries.