You don’t always need to compare two versions of a document, but when you do, you want to do it fast. Your coworker might have sent you a proofread version of a key publication, and the deadline to go live has already passed — but before you make it public you need to check that nothing important has been changed. Or maybe a client has sent back a contract with a signature — and you need to check that nothing but the signature has been added to the pdf file, before you go ahead and sign your name.
Document comparison is important for any person or business that works in words, whether that’s contracts, by-laws, articles or invoices. While Google docs has a handy version history, most word processing programs are not as user-friendly. The compare documents in Microsoft Word is clunky, and there’s no obvious way to map changes between a Word document and a PDF, for instance, or a PDF and Excel file.
The Best Way to Compare Two Versions of an Article Online
Luckily there is a tool that fills the gap nicely. Called Draftable, it’s an AI-based service that allows you to compare an original document with the latest version and highlight differences. There’s no sign-up required, and the comparison is almost instantaneous.
To compare versions, navigate to http://draftable.com, and choose the online option. Here you’ll be able to upload the revised document and the original. When you click the compare document, the AI engine works quickly to find all differences between the two files. The next screen will display both versions of the file with differences highlighted. A version history or changelog summaries everything that changed, and it’s easy to scroll through and see what is different.
Although this is a free online service, you can export your comparison into a single file for later review or to share with interested parties.
High Powered Document Comparison: How to Compare Two Versions of a Document
There are reasons the online tool might not do the trick. For instance, if you want to compare hundreds of articles, doing it all manually could get tiresome. Your firm might have rules against uploading confidential information to an outside server, or you might want to compare document types that the online document comparison service doesn’t support.
Although the online tool is free, Draftable also markets high powered document comparison tools to users who need to do more than check the differences between a few documents. Draftable Desktop is a stand-alone app, and when you use it the files never leave your computer. The Draftable API is also available as a document comparison engine ready to be integrated with your own software.
All three comparison services — Draftable Online, Draftable Desktop, and the Draftable API — are based on the same software, but the Desktop and API versions do have higher capabilities. For instance, they’re able to compare a Word document with a PDF, or an Excel document with a Word file, as well as run the simple Word, PDF, and Powerpoint comparisons that the online tool is so good at.
So next time you need a document comparison fast, you’ve got options. There’s no reason to be stuck guessing what’s been changed, and you’ll never have to spend time on manual comparison again.
