---
title: "Compare two versions of a PDF"
description: "See what changed between two versions of a PDF: words added and removed on each page, and a visual overlay of any pixel difference. Free, in your browser."
url: https://help.pdfbetter.com/convert-organize/compare-two-pdf-versions/
collection: "Converting & organizing"
section: "Compress, protect & compare"
updated: 2026-10-18
publisher: "PDFBetter (AI Generated Inc.)"
---

# Compare two versions of a PDF

> Open [Compare PDF](https://pdfbetter.com/tools/compare-pdf/), choose the original and the revised version, and read the summary of pages changed and words added or removed. Switch between **Text changes** and **Visual overlay** for each page. It runs in your browser.

- Available on: without an account, Free, Pro, Business

Do it in PDFBetter: https://pdfbetter.com/app/tools/

1. **Choose both files**: Open Compare PDF and pick the original and the revised version.
2. **Read the summary**: The top row shows **Pages changed**, **Words added**, **Words removed** and **Page counts**.
3. **Go through the changed pages**: The page list marks each page with its additions and removals, or "same". Click a page to see it.
4. **Switch views**: **Text changes** shows the words side by side. **Visual overlay** lays the pages on top of each other: green is added in the revised file, red is removed from the original. Use the **Highlight** slider to fade the overlay.

Tick **Ignore spacing and line breaks** and **Ignore capitalization** to hide changes that don't matter.

## What the comparison can't do

- Text changes compare page 3 with page 3, so an inserted page shifts every later page.
- Fonts, colors, images and layout aren't part of the text comparison; the visual overlay shows them.
- Moved paragraphs show as a deletion plus an addition.
- Scans have no text to compare. Run [OCR PDF](https://pdfbetter.com/tools/ocr-pdf/) on both first; OCR errors can show up as false differences.
- There's no downloadable comparison report.

> **Need the meaning, not the words?:** [AI compare](https://pdfbetter.com/tools/ai-compare-pdf/) summarizes what changed in plain language with page citations. It uses [AI credits](https://help.pdfbetter.com/ai/ai-credits/) (3 per comparison).

### Are my files uploaded?

No. Both PDFs are read and compared in your browser tab.

### Do I need an account?

No. Compare is free without an account.

## Related articles

- [Which tools run in your browser and which use our servers](https://help.pdfbetter.com/convert-organize/browser-vs-server-tools.md): Merge, split, rotate, organize, images ↔ PDF, protect, unlock, sanitize and compare run in your browser: nothing is uploaded and they download free without an account. Office conversions, compression beyond Light, OCR and PDF/A run on our servers and count toward a monthly allowance.
- [Make a scanned PDF editable and searchable with OCR](https://help.pdfbetter.com/editing/make-scanned-pdf-editable-ocr.md): Open the OCR PDF tool, upload the scan, pick the Languages and pages and click Recognize text. The result looks identical but has a searchable text layer; click Open in the editor to change its text. OCR is counted per page recognized.
- [How AI credits work](https://help.pdfbetter.com/ai/ai-credits.md): Every AI action costs a fixed number of credits, shown on its button before you run it. Your plan includes credits every month; an AI credit pack adds 500 credits for $5 that never expire and are used after the monthly ones.
- [Undo changes and restore an earlier version](https://help.pdfbetter.com/editing/undo-and-version-history.md): Press ⌘/Ctrl Z to undo and ⇧ ⌘/Ctrl Z (or Ctrl Y) to redo. Your work saves automatically; to go further back, open More (⋯) → Version history and click Restore on any version. Restoring never erases the current state.

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Source: https://help.pdfbetter.com/convert-organize/compare-two-pdf-versions/ · PDFBetter Help Center · Last checked against the product 2026-10-18. Questions: support@pdfbetter.com