Compare documents

ComplyWise can compare any two documents word by word: two versions of the same file, two different library documents, or a file straight from your computer. This article covers the views, the controls, and the redline exports.

Where to compare

Inside a document: open it and switch to the Compare tab. It starts seeded with the document's versions.
Ad hoc: on the Documents page, open the Compare tab in the page tabs. Both sides start empty and you pick freely.

Pick the two sides

Each pane has its own picker. A side can be:

any version of the current document
another library document (any of its versions)
an uploaded file from your computer

An uploaded file never leaves your browser: the comparison runs locally, so you can safely diff a counterparty's draft without storing it. If you decide to keep it, Add to library uploads it properly.

Use ⇄ Swap to exchange the sides; the labels always state exactly what each side is (title, version number, date, current or superseded).

Side-by-side view

The default view renders both documents page by page with word-level change highlights overlaid on the real pages. Controls:

Previous / next change walks you through the differences in order.
Synced scrolling keeps the panes aligned; toggle it off to browse independently.
Shared zoom applies one zoom level to both panes, and go-to-page jumps both together.
A Text toggle shows the same comparison as plain text.

Side-by-side compare with change highlights and the sync toggle

If a side has no readable text (a scan, or a page that was redacted), it still renders visually and the view says honestly that text comparison isn't available for it.

Redline view

Redline shows the comparison as one flowing document: deletions struck through, insertions underlined, in reading order. It's the view lawyers expect, and it becomes the default whenever a Word document is on either side.

Export the redline

From the Export menu in Compare you can produce:

Redline PDF: the flowing redline as a shareable PDF.
Track-changes Word: a .docx carrying real tracked changes, so the recipient opens it in Word and accepts or rejects each change individually.

Both exports can include comments: open threads on the document ride along (as real Word comments in the .docx, as a notes section in the PDF). If the document has an e-sign envelope, only signer-visible threads are included; the menu states the scope.