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Yes. You can redline a PDF by adding annotations that show proposed edits—such as insertions, replacements, strikethroughs, highlights, underlines, and comments. If you need to find changes between an old and a new file, use a comparison tool instead. Markup communicates suggestions; comparison identifies differences that still need human review.
Choose the right kind of redlining
“Redline a PDF” can mean two different tasks. Pick the workflow based on what you have and what you need to communicate:
| What you need | Use | What it produces |
|---|---|---|
| Suggest edits to one document | Markup and comments | Annotations showing proposed changes and explanations |
| Find changes between an earlier and later file | File comparison | A report identifying differences for you to inspect |
A markup does not, by itself, accept a suggestion or rewrite the PDF’s underlying text. Likewise, a comparison report can locate differences but cannot determine whether a change is correct or important.
Mark up one PDF with proposed edits
Acrobat on the web documents tools for highlighting, striking through, or underlining selected text; inserting text; replacing selected text; adding comments; and drawing freehand. Adobe’s web-help page for redlining was last updated September 1, 2026. The documented workflow is:
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- Open the document in Acrobat on the web.
- Select the text or area you want to review.
- Choose a redlining tool from the context menu. For an insertion or replacement, you can also use Quick Actions.
- Enter the suggested wording when prompted. Add a comment from the comments pane if the reason for the change needs explanation.
- Review the placement and color of the annotations, then save or share the reviewed PDF as appropriate.
Use strike-through to show text you propose removing, and an insertion or replacement annotation to show proposed wording. A comment can explain a change when the mark alone would be unclear. These are review suggestions, not automatic edits to the source text. Feature availability can vary by platform and plan, so check that the required tools are available in your Acrobat setup.
Compare two PDF versions
When you already have an old and a new PDF, Acrobat Pro’s Compare Files workflow creates a report of their differences. Adobe’s help page, last updated February 26, 2026, describes these steps:
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- Open the two PDF versions in Acrobat.
- Select All tools > Compare files.
- Select or change the old and new files, then choose comparison settings that fit the documents.
- Run the comparison. Acrobat displays the results in a new document.
- Review the differences in side-by-side or single-page view, navigate through the changes, and save the comparison report if you need to keep it.
The comparison settings are not one-size-fits-all. Adobe describes modes for reports, spreadsheets, and magazine layouts; presentation decks; and scanned documents, drawings, or illustrations. For scanned files, Acrobat compares page images and can match pages that have moved. You can choose text-only comparison and filter which differences appear. Inspect the actual pages: the report is a finding aid, not a decision about which version to accept.
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Choose settings and review the result
Before starting, consider the document and the output you need:
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- One file or two: Use markup to suggest edits in a single document; use comparison to locate changes between versions.
- Type of change: For editorial review, insertions, replacements, strike-throughs, and comments make intent visible. For layout or drawing changes, visual comparison may be more useful than text-only comparison.
- Document format: Select comparison settings suited to text-heavy pages, presentations, or scanned pages and drawings.
- Review destination: An annotated PDF carries suggestions and comments; comparison produces a separate report. Choose the output that fits how the reviewer will work.
- Platform and plan: Adobe documents web markup in Acrobat on the web and the Compare Files workflow in Acrobat Pro. Do not assume that every action is available in every platform, plan, or region; verify your account’s feature access.
What to check before sharing
- Make sure each annotation points to the intended text or page area.
- Confirm that proposed wording is distinguishable from the original and that comments explain changes where needed.
- For a comparison report, inspect each flagged difference in context, especially when layout, page order, or scanned images are involved.
- Save or share the reviewed PDF or report in the format your collaborators need; annotations and comparison findings do not silently revise the original source document.
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