Compare text files
Paste two texts and see exactly what changed, word by word.
- Zero-transmission processing
- No watermark
- Limited daily trial
- Unlimited on Pro
Your files are never transmitted. Nothing is uploaded.
Before you start
- Paste or open the original on the left and the changed text on the right.
- Ignore spacing so a re-wrapped line doesn't count as a change.
Good to know
- Accepts
- TXT · Markdown · CSV · JSON
- Transmission
- None — nothing is uploaded.
Chain it
Run this tool and the next one back to back — nothing to download in between.
How to do it
Fill in the details
Paste the original text on the left and the changed text on the right, or open a file into each box.
Set it up the way you want
The differences appear as you type: side by side on a wide screen, inline on a phone, with the changed words highlighted. Ignore spacing or case if those differences do not matter.
Download the result
Download the report if you need a copy. Added lines are marked +, removed lines −, with the surrounding lines for context.
Questions about Compare text files
- Can I compare files instead of pasting?
- Yes. Use Open file above either box, or drop a file onto it: .txt, .md, .csv, .json and code files open as they are, including files saved as UTF-16. Line endings are normalized, so a file saved on Windows does not look changed everywhere.
- Two identical files show as completely different.
- That is almost always line endings: a file saved on Windows ends every line with an extra character. This tool normalizes them before comparing, so if you still see it, check whether one file has a trailing blank line or different indentation.
- Can I compare a PDF here?
- No — use Compare PDF for that. A PDF is not a text file; its bytes are compressed, so reading it as text gives you noise. The PDF tool extracts the text first and compares page by page, which is a different job.