When collaborating on a document in Microsoft Word, using the “New Comment” feature is the standard way to leave feedback. However, whenever a document contains even a single comment, Word automatically shrinks your actual text and pushes it to the left to make room for a massive, grey “Comments Sidebar” on the right side of the screen. If you simply want to read the document or focus on typing without this distracting side panel eating up half of your screen width, you can easily hide it while keeping the comments intact.
How to Hide the Comments Sidebar
You can toggle this viewing mode on and off directly from the Ribbon toolbar.
- Open your document in Microsoft Word.
- Look at the Ribbon toolbar at the very top of the window and click on the Review tab.
- In the middle of the ribbon, look for the section labelled Tracking.
- Click the button labelled Show Markup. A drop-down menu will appear.
- Hover your mouse over the Balloons option.
- From the sub-menu that slides out, select Show All Revisions Inline.
The Result
The large grey sidebar on the right will instantly vanish, and your document will expand to fill the window.
The comments have not been deleted. Instead, they are now “Inline.” You will see a small, highlighted initial or a comment icon directly next to the word that was commented on. If you want to read the feedback, simply hover your mouse over the highlighted text or click the small icon, and a temporary pop-up box will display the comment.
If you ever want the permanent sidebar back, repeat the steps above and choose Show Revisions in Balloons.