Comments

Comments are for talking about the text without changing it. Everyone who can open a document can comment on it, Viewers included, unless people with Full access limit commenting. Comments are kept beside the text, not in the markdown, so they never end up in your files.

To propose new words rather than talk about them, suggest a change.

Comment on some text

1. Select the words you want to talk about.
2. Choose the Comment button that appears above the selection, or Comment in the toolbar, or press Ctrl+Alt+M (Cmd+Option+M).
3. Type your comment and choose Comment, or press Ctrl+Enter.

The words stay highlighted, and the highlight follows them as people edit around them.

Reply, resolve and reopen

Open Comments in the document header; the button shows how many threads are open. Click a thread to select it, and the Reply box and Resolve button appear. Resolve a thread once it’s settled. To see resolved threads again, turn on Show resolved, where you can Reopen one.

People who can only view can resolve threads they started. People who can edit the document can resolve any thread.

Edit or delete your comment

Use the menu on your own comment and choose Edit or Delete. Apart from the moderators below, people can delete only their own comments.

Remove someone else’s comment

Owners and Admins can remove a comment that shouldn’t stay, such as spam or something posted by mistake. Workspace Owners can remove any comment outside other people’s drafts, workspace Admins any comment in a document that everyone in the workspace can edit, and people with Full access to a document any comment in that document. In a draft, that’s its author.

1. Open the comment’s menu (the three dots) and choose Remove comment.
2. Confirm.

The comment’s words are deleted for everyone, and “Removed by a moderator” stays in their place, so replies still make sense. The thread stays, and can be resolved as usual. The author isn’t notified, and the workspace records who removed the comment and when. Removed words can’t be brought back.

To turn down a suggestion, use Reject instead. A suggestion’s note can be removed like any comment.

Removing a comment may ask for two-factor sign-in.

Who can comment

People with Full access to a document choose who may comment, in the More menu under Who may comment:

• Everyone who can view (the default).
• Editors only: people who can edit the document.
• Nobody.

Changing it needs a two-factor sign-in. Suggesting needs commenting, so when commenting is limited, suggesting is limited the same way.

Where you can’t comment, threads stay readable, but you can’t start, reply to, edit, resolve or reopen them. You can still delete your own comments. The Comments panel says “Commenting is limited in this document. Comments stay readable, and you can delete your own.” Owners and Admins can still remove comments as described above.

When the text is deleted

If all the commented text is deleted, the conversation isn’t lost. The thread stays open, showing the quote struck through and marked Text deleted.