Use comments and action items

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You can collaborate with others on Google Docs, Sheets and Slides to: 

• Add, edit, reply or delete comments
• Assign tasks and action items

Add, edit, view or delete comments

Add a comment

To add comments to Microsoft Office files in Google Docs, Sheets or Slides, change the file to a Google Docs file.

1. On your computer, open a document, spreadsheet or presentation.
2. Highlight the text, images, cells or slides that you want to comment on.
3. To add a comment, in the toolbar, click Add comment .
4. Type your comment.
5. Click Comment.

View all comments

1. On your computer, open a document, spreadsheet or presentation.
2. At the top right, click Comments .
3. To close, click Comments again.

Edit or delete a comment

1. On your computer, open a document, spreadsheet or presentation.
2. On the comment you want to edit or delete, click More .
3. Click Edit or Delete.

Send a comment to a specific person

To make sure that someone sees a comment, you can add them to it. They will receive an email notification with your comment.

1. On your computer, open a document, spreadsheet or presentation.
2. Insert and type a comment.
3. Somewhere in your comment, add the name (with the first letter capitalised). When the correct person is suggested click their name. You can also add the email address of the person you want to see the message.
4. Click Comment.

Note: If you add someone who doesn't have permission to see the file, you will be asked to share the file.

Reply to or close comments

If you have permission to edit or comment on a document, you can reply to comments. When a discussion is finished, you can resolve a comment to close it.

Tip: You can also reply to or close comments directly from your email. Learn how to work with comments in Gmail. 

Manage your comment notifications

1. On your computer, open a document, spreadsheet or presentation.
2. At the top-right corner of the file, click Comments .
3. Click Notifications.
4. Choose when you want to receive notifications:

• All: Whenever any comments are made.
• Only yours: Whenever others reply to your comments or comments that you are added to.
• None: Never receive emails about comments for that file.

Reply to a comment

Reply to comments in documents or presentations

1. On your computer, open a document or presentation.
2. Click the comment.
3. Click Reply and type your reply.
4. To save, click Reply.

Reply to comments in spreadsheets

1. On your computer, open a spreadsheet.
2. On the sheet tab, click Add comment .
3. Click the comment that you want to reply to.
4. Click Reply and type your reply.
5. To save, click Reply.

Close or reopen a comment

1. On your computer, open a document, spreadsheet or presentation.
2. Click the comment that you want to close.
3. At the top corner of the comment, click Resolve.

To see a comment that you closed, click Comments at the top corner of the window. To reopen a closed comment, click Reopen at the top-right corner of the comment.

Use and follow up on action items

Use comments to assign tasks or action items with your work or school account. Suggested action items will appear based on the content in your file.

Assign an action item in a comment

1. On your computer, open a Google file.
2. Highlight the text, images, cells or slides that you want to comment on.
3. To add a comment, go to the toolbar and click Add comment .
4. Type your comment.
5. Somewhere in your comment, add the email address, with @ or + in front of it, of the person who you want to assign it to.
6. Click the box next to 'Assign to [name]'.
7. Click Assign. The person who you assigned the action item to will get an email.

Reassign an action item

1. On your computer, open a Google file.
2. Click the comment.
3. Click Reply.
4. Type your comment.
5. Somewhere in your comment, add the email address, with @ or + in front of it, of the person who you want to reassign it to.
6. Click the box next to 'Reassign to [name]'.
7. Click Reassign. The person who you assigned the action item to will get an email.

Use, edit or turn off suggested action items (US English only)

Suggested action items appear when you use actionable words.

1. On your computer, open a document in Google Docs.
2. As you type, if Google Docs detects an action item (for example, 'AI: Jen to send a follow-up email' or 'Todo: Alex to finish the presentation'), a suggested action item will appear.
   • To accept the suggestion, click Assign.
   • To ignore the suggestion, click Dismiss.
   • To edit the suggestion, click More   Edit.
   • To turn off suggestions, click Tools Preferences and untick 'Suggest action items'.

   For action items to be suggested, the text must:

   • Mention someone’s name or email.
   • Mention someone with access to the file.

Mark an action item as done

1. On your computer, open a Google file.
2. At the top-right corner of the comment, click Done .

See the follow-ups on a document

1. On your computer, open the Google Docs, Sheets or Slides Home screen or Google Drive.
2. At the top-right corner of a document, click the number. If you don’t see a number, you don’t have any follow-ups for that document.
3. You can see the number of open:
   • Action items
   • Suggestions
4. To go to the first action item or suggestion, click an option from the list.
5. To close the menu, click the number.