Document Compare Guide
Complete guide to the AI-powered Document Comparison tools — side-by-side diff for PDF, Word, images, and cross-format document pairs with page-level precision.
What Document Compare does
Document Compare uses AI to detect every insertion, deletion, and modification between two documents — even when they are different formats. Upload any two files and get a side-by-side structural diff with page-level precision. No file conversion required.
Supported comparison types
| Comparison Type | Base Format | Compare Format | Use Case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Universal Compare | Any format | Any format | General-purpose diff for any two documents |
| Compare PDF | Contract versions, legal document revisions | ||
| Compare Word | DOCX/DOC | DOCX/DOC | Track editorial changes across drafts |
| PDF vs Word | DOCX/DOC | Signed PDF against original Word draft | |
| Image vs PDF | PNG/JPG | Phone photos vs system PDF records |
Each comparison runs as an independent job with status tracking and a downloadable diff report.
How to use
- Navigate to the comparison page for your needed type (e.g.,
/compare-pdffor PDF-to-PDF comparison). - Upload your base file and compare file — click or drag files into the two upload areas.
- Click Start AI Comparison to begin the analysis.
- Track progress through the step indicators (Uploaded → File Analysis → AI Alignment → Diff Generation → Ready).
- Review differences in the side-by-side viewer with highlighted inserts, deletions, and modifications.
- Download the comparison report as a PDF highlighting all detected differences.
Progress tracking
- Five visual steps: Uploaded, File Analysis, AI Alignment, Diff Generation, Ready to View.
- Real-time elapsed time display.
- Detailed progress log with timestamps for each pipeline stage.
Cross-format comparison
The AI extracts text coordinates from both document layers and performs cross-format logical alignment. You can compare:
- A scanned PDF against a native Word document — no conversion needed.
- A phone photo of an invoice against the system PDF record.
- Two PDFs even when one is scanned (image-based) and the other is native (text-based).
Use cases
- Contract review: Compare the signed PDF against your original Word draft to catch unauthorized clause changes.
- Invoice verification: Cross-check a phone photo of a paper receipt against the digital system PDF.
- Revision tracking: Spot every edit between two document versions — text, formatting, fonts, and seals.
- Audit trails: Verify that printed documents match their digital source files.
Credits and billing
Credit consumption depends on the total page count of both documents. Each page costs 10 credits. For example, comparing a 3-page PDF against a 5-page Word document consumes 80 credits (8 pages × 10). New users receive free credits upon sign-up.
Data retention
Comparison results are available for 30 days. After that, all document data is automatically purged from our servers. Files are isolated by account — only you can access your own files. We do not use your documents for any purpose other than the comparison you requested.
Download and share
The comparison engine generates a downloadable PDF report highlighting all detected differences. The report is available for 30 days alongside your comparison results. You can also share the report URL directly with team members.
Related tools
- Document Converter — Convert files between formats with layout-aware AI.
- Translator Workbench — Edit and refine OCR/translation results before export.
- Upload Guide — Learn about supported formats, credits, and processing options.