Free Online Tool
Text Diff Checker
Compare text differences online with this free Diff Checker. Find added, deleted and unchanged lines between two versions of text instantly.
Compare Text Differences Online
Diff Checker is a free online tool for comparing two versions of text line by line. Paste the original text into the first box and the changed text into the second box to quickly find additions, deletions and unchanged lines.
The tool highlights removed lines and added lines separately, making changes easier to review than manually comparing two versions. It also counts the number of additions, deletions and unchanged lines automatically.
How to Use the Diff Checker
- Paste the first version into the Original text box.
- Paste the second version into the Changed text box.
- The diff checker compares both versions automatically.
- Review lines marked with − to see deletions.
- Review lines marked with + to see additions.
- Check the statistics for total additions, deletions and unchanged lines.
You can edit either input at any time, and the comparison will update with the new text.
How Does the Text Diff Work?
The tool performs a line-by-line comparison between the original and changed text. Lines that exist in both versions without changing are displayed normally, while differences are highlighted in the result.
A removed line appears as a deletion, and a new line appears as an addition. If an existing line is changed, the original line can appear as a deletion and its revised version as an addition.
This approach makes it easy to understand where changes occurred between two versions.
Added, Deleted and Unchanged Lines
The result separates changes into three useful measurements:
- Additions — lines that appear in the changed version but not in the original comparison.
- Deletions — lines from the original version that were removed or changed.
- Unchanged — lines that match between both versions.
The visual highlighting lets you review the differences while the statistics provide a quick summary of how much changed.
Compare Two Versions of Text
An online difference checker is useful when you have two versions of text and need to identify revisions quickly.
You can use the tool to compare:
- Drafts and revised drafts
- Notes and edited notes
- Website content
- Articles and paragraphs
- Lists of text
- Configuration text
- Plain-text revisions
- Other line-based content
Instead of switching repeatedly between two versions, you can place them side by side and review the resulting text differences in one place.
What Happens When a Line Is Changed?
When you change part of a line, the diff checker treats the original line and its revised version as different.
For example, suppose the original contains:
Banana is yellow.
and the changed version contains:
Banana is green.
The result can show Banana is yellow. as a deletion and Banana is green. as an addition. This makes the before-and-after versions visible in the comparison.
Diff Checker vs Text Compare
A diff checker is especially useful when you want to inspect changes line by line, while a general text comparison can provide other measurements such as word-based similarity.
TextNivo provides both tools so you can choose the type of comparison that fits your task. Use Diff Checker for line-level additions and deletions, or Text Compare when you want to compare words and view a similarity percentage.
Free Online Difference Checker
TextNivo’s Diff Checker works directly in your browser and does not require an account or software installation. Enter the original and changed text to see the differences automatically.
The tool is designed for plain-text comparison. It does not compare uploaded Word documents, PDFs or other files directly.
For additional text analysis, you can also use Text Compare, Word Counter, and Character Counter.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What is a diff checker?
A diff checker compares two versions of text and identifies their differences. TextNivo's Diff Checker compares text line by line and shows additions, deletions and unchanged lines.
How do I compare text differences online?
Paste the first version into the Original text box and the second version into the Changed text box. The tool automatically compares them and displays the differences.
What do the plus and minus signs mean?
A plus (+) marks a line that was added in the changed version. A minus (−) marks a line from the original version that was deleted or changed.
What happens when I edit only part of a line?
Because the tool compares text line by line, a changed line can appear as a deletion of the original line and an addition of the revised line.
What is the difference between Diff Checker and Text Compare?
Diff Checker focuses on line-by-line additions and deletions. Text Compare provides a word-based comparison along with similarity, word counts and character counts.
Can I compare Word documents or PDF files?
The current Diff Checker compares plain text that you enter or paste into the two text boxes. It does not directly upload or compare Word documents or PDF files.
Keep going
Related tools
Character Counter
Count characters online with and without spaces, plus letters, digits and lines. Free, instant and private in your browser.
Text Compare
Compare two texts online and find differences with this free Text Compare tool. Check similarity, changed words, word counts and character counts instantly.
Text Repeater
Repeat text, words, phrases or emojis up to 10,000 times with this free online Text Repeater. Choose a format and copy the result instantly.
Word Counter
Count words, characters, sentences and paragraphs instantly with this free online Word Counter. Check word count and estimated reading time as you type.
Handy to know
Popular tools
Explore the rest of the toolbox
121 free browser-based text tools — no sign-up, nothing ever uploaded.
View all tools