Install the Compare plugin via Plugins > Plugin Admin by searching for "Compare" and clicking Install, then restart Notepad if prompted. 2. Open both files in separate tabs, go to Plugins > Compare > Compare to view differences with red indicating changes and green showing additions or deletions. 3. Optionally adjust settings via Plugins > Compare > Compare Options to ignore case, white spaces, blank lines, or treat spaces as equal, which helps when formatting differs but content is similar. The Compare plugin enables reliable line-based text comparison in Notepad for code, configs, and logs, making file differences easy to identify after a quick setup.
Comparing two files in Notepad is a common task when checking for differences in code, configuration files, or text documents. While Notepad doesn't have a built-in file comparison tool, you can easily do this using the Compare plugin, which is the most popular and effective method.

Here’s how to compare two files:
1. Install the Compare Plugin
The Compare plugin adds side-by-side diff functionality to Notepad .

- Open Notepad .
- Go to Plugins > Plugin Admin (or Plugins > Plugins Admin in older versions).
- In the search box, type Compare.
- Check the box next to Compare.
- Click Install.
- You may need to restart Notepad after installation.
? If you don’t see "Plugin Admin", you may need to install Plugin Manager first (though it’s included by default in recent versions).
2. Open and Compare Two Files
Once the plugin is installed:

- Open both files you want to compare in Notepad (they should be open as separate tabs).
- Make sure both files are visible (you can tile them manually if needed, but it’s not required).
- Go to Plugins > Compare > Compare.
The plugin will analyze both files and highlight the differences:
- Red lines: Sections that are different.
- Green lines: Lines that have been added or removed.
- The view synchronizes scrolling, so you can easily see corresponding parts.
3. Optional: Customize Compare Settings
You can tweak how comparisons work:
- Go to Plugins > Compare > Compare Options.
- You can choose to:
- Ignore case
- Ignore white spaces
- Ignore blank lines
- Treat all white spaces as equal
These are helpful when comparing files where formatting differs but content is essentially the same.
Notes and Tips
- The Compare plugin uses a line-based comparison, so it works best with text files (code, logs, configs, etc.).
- If you frequently compare files, consider using external tools like WinMerge, Beyond Compare, or VS Code with diff features — but for quick checks inside Notepad , the Compare plugin is sufficient.
- Ensure both files are saved and fully loaded before comparing to avoid unexpected results.
Basically, with the Compare plugin installed, comparing files is just a few clicks away. It’s not built-in, but once set up, it works reliably for most text comparison needs.
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