How to Add Comments in Adobe Acrobat (2023 Interface Update)

This tutorial shows how to add basic comments in Adobe Acrobat with the 2023 interface update. We will also look at how to sort and delete comments.

Important Note: There are many ways to work with comments in Adobe Acrobat. As such, this tutorial covers the methods I believe will be most helpful for the majority of users.

We will cover other annotations such as deletion strikethroughs, text insertions, and highlights in a separate tutorial.

Table of Contents:

How to Add Comments
How to Sort Comments
How to Delete Comments

Watch all the steps shown here in real time!

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These steps apply to Adobe Acrobat on PC and Mac with the 2023 interface update, which Adobe is currently called “new Acrobat.” If you are using Adobe Acrobat 2017, Adobe Acrobat 2020, or the old version of Adobe Acrobat Pro, please see my previous tutorial “How to Add Comments and Mark-Ups in Adobe Acrobat.”

How to Add Comments

This section shows two ways to add basic comments, which Adobe calls sticky notes.

Method One

Select the Add a comment icon in the Quick Action toolbar.
Select Add a comment from the menu if it is not already selected.

Add a comment option in the Quick Access toolbar in Adobe Acrboat — Figure 1. Add a comment option

Your cursor will become a sticky note icon. Click the icon on the page where you want to leave your comment.
Type your comment into the comment pop-up text box.

Pro Tip: Select @ if you want to mention another reviewer.

Select the Post option.

Pop-Up Sticky Note Post Option in Adobe Acrobat — Figure 2. Comment and Post Option

Select the X or click elsewhere in the text to close the pop-up box.

Pop-Up Sticky Note Closing X in Adobe Acrobat — Figure 3. Closing X

Double-click the sticky note icon to reopen the comment as necessary.

If you open another reviewer’s comment, you can type a reply into the reply text box and then select the Post option.

Pop-Up Sticky Note Post Reply Option in Adobe Acrobat — Figure 4. Post reply option

Method Two

Select All tools in the toolbar.
Select Add comments from the All tools menu.

Add comments in the All tools menu in Adobe Acrobat — Figure 5. Add comments option

Select the Add a comment icon in the Quick Action toolbar.
Select Add a comment from the menu if it is not already selected.

Add a comment option in the Add Comments Quick Action Toolbar in Adobe Acrobat — Figure 6. Add a comment option

Your cursor will become a sticky note icon. Click the icon on the page where you want to leave your comment.
Type your comment into the text box in the Commenting pane.
Select the Post option.

Comment text box and Post option in the Commenting pane in Adobe Acrobat — Figure 7. Comment text box and Post option

From the Commenting pane, you can also type a reply into another reviewer’s comment and then select the Post option that will appear after typing the reply.

Reply text box in the Commenting pane n Adobe Acrobat — Figure 8. Reply text box

How to Sort Comments

Select All tools in the toolbar (see figure 4).
Select Add comments from the All tools menu (see figure 4).
Select the three-dot menu at the top of the Commenting pane.
Select Sort Comments from the menu.
Select an option from the submenu:
- Page
- Author
- Date
- Type
- Checkmark Status
- Color