Accessibility Overlay Tools and Tips for Compliant Alt Text

One of the most common issues in web accessibility audits is the inconsistent use of alt text. So, whether you're using accessibility overlay tools or other technologies, these golden rules will make your alt tags more valuable to your site visitors and increase the likelihood that your site is legally compliant. These guidelines are most helpful for content editors, but they may benefit anyone who creates web content.

Rule 1: Every img> tag must include an alt= attribute.

Rule 2: Describe the information rather than the image.

Rule 3: Descriptive alt text is vital for images.

Rule 4: Images containing information must have descriptive alt text.

Rule 5: Decorative images should have no alt text.

What exactly is "alt text"?

Alt text describes images on websites. The typical image is coded in HTML as follows:

alt="text alternative">img alt="text alternative">

When editing your website or adding new content, you may never see the page's code; instead, you will most likely use a CMS (Content Management System). When you add an image to your website, you should ask for "alt text" or a text alternative, regardless of how you add content.

What is the purpose of alt text?

The images are not visible to all users. Visitors may use technology to read the page aloud, and this software will read the alt text rather than the image. There are other uses for alt texts. For instance, a user has pictures turned off to see the alt text instead of the image.

What difference does it make if your website uses alt text?

One of the pillars of digital accessibility is alt text for non-text content. When alt text is correctly associated with an image, the image's contents and purpose are made available to everyone.

A text equivalent of the picture should be available for individuals who use a screen-reader. In contrast, when an image lacks alt text, information is dependent on the visual display, which is a significant accessibility violation.