Documents
Write Useful Image Alternatives in Word
Published by whatisADA / Grow Wild Agency · Updated
Purpose and preparation
Review each image in its document context and decide whether it conveys information, performs a function or is decorative. Keep short alternatives focused on purpose and place longer explanations in the document body.
A practical example
A report includes a decorative cover photograph and a chart that shows which costs increased over the year.
How to check it
- Inventory the images and write the information each contributes beyond nearby text. Mark purely decorative images appropriately and avoid repeating adjacent captions without adding meaning.
- Add concise alternatives for informative images. For a complex chart, provide its key message and a structured explanation or data table in the document.
- Read the surrounding text and alternative together with a screen reader. Check the exported version so the alternative remains associated with the correct figure.
What can be missed
Automatically generated descriptions may identify objects while missing the report's message. A detailed chart usually needs more than a long string in one alternative-text field.
Record your test
Use this worksheet to record what you actually checked. Notes stay on this device when you choose Save; they are not sent to us. Avoid personal or confidential information on shared devices.
These are your observations, not automated results or a conformance certificate. A complete evaluation needs appropriate scope, supported technologies, all applicable criteria and relevant page states.
Primary sources and scope
This is independent implementation guidance with original examples. The linked standard contains the full definitions, exceptions and conformance requirements. A criterion or checklist alone does not establish legal applicability or whole-site conformance.