Writing Text Alternatives for Informative Images
Writing Text Alternatives for Informative Images records a distinct W3C-supported accessibility writing task while keeping implementation mechanics outside the writing guidance.
For an informative image, write a concise alternative that communicates the meaning or information the image contributes in context.
Key details
Important caveats
Scope Boundary
If the image is complex enough to require more than a short phrase or sentence, use the separate complex-image/long-description guidance instead.
Further guidance
Content
Write a short text alternative that communicates the image’s essential meaning in its actual page context rather than merely naming visible objects.
Practical Application
Identify the information the image contributes in its page context, then express that purpose concisely in text; describe visible objects only when those details carry the intended information.
Purpose
A purpose-focused alternative gives people who cannot see the image access to the information the author intended the image to communicate.
Reader Check
If the image disappeared, would the alternative preserve the specific point the author expected the image to communicate?
Worked Example
For an icon-and-arrow diagram showing that orders move from review to approval, write an alternative that states that workflow rather than merely listing “boxes and arrows.”
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- Informative Images — W3C WAI Images Tutorial (opens in a new tab)World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative · W3C WAI guidance for writing text alternatives that convey the meaning or information of informative images.