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An accessibility checker can confirm that an image has an alt attribute, but it cannot establish that the words are accurate, useful, or right for the image’s role on the page. Good alt text depends on context: what the image contributes and what a person would lose if it were unavailable.

What an automated check can—and cannot—tell you

Automated checks can flag certain detectable problems, such as a meaningful image missing an alt attribute. Passing that check only confirms a limited technical condition. It does not show whether the alternative conveys the image’s meaning, whether it describes the right thing, or whether it helps someone complete a task.

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) says human judgment is still needed to determine whether a particular alternative is correct and conveys an image’s true meaning. A checker is useful as one part of accessibility review, not a verdict on alt-text quality. W3C’s guidance on WCAG conformance challenges explains this limitation.

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Start by identifying the image’s purpose

The same image can need different treatment depending on its role in the page. W3C groups images into three practical categories: informative, decorative, and functional. Its Images Tutorial explains how to choose an alternative based on purpose.

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Informative images

If an image communicates information that matters to understanding the page, its alternative should convey the essential information. A useful test is: if the image disappeared, what would a reader need to know instead? Include that, rather than merely naming what the image depicts. W3C’s H37 technique for the alt attribute also notes that important text shown in an image should be represented in its alternative.

Decorative images

If an image is purely visual decoration and adds no information important to understanding the page, an empty alternative—alt=""—can be correct. This allows assistive technology to skip the image instead of announcing a description that adds nothing.

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Functional images

When an image is a link or button, describe the action or destination the control provides. A visual inventory such as “blue arrow icon” may identify its appearance but fail to tell someone what happens when they activate it. The alternative should communicate the control’s function in context.

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A practical review for every image

  1. Check the surrounding context. Look at the image, nearby text, and any link or button that contains it. Decide whether it informs, decorates, or performs a function.
  2. Ask what would be lost. If the image were unavailable, identify the information or action a reader would miss. If nothing meaningful would be lost because the image is only decorative, consider whether alt="" is appropriate.
  3. Compare the alternative with that purpose. For an informative image, check that it conveys the essential information. For a functional image, make sure it names the action or destination. Include meaningful words embedded in an image when they are needed to understand the page.
  4. Read it as it will be encountered. Remove details that do not help someone understand the image’s contribution. Put the key information first and use a concise description.
  5. Decide whether a short alternative is enough. If the image communicates complex information that cannot be captured briefly, use an appropriate longer-description method rather than cramming an explanation into the alt attribute.

W3C’s image-description tips recommend prioritizing the most important information and keeping descriptions concise. Its alt decision tree offers another way to work through the choice.

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Use automated tools as a first pass

Automated testing remains valuable for issues a tool can detect, including missing alternatives. But a technically present attribute may still be empty when it should describe an informative image, contain irrelevant wording, or describe an icon’s appearance instead of a control’s function. A human review must assess the image in its page context.

This is a broader limit of automated accessibility evaluation, not just a problem with image text: W3C’s historical WCAG 1.0 guidance cautions that automated tools do not address every accessibility issue. W3C also notes that its documented techniques are examples of ways to meet WCAG, not mandatory techniques; the goal is a suitable alternative, not mechanical adherence to one recipe.

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