Alt text is a critical component of web accessibility. It's a short line of text embedded in your site's code for every image, designed to be read aloud by screen readers.
The website owner or administrator adds this text for each image, giving visitors a verbal description of what is visually displayed on the page.
For a sighted user, the alt tag — also known as "alternative text" — is invisible and easy to overlook. But for users with visual impairments or blindness, it makes a world of difference.
Think about how you browse the web: colorful images, visual graphics, headings, product photos — they all feel natural and self-explanatory. That's the whole point of visiting a website: seeing what it has to offer and taking action (reading, shopping, listening, sending emails, and so on). But not everyone can see those images and messages. For people with visual impairments or blindness, that visual layer is missing — and in many cases, so is a significant chunk of the information on the page.
When alternative text describing each image is embedded in the site's code, it gets read aloud to blind or visually impaired users through dedicated assistive software.
By investing in quality ALT descriptions on your site, you're not only meeting the requirements of web accessibility regulations and standards — you're also ensuring that every visitor gets a clear explanation of what each image contains.
If you're worried this sounds like a technical challenge, don't be. Adding alt text to images is straightforward on most website platforms.
For each image uploaded to your site, simply click on the image settings and look for the text field where you can enter the required description.
Descriptions should be relevant and concise. You don't need to write a short story :) but you should include the key details — for example: "couple running on the beach with their dog" or "person asleep on a couch." Describe what's actually in the image.
One important note: ALT text for banners often needs to be more detailed. If you have a banner with promotional copy like "All backpacks 50% off," that message must be included in the alt text as well.
In short, with well-crafted ALT descriptions, your website becomes more accessible — and more welcoming — for everyone.
"