inappropriate-alt

Description

Non-decorative images must have meaningful alt text that accurately describes the purpose or content of the image. Users with visual impairments depend on screen readers to interpret images. If the alt text of an image is misleading, vague, or lacks essential details, it fails to provide necessary information to the user.

Examples

In the following example, the alt text does not accurately describe the image, which may result in a loss of context and information.

In the following corrected example, the alt text provides better context and gives a more meaningful description of the image.

How to fix?

• Ensure the alt text accurately describes the purpose of the image.
• If the image is purely decorative, use alt="" or role="presentation". Decorative images are those that can be removed from a page without any loss of information.
• Avoid vague or misleading descriptions.
• Avoid using generic phrases, like “image”, “img”, “graph”, or “pic”, as alternative texts.

References

• WCAG 1.1.1: Non-text Content
• WCAG 4.1.2: Name, Role, Value