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The WCAG Primer is intended for use by the UK cross government accessibility community. Complete our survey here.

1.1.1 Non-text Content (A)

Understanding 1.1.1 Non-text Content (A)

All non-text content like images, charts, icons and infographics, must have an appropriate text equivalent. This ensures that information conveyed by non-text content is available to people who cannot see it, like screen reader users.

Requirements / What to do?

  • Images (like logos and icons) that communicate information have short text descriptions;
  • Editorial images that support the text around them have short descriptions;
  • Images (like infographics, charts and diagrams) that communicate complex information also have longer text descriptions within the same page;
  • Decorative images have empty text descriptions.

Common mistakes

  • The image communicates information but does not have a text description;
  • The text description does not communicate the same information as the image;
  • The image has a text description but, like a placeholder or file name, it does not communicate the information in the image;
  • The image has a text description that is an exact duplication of content elsewhere on the page.

Useful resources