How to add or change an image’s alternate text within a PDF.
Why add Alt Text to images? Adding alt (alternate/alternative) text to images allows screen readers
(assistive technologies) to provide visually impaired readers with a better understanding of a
document’s contents overall.
1. Open your PDF document in Acrobat Pro. The quickest way to determine if the images in the file
have alt text embedded within them is to move your mouse over them slowly. If the tooltip
turns to crosshairs with a line of highlighted text next to it, then the image has alternate text
embedded within it.
2. If there is no line of highlighted text, or if you have a long document with many images that
need to be batch-checked, you will have to run an Accessibility Report to determine the status
of the images.
3. To run the report, you need to use Acrobat’s Accessibility tools, which you will add now if they
have not already been added to the toolbox to the right of your main document pane.
This toolbox is located to the
right of your document pane.
4. To locate the Accessibility tools click on the More Tools button at the bottom of the toolbox list.
Then, type “Accessibility” into the search field of the Tools window. Click add, and now, close
the Tools window and return to your document by clicking on the tab above your document
pane which displays your document’s title.
5. Returning to the toolbox to the right of your document pane again, it now incorporates the
Accessibility tool at the bottom of the list.
6. Click on it to open its specific toolset.