Image Alt Text: The Text That Describes Your Images
Image alt text is the short description behind an image, and it serves both accessibility and SEO at the same time.
Image Alt Text is the descriptive text attribute attached to an image.
What It Is
Image alt text is the value of the alt attribute on an image element that describes what the image shows.
It is read by search engines and screen readers when the image itself cannot be seen.
It serves accessibility first and SEO as a welcome side effect.
Why It Matters
- Screen readers announce alt text to visually impaired users.
- Search engines use it to understand what an image shows.
- It is a key factor in image search relevance.
- When images fail to load, alt text appears in their place.
- Accurate alt text supports the pages topic and context.
How to Write It
- Describe the image plainly and accurately.
- Keep it short and specific to the context.
- Include a keyword naturally when it fits.
- Skip redundant words like image of or picture of.
- Write different alt text for images with different roles.
When to Skip It
- Decorative images should have empty alt text.
- Images duplicated by surrounding text need no repeat.
- Spacer or styling images do not need descriptions.
- Empty alt lets assistive tech skip the noise.
- Only meaningful images deserve full descriptions.
Common Mistakes
- Keyword-stuffing alt text into nonsense.
- Repeating the file name as alt text.
- Forgetting alt text entirely on meaningful images.
- Describing images that are already captioned in text.
- Making alt text a wall of copy.
Before: an image has alt text of img0234.jpg.
After: it becomes a running shoe on a forest trail scene.
The result: search engines and screen readers understand the image.
The lesson: one attribute serves accessibility and SEO.
Quick Tip
Write alt text for a person who cannot see the image, and the search engines will understand it too.
Frequently Asked Questions
Image Alt Text, in Short
Alt text is the bridge between an image and its meaning.
Describe what the image shows, plainly and briefly.
It serves accessibility first and image search as a bonus.