alt text

noun

ˈȯlt- 

: a short piece of usually hidden text that is associated with a digital image on the Internet (as to provide a description of the image for people with visual disabilities)

Some accessibility advocates have also called for Twitter to give users the ability to add text descriptions of images—known as "alt text"—to tweets after they've been posted. That would allow blind people and others to understand tweets with visual elements by using technology that reads such descriptions aloud.

—Rachel Lerman and Will Oremus

For the Webb telescope images, a large team of science writers, outreach scientists, and education specialists at the Space Telescope Science Institute helped write and edit alt text and the longer image descriptions.

—Sarah Scire

Examples of alt text in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

To help with this, brands can use: • Image optimization: Label images with descriptive alt text to enhance their discoverability in visual search. —Al Sefati, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024

Content is incomplete without accessibility like accurate and synchronized captions and transcripts, sign language interpreters, audio descriptions, and alt text and image descriptions. —Toby Wong, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024

Implement features like closed captions for videos, alt text for images and screen-reader-friendly formats for documents. —Expert Panel®, Forbes, 6 Nov. 2024

These include elements such as whether pages are designed for ease of navigation, whether headings are appropriately structured and the presence of alt text for image descriptions. —Gus Alexiou, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024

Features like alt text for images, automatic video captioning and screen reader compatibility allow users with disabilities to engage with content and participate in online communities. —Tina Gada, Forbes, 12 Sep. 2024

There are a few common accessibility factors marketers may overlook, like missing alt text on images, poor color contrast, and non-descriptive hyperlink text. —Daria Gonzalez, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2023

There’s a special place in Hell (etc., etc.) for those who don’t use alt text, so here are the song titles not on 1989 (Scooter’s Version): 17. —Vulture, 21 Sep. 2023

Inspecting the alt text of that image reveals that the official names of those colors are Rose and Porcelain. —Boone Ashworth, WIRED, 9 Sep. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1995, in the meaning defined above