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1.4.5 Images of Text

MCS Accessibility Team

MCS Accessibility Team
Last Updated July 23, 2020

The following directions are part of a full step-by-step guide to making a HubSpot website WCAG 2.1 AA compliant. These recommendations are intended for websites managed on the HubSpot CMS but can be adapted for other content management systems.

LEVELAA
Principle: Perceivable
Information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive.
Guideline: Distinguishable
Make it easier for users to see and hear content including separating foreground from background.

If the technologies being used can achieve the visual presentation, text is used to convey information rather than images of text except for the following:

  • Customizable: The image of text can be visually customized to the user's requirements;
  • Essential: A particular presentation of text is essential to the information being conveyed.

Note 1: Logotypes (text that is part of a logo or brand name) are considered essential.

View Official WCAG 2.1 Compliance Techniques

Understanding 1.4.5 Images of Text

Any information that is valuable to the user should not be strictly an image. If the user might find the information useful, it should be able to be customized to fit their needs.

Warnings

Images of text should be avoided. Certain assistive technologies include character limits for alt text and overly verbose alt descriptions lead to a poor user experience. 

Graphs, screenshots, and diagrams that convey information that is more than just text must include a written description of the data or include data in charts as HTML tables.

For more information, please visit the official W3C article: Understanding 1.4.5 Images of Text

Next Article: 1.4.10 Reflow

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