How to Make a Word Document Accessible

1. Give the document a title

The title in a document's properties is what a screen reader announces when the file opens, what a browser tab shows when the file is opened online, and what the window title of an exported PDF shows. Without one, people hear the file name, such as “FINAL_v3_JB_edits.docx”. This is 2.4.2 Page Titled.

• Windows: select File > Info. Under Properties on the right, click the Title box and type a title that describes the content, then save. For the full set of fields, choose Properties > Advanced Properties > Summary.
• Mac: select File > Properties, open the Summary tab, fill in Title and select OK.
• Web: Microsoft documents the title property for the desktop apps, so open the file in the desktop app to set it if you cannot find it online.

A good title is the document's real name: “Parking permit application guide 2026”, not “Document1”, “Title” or the file name. Word sometimes fills the field from the first line of text, so check it rather than assume.

2. Set the document language

Screen readers switch pronunciation rules based on the language stored with the text. If it is missing or wrong, a French screen reader may read English text with French sounds, which is close to unintelligible. The default language is 3.1.1 Language of Page, and a passage in another language is 3.1.2 Language of Parts.

• Windows: press Ctrl+A to select all the text, then choose Review > Language > Set Proofing Language. Pick the language and select OK. Selecting Set As Default in the same dialog makes new documents use it too.
• Mac: press Cmd+A, then select Review > Language, choose the language and select OK.
• Web: select the text, then Review > Editor > Set Proofing Language.

For a quotation or section in another language, select just that text and set its language the same way. The Language dialog on Windows also has a Detect language automatically option; it helps spelling, but check what it chose, because it can guess wrong on short passages.

3. Build the structure with heading styles

Headings are the single most important structure in a long document. Screen reader users pull up a list of headings to skim, and jump between them the way sighted readers scan bold titles. Word only knows a paragraph is a heading if it uses a Heading style. Making text bigger and bold changes how it looks but not what it is. This is 1.3.1 Info and Relationships, and 2.4.6 Headings and Labels asks that the headings describe what follows.

1. Click in the heading text and choose Heading 1, Heading 2 or Heading 3 from the Styles gallery on the Home tab. On Windows, Ctrl+Alt+1 to Ctrl+Alt+3 apply them from the keyboard; on a Mac, use Cmd+Option+1 to Cmd+Option+3.
2. Use the Title style, or one Heading 1, for the document's own title, then work down one level at a time. A Heading 3 belongs under a Heading 2, never straight under a Heading 1.
3. To change how a heading looks, change the style, not the paragraph: right-click the style in the gallery and choose Modify, or format one heading the way you want and choose Update Heading 1 to Match Selection. Every heading of that level updates at once.
4. Check the outline in the Navigation Pane: on Windows, select View > Navigation Pane or press Ctrl+F, then the Headings tab. Microsoft notes the pane does not show headings inside tables, text boxes, headers or footers, so a heading missing from the list is a sign it sits somewhere a screen reader may not treat as part of the outline.

Good: one level at a time, every heading a style

Heading 1   Annual Report 2026
  Heading 2   Summary
  Heading 2   Our services
    Heading 3   Housing
    Heading 3   Waste and recycling
  Heading 2   Finances

Bad: bold Normal text and a skipped level

Normal, bold, 16 pt   Annual Report 2026   <- not a heading
Heading 3             Summary              <- skips 1 and 2
Normal, bold          Our services         <- not a heading

Keep headings short and specific. “Section 2” tells nobody anything; “How to apply” does. Do not apply a Heading style to an empty paragraph to create space, because it is announced as a blank heading. The cognitive accessibility guide covers writing headings and sections people can scan.

4. Use real lists

A list made with Home > Bullets or Home > Numberingis announced as a list with a number of items, so a listener knows how much is coming and when it ends. Typing a hyphen, an asterisk or “1.” at the start of each line produces ordinary paragraphs that only look like a list (1.3.1 Info and Relationships). Word often converts typed bullets automatically; if it did not, select the paragraphs, delete the typed characters and apply Bullets or Numbering.

Microsoft also advises against dropping a plain, unbulleted paragraph into the middle of a list, because screen readers may then miscount the items or announce that the list has ended. Use Numbering for steps that must happen in order, and Bullets for everything else.

5. Add alt text, or mark images as decorative

Every picture, chart, SmartArt graphic, shape, icon and embedded object that carries meaning needs a text alternative (1.1.1 Non-text Content). Anything that is only decoration should be marked as decorative so screen readers skip it; when you export to PDF, Microsoft tags decorative objects as artifacts, which screen readers ignore.

• Windows, Microsoft 365: right-click the object and choose View Alt Text, or select it and choose Alt Text on its format tab (for example Picture Format). In Word 2019 to 2024 the command is Edit Alt Text.
• Mac: Control-click the object and choose View Alt Text, or choose Alt Text on its Format tab.
• Decorative: in the Alt Text pane, tick Mark as decorative (called Decorative in Word 2019 to 2024). The description box greys out.
• Charts and SmartArt: click the outer border of the whole object before opening alt text, so the description applies to the graphic, not one shape inside it.
• Groups: if several pictures form one idea, group them and describe the group. If they are grouped only for positioning, ungroup them and describe each.

Say what the image means in this document, in a sentence or two. Do not start with “image of” or “picture of”, because the screen reader already says it is a graphic, and do not repeat a caption or the sentence next to it. For a chart, give the main finding, and put the numbers in the text or a table where everyone can use them. For examples covering every kind of image, see how to write alt text.

Generated alt text needs a person. Recent Microsoft 365 builds write a description with AI when you ask for one in the Alt Text pane, and Copilot+ PCs can do it automatically when you insert a picture. On Windows the setting is under File > Options > Accessibility(Enable the option to generate alt text using AI). Older builds added captions ending “Description automatically generated” when a picture was inserted. Either way, read and rewrite the text before you share the file: a description of what is in a photo is not the same as what the photo is there to say. Avoid pictures of text altogether where you can (1.4.5 Images of Text); if a scanned page or a screenshot of text is unavoidable, put the text itself in the document.

6. Keep tables simple, with a real header row

A screen reader reads a table cell by cell, announcing the column header as you move across, but only if Word knows which row holds the headers (1.3.1 Info and Relationships). Use tables for data, not to position things on the page.

1. Insert the table with Insert > Table and type the column headings in the first row.
2. Click in the first row and select Table Layout > Repeat Header Rows (in the Data group; the tab is called Layout in some versions). Or right-click the row, choose Table Properties > Row and tick Repeat as header row at the top of each page. The row must be the first row of the table.
3. Keep Table Design > Header Rowticked in the Table Style Options group too. Microsoft's accessibility instructions use this option, but Word ticks it on every new table and it mainly controls formatting. Repeat Header Rows is what marks the row as a header in the file, which is why the free checker on this site looks for it. Setting both covers each way the header is read.
4. Avoid merged and split cells, tables inside tables, and empty rows, columns or cells added for spacing. Each one makes it harder to tell which row and column a cell belongs to. If a table needs merged cells to make sense, split it into two simpler tables.
5. Introduce the table with a sentence or a caption (References > Insert Caption) that says what it shows, and avoid fixed-width tables that do not reflow on small screens.

Repeated headers only show in Print Layout and when printing, and Word will not repeat them across a manual page break inside the table. For a deeper look at table structure, see accessible data tables.

7. Write link text that makes sense on its own

Screen reader users often list every link in a document and choose from that list, where “click here” and “read more” say nothing, and a pasted address is read out character by character. Link text should name the destination (2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context)).

• Right-click the link and choose Edit Hyperlink (Edit Link in some versions), or select it and press Ctrl+K (Cmd+K on a Mac). Change Text to display to words that describe the destination.
• Bad: “For the fees, click here.” Better: “See the 2026 planning fees.”
• A ScreenTip (the button in the same dialog) shows on hover, but it is not a substitute for clear link text.
• If the document will be printed, keep the readable link text and add a short address in brackets or a references list, rather than making the long address the link text.

8. Check colour and contrast

Body text needs a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 against its background, and large text (18 pt, or 14 pt bold) at least 3:1 (1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum)). Colour must never be the only way you show something, such as red for overdue items or a coloured row for the recommended option (1.4.1 Use of Color): add a word, a symbol or a pattern. Lines and bars in charts need 3:1 against their background (1.4.11 Non-text Contrast).

• Use the Automatic font colour for body text where you can. Microsoft recommends it because it adapts when someone uses a high contrast mode.
• Pale grey text, coloured text on coloured table shading and text over pictures are the usual failures. Test any colour pair with the contrast checker.
• In Word for Windows, the Accessibility Assistant flags low-contrast text and offers a font colour picker with a High-contrast only switch.
• Underline links so they stand out without relying on colour.

9. Choose readable fonts and spacing

WCAG does not set a minimum font size for documents, but readable text is part of making a document usable. Microsoft suggests familiar sans serif fonts such as Arial or Calibri, and advises against all capitals and heavy use of italics or underlining.

• Use a comfortable body size (11 to 12 pt is common for print) and left-aligned text. WCAG's Level AAA 1.4.8 Visual Presentation criterion asks for text that is not justified, because the uneven gaps between words make it harder to read, especially for many people with dyslexia.
• Add space with paragraph settings, not blank lines: set Spacing Before and After on the Layout tab, and line spacing in the Paragraph dialog. Turn on Home > Show/Hide to see empty paragraphs as pilcrow marks and delete them.
• Start a new page with Insert > Page Break (Ctrl+Enter on Windows), not a run of empty lines that shifts whenever text changes.
• Set your font choices in the Normal and Heading styles so the whole document stays consistent. The accessible typography guide goes further on size, line length and spacing.

10. Avoid text boxes and floating objects

Text boxes, shapes with text and pictures set to float with text wrapping sit outside the normal flow of the document. Screen readers may read them out of order or not at all, their headings do not appear in the Navigation Pane, and they often lose their place or structure when the document is saved as a PDF (1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence).

• Move text out of text boxes into the main body and format it with a style. A pull quote or callout can be a shaded paragraph instead of a text box; Microsoft suggests shaded paragraphs as an alternative to tables for this kind of banner.
• Set pictures and charts to sit in the text: on Windows, select the picture, open the Layout Options button and choose In Line with Text, or use Picture Format > Wrap Text > In Line with Text. On a Mac, use Picture Format > Arrange > Wrap Text > In Line with Text. Then place the picture next to the paragraph it belongs with.
• Keep important information out of headers and footers, which Microsoft lists among its best practices: some screen readers do not read them as part of the main text.

11. Check the file before you share it

• Properties:confirm the Title in File > Info (step 1), and that the Author and other fields say what you want them to say.
• Restricted access:Microsoft's checker treats restricted access (Information Rights Management) as an error, because it can stop screen readers reading the file. Use permissions on the storage location rather than in the file where you can.
• Tracked changes and comments: accept or reject changes and delete comments before you publish, so nobody hears the draft history.
• Format: save as .docx, the current format. Saving as the old .doc format puts Word into Compatibility Mode, which turns off some newer features, and the checker on this site cannot read .doc files.
• Forms:if the document uses content controls for people to fill in, give each control a title in its Properties; Microsoft's checker flags controls without one.

Word has a built-in checker on every platform. Select Review > Check Accessibility in Word for Windows, Mac or the web. If you do not see the button on Windows, use File > Info > Check for Issues > Check Accessibility.

• Windows: in current Word for Windows, Check Accessibility opens the Accessibility Assistant. It runs in the background, highlights an Accessibility indicator in the status bar when it finds issues, and groups them under Color and Contrast, Media and Illustrations, Tables, Document Structure and Document Access, with suggested fixes.
• Mac: the Accessibility pane lists Errors, Warnings and Tips.
• Web: the pane adds an Intelligent Services group, which suggests alt text for review, and a Recheck button.

Run it on every document. But it is a structural check, and Microsoft's published rules for the Accessibility Checker cover a short list of issues. For Word, the errors are missing alt text, tables without column header information, restricted document access and content controls without titles; the warnings are tables without a simple structure and low text contrast; the one tip is to use heading styles; and an Intelligent Services rule suggests alt text for you to review. Microsoft updates the rules over time, so your version may flag more, but several common problems are not on the list at all.

1. Save a .docx copy.The checker reads .docx files, the format Word has used since 2007. If you have an old .doc file, use File > Save As and choose Word Document (.docx). Remove any password from a copy first, since encrypted files cannot be read. For a Google Doc, choose File > Download > Microsoft Word (.docx).
2. Open it in the checker. Drop the file on the Word and PowerPoint Accessibility Checker. It checks the title, language, headings and heading order, text that only looks like a heading, alt text and its quality, table header rows, merged and nested tables, link text, typed lists, blank paragraphs, text boxes and floating objects, and the contrast of text with a fixed colour.
3. Fix errors first, then warnings. Errors are clear failures such as a picture with no alt text. Warnings need a judgement, such as a skipped heading level. Tips are good practice, such as removing blank paragraphs.
4. Run Word's own checker too. It sees the document as Word lays it out, including some contrast problems the free checker cannot measure, such as theme colours.
5. Listen to it. Open the Navigation Pane and read the outline as if it were a contents page. Then use View > Immersive Reader and Read Aloud, or a screen reader such as Narrator, NVDA or VoiceOver, to hear the document in order. Anything read in a strange place, or not at all, is a structure problem.
6. Check the PDF. If you publish a PDF, export it with tags and check that file as well.

For hands-on screen reader testing, see the screen reader testing guide and the NVDA guide. Presentations have their own pitfalls, covered in how to make PowerPoint accessible.