🖼️ WCAG 1.1.1 alt text · Free · No signup · The violation most demand letters lead with

Free alt-text checker — WCAG 1.1.1 image audit tool

Missing or wrong alt text is the number one WCAG violation cited in ADA demand letters — top three in every 2024–2026 suit report. Paste a URL; ADAflags fetches the rendered page, walks every <img>, and returns a verdict table for missing alt, empty alt on content images, filename-as-alt, alt that duplicates nearby text, suspiciously short alt, and decorative images with text alt. Download the HTML report when you're done.

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FAQ

Alt text, in plain English

The three questions that decide whether every image on your site passes WCAG 1.1.1 — and whether a demand letter finds you defensible.

What is alt text?
Alt text is the written description of an image that screen readers announce in place of the image. Under WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text Content), every image that conveys meaning to a sighted user needs an alt attribute that conveys the equivalent meaning to a non-sighted user. Filenames like IMG_4231.jpg are not alt text — they describe the file, not what is in it.
What makes alt text WCAG compliant?
Three properties: (1) it must exist — no missing alt attributes, no empty alt on a content image; (2) it must describe the meaning, not the file (no IMG_4231.jpg, no "image of", no filename); and (3) it must not duplicate nearby text — if a caption says "Dr. Lee, lead dentist," the alt cannot repeat it because screen readers will read it twice. Decorative images can use an empty alt because they convey no information.
Do decorative images need alt text?
Decorative images — purely visual flourishes that add no meaning, like background ornaments, abstract dividers, or a stock-pattern logo that duplicates a text logo — should use an empty alt attribute (alt="") so screen readers skip them. They carry the same WCAG compliance posture, but in the opposite direction: the right answer is empty alt, not no alt. An image with no alt attribute at all is treated by most screen readers as potentially meaningful and gets announced as "image," which is the worst outcome.