How to Write Alt Text That Actually Helps

Alt text might be the smallest writing task your team does and the one most likely to be done badly or skipped entirely. That’s a problem, because for blind and low-vision members of your community, alt text is the image. If there’s no alt text, it’s not reaching them. The content that really matters isn’t there.

The good news? Learning how to write alt text is easy and takes under a minute per image. 

What alt text is (and where does it live)?

Alternative text, or alt text, is a short written description attached to an image. Screen readers speak it aloud. It also appears when an image fails to load, and it helps search engines understand your content.

Every platform your nonprofit uses supports it: your website’s content management system, every major social platform, and your email tool. If you’ve never noticed the field, look for “alt text,” “image description,” or “describe this image” wherever you upload.

How to write alt text: subject, action, context

Good alt text answers one question: what would someone need to know about this image to get what everyone else gets from it?

Subject → action → context. Then stop.

Let’s run it on real nonprofit scenarios.

The event photo.
Weak: “Gala photo”
Strong: “Four table guests in formal wear laugh together at the 2026 Harvest Gala, with a lit stage behind them.”

The program shot.
Weak: “IMG_2047.jpg”
Strong: “A tutor and a third-grader high-five over an open workbook at our after-school reading program.”

The infographic.
Weak: “Impact infographic”
Strong: “Infographic: 82% of program graduates found stable housing within one year — up from 64% in 2024.”
Notice this one doesn’t describe the design at all. For data images, the takeaway is the content. Describe what the numbers say, not what the chart looks like.

5 rules that settle the common debates

1. Skip “image of” and “photo of.” Screen readers already announce it’s an image. Jumping straight into the description saves every listener a redundant phrase, every time.

2. Text in the image goes in the alt text, word for word. If your graphic says “Volunteer Orientation, June 12, 6 p.m., Community Hall,” your alt text must include all of it. Better: put those details in the post or page copy, where everyone can read, search, and copy them.

3. Decorative images can stay silent. A background flourish or a divider doesn’t need description. On websites, mark them decorative (empty alt attribute) so screen readers skip them. On social media, nearly nothing is truly decorative; when in doubt, add alt text.

4. Identify people the way they’d want. Name people when their identity matters and you have permission. Include visible details that are relevant and omit what isn’t.

5. Keep it to a sentence or two. If an image needs a paragraph, like a complex chart or a detailed map, give it a one-line alt text plus a longer description in the surrounding text. Everyone benefits from that, not just screen reader users.

What about AI-generated alt text?

Some platforms auto-generate descriptions like “may be an image of five people and text.” Treat these as placeholders, never as finished work. They miss names, miss context, and miss the point. The auto-caption doesn’t know that the woman cutting the ribbon is your founder or that the building behind her took eight years of advocacy. Context is the only part you can write. AI can draft but a human who knows the story needs to edit.

Build it into your workflow

The teams that do alt text well don’t rely on memory. They rely on defaults:

• Add an “alt text” column to your content calendar, next to the caption column; the same person should draft the alt text every time. 
• Put the subject-action-context formula in your style guide (one line is enough).
• Make it part of the approval check: no alt text, not ready to post. (The same habit powers accessible social media; it’s one workflow, many channels.)

Ten minutes of setup, and the ramp builds itself from then on.

Frequently asked questions

How long should alt text be?

One to two sentences for most images. Platforms allow more, but length isn’t the goal, usefulness is.

Does alt text improve SEO?

Yes. Search engines use alt text to understand images, and it’s one of the signals that makes your content findable. But write for humans first; keyword-stuffed alt text serves no one.

Should hashtags or emojis go in alt text?

No. Alt text is spoken aloud so keep it clean and descriptive.

What about images in emails?

Same rules. Email is actually where missing alt text hurts most, because many email clients block images by default. Your alt text is what everyone sees until they click “load images.”

The one-minute habit that widens your reach

Alt text is the fastest digital ramp you can build: no budget, no software, no approval chain. Just a minute of writing that decides whether a quarter of your community gets the full story or a blank space.

Want to know where your other gaps are? The Digital Ramps Scorecard is a free 10-minute self-audit of your communications accessibility for website, social, email, documents, and multimedia.