Accessibility Wiki

Embedded objects must have a text alternative

Rule object-alt · Images & non-text content · impact serious · Static + live

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Why it matters

Embedded content (PDFs, media, legacy plugins) is opaque to assistive tech without a text alternative.

How to fix

Provide aria-label/aria-labelledby, or descriptive fallback content between the tags.

Example

✕ Fails
<object data="report.pdf" type="application/pdf"></object>
✓ Passes
<object data="report.pdf" type="application/pdf" aria-label="Annual report (PDF)"></object>

Example

✕ Fails
<object data="chart.svg" type="image/svg+xml"></object>
✓ Passes
<object data="divider.svg" type="image/svg+xml" role="presentation"></object>

role="presentation"/"none" marks a purely decorative embed, so no text alternative is required.

WCAG success criteria

1.1.1 Non-text Content — Level A

All non-text content (images, icons, controls) needs a text alternative that conveys the same purpose, or be marked decorative so assistive tech can ignore it.

Understanding 1.1.1

Standards

This rule contributes to the following standards:

WCAG A EN 301 549 Section 508

Standard Criteria
Section 508 1194.22(a)
EN 301 549 9.1.1.1

References