Find the starting point
Separate a missing alt attribute from an explicitly empty one and an existing text value. None of these observations, on its own, proves that an image is accessible.
DIGITAL ACCESSIBILITY / CONTENT REVIEW
Review every image.
Keep the context.
Turn a pasted HTML fragment into a working image inventory. Compare existing alternatives, draft changes and record the decisions that still need a person.
An inventory, with room for judgment
Review the task
Use the source context to ask what a reader needs to understand or do. Verify the actual image and its page before accepting any alternative.
Keep a complete handoff
Export every image, draft, decision and note, including records hidden by a filter. Original observations remain separate from your proposed changes.
Scope: HTML img and input type="image" elements in the pasted fragment. CSS images, inline SVG, canvas, embedded documents, nested template contents and images created by scripts are outside this inventory. This tool does not visit a website, display images, calculate accessible names or certify conformance.
Build an image review
Paste a fragment from your own page source. It is parsed as inactive markup: scripts are not run and image addresses are not opened. Your source and notes stay in this tab. There is no automatic saving; export your work before leaving.
Your image inventory
The source has changed. These are the previous observations and drafts. Analyze the new source, or restore the previous source, before editing or exporting.
Exports contain all records, image attributes and your notes, not the full pasted HTML. CSV cells that could be interpreted as spreadsheet formulas receive a protective apostrophe.
No images match this view. Choose another view to continue.
A repeatable review method
- Open the real page separately. Identify what each image communicates in this location. Source excerpts can include hidden text and omit context produced by scripts.
- Decide its purpose. Decorative or fully redundant images may use an empty alternative. Informative images need the relevant meaning in text. For an image used to operate a control, communicate the action or destination.
- Review the whole control. Other text inside the same link or button can already provide a useful name. An attribute such as
aria-labelis a cue to investigate, not proof of a useful name. - Give complex information enough space. Pair a concise alternative with a discoverable full equivalent. Use the complex image description builder to plan a longer explanation.
- Record and verify. Write a proposed alternative and the reason for your choice. Make the change in your site, then review the rendered page with keyboard and assistive technology.
Need help choosing words? Use the alt-text lab. Record broader findings in the digital testing worksheet.
References and limits
- W3C WAI: image alternative decision tree
- W3C WAI: functional images and image buttons
- W3C WAI: complex images
References checked 15 September 2026. A browser may repair malformed HTML while parsing; the inventory reflects that parsed fragment. Text excerpts are limited to 500 characters, are not rendered text or accessible names, and cannot establish whether an image alternative is equivalent. Review statuses are your decisions, not automated pass or fail results.