Alt text checker

<img src="product.jpg" alt="">

How long should alt text be?

Keep alt text to one short, specific sentence, usually under 125 characters. Neither HTML nor WCAG 2.2 (success criterion 1.1.1) sets a maximum. The 125-character figure is a practical convention: screen reader users hear alt text read aloud, so shorter and more specific is easier to follow. If an image needs a long explanation, such as a size chart, put the details in the page text and keep the alt text short. Our alt text character limit guide covers the history and the exceptions.

What this checker looks at

• Length: empty, too short to be useful, or long enough to tire a listener.
• "Image of" and "picture of": screen readers already announce an image, so these words add nothing.
• File names such as IMG_4021.jpg or red-shoe-final-2, which Shopify themes sometimes fall back to.
• Keyword stuffing: the same word repeated or a list of search terms. Google's image SEO guidance warns against filling alt attributes with keywords.
• Decorative images: these should have an empty alt (alt="") so screen readers skip them, as explained in WebAIM's alt text guide.

What good product alt text looks like

Describe what a shopper would need to know if they couldn't see the photo: the product, the detail that matters, and the view.

• Weak: shoes. Better: Red mesh running shoe with white sole, side view
• Weak: IMG_4021.jpg. Better: Oak bedside table with two drawers and brass handles
• Weak: best cheap running shoes running shoes sale. Better: Woman jogging in navy trail running shoes on a forest path

More patterns by product type are in alt text examples for e-commerce, and the step-by-step for the Shopify admin is in how to add alt text in Shopify.