Should every single image have alt text?

Content images — anything that conveys information, like a chart, product photo, or diagram — need descriptive alt text. Purely decorative images (a background pattern, a divider graphic) should use an empty alt="" attribute so screen readers skip past them silently instead of announcing something unhelpful like the filename.

How long should alt text be?

Aim for a concise, specific description under roughly 125 characters — long enough to convey what the image shows or does, short enough that a screen reader doesn't read a full paragraph before getting to the next piece of content.

What should I write for a linked image, like a logo that links home?

Describe the destination or function rather than just the image — e.g. "NexLove home" rather than "purple and pink logo" — since a screen reader user needs to know what clicking it will do, not just what it visually looks like.

Does alt text actually affect SEO rankings?

It's one of several signals search engines use to understand image content, particularly for Google Images results, but it isn't a major direct ranking factor for the overall page. It's worth doing well regardless, since it's also a genuine accessibility requirement, not just an SEO trick.

What if an image is both decorative and has some informational value?

When in doubt, err toward writing real alt text — an unnecessary short description costs a screen reader user very little extra time, while a missing description on an image that actually mattered can leave out real information.

Image Alt Text Checker

Find images missing alt text for SEO & a11y.

TL;DR: Image Alt Text Checker is a free, browser-based tool that lets you find images missing alt text for SEO & a11y.

Paste your page HTML

Understanding the Image Alt Text Checker

Image Alt Checker audits all `` tags on a webpage, identifying missing alt attributes, empty alt tags, uninformative filenames, and keyword opportunities for WCAG accessibility and Google Image SEO.

How It Works

Enter your webpage URL or paste HTML source code.
Click 'Check Alt Tags' to inspect all image elements.
Review images flagged with Missing Alt, Empty Alt, or Generic Alt text.
Write concise, descriptive alt text for every content image.

How to Get the Best Results

WCAG 2.2 AA Compliance: Accessible websites require descriptive alt text on all informative images for screen reader users.
Decorative Images: Use `alt=''` (empty string) on purely decorative background shapes so screen readers skip them cleanly.
Natural Keyword Inclusion: Describe the visual scene accurately while including relevant search keywords naturally.

Related Guides & Tutorials

Compress Images Without Losing Quality — Learn in-depth concepts, best practices, and expert tips.
Crop Resize Images Exact Pixels — Learn in-depth concepts, best practices, and expert tips.
How To Compress Images Without Losing Quality — Learn in-depth concepts, best practices, and expert tips.

100% Client-Side Privacy Guarantee

All processing runs locally inside your browser using JavaScript and HTML5 APIs. Your data, files, and inputs are never uploaded to any remote server. Complete privacy by design.

Frequently Asked Questions

: Content images — anything that conveys information, like a chart, product photo, or diagram — need descriptive alt text. Purely decorative images (a background pattern, a divider graphic) should use an empty alt="" attribute so screen readers skip past them silently instead of announcing something unhelpful like the filename.
: Aim for a concise, specific description under roughly 125 characters — long enough to convey what the image shows or does, short enough that a screen reader doesn't read a full paragraph before getting to the next piece of content.
: Describe the destination or function rather than just the image — e.g. "NexLove home" rather than "purple and pink logo" — since a screen reader user needs to know what clicking it will do, not just what it visually looks like.
: It's one of several signals search engines use to understand image content, particularly for Google Images results, but it isn't a major direct ranking factor for the overall page. It's worth doing well regardless, since it's also a genuine accessibility requirement, not just an SEO trick.
: When in doubt, err toward writing real alt text — an unnecessary short description costs a screen reader user very little extra time, while a missing description on an image that actually mattered can leave out real information.

Cite This Tool

Referencing this tool in a paper, article, or bibliography? Copy a ready-made citation below.

NexLove.org. (2026). Image Alt Text Checker [Software]. https://nexlove.org/tools/image-alt-checker.html

“Image Alt Text Checker.” NexLove.org, 2026, nexlove.org/tools/image-alt-checker.html.

NexLove.org (2026) Image Alt Text Checker. Available at: https://nexlove.org/tools/image-alt-checker.html (Accessed: 2026).

@misc{nexlove_image_alt_checker,
  title = {Image Alt Text Checker},
  author = {{NexLove.org}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://nexlove.org/tools/image-alt-checker.html}
}

Embed This Tool

Add the live Image Alt Text Checker tool to your own website with this snippet — it loads the real, working tool in an iframe, not a static screenshot.

<iframe src="https://nexlove.org/embed/image-alt-checker.html" width="100%" height="600" style="border:1px solid #e2e8f0;border-radius:12px" title="Image Alt Text Checker — NexLove.org" loading="lazy"></iframe>

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