Documents

You likely work with electronic documents on an almost constant basis. Perhaps you post PDF reports or Excel spreadsheets to the web, distribute handouts and PowerPoint presentations to students in Canvas, or attach a PDF newsletter to an email. Use the following resources and start designing your documents with access in mind before you share them.

Get familiar with the Microsoft Accessibility Checker and use it as a guide when designing Word, Excel, and PowerPoint Files.

Microsoft Word

Check templates for accessibility features, even ones marked as accessible-ready.
Use heading styles (h1 through h6) rather than just formatting text to appear larger/bolder.
Format lists using bullets and/or numbered styles. Avoid pseudo lists.
Embed hyperlinks in descriptive, purposeful text. Avoid generic text like “click here.”
Add a Title to document properties metadata (different from file name).
Add alt text to all graphics.
Avoid layout tables. Ensure that tables show relationships between data.
Avoid complex tables with merged and nested cells.
Use table headers.
Ensure there is sufficient color contrast between foreground and background, especially with text.
Use standard sans serif fonts like Verdana, Calibri, and Arial to maximize readability.
Use line spacing that is 1.5 times

More Word Resources

Microsoft Word Accessibility Essentials, recorded workshop video [video]
Make Word Documents Accessible, Microsoft official [guide]
Creating Accessible Word Documents [article]

Excel

Name worksheets.
Use cell A1 as the title of the spreadsheet.
Data formatted as tables needs descriptive headers.
Name the table.
Use chart titles and labels.
Remove blank rows/columns.
Empty cells include “no data.”
Alt text for images, charts, and tables.
Use alt text in cells where color is the only way to convey meaning (conditional formatting.)
Formatting emphasis, ALL CAPS and strikethrough not perceivable to some users.
Link to other sheets for keyboard-only users.
Adjust text wrapping and column width to improve readability of all cell data.
Avoid hiding rows and columns.
Alert users with text where frozen panes are active.

More Excel Resources

Make Excel Spreadsheets Accessible [official guide]

PowerPoint

Distribute your slide deck ahead of time.
Choose built-in slide layouts. Text boxes you add to layouts will not appear in Outline View.
Use the Slide Master to modify slide layouts.
Add alt text to all graphics.
Use captions for complex graphics.
Give each slide a unique title even if it’s a continuation of the previous slide.
Make sure embedded videos include closed or open captions. Use .VTT format in PowerPoint.
Use the Reading Order panel by arranging objects from bottom to top.
Ensure links are descriptive.
Use 24pt-28pt minimum text formatting.
Include table headers.
Use the 7x7 rule: no more than seven bullets or seven lines of text per slide, and no more than seven words per line.

More PowerPoint Resources

Microsoft PowerPoint Accessibility Essentials, recorded workshop [video]
Make your PowerPoint Presentations Accessible [official guide]
PowerPoint Accessibility [article]

Adobe Acrobat PDF

PDF stands for “portable document format.” PDF documents display their original layouts and styles regardless of the operating system or application used to display them (hence the “portable” part).

PDFs are really intended for printing and they can contain numerous barriers for people who use assistive technologies. Whenever possible, try creating an HTML alternative to your PDF, or use a Word document. If you must use a PDF, read the quick tips below.

Run the Accessibility checker and use the report to guide you.
PDFs must include tags.
Use the tags tree to check reading order.
Add alt text to all graphics, mark decorative where appropriate.
Embed hyperlinks in descriptive, purposeful text.
Ensure that heading and list tags are used logically and create structure.
Make sure bookmarks match navigation structure like headings, lists, links, images, etc.
Avoid layout tables.
Avoid blank and merged cells.
Include table headers.
Include metadata like title, language, author, keywords, etc.

Creating more accessible InDesign PDFs

Using Adobe InDesign to create visually appealing documents? You can follow specific steps while you design to structure and prepare a document for accessibility properly.

Converting Microsoft files to PDF

You can use the Office programs to save or convert your files to PDFs so that you can share them or print them using commercial printers. And you won’t need any other software or add-ins. Just make sure you use the Microsoft Accessibility checker to verify you have an accessible document to start.

Read the Save or convert to PDF Microsoft Support article for the most up to date step by step instructions

More PDF Resources

Adobe Acrobat and PDF Accessibility Essentials, recorded workshop [video]
Adobe Acrobat and Accessible PDF Forms, recorded workshop [video]
How to Make PDFs Accessible [video]
Create and Verify PDF Accessibility [official guide]
Understanding the Tags Tree [article]
PDF Accessibility [article]
Make PDFs More Accessible [article]