Microsoft Word Accessibility

The guidelines below should assist you in creating accessible documents using Microsoft Word. For more in-depth tutorials, please see Make your Word documents accessible to people with disabilities. Also, check out Section508.gov's comprehensive suite of accessibility training videos.

Font size

Use a minimum font size of 12 points. Many fonts can be difficult to see when they are smaller than 12 points in size. This is especially important for printed documents.

Headings

Use hierarchical heading styles (Heading 1, Heading 2, etc.) to identify headings and subheadings. Headings that are created using heading styles allow people using screen reading software to jump to different parts of a document. If you don’t like the default font styles Word uses for the headings, you can customize the heading style formatting to your preference.

Lists, page numbers, headers and footers

Use Word’s built-in formatting options to create the following:

• Bulleted or numbered lists
• Page numbers
• Headers and footers
• Footnotes

Using the built-in formatting options ensures that screen reading software will read the content in the correct order and identify structured text from body text.

Line spacing

Avoid using the Enter key to skip lines. Instead, use Word’s line spacing options or page breaks to skip lines or go to the next page. Using the Screen reading software will repeat the word “Blank” every time there is a line that was skipped using the Enter key.

Images and graphics

Include alt text for all pictures, tables, graphs, charts and graphics. Alt text is a description of images or other objects that have a visual component. Screen reading software reads the description out loud. If the picture or graphic is only used for decoration, select “Mark as decorative” in the alt text options. This tells screen reading software to disregard it.

Color

Make sure there is appropriate contrast between the text color and background. For example, do not use pale yellow text on a white background or dark blue text on a black background, since these would be difficult to see.

Do not use color as the only means of conveying information. For example, do not say “Take note of the text in red.” Instead, make the text red and bold, and then say “Take note of the text in red and bold.” This ensures that the text will be accessible to those who are colorblind.

Tables

When creating tables used for data, check the header row option (and if needed, the first column row) in table style options. If you are using a table for layout purposes, make sure to uncheck both the header row and first column options. Please see Use Built In Features to Create Data and Layout Tables for in-depth instructions on how to do this, and for further instructions on how to accessibly create tables, please see Create accessible tables.

Hyperlinks

Use descriptive text for hyperlinks. Avoid writing “Click here for more information.” Instead, write “See Majors and Programs for more information.” Descriptive hyperlink text provides context that allows people who use screen reading software to sort through links. (For documents that might be printed, full URLs can be included within the text body or at the end of the document.)

Text wrap

Place images, text boxes, or other graphic elements in line with text. Doing this ensures that the reading order of elements is preserved and that screen reading software will identify the elements in the proper order. Screen reading software might not detect text that is in text boxes at all unless the text boxes are placed in line with text.

Columns

Avoid using tabs or the space bar to create columns. Instead, create columns using Word’s built-in column options. Doing this ensures that screen reading software will read the text in the correct order.

Math equations and scientific notation

For anything other than the most simple equations, i.e. 2+2=4, the MathType add-in must be used to write equations that screen reading software will read using the correct mathematical terminology and in the correct order. To request MathType, put in a software request ticket with ITS. 

Saving Word documents as PDFs

To ensure that your PDFs are accessible, first create an accessible Word document, then save the document as a tagged PDF. 

Accessibility checker

Before sharing your documents, run the accessibility checker. However, please note that the accessibility checker might not pick up all accessibility issues. It should be used as a supplementary tool.