How to Make PowerPoint Accessible: WCAG 2.1 Checklist for Faculty

You've spent hours creating the perfect lecture slides. Clear visuals, engaging content, well-organized information.

But run Microsoft's Accessibility Checker, and you'll likely see: "12 accessibility issues found."

Don't panic. Most PowerPoint accessibility issues are easy to fix once you know what to look for. This guide walks you through every common issue with step-by-step solutions.

The Quick Checklist (TL;DR)

Print this and check off as you fix each slide deck:

• [ ] Alt text on all images, charts, and diagrams
• [ ] Reading order is logical (not visual chaos)
• [ ] Color contrast meets 4.5:1 ratio (text) or 3:1 (large text)
• [ ] No color-only meaning (don't use red = bad, green = good alone)
• [ ] Slide titles on every slide (unique titles)
• [ ] Table headers marked properly
• [ ] Hyperlink text is descriptive (not "click here")
• [ ] Font size is 18pt minimum for body text
• [ ] Animations can be skipped or aren't essential
• [ ] Video/audio has captions and transcripts

Now let's dive into each one.

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1. Alt Text for Images

What WCAG Requires

Every non-decorative image needs alternative text that conveys the same information a sighted user would get.

How to Add Alt Text in PowerPoint

Windows:

1. Right-click the image
2. Select "Edit Alt Text" (or "View Alt Text")
3. Write a description in the text box

Mac:

1. Control-click the image
2. Select "Edit Alt Text"
3. Write your description

Writing Good Alt Text

Bad alt text:

• "Image"
• "Chart"
• "photo.jpg"
• "Picture of a graph"

Good alt text:

• "Bar chart showing enrollment increased from 500 students in 2020 to 750 in 2024"
• "Diagram of the water cycle: evaporation from ocean, condensation in clouds, precipitation to land, collection in rivers returning to ocean"
• "Portrait of Marie Curie, physicist and chemist who discovered radium"

Special Cases

Decorative images (purely visual, no information):

• Mark as "decorative" in the alt text panel
• Or set alt text to empty/null

Complex diagrams (too detailed for alt text):

• Provide brief alt text: "Detailed flowchart of the immune response. See slide notes for full description."
• Add complete description in Speaker Notes

Charts and graphs:

• Include the key takeaway, not every data point
• "Line graph showing COVID cases peaked in January 2022 at 800,000 daily, declining to 50,000 by June"

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2. Reading Order

What WCAG Requires

Screen readers read content in a specific order. If your slide has text boxes, images, and shapes scattered around, the reading order might be nonsensical.

How to Check Reading Order

Windows:

1. Home tab → Arrange → Selection Pane
2. Items are read bottom to top in the list
3. Drag items to reorder

Mac:

1. Home tab → Arrange → Selection Pane
2. Same bottom-to-top reading order
3. Drag to reorder

Common Problems

Problem: Title reads after body text Fix: Move "Title" to bottom of Selection Pane

Problem: Caption reads before the image it describes Fix: Move image above caption in Selection Pane

Problem: Multiple text boxes read in wrong sequence Fix: Reorder so they read logically (usually top-left to bottom-right)

Pro Tip

Use the built-in slide layouts (Title Slide, Title and Content, etc.) instead of blank slides with manual text boxes. Built-in layouts have correct reading order by default.

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3. Color Contrast

What WCAG Requires

• Normal text: 4.5:1 contrast ratio minimum
• Large text (18pt+ or 14pt bold): 3:1 contrast ratio minimum
• Non-text elements (icons, charts): 3:1 contrast ratio

How to Check Contrast

Use a contrast checker:

• WebAIM Contrast Checker
• Colour Contrast Analyser (desktop app)

In PowerPoint:

1. Note your text color (right-click → Font → Font Color → More Colors → get hex code)
2. Note your background color
3. Enter both into a contrast checker

Common Failures

| Combination | Contrast | Pass/Fail | |-------------|----------|-----------| | Light gray text on white | 2.5:1 | ❌ Fail | | Yellow text on white | 1.07:1 | ❌ Fail | | Red text on green | 1.28:1 | ❌ Fail | | Dark blue on light blue | 2.8:1 | ❌ Fail (normal text) | | Black text on white | 21:1 | ✅ Pass | | Dark purple on cream | 7.5:1 | ✅ Pass |

Quick Fixes

Instead of light gray, use dark gray (#333333 or darker) Instead of yellow on white, use dark gold (#996600) or add dark background Instead of low-contrast brand colors, darken the text or lighten the background

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4. No Color-Only Meaning

What WCAG Requires

Don't use color as the only way to convey information.

Common Violations

Bad:

• "Correct answers are in green, incorrect in red"
• Chart with red/green bars and no labels
• "Required fields are marked in red"

Good:

• "Correct answers are in green with a checkmark ✓, incorrect in red with an X ✗"
• Chart bars labeled directly: "2024: $5M" "2023: $4M"
• "Required fields are marked with an asterisk (*) and red border"

How to Fix

1. Add text labels in addition to color
2. Use patterns (stripes, dots) in charts alongside colors
3. Add icons (✓, ✗, !, *) that convey the same meaning

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5. Slide Titles

What WCAG Requires

Every slide should have a unique, descriptive title.

How to Add Slide Titles

If your slide has no title placeholder:

1. View → Outline View
2. Type the title directly in the outline

Or:

1. Home → Layout → choose a layout with a title
2. Add your title

Making Titles Unique

Bad:

• Slide 1: "Overview"
• Slide 2: "Overview"
• Slide 3: "Overview"

Good:

• Slide 1: "Course Overview"
• Slide 2: "Week 1-4 Overview"
• Slide 3: "Assessment Overview"

Screen reader users navigate by slide titles. Duplicate titles make navigation impossible.

Hidden Titles

If you don't want a visible title (design reasons), you can:

1. Add a title text box
2. Drag it off the visible slide area
3. Screen readers will still read it

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6. Table Headers

What WCAG Requires

Data tables need properly marked header rows so screen readers announce column names.

How to Fix Tables in PowerPoint

1. Click inside the table
2. Table Design tab → check "Header Row"
3. Ensure your first row contains column labels

When Tables Shouldn't Be Used

Use a table for:

• Data with rows and columns that relate
• Schedules, grades, comparison charts

Don't use a table for:

• Layout (positioning text in columns)
• Visual alignment of unrelated content

For layout, use multiple text boxes or SmartArt instead.

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7. Descriptive Hyperlinks

What WCAG Requires

Link text should describe where the link goes, not "click here" or raw URLs.

Bad Link Text

• "Click here"
• "Read more"
• "https://www.example.com/page/12345/doc.pdf"
• "Link"

Good Link Text

• "Download the syllabus (PDF)"
• "Read the full research paper on climate change"
• "Visit the university registrar's office website"

How to Edit Link Text

1. Right-click the hyperlink
2. Select "Edit Hyperlink"
3. Change the "Text to display" field

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8. Font Size

What WCAG Requires

Text must be readable. While WCAG doesn't specify exact sizes, best practices for presentations:

| Element | Minimum Size | |---------|-------------| | Slide titles | 28-36pt | | Body text | 18-24pt | | Captions/footnotes | 14pt (use sparingly) |

Why This Matters

• Students in back of lecture hall
• Students with low vision
• Students viewing on small screens (laptop, tablet)
• Screen sharing compression reduces clarity

Quick Fix

1. View → Slide Master
2. Adjust font sizes in the master
3. All slides using that layout update automatically

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9. Animations and Transitions

What WCAG Requires

• Content shouldn't rely on animation to be understood
• Users should be able to pause, stop, or hide moving content
• Flashing content must not flash more than 3 times per second (seizure risk)

Safe Animation Practices

Acceptable:

• Fade in/out transitions
• Build slides (bullet points appear one at a time) if content still makes sense without animation
• Short, subtle motion

Problematic:

• Essential content that only appears via animation
• Rapid flashing effects
• Spinning or strobing elements

How to Make Animations Accessible

1. Ensure slide content is complete before/after animation
2. Provide Speaker Notes with full content
3. Test: Does the slide make sense if animations are disabled?

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10. Video and Audio Content

What WCAG Requires

• Captions for video (synchronized, accurate)
• Transcripts for audio
• Audio descriptions for visual content in video (if visuals convey information not in narration)

Embedding Accessible Video

1. Upload video to a platform that supports captions (YouTube, Panopto, Vimeo)
2. Add accurate captions (not auto-captions—see our post on why auto-captions aren't compliant)
3. Embed in PowerPoint using Insert → Video → Online Video

Audio-Only Content

Provide a text transcript in Speaker Notes or as a separate handout.

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Using PowerPoint's Built-In Accessibility Checker

How to Run It

Windows:

1. Review tab → Check Accessibility
2. Accessibility panel opens on right
3. Click each issue for details and fix suggestions

Mac:

1. Review tab → Check Accessibility
2. Same panel appears
3. Follow suggestions

What It Catches

✅ Missing alt text ✅ Missing slide titles ✅ Reading order issues ✅ Duplicate slide titles ✅ Table header issues ✅ Contrast issues (limited)

What It Misses

❌ Poor alt text quality (it checks existence, not quality) ❌ Color-only meaning ❌ Complex diagram descriptions ❌ Caption quality on embedded video ❌ Cognitive accessibility (reading level, complexity)

The checker is a starting point, not a complete audit.

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Batch Processing: When You Have 500 Slides

If you're facing hundreds of slides to remediate, manual fixes aren't practical.

Aelira's PowerPoint Scanner

Aelira's bulk scanner can:

1. Scan entire directories of .pptx files
2. Identify all issues (contrast, alt text, reading order, tables)
3. Generate AI fix suggestions (alt text, contrast adjustments)
4. Apply bulk fixes where possible
5. Export compliance report for documentation

Time comparison:

• Manual: 20-30 minutes per presentation
• Aelira: Scan 100 presentations in under 5 minutes

Learn more about bulk PowerPoint scanning or try the pilot program.

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Quick Reference Card

Print this for your desk:

Before Publishing Any Slide Deck

1. ☐ Run Accessibility Checker (Review → Check Accessibility)
2. ☐ Fix all "Errors" (required)
3. ☐ Review all "Warnings" (recommended)
4. ☐ Check color contrast with external tool
5. ☐ Verify reading order in Selection Pane
6. ☐ Test: Read slides aloud in outline view—does it make sense?

When Creating New Slides

1. ☐ Use built-in layouts (not blank + text boxes)
2. ☐ Add alt text to images as you insert them
3. ☐ Use 18pt+ font for body text
4. ☐ Choose high-contrast color combinations
5. ☐ Write descriptive link text

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The Bottom Line

Making PowerPoint accessible isn't about checking boxes for compliance. It's about ensuring every student can learn from your content—whether they're using a screen reader, sitting in the back row, or have color vision deficiency.

The good news: Most fixes take seconds once you know what to do.

The better news: Tools like Aelira can automate the tedious parts so you can focus on teaching.

Your slides are already good. Let's make them accessible to everyone.

See how Aelira handles bulk PowerPoint remediation or download our accessibility template pack.