Marcelo Paiva

All criteriaPresent as slides

A person wearing round glasses and a collared jacket holds up a magnifying glass beside their face.Meant to show: A Black woman with close-cropped hair and large round glasses

Success criterion 1.4.5

Images of Text

If the same visual presentation can be made using text alone, an image is not used to present that text.

  • Level AA
  • Principle 1: Perceivable
  • Guideline 1.4: Distinguishable

In a user’s words

“Is that a logo or a ransom note? Text in images are a no-go for me!”

Who this helps: Low Vision

What each role can do

Product manager
Avoid using images for text unless absolutely necessary.
Designer
If text must be part of an image, make sure it has high contrast and is legible.
Developer
Use CSS and web fonts to style text, avoiding the need for text within images.
Tester
Check for the presence of images used as text and verify if they are compliant with guidelines.

Once it is fixed

“You just saved me from squinting at grainy images. Text has never looked so good!”

The quotes are written to illustrate the criterion. They are not testimonials from real people. For the official wording, find 1.4.5 in the W3C quick reference for WCAG 2.2 (opens in a new tab).

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