Alt text

What is Alt Text?

Alt text (short for alternative text, also called alt attribute or alt description) is a written description added to an image's HTML tag that serves two primary purposes: providing context to search engines that can't "see" images, and providing an accessible text alternative for users who can't view the image.

Why alt text matters for SEO: Search engines cannot process images the way humans can. Alt text is the primary signal search engines use to understand what an image depicts, what topic it relates to, and how relevant it is to the surrounding content. Well-written alt text contributes to better image search visibility (Google Images), stronger contextual signals for the surrounding page content, and improved overall page relevance for target keywords.

Writing Effective Alt Text

Why alt text matters for accessibility: Screen readers (software used by visually impaired users) read alt text aloud to describe images. An image with no alt text is described as nothing — the user has no idea what's there. This is a core component of web accessibility (a11y).

Writing effective alt text: Describe the image as it relates to the page's content, include relevant keywords naturally (without stuffing), be specific ("Webflow CMS interface showing blog collection setup" is better than "screenshot"), keep it concise (typically under 125 characters), don't start with "image of" or "picture of," and use empty alt attributes (alt="") for decorative images.

In Webflow, alt text is set in the image element settings and in the CMS for collection images. It supports dynamic alt text from CMS fields on Collection Pages. At Appsrow, we treat alt text as a non-negotiable — for both SEO performance and inclusive design.