How to make Word documents accessible

Written content

Make content easy to read so users can quickly find and understand your information.  

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Write document content people can read

The simpler your content is to read and use, the fewer questions and complaints you'll receive.

Make content easy to read by:

  • structuring content so information is quick and easy to find
  • writing in plain English - use simple words and avoid jargon
  • using headings, lists and links correctly - make them clear and descriptive
  • providing text alternatives to non-text content, like alt text on informative images or a short website address (URL) alongside a QR code

We've put this guidance together in How to write accessible web content.

Show text as written content, not images

It’s usually unnecessary to use an image to show text. Give the information as written content instead.

Examples of unnecessary ‘images of text’ include images that show:

  • the contents of a post from social media
  • an excerpt from a document
  • a quote
  • key facts from a slide presentation

If you do choose to use the image anyway, include real text nearby that conveys the same meaning.

You can have an image that just happens to have text if the text is not meant to be the focus of the image.

Bulleted and numbered lists

Lists make text easier to read and scan because they break up long sentences and group important information. 

We use two main types of lists on our website: 

  • Bulleted (or unordered) lists
  • Numbered (or ordered) lists

Depending on how they're used, lists can be written and structured in different ways.

Learn how to write and structure different lists in content.

Making lists accessible in Word

Make sure any bulleted or ordered list in your Word document is formatted using the built-in list tool.

This structures lists consistently and tags them so assistive technologies correctly read them as a list. 

For example, a screen reader will announce a list and how many items are in it. This helps these users understand where they are in a list and the overall text.

AI tools will also look for formatted lists when scanning documents to understand your information better.

How to add and format lists in Word

Microsoft Support explains how to create accessible lists in:  

Add list spacing using the Paragraph tool settings

Do not create spacing between list items by using the Enter key to insert empty line spaces. This makes the list difficult to understand for screen readers because each bullet will read out as a new list. 

Instead, create consistent spacing between list items using these steps: 

  1. Highlight your list. 
  2. In the 'Home' menu, go to the ''Paragraph' section and open the 'Line an paragraph spacing' tool
  3. Go to 'Line Spacing Options' 
  4. In the 'Indents and Spacing' tab, go to the 'Spacing' section.
  5. Make sure the 'Don't add space between paragraphs of the same style' checkbox is unticked.
  6. Use the 'Before' and 'After' fields to adjust the bullet spacing in your list. 

How to check written content

Manual checks

The best way to check your document content is easy to read and accessible is by testing it yourself and with real users.

Find someone who doesn't know your topic and ask them if it makes sense to them. 

You can also make sure your content is written using plain English.

Automated checks

You can also use Word's automated checker. Go to the 'Review' tab and use the:

  • 'Check Accessibility' tool to check text colour and contrast, image alt text, accessible tables, document structure  
  • 'Editor' tool to check grammar, spelling, style, clarity and reading level (under 'Insights' and 'Document stats')

We explain how Word's reading level checker works in write using plain English.

Do not rely on automated checkers or 'no issues found' to know if your document is accessible. They will not find all issues. For example, Word's accessibility checker cannot check colour contrast in images.  

You must do manual and automatic checks of your content to make sure it is accessible.

Related resources

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines