Microsoft Word Playbook
Make your Word documents accessible
Overview
Electronic documents can be challenging for many assistive technology users. Accessible documents provide content with limited barriers, regardless of the method or technology used to access it. The good news is following these guidelines will make your content easier to read and understand for everyone.
When possible, provide information via the web. If the web isn't appropriate, Microsoft Word is the next best method. (Approximately 70% of assistive technology users prefer word to PDFs.)
One common way to reduce accessibility errors are to create and use accessible templates (build in accessibility from the beginning) and others include using Word features such as bulleted lists and headings.
Accessible Template
Accessibility best practices
Lists are used correctly
Overview
There are two kinds of lists; ordered (numbered) and unordered (bulleted).
Ordered lists
- Begin with a number
- Indicate an order or level of importance to each item
Accessibility tip:
A screen reader would read this list as, "Ordered lists, list with
three items. One, begin with a number. Two, Indicate an order or level
of importance to each item"
Bulleted lists
- Begin with bullets
- Items have equal importance
Accessibility tip:
A screen reader would read this list as, "Bulleted lists, list with two
items. Bullet, begin with bullets Bullet, Items have equal importance"
Remember to
- Decide which type of list is appropriate
- If there's an order or importance to each item use a numbered list and list each item in order
- Items are of equal importance; use a bulleted list
- If there are multiple lists on a page, select the correct format for each list based on its contents
- If there are multiple numbered lists, be sure to restart numbering for each new list of items
Accessibility tips
- Use the built-in list formatting for each application to create the list so that screen readers will indicate it is a list
- Web content creators and developers - these break the way that screen readers handle lists and shouldn't be used
list-style-type: none;display:inline;
Relates to: WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships