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Excel accessibility checker: how to make spreadsheets accessible

Run Excel's Accessibility Checker and fix what it finds: sheet names, header rows, merged and blank cells, alt text for charts and pictures, and contrast.

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A spreadsheet with a highlighted header row, sheet tabs and a checklist

Excel's Accessibility Checker finds common problems in a workbook, such as pictures and charts without alt text, tables without a header row, merged cells, default sheet names, negative numbers shown only in red, and hard-to-read text contrast. To run it, select Review > Check Accessibility. It's a good start, but a spreadsheet is only accessible when it makes sense to someone moving through it one cell at a time with a screen reader: clear sheet names, data in real tables with header rows, no blank rows or merged cells used for layout, and alt text on every chart.

How to run Excel's Accessibility Checker

  1. Open the workbook in Excel for Windows, Mac or the web.
  2. Select Review > Check Accessibility. The Accessibility pane opens with the results.
  3. Work through the results. Select an issue to jump to the cell, chart or object, then read the reasons and recommended fixes Excel shows for it.
  4. Run it again after you make changes, until it's clean.

Microsoft sorts results by how serious they are: Errors make content difficult or impossible for people with disabilities to read and understand, Warnings make it difficult in most cases, and Tips are content people can understand but that could be presented better. Fix all the errors first.

Common results and how to fix them

What Excel checksCategoryHow to fix it
Non-text content has alt text, and the alt text isn't a file nameErrorRight-click the picture, chart or shape, choose View Alt Text (or Edit Alt Text), and describe it. See the next section.
Tables specify column header informationErrorClick in the table, then check Header Row on the Table Design tab. When creating a table, check My table has headers.
Negative numbers aren't shown with red formatting aloneErrorUse a number format that also shows a minus sign or parentheses, so the meaning doesn't depend on color.
Document access isn't restrictedErrorIf the workbook uses Information Rights Management, allow programmatic access to content so screen readers can read it.
Table has a simple structureWarningUnmerge cells (Home > Merge & Center > Unmerge Cells). For a title across columns, use Center Across Selection instead (Format Cells > Alignment > Horizontal).
Sheet tabs have meaningful names, and there are no blank sheetsWarningDouble-click each sheet tab and name it for its contents, such as "2027 Budget by Department". Delete empty sheets.
Sufficient contrast between text and backgroundWarningChange the font or fill color so text stands out clearly from its background.

How to add alt text in Excel

  1. Select the object. For a chart, click its outer border so the whole chart is selected.
  2. Open the Alt Text pane. Right-click and choose View Alt Text (in some versions, Edit Alt Text).
  3. Write a short description of what the object means in this workbook. For a chart, give the main point and say where the data is, such as "Line chart of monthly permit applications in 2026, peaking in May. Data in the Permits table."
  4. Or mark it as decorative if it adds no information, such as a decorative border or a logo next to the organization's name.

You can also select the object and choose Alt Text on its format tab (for example, Picture Format). In much older versions, such as Excel 2013, right-click the object and choose Format Picture or Format Chart Area, select the Size & Properties icon, then expand Alt Text and use the Description box.

What to write depends on why the object is there. Our guides on writing alt text and alt text for charts and graphs have examples. If you can't find the Alt Text pane, see alt text pane missing.

Build sheets that make sense cell by cell

A sighted person scans a sheet at a glance. A screen reader user hears one cell at a time, usually starting at A1, so structure does the work that eyes normally do.

  • Start at A1. Put the sheet's title or a one-line description in cell A1, and start the data close to the top-left corner.
  • Use real tables. Select the data and choose Insert > Table, with My table has headers checked. Then give the table a meaningful name in Table Design > Table Name, such as "PermitsByMonth".
  • Keep header rows simple. One row of clear column headers. Avoid stacking two or three header rows.
  • Avoid blank rows and columns inside or between tables. People moving cell by cell may think the data has ended.
  • Keep one table per sheet where you can, or separate tables clearly with a heading cell above each one.
  • Don't use color alone. If red cells mean "overdue", add a Status column that says "Overdue".
  • Explain formulas that matter. If a total uses an unusual rule, say so in a note or a cell next to it.
  • Set the title. In File > Info > Properties, give the workbook a real title, not "Book1".

Posting data: workbook, CSV or PDF?

Public agencies and colleges often post budgets, rosters, schedules and data sets. The format you choose affects how usable they are:

FormatGood forWatch out for
Excel workbook (.xlsx)Data people want to sort, filter or reuse; several related tablesNeeds the structure described above: sheet names, tables, header rows
CSVA simple extra download of one table of raw dataNo formatting, alt text, multiple sheets or notes; describe the columns on the web page
PDFA finished report meant to be read or printedWide tables split across pages and lose structure easily; poor for raw data

A good pattern is to summarize the key findings as text on the web page or in a report, and offer the accessible workbook or a CSV for people who want the numbers.

A checklist before you share a workbook

  1. The Accessibility Checker shows no errors, and you've reviewed the warnings and tips.
  2. Every sheet has a descriptive name, and there are no empty or forgotten hidden sheets.
  3. Cell A1 on each sheet holds a title or a short description of the sheet.
  4. Data sits in named tables with a single header row.
  5. No merged cells or blank rows and columns break up the data.
  6. Every chart and picture has alt text (or is marked decorative), and charts have titles.
  7. Color isn't the only signal, and text contrast is easy to read.
  8. Links say where they go.
  9. The title and language are set, and the file is saved in the current .xlsx format.

Saving Excel files as PDF

Spreadsheets rarely make good PDFs. Wide tables split across pages, headers repeat only if you set print titles, and the data loses its table structure more easily than a Word table. Before exporting, ask whether people would be better served by the accessible workbook itself, or by a short Word summary with a link to the data.

If you do need a PDF:

  • Format your data as Excel tables. Microsoft documents that in current versions (Excel for Windows 2408 and later, Excel for Mac 16.89 and later), a formatted table's header row becomes real header cells in the PDF, while a plain range of cells becomes a table with no headers at all.
  • Use the built-in heading cell styles (such as Heading 1) for sheet titles, so they export as headings.
  • Set print titles so header rows repeat on every printed page (Page Layout > Print Titles).
  • Export from the desktop app. Use File > Save As, choose PDF, open Options, and make sure Document structure tags for accessibility is checked. Microsoft notes that Excel for the web doesn't currently save accessible PDFs.
  • Check the result in a PDF checker. Our guide to accessible tables in PDFs explains what the table tags should look like.

Under the ADA Title II rule, spreadsheets you post are covered just like PDFs and Word files. See our ADA Title II guide.

What the checker can't tell you

Excel's checker confirms that alt text, header rows and sheet names exist. It can't tell you whether they're meaningful, whether color alone carries information, whether a layout makes sense when read cell by cell, or whether a form built in a spreadsheet can be completed with a keyboard. Our guide to what the Microsoft checker doesn't check covers the full list.

Fix it automatically

Upload a workbook to Includoc and you'll get a plain-English list of what to fix and where: missing alt text, header rows, merged cells, default sheet names, the title, the language and low-contrast text. Most Excel fixes, such as renaming sheets or unmerging cells, change how the workbook works, so you make those changes in Excel. Our free alt text generator can draft alt text for a chart image for you to edit. If you export the workbook to PDF, Includoc can fix the PDF's tags, table structure, title and language for you to review.

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Standards

Standards references: Pictures are missing alt text
Standard or toolReference
WCAG 2.1
Standards references: Tables have no header row
Standard or toolReference
WCAG 2.1
Standards references: Worksheets have default names
Standard or toolReference
WCAG 2.1

Sources

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