Alt text examples › Product photos & ecommerce
Product photos are the images where alt text earns the most: shoppers using screen readers need to know what they are buying, and Google Images reads the same text to rank the photo. Good product alt text names the product, then the details a sighted shopper would check in the photo: color, material, angle, what is in the box. It does not repeat the price or stuff keywords.
| # | The image | Bad alt | Good alt | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Main photo of a running shoe on white background, side view | shoe | Nike Pegasus 41 running shoe in navy with white swoosh, side view | Names the model and color, the two facts a shopper checks first. "shoe" tells a screen-reader user nothing they did not already know from the page. |
| 2 | Second gallery photo: the same shoe, sole facing camera | Nike Pegasus 41 running shoe in navy with white swoosh | Underside of the Pegasus 41 showing the waffle rubber outsole | Gallery images should not all repeat the main alt. Describe what this angle adds: here, the sole pattern. |
| 3 | Leather tote bag held by a model on a street | cheap leather bag sale best leather bag women tote | Tan leather tote bag with two top handles, carried over the shoulder | Keyword stuffing is read aloud word by word and can be treated as spam by search engines. One natural description ranks better. |
| 4 | Ceramic mug, 350 ml, shown next to a hand for scale | IMG_4482.jpg | Matte green ceramic mug, about the size of a hand, 350 ml | File names are what WordPress and Shopify fall back to when alt is empty. The good version also conveys scale, which the photo exists to show. |
| 5 | Product bundle: a camera, two lenses, a strap and a battery laid flat | camera kit | Sony a6400 kit laid out: camera body, 16-50mm and 55-210mm lenses, strap and battery | For "what is in the box" photos the contents are the information. List them. |
| 6 | Color swatch thumbnails under a sweater listing | red | Burgundy color option | Swatches are functional: they select a variant. The alt should name the option as the store calls it, not the raw color. |
| 7 | Lifestyle photo: a sofa in a furnished living room | Beautiful modern living room with plants, rug, lamp, coffee table and grey sofa | Three-seat grey fabric sofa in a living room, shown with a person seated for scale | Describe the product, not the set dressing. Mention the room only as context. |
| 8 | Close-up of a watch dial | Image of watch | Close-up of the dial: white face, blue hands, date window at 3 o'clock | Never start with "image of": screen readers already announce "image". Close-ups exist for detail, so give the detail. |
WCAG 1.1.1 Non-text Content (Level A): every informative image needs a text alternative that serves the same purpose. On a product page the purpose is to show what the item looks like, so the alt must carry the visible attributes. The full requirement is explained in our guide to WCAG 1.1.1 alt text requirements.
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