Writing better product-image alt text: a practical checklist

Alt text that helps real shoppers first — and search engines second.

Alt text (the alt attribute on an image) is the short written description read aloud by screen readers and shown when an image fails to load. For an online store it does double duty: it makes your listings usable by shoppers who rely on assistive technology, and it gives search engines a text handle on what the picture shows. Good alt text is written for people; the SEO benefit follows from that.

What to include

• What the item is — lead with the product type ("linen apron", "ceramic pour-over dripper").
• The distinguishing attributes — color, material, size or variant that make this photo different from the next.
• What the specific image shows when it matters — "worn front view", "flat lay", "close-up of the stitching". Multiple photos of one product should have different alt text.
• Relevant context a sighted shopper gets at a glance — scale, setting, or how it's being used, when that's the point of the shot.

What to leave out

• "Image of…" / "Photo of…" — screen readers already announce that it's an image. Skip the prefix.
• Keyword stuffing — a pile of search terms reads terribly aloud and can hurt more than it helps.
• Your whole product description — alt text is a caption, not the listing copy.
• Text that's already adjacent — don't just repeat the visible product title verbatim if it sits right next to the image.

Length and tone

• Aim for a concise, natural phrase — roughly under 125 characters is a widely used rule of thumb so screen readers aren't cut off mid-sentence. AltForge shows a live character count and warns when a draft runs long.
• Write it the way you'd describe the photo to someone on the phone.
• Punctuation is fine; a trailing period gives screen readers a natural pause.

Consistency across a catalog

A template keeps hundreds of images coherent. Something like {title} {color} {material} — image {n} produces predictable, scannable drafts. Then personalize the ones that need it — hero shots, lifestyle images, and anything where the photo tells a story the attributes don't capture.

Quick pre-publish checklist

1. Does it name the product type in plain language?
2. Are the distinguishing attributes (color/material/variant) present?
3. Is each image in a set described differently?
4. Is it under ~125 characters and free of "image of"?
5. Would it make sense read aloud, with no picture visible?
6. Did a human review it — not just the generator?

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