Social media accessibility

Accessible social media ensures that everyone can access and understand your content, including people who use screen readers, captions, or other assistive technologies.

Use the guidance below to help make posts, images, and videos on social media platforms more accessible.

Social media best practices

Small changes to how posts are written can make them easier for everyone to read and understand.

Use clear, simple language
Write in plain language and avoid unnecessary jargon or acronyms.
Write descriptive link text

When sharing links, describe where the link goes rather than using vague phrases like 鈥渃lick here.鈥

Limit emojis
Emojis are read aloud by screen readers. Use them sparingly and place them at the end of posts when possible.
Use CamelCase for hashtags

Capitalize the first letter of each word in hashtags to improve readability.

Images are common in social media posts and should include descriptions for users who cannot see them.

Add alternative text (alt text)
Many social media platforms allow you to add alt text to images. Use this feature to describe the purpose or key information in the image.
Avoid images that contain large blocks of text
Text embedded in images may not be readable by screen readers or on mobile devices.
Ensure good color contrast
Text and graphics should be readable against the background.

Videos should include accessibility features so more people can follow the content.

Add captions to videos
Captions allow users who are deaf or hard of hearing to access spoken content.
Ensure captions are accurate
Auto-generated captions often need editing to correct errors.
Provide transcripts when possible
Transcripts can help users review the content and support search and accessibility.

 

Accessibility features on major platforms

Facebook
Instagram
LinkedIn

 

Pinterest
SnapChat
TikTok

 

Vimeo
X/Twitter

 

Quick accessibility checklist for social media

Before publishing a post, check the following:

Images include alt text
Videos include captions
Hashtags use CamelCase

 

Links include descriptive text
Posts use clear, readable language
Emojis are used sparingly

Need help?

If you have questions about making social media content accessible, contact your campus support team.