Accessibility Checklist For Documents

Each office or school should have at least one individual with access to Adobe Acrobat Pro. If you don't have access and need it, reach out to helpdesk@nwmissouri.edu 

1. Open the PDF

Open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro. 

How to know if you have Acrobat Pro (Open Adobe Acrobat and look at the top of the window or under:

Help → About Adobe Acrobat)

If it only says:

• Adobe Reader
• Acrobat Reader

Then you do not have the Pro version.

2. Open Accessibility Tools

• Select Tools from the top navigation.
• Search for Accessibility or find it in the tool list.
• Click Accessibility to open the accessibility panel.

3. Run the Accessibility Check

• In the Accessibility panel, click Accessibility Check (sometimes called Full Check).
• Leave the default settings selected.
• Click Start Checking.

4. Review Results

The Accessibility Checker panel will appear on the left side.

You'll see categories such as:

• Document
• Page Content
• Forms
• Alternate Text
• Tables
• Lists

Items will show:

• Passed
• Needs Manual Check
• Failed

5. Fix Common Issues

Add a Document Title

• File → Properties
• Under the Description tab, enter a title.
• Under the Initial View tab, set:
  • Show: Document Title

Add Tags

If "Tagged PDF" fails:

• Accessibility panel → Autotag Document

Set Reading Language

• File → Properties → Advanced
• Select English (United States) (or appropriate language)

Add Alternative Text to Images

• Accessibility → Set Alternate Text
• Review each image and enter meaningful descriptions.

Check Reading Order

• Accessibility → Reading Order
• Verify content flows logically from top to bottom.

6. Re-run the Checker

After making corrections:

• Accessibility → Accessibility Check
• Run the checker again to verify fixes.

Not all PDFs are easy to fix.

If a PDF is difficult to remediate:

• Look for an accessible version (HTML, Word, EPUB)
• Convert it to an editable format
• Provide an alternative resource if needed

There is no one-click solution—each PDF requires review and adjustments.

If your PDF is scanned, it may not be readable by assistive technology.

• Try highlighting text — if you can’t, it’s likely not accessible.
• This may mean going back to the native Microsoft Word file or original document creation software.

Tags tell screen readers how to interpret your document.

• Apply headings, paragraphs, lists and figure tags
• Ensure content follows a logical order
• If you have Adobe Acrobat, you can choose > prepare for accessibility and automatically tag PDF.
• In Word, go to Home> and open the Styles pane.
• Highlight your top-of-page heading, click the down arrow next to Heading 1 > choose Update to match selection.
• Then select other headings as your heading 2 > click the down arrow and choose Update to match selection.

Images must include descriptions for screen readers.

• Describe the purpose of the image
• Keep descriptions concise and meaningful
• Mark decorative images appropriately

In Adobe Acrobat Pro: To add alt text to a PDF image, open the Accessibility tool > select Add Alternative Text > and enter descriptions for figures.

Ensure you are using the Pro version, as the free Adobe Reader lacks this functionality. Alternatively, right-click an image, choose Properties and enter text in the Alternate Text box under the Tag Tree.

In Microsoft Word, right-click on your image > select View Alt Text. Word can generate a suggested description for you. Toggle on approve alt text or edit the auto description, and then approve the alt text.

Content should flow in a logical sequence.

• Review the reading order in your PDF tool
• Ensure headings and content are in the correct order
• Fix anything that reads out of sequence

In Adobe Acrobat Pro: Select all tools > prepare for accessibility > fix reading order > show order panel. More in-depth information on reading order.

In Microsoft Word: To check that you have the correct structure, select review > then check accessibility > then select the reading order pane.

Document properties help identify and organize your file.

• Add a clear document title
• Confirm language settings
• Include relevant author or subject information

In Microsoft Word: Go to file > info > show all properties and add a document title under the summary tab.

To confirm language settings in Microsoft Word: go to file > options > language.

In Adobe Acrobat Pro: go to file > properties > description tab and edit the title field.

To confirm language settings in Acrobat Pro: Go to menu > preferences > language.

Use built-in tools to identify issues.

• Run the accessibility checker
• Fix flagged errors
• Manually review anything the tool may miss

To check accessibility in Microsoft Word: go to Review > check accessibility

To check accessibility in Adobe Acrobat Pro: Go to all tools > prepare for accessibility, then click accessibility check.