Social Media

Guidelines for Creating Accessible Social Media Content

Use plain language

Use clear, straightforward language with a logical structure to enhance readability.

Write your hashtags in CamelCase

CamelCase capitalizes the first letter in each word in the hashtag. For example, in the hashtag #GoBigBlue, the G in go, the B in big and the B in blue are all capitalized. CamelCase allows screen readers to recognize separate words and is easier to read visually.

Use emoticons and emojis appropriately

Use emoticons sparingly. Emoticons are representations of expressions created through a variety of keystrokes, e.g., ;) They will be read as “colon parenthesis” which could cause confusion to your audience.
Know the descriptions of emojis. Screen readers interpret emojis literally based on their assigned description (e.g. blue heart). Because of this, it can be confusing if emojis are placed between words.
Avoid excessive use of emojis. Repeating the same emoji multiple times can be distracting for some users.
Avoid using emojis in place of bullet points. Using emojis as bullet points in a social media post can cause confusion when a person using a screen reader encounters the message. You should use true bullet lists in your message when possible.

Avoid special fonts

Many decorative fonts are not readable by screen readers, and all caps can be difficult to read for users with dyslexia.

Provide alt text for images and graphics

Most social media platforms allow alt text for images, ensuring screen reader users can understand visual content.

Use video captions and transcripts

All videos should include accurate captions and, where possible, provide a linked transcript for additional accessibility.

Avoid Text Art

Text Art, or ASCII art, is when you create art or pictures from keyboard symbols. If you create Text Art as your social media post, screen readers will read each character individually.

Use sufficient color contrast

Use text and background color combinations that provide adequate contrast, enhancing readability for users with visual impairments. Text should maintain a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 against backgrounds for readability.

Host Accessible Live Streams

Enable live captions, provide a summary or transcript afterward, and ensure that video players support keyboard navigation.

Limit animated and auto-playing content

GIFs and auto-playing videos should either have a pause option or be used sparingly to avoid sensory overload.

Keep URLs short

Screen readers will read them out to users, just as if they were words strung together in a long hashtag. There are many tools available that offer a free and easy way to shorten your URLs.

Photos and GIFs: In the native X platform, you can add alt text to photos and animated gifs by choosing “add description” after you’ve uploaded the file. Most social media management platforms offer alt text capabilities as well.
Videos: All videos must be captioned. You can:
Add captioning to videos by uploading .srt files
Add captions directly to the video (“burned in” captions)
Upload videos to YouTube and add captions there, then link to the video in your post
Mentions: Limit the number of handles you mention in your posts, since screen readers will read them out.

Images: In the native Facebook platform, you can add alt text to photos and graphics by clicking “options” on the photo and choosing “change alt text.”
Videos: You can add captions by uploading .srt files.
Facebook Lives: It is important to provide live captions to live events whenever possible. If it is not possible to have captions as the event is proceeding, provide captions as soon as possible after the event.

Images: You can add alt text to photos by clicking on “Alt.text” below the image then writing a description of the image/photo.
Videos: You can add captions to your video by uploading an .srt file.

Add captions to your videos by uploading an .srt file.
Upload a transcript of your video.
The framing of the video is important. Whenever possible film with room in the frame for additional graphics and captions to fit without covering faces or significant content.
If using hashtags in your title or description, be sure to use CamelCase (as mentioned in the general guidance above).

Add alt text to your TikTok photo posts.
Add captions to your videos. You can do this during video editing. The text is transcribed automatically and can be edited before being displayed.
Make sure any onscreen text is readable with enough color contrast, an easily readable font size and style and visible placement.