Fix PDF Figure Alt Text Tooltips Not Showing in Adobe Acrobat
Question details
Users are unable to see alt text tooltips when hovering their cursor over figures or images in a PDF document created from Microsoft Word.
- Product
- Adobe Acrobat
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Reviewing a PDF exported from Word to confirm image alt text is properly applied for document accessibility.
- Observed behavior
- The alternative text added to images in the original Word document fails to display as a visual mouseover tooltip in the resulting PDF file.
Keep in mind that alt text is natively designed to be read by screen readers for accessibility purposes, not to function as a visual pop-up tooltip on hover. Ensure you have Adobe Acrobat Pro installed to properly inspect and edit PDF accessibility tags.
Verify and Edit Alt Text Using Acrobat Accessibility Tools
Since Acrobat does not display alt text as a hover tooltip by default, you must use the built-in accessibility checker to confirm the text is present.
Alternative text (alt text) is an underlying accessibility description embedded into the document's structure tags. Because its primary function is to assist visually impaired users via screen reading software, standard PDF viewers do not render it visually on the screen.
To ensure your Word-to-PDF export preserved the alt text correctly, you can manually inspect the figure tags using Acrobat's dedicated tools.
Launch Adobe Acrobat Pro and open your PDF document. Navigate to the 'Tools' tab at the top and select the 'Accessibility' tool shortcut to open the right-hand pane.
In the Accessibility pane, click on 'Set Alternate Text'. Acrobat will prompt a dialog box indicating it will scan the document to find all images and figures.
Click 'OK' to proceed. A new dialog box will appear, allowing you to cycle through every image in the document. Check the text box to verify if the alt text from Word was successfully carried over.
If any text is missing or incorrect, type the correct description directly into the 'Alternate text' field. Once you have reviewed all figures, click 'Save & Close'.
Convert and Manage PDFs with WPS Office
If you frequently export Word documents to PDF and struggle with retaining proper document structures, try WPS Office. It provides an integrated suite to easily write documents and safely export them to high-quality PDFs while maintaining your original layouts.
- 1. Download and Install WPS Office: Visit the official WPS website, download the free version of WPS Office, and install it on your computer.
- 2. Open Your Document: Launch WPS Writer and open your existing Word document containing your text and figures.
- 3. Export to PDF: Click the 'Menu' button in the top left corner, select 'Export to PDF', and adjust the export settings to ensure your document layout is preserved.
- 4. View the PDF: Open the newly created file in WPS PDF to view, highlight, or add floating comments and notes to your images easily.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why doesn't the alt text show up as a tooltip in Acrobat anymore?
Alt text is designed exclusively for accessibility software, such as screen readers, to describe images to visually impaired users. Modern PDF standards and viewers intentionally separate structural accessibility tags from visual user interface elements like tooltips.
How can I make text appear when I hover over an image in a PDF?
To create a visual hover effect, do not use alt text. Instead, use Acrobat's 'Prepare Form' tool to add a Button field over the image, and type your desired text into the button's 'Tooltip' property. Alternatively, add a Sticky Note comment attached to the figure.
Does exporting from Word to PDF strip my alt text?
Generally, no. If you use the native 'Save as' or 'Export' to PDF feature in Microsoft Word, click on 'Options', and ensure that 'Document structure tags for accessibility' is checked, your alt text will be preserved in the resulting PDF tags.
How do I do a complete check to see if my PDF is accessible?
You can use the 'Full Check' tool located under the Accessibility menu in Adobe Acrobat Pro. This feature scans your entire document and generates a comprehensive report highlighting missing alt text, untagged reading orders, and other common accessibility issues.
