Our maps sometimes fail compliance checks and our boundary notes are ad hoc. Across the last eight reviews, identify t…
Open the PDF document you want to check for accessibility.
Click the Tools tab at the top of the Acrobat window.
Scroll through the list and select Accessibility to add the Accessibility tools to your workspace if they are not already visible.
Best practiceIf you do not see the Accessibility tools, you may need to add them from the Tools pane as they are not shown by default.
In the Accessibility tools pane, click Full Check.
In the Accessibility Checker Options dialog, review the settings and click Start Checking.
Best practiceFor a thorough check, ensure all checkboxes are selected before starting the check.
Review the results displayed in the Accessibility Checker panel on the left side of the screen.
You can right-click in the Navigation Pane to show the Accessibility tags panel for more detailed tag inspection.
This runs in the Acrobat app - there is no separate API for this task.
Tagging a PDF adds hidden labels that tell screen readers what each part of the document is. Without tags, a screen reader cannot understand the document's structure, making it very difficult for someone with a visual impairment to navigate or understand the content.
Yes, even scanned PDFs can be made more accessible. Acrobat's auto-tagging feature works for scanned PDFs by recognizing text and structure. However, you will likely need to do more manual work to correct reading order and add alt text, as scans often have less clear structure than native digital documents.
| Standard | Focus | Application |
|---|---|---|
| WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) | General web content accessibility | Technology-agnostic; applies to all digital content, including PDFs. |
| PDF/UA (PDF - Universal Accessibility) | Specific to PDF document accessibility | PDF-specific standard; ensures the technical structure of a PDF supports accessibility. |
It is much better to fix accessibility in the original document (like a Word file) because when you export an accessible source document to PDF, many accessibility features transfer automatically. This saves a lot of time and effort compared to fixing an already created PDF, which can be a very time-intensive process, especially for untagged documents.