---
title: "Add alt text to images (accessibility & SEO)"
url: "https://mycommunitysync.com/image-alt-text"
community: "CommunitySync"
description: "Give each image a description for screen readers and search engines — or mark it decorative."
updated: "2026-07-18T18:45:00.616+00:00"
---

# Add alt text to images (accessibility & SEO)

*Website Builder*

Alt text is the short written description that stands in for an image when it can't be seen. Adding it to the images in your library helps people who use screen readers understand your site, and gives search engines real words to index — both of which make your website more inclusive and easier to find. You set this once per image in your library, and it flows everywhere that image is used.

## Why alt text matters

- **Accessibility** — screen readers read the alt text aloud, so visitors who can't see the image still get the point.
- **SEO** — search engines can't "see" a photo, but they can read its description, which helps your pages rank and surface in image search. See [Website SEO basics](/website-seo-basics) for the bigger picture.
- **Reliability** — if an image ever fails to load, the alt text shows in its place.

## Set an image's alt text

Alt text lives on the image itself in your library, so you only set it once.

![The Asset Library, where each image's alt text is set](https://iaktsmonietvbikzietg.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/site-assets/kb/editor-rail-05-assets.png "Open the Assets tab, then click an image tile to reach its alt-text settings.")

1. Open the full-screen editor and click the **Assets** tab in the left icon rail.
2. Click an image tile to open its settings.
3. Choose how the image should be treated with the **Descriptive** / **Decorative** toggle:
    - **Descriptive** — the image carries meaning (a photo of a home, your team, a logo). This reveals an **Alt text** box.
    - **Decorative** — the image is purely ornamental (a background texture, a divider). Screen readers skip it entirely, so no description is needed.
4. If you chose **Descriptive**, write a short, plain description of what the image shows in the **Alt text** box. One clear sentence is plenty — describe the content, not the file (for example, "Front exterior of a two-story brick home" rather than "IMG_2043").

That description becomes the **default** alt text for every place the image appears on your site.

## How the default and per-block alt text work together

The alt text you set in **Assets** is a starting point that applies everywhere the image is used. If a specific block needs different wording for that one spot, the block's own alt text overrides the default — but only there. Everywhere else keeps the library default.

This means you can set a sensible description once and forget it, and still fine-tune the wording for a particular hero or content block when it matters. To edit an image inside a block, see [Manage your website images](/manage-website-images).

## A note on videos

Videos don't have an alt field. The **Descriptive** / **Decorative** toggle and the **Alt text** box apply to images only.

## Troubleshooting

### I don't see an Alt text box

The box only appears when the toggle is set to **Descriptive**. If the image is set to **Decorative**, there's no box because screen readers are meant to skip it — switch to **Descriptive** if the image actually carries meaning.

### My alt text isn't showing on one block

A block can override the library default with its own alt text for that single spot. Open that block and check its image settings — the wording there wins over the library default for that placement only.

### The image is a video and there's no alt option

That's expected. Videos have no alt field. Only still images offer the **Descriptive** / **Decorative** toggle and **Alt text** box.

### Website Builder

- [Add calls to action (CTA bands and buyer/seller guides)](https://mycommunitysync.com/calls-to-action.md)
- [Add social proof: stats, testimonials, case studies, and logos](https://mycommunitysync.com/social-proof-blocks.md)
- [Add a contact or lead form to your website](https://mycommunitysync.com/add-a-lead-form.md)
- [Show your property listings on your website](https://mycommunitysync.com/listings-on-your-website.md)
- [Add an agent directory (and team blocks)](https://mycommunitysync.com/agent-directory-on-your-website.md)
- [Embed a map, video, or custom HTML](https://mycommunitysync.com/embed-block.md)
- [Set up your site's navigation menu](https://mycommunitysync.com/set-up-site-navigation.md)
- [Build your website footer](https://mycommunitysync.com/build-your-footer.md)
- [Add, rename, and organize pages](https://mycommunitysync.com/manage-website-pages.md)
- [Reuse a layout with page templates](https://mycommunitysync.com/page-templates.md)
- [Manage your website images (Asset Library)](https://mycommunitysync.com/manage-website-images.md)
- [Open the website editor and find your way around](https://mycommunitysync.com/open-the-website-editor.md)
- [Add, move, and remove blocks on a page](https://mycommunitysync.com/add-and-arrange-blocks.md)
- [Edit a block's content in the inspector](https://mycommunitysync.com/edit-block-content.md)