Intro to the Audit panel

Find and fix accessibility issues with Webflow’s Audit panel.

This video features an old UI. Updated version coming soon!

As you design and develop in Webflow (or however you’re building for the web), it’s critical to identify and correct missed opportunities that can affect accessibility, search performance, and about a million other aspects of user experience.

We’re going to cover how to use the Audit panel in the Webflow Designer to identify, to fix, to temporarily ignore, or to unignore things that come up. And at the end of this lesson, we’ll be writing a formal petition to Merriam-Webster to add “unignore” to their official list of English words.

Let’s start with identifying. And we’ll do three types of examples here. First, here’s our project — and at any time, we can head over to the Audit panel to get a view of some of the issues affecting our project.

Here’s an example of missing alt text. Alt text is something we should add to describe the appearance or really the function of an image on the page. And if we can open this example up, we find an image element that doesn’t have alt text provided.

Now. This is a perfectly good-looking page. Image, heading, mouse cursor upside down. But this image has no alt text. This leave search engines guessing and for users who rely on screen readers (these are tools like VoiceOver that enable users with visual disabilities to navigate and understand content) — for those users? They can’t access the content in the image either. No alt text, not a good user experience.

What about this one? Non-descriptive link content. What does that mean? Well this one’s critical because, as we can see, we have this link block here, but there’s no indication of what the action is going to do. This is why it’s critical to have a clear, descriptive action — and we go into detail about this in our accessible typography unit on Webflow University — so check that out if you haven’t already.

But here’s another example. This one’s also non-descriptive link content. But this time, there is text here, and it’s pretty clear. What is going on?

Well, the text here on this design is actually baked into the image (it’s rasterized — it’s not real text that’s interpretable by search engines, screen readers...Plus, rasterized text doesn’t always scale cleanly and is often difficult to read). This is rarely a good practice, and we’ll want to make sure any descriptive text is actually text. (We’ll fix these examples in the next section, but for now, let’s move on to one more example.)

Here is “skipped heading level.” What’s a skipped heading level?

Grimur's not here. Usually, headings on the web are defined with an H1 (this is the top-level heading on a page) — the H1 being the most important heading, with H2s grouping content together underneath H1s. Similarly, H3s are even more specific headings. But that pattern — that hierarchy could be broken when we have a structure that skips a heading level. And it’s usually considered good practice to order the headings to help visitors understand page structure (and help improve page navigation by quickly grasping the structure; the hierarchy). So any skipped levels in heading structure are identified here.

That’s part 1: identifying common issues during the design process so we can not only fix them, but become more practiced and aware of these considerations so that they’re part of our design and development workflow; not an afterthought.

But here we are in part 2: fixing these things. In a lot of cases, it’s just following up on the identification. For the missing alt text? Let’s add a clear description that’s helpful for both humans and search engines to understand the content in the image.

We also have the option to set this image as decorative, but it’s not. This is meaningful content that adds value — information on the page, so it’s our responsibility to make sure we’re doing our job and writing a meaningful description.

By the way, since we did that? The issue is no longer detected in the Audit panel.

Now. There are tons of ways to do this — we have an entire lesson on alt text and different ways to solve for this (especially when you’re reusing images or using Webflow’s CMS), so check that out to learn more.

Okay, what about non-descriptive link content? Well, let's add descriptive text to this link so its action is clear. This doesn’t mean you can just write “click here” or “link” ...We want to make sure that the action we’re performing is described in the link text itself. (Again, this is just one example.)

The other non-descriptive link content? We can fix that, too, by using assets that don’t have text rasterized (baked into the image itself.) In this case, we’re recreating that design using an actual text element inside Webflow.

And for our last example: skipped headings. We can see here we have an H1, we have an H2, some H3s, even some H4s. But wait a second. In this section, we don’t have an H3. (It skips right from H2 to H4.) Now. Could this be a content choice? Sure, and we’ll get to that in a second. But for us, it’s actually an omission. So let’s make sure we get that corrected, so that our hierarchy doesn’t skip a heading level. (That way it won’t jump from H2 to H4; there’s an H3 so that the heading hierarchy is predictable and understandable.)

But (and this is part 3 by the way), there are times where we might want to ignore something that comes up. Maybe for some reason our content absolutely calls for a skip in the heading hierarchy — there are tons of times this happens (especially if we’re developing on the fly, and maybe we have the intention to build the content out of order — everyone can approach this differently.)

That’s why we have the choice to ignore something that comes up in the Audit panel. This dismisses the notification in cases where you want to temporarily or for some reason permanently ignore something coming up in the panel.

But oftentimes, like we said, we just do that temporarily. That’s why it’s critical to unignore things that we might have only wanted to temporarily dismiss. So to unignore? We just unignore. Now that issue is again being flagged, and we can approach solving for that as we continue designing and developing.

But that’s an overview — is this comprehensive? Of course not. But it’s our responsibility to always be seeking ways to make the user experience better for everyone who’s going to be interacting with something we’re building for the web. This is an ongoing process, and as we learn and as we build more, these types of considerations become an integral part of our design and development toolbox. (Not this specific Webflow feature itself, but the considerations around building more inclusive and more effective sites on the web.)

And, that’s also why our accessibility course on Webflow university is an open-ended course. We’re learning, too, and we’re constantly adding what we learn to this course so that we can all build a better web for everyone. And of course, so we can start unignoring things that shouldn’t be afterthoughts; things that every designer and developer should be considering from the very start of our projects. Grimur?

[Grimur] Dear Merriam-Webster,

It’s Grimur again. I noticed you don’t currently list “unignore” as a real word in your dictionary. I’d like to formally petition for “unignore” to be permanently added.

Sincerely, Grimur

Note: This feature is currently in beta as we collect feedback and work on improvements.

The Audit panel flags common accessibility-related issues so you can address them before going live with your site. Critical errors (Audit panel flags with a red square) represent issues where your users may miss out on critical site content, or where search performance may be degraded. Moderate errors (Audit panel flags with a yellow triangle) represent important issues, but are not critical to fix.

In this lesson, you’ll learn all about the Audit panel with the following:

Enroll in the entire accessibility course.

Identify accessibility issues

The Audit panel currently includes 3 high-impact accessibility checks so you can identify and fix common issues during the design process. It addresses:

Missing alt text
Non-descriptive link content
Skipped heading level

As an added bonus, by using the Audit panel and learning from the issues it flags, you can become more practiced and aware of these considerations so they’re part of your design and development workflow instead of an afterthought.

You can access the Audit panel by clicking the Audit panel icon in the bottom left of the Designer.

Pro tip: Press Alt/Option + U on your keyboard to quickly expand or collapse all items in the Audit panel.

The Audit panel button is highlighted in the bottom left of the Webflow Designer.

A close up of the Audit panel and some of its flagged issues, including missing alt text, non-descriptive link content, and skipped heading levels.

Quick tip: The Audit panel doesn’t include checks for text color contrast ratios, but Webflow has a built-in color contrast checker in the color picker for text elements to help you check your text’s accessibility as you design.

Webflow’s color contrast checker in the color picker for text elements is highlighted.

Missing alt text

Alt text describes the appearance or function of an image on the page for visitors who rely on screen readers. (It’s also great for SEO.)

Good to know: A screen reader is assistive technology that renders text and image content as speech, and is used by visually impaired people. It’s also useful for people who are illiterate or have a learning disability.

Why the Audit panel flags missing alt text

Missing alt text means you’ve included images without descriptive alt text or failed to mark that image as decorative. If an image conveys essential information not available anywhere else on the page, a person who can’t see the image will miss out on that information, and search engines are left guessing as to what your image content contains.

The Audit panel shows a series of image assets flagged as having missing alt text.

Non-descriptive link content

Link text should be unique, make sense without the surrounding text, and tell readers what the

purpose of the link is and where it will take them.

Why the Audit panel flags links without descriptive content

Empty links are links with no meaningful text or image alt text and will confuse people using screen readers.

The Audit panel shows a Link block flagged for having non-descriptive link content.

Keep in mind that rasterized text on an image (meaning the text is literally part of the image and not a standalone text element) is not interpretable by screen readers or search engines. Best practice is to ensure that any descriptive text used with an image is an actual text element.

Learn more about accessible typography.

Skipped heading level

Headings give people a sense of a page’s organization and structure, like a table of contents. They let people quickly navigate the structure of your page and break up content to be easily scanned with screen readers or visually. Absent or poor heading structure forces visitors to work extra hard to find what they’re looking for.

Why the Audit panel flags skipped heading levels

Skipped heading levels mean your heading elements (H1, H2, etc.) don’t use proper heading hierarchy. H1 is considered the most important heading, H2 headings would group content underneath H1, H3 headings would land underneath H2 headings, and so on.

Headings H1, H2, and H3 are shown in their hierarchy with H1 on top, H2 in the middle, and H3 on the bottom.

The heading hierarchy breaks if you skip a heading level (e.g., you have H1 and H3 headings, but no H2 headings). This can be confusing for people with cognitive disabilities and people using screen readers.

The Audit panel shows an H4 Heading flagged for being a skipped heading level.

Fix accessibility issues

In many cases, fixing accessibility issues involves adding the missing identification. We’ll cover:

How to fix missing alt text

You can assign alt text to images from the Asset panel.

An image in the Asset panel has its Asset details modal open so missing alt text can be added.

Or, if an image isn’t meant to communicate semantic information and is only used decoratively, you can explicitly set the image as decorative so that screen readers skip it.

The Asset details modal allows you to choose from adding descriptive alt text, or setting the asset as “decorative,” which doesn’t require alt text.

Note: To decide if an image is decorative or informative, remove it from the page. If information is missing without the image, it’s informative and needs alt text. Images that are links, buttons, logos, or that contain important information always need alt text.

If the image is under the Asset grouping, it means the canvas image is referencing the asset and the asset does not have alt text.

To fix this:

Click on the target action arrow (this will take you to the asset’s settings in the Asset panel)
Add descriptive alt text or mark the image as decorative

A mouse hovers over an issue in the Audit panel to reveal the target action arrow (highlighted), which takes you to the issue that needs to be resolved.

An image’s Asset details modal appears after clicking on the target action arrow in the Audit panel.

If the image is under the Collection list grouping, it means the CMS image is not referencing specific alt text.

To fix this:

Click the target action arrow
Set the Collection images to all have the same alt text, descriptive or decorative
Specify alt text for each image if you want to bind it to a CMS text field that contains descriptive content for the images. The audit will then trigger for specific CMS collection items if the bound CMS text field is empty.

If the image is under a grouping with the name of a Collection, it means the image’s alt text is bound to a field in that Collection.

To fix this:

Click the target action arrow (you’ll be taken to the empty field in that CMS Collection item)
Add alt text to the empty field

Tips for writing effective alt text

Describe the intent, purpose, and meaning of the image
Don’t repeat surrounding text (e.g., alt text isn’t needed if a caption fully describes a picture, alt text is redundant, or it repeats names of people in alt text for their bios. That is repetitive text and doesn't describe the picture or how they look.)
Use punctuation (to help screen readers describe the image with a more human-sounding approach)
Write so blind and visually impaired visitors receive meaningful information about the image from alt text, and keep your description to 1 to 2 sentences of key information (don’t go overboard with your description)
Avoid non-specific words like "chart," "image," or "diagram" — instead describe the meaning or trends shown in the charts, diagrams, or images

Good to know: The following elements’ alt text is not checked, or has limited audit settings:

Images in Multi-image fields
Rich text images (the target action arrow does not open the image's settings inside the rich text element)
Lightbox media

Resources

To learn more about image alt text and screen readers, check out our Alt text lesson, How to Design Great Alt Text: An Introduction and Images must have alternate text from Deque University.

How to fix non-descriptive link content

To fix this, make sure all the link elements on your page have meaningful, descriptive text inside.

Avoid generic terms like “read more,” “link,” or “click here.” Though the Audit panel doesn’t provide guidance on generic terms, use clear, specific language about the action the link performs to make your link that much easier to use (e.g., “Download assets here”).

A button is highlighted with descriptive link content reading, “Download assets here.”

You can also use assets that don’t have text rasterized with the image. Instead, place text elements over your image assets.

A text element is added to a Link block in order to add descriptive link text.

Remember, if you have image links (like icon buttons), be sure to include alt text for those as well.

Click the target action arrow (the arrow in the Audit panel next to your link), and then update the link by adding alt text for the image/icon (if the link contains an image).

You can make any alt text changes in your element settings (the settings for your image element) so that your alt text is more descriptive.

An Image element’s settings is shown in the Settings panel, where you can also add alt text.

Resources

To learn more about how to set links and what options are available, check out our links article on Webflow University and the WCAG Link purpose criterion.

How to fix skipped heading levels

Headings should follow a logical, numerical order that reflects the structure of your content and clearly describes the contents of the section.

For example, the title of this lesson (Intro to the Audit panel) is the only level 1 heading (H1) on this page, the subheadings of this lesson are level 2 headings (H2), and any headings within those subheadings are further levels down (H3, H4, etc). The heading for this paragraph is a level 3 heading and clearly describes the content of this section.

For example, using an <H2> element for a section title and then using <H4> elements for the section's subheadings will cause the audit to fail because the <H3> level is skipped.

In the Navigator, an H2 Heading and an H4 Heading appear next to each other, indicating that the H3 level heading was skipped.

If the skipped heading was an accidental omission, you can set it to the correct heading type:

Select the Heading you want to change
Open the Settings panel (D)
Press the Heading type that was skipped (e.g., “H3”)

In the Settings panel, an H4 Heading is changed to and H3 Heading to maintain heading hierarchy.

Resources

To learn more about proper heading order and markup structure, check out the documentation on WebAIM’s site.

Ignore accessibility issues

In some instances, you might want to ignore a flagged issue in the Audit panel. For example, maybe your content requires a skip in the heading hierarchy. Or maybe you’re building on the fly and you choose to build your content out of order.

To ignore the issue and temporarily (or permanently) dismiss the notification in the Audit panel:

Open the Audit panel
Hover over the issue you want to ignore and press the “silenced bell” icon

The “silenced bell” icon is highlighted alongside an issue in the Audit panel to show how you can ignore a flagged issue.

Unignore accessibility issues

Most of the time ignoring an issue is a temporary solution while you build out your design. You can unignore the issue you temporarily dismissed, and re-flag it to be solved as you continue designing and developing.

To unignore an issue:

Open the Audit panel
Press the disclosure arrow to the left of the issue you dismissed
Hover over the ignored issue and press the “bell” icon

The bell icon is highlighted alongside an issue in the Audit panel to show how you can unignore a flagged issue.

Planned improvements

While the audit panel is in beta, there are a handful of planned improvements on the way:

Better in-product guidance. We’ll be adding a modal per audit type that provides additional context on each and provides guidance on how to resolve them.
Support for more audits. We’re planning to add more audits to the future like text contrast, site language settings, and more.

If you have feedback, issues to report, or questions about the Audit panel, let us know in the feedback thread on our forum.

Related reading: Make your site more accessible

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