Fix “Image Elements Do Not Have [alt] Attributes” in WordPress

The Lighthouse accessibility error “Image elements do not have [alt] attributes” means one or more images on your page are missing alt text — the written description that tells non-visual visitors what an image shows. It is one of the most common WordPress accessibility issues, and one of the easiest to fix. This guide explains what alt text is for, what triggers the error, and how to clear it.

What alt text is and why it matters

The alt attribute is a short text description attached to an image in your HTML. It exists because not everyone — and not everything — can see the image:

• Screen-reader users hear the alt text read aloud, so they know what the image conveys.
• Search engines use it to understand and index your images, which helps image SEO.
• AI agents reading your site rely on alt text to interpret images, because they read the accessibility tree, not the pixels.
• Anyone on a slow connection sees the alt text if the image fails to load.

When the alt attribute is missing entirely, all of those audiences are left with nothing — which is what Lighthouse flags.

Informative vs decorative images

The right fix depends on the image’s purpose, and this distinction is the key to doing it correctly:

• Informative images — photos, product shots, charts, screenshots — need descriptive alt text that conveys their meaning (“Blue running shoe, side view”).
• Decorative images — dividers, background flourishes, spacer graphics that add nothing to meaning — should have an empty alt attribute (alt=""). This is not the same as missing it: an empty alt deliberately tells assistive technology to skip the image cleanly.

So “fixing” alt text is not about labelling everything — it is about describing what matters and explicitly skipping what does not.

Where the error comes from in WordPress

Missing alt attributes usually trace to:

• Images added without filling in the alt field in the media library or block editor.
• Theme and page-builder images — sliders, hero sections, galleries — output without an alt attribute.
• Logos and icons inserted directly in templates.
• Images embedded in HTML blocks or imported content.

How to fix it in WordPress

1. Add alt text in the editor. For images in posts and pages, select the image block and fill in the “Alt text” field with a meaningful description. In the media library, set the Alternative Text field on each image.
2. Mark decorative images correctly. Leave the alt field empty for purely decorative graphics so they carry alt="" rather than no attribute.
3. Handle theme and builder images through their own image settings, which usually expose an alt or title field.
4. Re-run Lighthouse to confirm the error is cleared.

For sites with many images — or images output by themes and plugins you do not control — fixing them one by one is impractical. Easy Optimizer includes alt-attribute generation that automatically adds missing alt text across your site, so no image is left without one. Treat auto-generated alt text as a safety net that clears the error and covers the gaps; for your most important images, still write your own descriptive alt text, since a human description is always more accurate than an automatic one.

One fix, three benefits

Adding alt text is rare in that it improves accessibility, SEO and AI-readiness all at once, with no trade-off. Screen-reader users understand your images, Google can index them, and AI agents can interpret them. While you are improving your accessibility tree, fix the closely related form fields without associated labels to clear two of the most common Lighthouse accessibility errors together.