Troubleshoot: Why doesn’t my alt text appear on hover?

A common question during accessibility audits is: “I’ve added alt text, so why doesn’t it show up when I hover my mouse over the image?” It is important to understand that Alt Text and Hover Text (Title Tags) are two distinct attributes with very different purposes. Alt text is a structural requirement for accessibility, while hover text is a legacy visual feature.

In this Article

• Alt text vs title tags: Understanding the difference
• Why hover text is not an accessibility standard
• Best Practice: Avoid tooltips for critical info

Alt text vs title tags: Understanding the difference

• Alt Text (Alternative Text): This is a mandatory attribute used to describe the content and purpose of an image. It is read aloud by screen readers and displayed if an image fails to load. It is the primary standard for WCAG 2.1 compliance.

• Title Tags (Tooltips): This is an optional attribute that creates a small pop-up box (tooltip) only when a mouse pointer hovers over an element.

Why hover text is not an accessibility standard

Title tag technology is no longer considered a best practice for modern web design. Relying on hover-based information creates significant barriers for many users:

• Mobile Users: Because touchscreens do not have a "hover" state, mobile users can never see title tags.

• Keyboard-Only Users: Most browsers do not display title tags when an element is focused via the Tab key.

• Screen Reader Users: Many screen readers are configured to ignore title tags to avoid redundant or distracting "noise" while reading a page.

Best practice: Avoid tooltips for critical info

Our recommendation is to avoid using tooltips for any information that is essential to the user's understanding of the page. If the information is important enough to include, it should be placed in the Alt Text field or as visible text on the page.