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Pulseaccessibility

Image Inputs Have Alt Text

What This Audit Checks

This audit verifies that <input type="image"> elements have an alt attribute with descriptive text. Image inputs are submit buttons rendered as images, and the alt text serves as the button's accessible name.

Why It Matters

Without alt text, an image input is announced as "image" or the file name, giving screen reader users no indication of what the button does. Since <input type="image"> acts as a submit button, the alt text must describe the action.

How to Fix It

  • Add an alt attribute that describes the button's action, not the image's appearance.
  • Consider replacing with <button> and an <img> inside it for more styling flexibility and clearer semantics.
<!-- Bad: no alt text -->
<input type="image" src="/submit-icon.png" />

<!-- Good: alt describes the action -->
<input type="image" src="/submit-icon.png" alt="Submit form" />

<!-- Better: use a button element -->
<button type="submit">
  <img src="/submit-icon.png" alt="" />
  Submit form
</button>

How Pulse Tracks This

Pulse flags this audit in your Lighthouse accessibility score. When the audit fails, Pulse shows which elements triggered it so you can fix them directly.

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