Accessible PDF checklist: structure, reading order, and testing

01

Start in the source document

The strongest workflow begins before export. Use real heading styles instead of enlarging plain paragraphs, true lists instead of typed dashes, proper table headers, meaningful link text, and alternative text for informative images. Set the document language and title in the authoring tool.

A well-structured source usually exports to a better-tagged PDF and is easier to repair. A visually designed page with text boxes scattered across the canvas may look correct but produce a confusing reading sequence when converted.

02

Core checks after export

1. 01

   Confirm text and tags

   Text should be selectable or accurately recognized with OCR. Inspect the tag tree for headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, figures, and artifacts rather than one undifferentiated stream.

2. 02

   Review reading order

   Follow the order exposed to assistive technology, not only what your eyes see. Sidebars, captions, footnotes, and multi-column layouts often require correction.

3. 03

   Test navigation

   Use the keyboard to move through links and form controls. Focus should be visible and follow a meaningful order. Long documents should have useful bookmarks.

4. 04

   Check names and alternatives

   Images that communicate information need concise equivalent text. Decorative elements should not create noise. Form controls and links need names that make sense out of visual context.

03

Visual access still matters

• Use readable type sizes and spacing; avoid long lines of dense, tightly packed text.
• Maintain strong contrast for text, controls, charts, and meaningful icons.
• Do not use color as the only way to communicate a status or category.
• Keep content understandable when magnified and, where supported, when reflowed.
• Provide clear headings and consistent page furniture so readers can orient themselves.
• Explain abbreviations and avoid instructions based only on visual position, such as “click the box on the right.”

04

Combine automated and human testing

An automated checker can flag missing tags, language, title, or alternative text, but it cannot decide whether the alternative text is useful or the reading sequence makes sense. Treat a passing report as evidence that certain machine-testable conditions were met, not as a complete accessibility judgment.

Sample the document with a screen reader or read-aloud tool, test every interactive element by keyboard, inspect reflow at high zoom, and ask users with disabilities to evaluate important documents when possible. Record the tool versions, findings, fixes, and any known limitations.