Accessible Video Checklist
- Closed Captions. All videos need synchronized closed captions (often abbreviated as “CC”). Closed captions transcribe all spoken words as well as well as relevant non-verbal sounds (e.g., laughter, applause, musical cues). Provide the speaker’s name when there are multiple voices. Closed captions should always be provided to the user. Unlike open captions, which are permanently embedded (i.e., “burned”) into the video and cannot be turned off, closed captions can be toggled on and off, and are often customizable. Use closed captions instead. (On the other hand, subtitles are captions presented in another language.) You can typically upload closed captions via an .srt file.
- Important: Auto-generated captions (i.e. AI captions) are not sufficient! Closed captions must be 100% accurate. Auto-generated captions often misspell proper nouns, misinterpret people’s words, and omit contextual audio information (e.g., sirens, song names, and audio cues). You must manually review and revise all auto-generated captions before posting your video.
- Transcripts. In addition to closed captions, all videos also need a transcript (a written text version of everything spoken in the video). Visual information that is important to understanding, but not spoken-aloud, should also be described in the transcript.
- Audio Descriptions. If your video has important visual information that is not spoken-aloud, it needs a separate audio description track. Audio description audibly narrates what is happening on the screen to users with limited or no vision. Learn more about audio descriptions.
- Flashing content. Limit flashing, blinking, flickering, or rapidly changing shots to no more than three per second. Or better yet, avoid flashing content altogether. Keep transitions smooth and avoid excessive flashing, flickering or rapidly changing shots.
- Color contrast. The color of text and other meaningful information needs to be distinct from the background color. Yellow text on a white background, for example, is extremely difficult to read. The higher the color contrast, the better. Use WebAIM’s Color Contrast Checker to check the contrast between two colors. Also, always ensure the lower third of the screen is dark enough so closed captions (white text) have enough contrast.
- Plain Language. Write and speak in a way that is clear and easy to understand. Organize content for easy scanning and understanding. Your writing should match Federal Plain Language Guidelines.