How to make PDFs accessible
Headings
Most people navigate documents using headings. People looking at documents rarely read all the text in order. Instead, they skim the document and use headings to help them find the information they're most interested in.
People who use screen readers often read documents by asking their screen reader to read out all the headings. They then pick and jump to specific headings to find the information they're most interested in.
This means that the headings in your PDF are very important and must be accessible.
How to check heading accessibility
Structure and heading levels
Headings give your PDF a clear structure and help people find the information they need.
Try to plan out your heading structure before you write your document. Plan what the main sections and sub-sections will be about, and what headings you'll give them.
All PDFs should have a heading level 1, which tells the user what the document is about. This is the most important heading in your document and it's usually at the top of page 1. There is almost always only one heading level 1 in a document. For example, 'A guide to common fruits'.
The headings for the main sections in your document are heading level 2s. Think of these like the names of chapters in a book. They are the second most important headings in your document. For example, 'Citrus fruit' and 'Berries'.
Sections within these main sections start with a heading level 3. For example, 'Oranges' and 'Lemons' within the 'Citrus fruit' main section, and 'Strawberries' within the 'Berries' main section.
Sections within those sub-sections start with a heading level 4. For example, 'How to grow strawberries' within the 'Strawberries' sub-section.
Try not to use more than six levels of headings in your PDF. If you use more, it's a sign that your heading structure is too complicated.
Heading tags
All headings in your PDF must have the correct heading tag. This helps people who use screen readers to find headings and understand your heading structure.
To check the heading tags in your PDF:
- Open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro
- Go to the 'View' menu, then 'Show/Hide', then 'Side panels'. Select 'Accessibility tags'.
- Highlight the text you want to check
- Select the 'Options' (three dots) menu within the Accessibility tags panel and select 'Find tag from selection'
- Make sure each heading has a heading tag that matches the heading level. For example:
- The heading level 1 should have a 'H1' tag
- The heading level 2s should have a 'H2' tag
Descriptive wording
Make sure each heading in your PDF is clear, concise, and describes the information following it.
This will help people use your headings to work out what each section of your document is about.
Visual formatting
Headings in your PDF should use formatting like text size and bolding to make them stand out and show how important they are:
- The more important your heading is, the bigger it should be. For example, your heading level 1 should be bigger than your heading level 2s.
- All headings with the same heading level should look the same
- Non-heading (normal) text should look less prominent than heading text. This usually means that it's smaller and/or not bold.
We recommend avoiding using italics and block capitals to format your headings because they can be hard for some people to read.
We also recommend avoiding underlining text, as this can make the text look like a link.
How to make headings accessible
If you find that any headings in your PDF aren't accessible, you must fix them.
Edit the source document
Most PDFs on our websites were created in Word originally.
The easiest way to make headings in your PDF accessible is to edit the source document (eg Word), and then reconvert it to a PDF.
If you need to go back to your original Word document, read our guide on headings in Word. You may find our Word accessibility advice useful even if you used a different application to create your PDF.
Edit the PDF
You need Adobe Acrobat Pro to edit your PDF. You should only edit the PDF if you can't edit the source document. This is because:
- It's usually easier to edit the source document than the PDF
- Your PDF may have other accessibility issues that you can only fix in the source document
- If you edit the PDF but then update your source document in the future, you will need to redo all the edits you made to the original PDF
