Accessible Excel

Navigating in Excel

  • Arrow keys allow you to move around Excel.
  •  Charts, shapes, and images are floating elements in Excel and are not within the cells.
    • Control + alt + 5 allows you to navigate floating elements, and the tab key lets you cycle between the elements.
    • The navigation order of floating elements is determined by when they were added to the sheet (no way to correct navigation order or reading order).

Sheets and Tables

  • Sheets should be named.
  • Adding a text description to a sheet is extremely helpful.
  • Heading styles in Excel only change formatting, not tagging.
  • You should format information as tables whenever possible.
  • When titling tables, merge cells and center the text over the table.

Charts

  • Images should not be inserted into Excel files.
  • Providing the chart's data in a text format as well is the most accessible way to provide a chart.

Uploaded Image (Thumbnail)

  • Data should be formatted as a table when possible.
  • The data table should be located to the left of the chart.
  • Chart data should have easy keyboard navigation and be on the same sheet as the chart.
  • Check the font size on charts.
    • Charts should have a font size of at least 10.
  • Manually double check contrast on both the text and shape elements of charts.
  • Make sure to not make charts too visually congested or complicated / confusing.
  • Add simple data labels when needed.
  • The minimum contrast ratio between colors on charts and the background is 3:1.
  • Charts and tables made in Excel can be copied over into Word documents and PowerPoints.

Optimizing Workbooks

  • Keep the workbook's function and audience in mind.
  • Increase column width and height to create more whitespace and increase legibility.
  • Use freeze tools to keep the first column or first row in frame when scrolling (Useful for tables with headers).
  • Hiding unused columns and rows can help people focus on information.
  • A series of empty rows between tables can lead screen reader users to believe there isn't any more information on the sheet.

Evaluating Accessibility in Excel

  • Go to the review tab and choose the "check accessibility" tool.
  • Many issues won't be picked up by the checker.
  • It is recommended to use the checker regardless.
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