How do I make a PDF accessible?

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Remediating existing PDFs is time consuming and difficult. Even creating new PDFs to be accessible requires effort and a solid understanding of accessibility basics.

PDFs are also difficult to read on a mobile device, are hard to keep up to date, and can create barriers even if they’re remediated.

For these reasons, we recommend that you convert your PDF files into web pages, webforms, or accessible Google Docs whenever possible. Or, hire a 3rd party vendor to remediate your PDFs.

What are PDFs and what makes them accessible?

PDF stands for portable document format—it’s a file type. After you create a document in an authoring tool first, such as Google Docs, Word, or InDesign, you can then export your document as a PDF.

For a PDF to be accessible it must:

  • Be machine readable.
  • Have accurate tags.
  • Be WCAG 2.1 AA compliant (by April 24, 2026)

PDF tags are similar to html tags on web pages, as seen in the screenshot below.

PDF tag pane with an Heading selected, which is also highlighted in the document.

Is Acrobat Pro a necessity?

Adobe Acrobat Pro is not an authoring tool. It is possible to create accessible read-only documents without Acrobat Pro, but you do need it (or a comparable tool) to check the accessibility of PDFs and to remediate PDFs that are not accessible.

Options for converting your PDFs

Convert your PDF to a web page

If your web platform is accessible, you may be able to easily add your PDF content directly using your website’s content management system (CMS). Web content is inherently more accessible, and we recommend this as a first option.

Convert your PDF form to a webform

PDF forms are especially difficult to remediate and are totally unusable by some users if not accessible. Convert your PDF forms to Google Forms or Qualtrics forms.

Convert your PDF to an accessible Google Doc

If you do not need your document to be a PDF, consider moving the content into a Google Doc. Google Docs are easier to use, easier to make fully accessible, and can be shared as a “view only” document.

We recommend using Grackle Docs to check the accessibility of your Google Doc.

Resources:

If it must be a PDF

If you have existing PDFs that you must retain as PDFs, there are two options for making them accessible:

  • Re-create your PDF to be accessible. To do this, open your PDF as a Google Doc from your Google Drive, or paste the content of the PDF into a Google Doc (use Ctrl + Shift + V to strip formatting). Make the Google Doc accessible, then use Grackle Docs to export it as an accessible PDF. If you have access to Acrobat Pro, use the PDF accessibility checker tool. -OR-
  • Remediate: If re-creating your PDF is too labor intensive, we recommend hiring a third party remediation service to make your PDF fully accessible. Learn more about our Accessibility Vendors. You may remediate your PDFs yourself, but it takes a lot of effort to learn.

Which approach is better? It depends on the type of document:

  • PDF forms: Remediate. Because of the interactivity of form fields, additional tags must be added in Acrobat Pro to be accessible. PDF forms can not be made accessible in authoring tools at this time. Professional remediation is strongly recommended.
  • Simple text documents: Re-create or remediate.
  • Complex documents: Remediate. This includes reports with multiple columns, images, large tables, and infographics that are difficult to make accessible in authoring programs.

A note about authoring tools

  • Word: If you use the correct styles to structure your document and design it to be accessible, you can export a tagged, accessible PDF from Word.
  • Google Docs: Begin with an accessible Google Doc. Do NOT export your Google Doc as a PDF– this strips out all the tags! Instead, export it using the Grackle Docs add-on.
  • InDesign: There are steps you can take to improve the accessibility of a PDF exported from InDesign, but in most cases, some remediation will still be necessary.

What to prioritize

Your top priority should be PDFs that are needed to engage with your program. This may include sign up forms, sheets, or informational bulletins.

Risk is a product of impact severity and likelihood. Here are the factors to consider when deciding which PDFs to remediate first:

  1. How critical is it to have access to the information? What is the impact if someone can’t access the it?
  2. Barrier severity: Forms and long, complex documents are bigger barriers than brief text documents. Image PDFs without machine-readable text are unusable for some users.
  3. How often is your file accessed? How many people need to use it?
  4. Quick, easy fixes: Can it be removed or archived? Can it be remediated quickly?

Learn how to build a remediation plan for the documents on your website.

PDF Forms

PDF forms must be remediated to be accessible and should be a top priority for remediation.

Because of the interactivity of form fields, PDF forms require additional tags to be added in Acrobat Pro to be functional with assistive technology. They can not be made accessible in authoring tools.

We recommend converting your PDF into an accessible web-based form or having your PDF professionally remediated.

FAQs

Can I use a paper form if I also have an electronic version?

Yes. Paper forms are outside the scope of digital accessibility guidance, but it is a best practice to offer an accessible digital version of content available in printed hard copies.

Can I use an inaccessible PDF if I also have an accessible web version?

This is not a best practice. However, yes, it is acceptable as long as the accessible web version is truly equivalent.

Are my PDFs required to be accessible?

If the your PDFs are currently needed for access and engagement with your program, then yes, they must be accessible. If your PDF is created or updated after April 24, 2026, then yes-- they must be accessible no matter how they're used.

If your PDF was created before April 24, 2026, is not needed for program access, and is only kept for reference or recordkeeping, then it may qualify for an exception. Please review our guidance about archiving and exceptions [link coming soon].

Can I use an AI tool to remediate PDFs to be accessible?

AI remediation tools are not accurate enough to be used without human oversight. More complex documents tend to have more errors, and these are the documents that present the biggest barriers if not accessible. You may use AI remediation as a starting point, but you will need to be able to perform PDF remediation well enough to identify and fix errors.

Can accessible PDFs create barriers, too?

Yes, PDFs that have been remediated can still present barriers to access:

  • Some PDFs don’t adjust well to different screen sizes, which can make them hard to read for people with low vision or on mobile devices. This can happen with PDF forms or complex documents with tables, multiple columns, or complex graphics.
  • Browser previews may not work correctly and users may not understand they have to download the document.
  • Large PDFs may be slow to download, too large to email, or use too much data.
  • PDFs may not properly load or be viewable on a mobile device.
  • PDFs are more difficult to track, update, and maintain, which can lead to broken links, out of date contact information, or incorrect data.

More resources

Learn to remediate PDFs on LinkedIn Learning:

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