AI Alt Text

AI-generated alternative text for Media Library images via a managed cloud API—no personal API key required.

What is AI Alt Text?

The feature suggests alt text for raster images (PNG, JPEG, WebP, GIF) from image content and optional media fields. Requests go through the EZZE cloud proxy to external AI services.

What it can do: Propose short, descriptive alt text in the chosen language; optionally use title, description, caption, or filename as hints.

What it cannot do / limits: No legal WCAG sign-off per image; no guarantee of accuracy or perfect length; SVG and other non-raster formats are not supported; decorative images are not detected—you must review and mark their purpose yourself; AI output does not replace human review.

Why use it

• Accessibility: Alt text is essential for screen reader users
• WCAG: Supports 1.1.1 (Non-text Content); 1.4.5 (Images of Text) may help when text is inside images but is not a substitute for proper text in HTML
• SEO: Meaningful descriptions can help search engines
• Efficiency: Drafts for large libraries with manual approval

Requirements (activation)

1. Free Cloud Features connection: Until activation is complete, the settings page shows one setup card with the included allowance and a link that opens the Cloud Features panel in the Dashboard. A pending email confirmation is shown as a distinct state.
2. External processing acknowledgment: Confirms you may use the images and that image data or URLs may be processed by external AI services. Without it, “Enable AI Alt Text” stays unavailable.
3. Enable AI Alt Text (master toggle): Only then are dependent options and generation available. Turning the feature off does not revoke the acknowledgment.

The acknowledgment, feature switch, dependent settings, and save or restore actions appear only after the Cloud Features connection is ready.

Usage limits (quota)

• Free: 25 generations one-time (no monthly reset) Free
• Basic: 50/month from Basic
• Plus: 100/month from Plus
• Premium / Agency: 1,000/month per site from Premium

Each successful generation (non-empty alt text) consumes one unit. At the limit, further requests are blocked with an upgrade hint.

Settings (Settings sub-tab)

All options: EZZE WCAG Pro → AI Alt Text → Settings. Dependent fields are hidden while the master toggle is off. Help opens a desktop side panel or an accessible mobile bottom sheet covering privacy, workflow, output, permissions, and WCAG 1.1.1.

Image purpose in the Media Library

Each image has one of three editorial workflow states:

• Described: The Media Library alt text has a value.
• Reviewed as decorative: The alt text intentionally stays empty and the image purpose has been confirmed.
• Open: The alt text is empty and no decorative purpose has been confirmed yet.

Open the attachment details and select Mark as decorative directly in the AI Alt Text card, or use the same action from a Batch row’s three-dot menu. A decorative image must keep an empty alt text. While the marking is active, the card replaces quota and suggestion generation with a clear status and the Remove decorative marking action; the alt text field also stays disabled. An existing description is cleared only after explicit confirmation. Reviewed decorative images are excluded from the open-alt filter and batch generation, but remain available through the Decorative reviewed filter with their status and removal action. Removing the marking returns the image to review.

The marking describes the editorial Media Library default, not every use of the file. A concrete image block may still provide its own alt text. The marking also does not suppress Accessibility Test findings: the test independently evaluates the HTML actually rendered on each page.

Even when opened from a post, this Media Library marking applies to the attachment and deletes its alt text after confirmation. Existing Image blocks are not changed. To make only one block decorative, select that Image block in the editor and use its Mark as decorative control.

External processing acknowledgment

• Purpose: Required gate before cloud use.
• Required to enable the master toggle; a new acknowledgment cannot be confirmed without a Freemius connection.
• After saving, the status card shows the confirmation date, time, and WordPress user. Acknowledgments stored before confirmation history was introduced remain valid and are labelled as historical instead of receiving an invented date.
• Revoke acknowledgment stages a revocation. Saving then disables AI Alt Text and clears the stored confirmation reference.

Enable AI Alt-Text function

• Purpose: Master switch for API calls, Media Library UI, and upload flows.
• Off: No generation, no button, no upload overlay—the Batch tab only prompts you to activate.

Image selection and privacy

One scope selector makes the processing boundary explicit and displays the associated privacy risk:

• Published content only (recommended) — default. Before the API call, the plugin checks whether the file appears in published posts or pages (attachment ID, URL, filename in post_content, etc.) or has a published parent. Library-only, draft, or CPT-only usage may be rejected.
• All Media Library images — skips the published check, so unpublished and internal media may be sent to AI. The settings card marks this as a higher privacy risk.

Exception: The single-image upload flow (below) bypasses media filters for freshly uploaded files when that flow is enabled.

General settings

• Show “Generate AI Alt-Text” button in media library (default: on) Adds a compact suggestion card directly below the Alternative Text field and states the remaining quota explicitly. A generated suggestion does not replace the current alt text until you apply it. Off: no button; the upload flow may still run on paid plans when enabled separately.
• Generate AI alt text directly after a single image upload (from Basic; default: off) Available in the Media Library (grid/list), block editor, and media modal. The workflow starts only when exactly one image file is selected for upload; multi-image selections are ignored. It uses the same roles and quota as the button. “Ask before generating” and “Generate automatically” are mutually exclusive. Not available on the Free plan.
• Language for generated alt text (default: match WordPress site language) Uses Settings → General → Site Language (first two locale letters, fallback English). A fixed list language overrides permanently.
• Minimum / maximum character length (default: 80 / 140; UI: min 10–200, max 50–200 in steps of 10) Sent to the proxy as guidance; the model may still be shorter or longer. UI recommends 80–140 characters.
• Additional context for AI generation (per-field toggles; all on by default) Sends filled title, description, caption, and/or filename. Same settings apply to AI Image Review. Disabled fields are not transmitted.

Permissions from Basic

• Free: Users with manage_options only; no permissions block in settings.
• Paid plans: Per role with upload_files. Administrator is always allowed and cannot be turned off.
• User must also edit_post on the attachment or generation is denied.

Batch processing from Basic

Tab AI Alt Text → Batch (not available on Free; redirects to Settings).

• Filters and sorting: unresolved alt-text purpose, Decorative reviewed, short/long alt (vs. your min/max), source (manual/AI), MIME type, date range; search by title, file, alt text. Sort by upload date, file name, alt-text length, or action required. The decorative filter brings marked images back into the list with their badge and the option to remove the marking. On phones, the multi-select controls open as a bottom sheet. Apply commits the draft; Cancel, Close, Escape, the backdrop, or a downward swipe discards it. Applied filters appear as individually removable chips above the result list.
• List and editing: Each item shows the current alt text as a compact two-line preview with a status (Alt text missing, Saved, Unsaved change, Suggestion ready, or Decorative reviewed). When no saved alt text exists, the card offers Generate AI suggestion directly; after an alt text is saved, Edit alt text returns. On larger screens, the edit action opens the editor in the row; on phones it uses a bottom sheet. Done keeps the change only as an unsaved draft until you save it from the row menu or with the bulk action. The Help button opens the same guidance as a side panel or mobile bottom sheet.
• Selection and actions: generate AI suggestions, approve and save reviewed suggestions, or save manual changes. Select loaded media applies to visible rows. For generation, you can then explicitly extend the selection to every eligible item in the current filtered result without loading every card first. Decorative or otherwise ineligible media are counted, identified, and excluded. Approval includes only existing proposals; manual saving includes only existing drafts. On phones, a compact bottom dock shows the active selection. Open bulk actions opens an on-demand bottom sheet with the action choice, quota, expected use, and Apply; it does not open automatically or block further media selection. Close, Escape, the backdrop, or a downward swipe leaves the existing selection unchanged. The previous direct “generate & save” shortcut is intentionally unavailable so generated text cannot bypass review.
• Review: A generated suggestion appears in its own editable panel and is labelled Not saved; the current alt text remains visible and unchanged. You can discard the proposal or explicitly Approve & save it. Unsaved manual changes and proposals are retained while you filter or load more items in the current browser tab; reloading or leaving the page discards them after the browser’s unsaved-changes warning.
• Quota planning: The bulk-action bar on larger screens, or the mobile action sheet, shows the available AI quota, the number of selected images, and the expected consumption together. Generation is unavailable when the known remaining quota is smaller than the current selection; approving suggestions and saving manual changes consume no generation units.
• Image and quality review: Open a thumbnail or choose Review image and history to compare a bounded large image with its current alt text. Conservative hints flag very short, file-name-like, generic introductory, duplicated, or unusually long text. These hints support editorial review and are not automatic WCAG findings.
• Local history and undo: The last ten saved alt-text versions are stored as private metadata on the attachment. The detail dialog loads them only when opened and can restore any version. Restoration is reversible because the replaced current value becomes the newest history entry.
• Image purpose: Mark an image as decorative or remove that marking from the three-dot menu. Reviewed decorative images stay excluded from generation and batch selection.
• Processing: Sequential in the browser (not a WP cron job). A live progress message identifies the position and media item. When processing finishes, a result dialog lists successful, failed, and skipped items and can retry only the failures. Keep the tab open for large runs; reaching the quota stops the queue cleanly and records unprocessed items as skipped.
• Media selection rules apply like single generation (except upload exception).

Generate alt text directly in the WordPress Image block

Select the native Image block (core/image) in the block editor. Open AI Alt Text in the block settings sidebar. This also works for individual Image blocks inside a Gallery.

1. Select an image from the Media Library and choose Generate suggestion.
2. Review and edit the suggestion for its use on this page.
3. Choose Apply suggestion and save the post or template. Discard preserves the current alt text; WordPress Undo can reverse an application.

Applying changes only this Image block. Media Library metadata and other uses of the same image stay unchanged. The extension follows the AI Alt Text master switch and allowed roles; the Media Library button option still controls only the media UI. Each generation uses the existing quota, output language, and image selection settings. With published-only processing, images used only in drafts can be rejected. Surrounding block text is not additionally transmitted as page context.

Externally linked images require a Media Library entry first. Generation is unavailable for decorative blocks or image/alt fields connected to data sources. Errors preserve the existing alt text and allow retry. Replacing the image discards its proposal; server requests already started may still consume quota.

Single generation in the Media Library

The AI Alt Text section starts collapsed. Open it directly below the alt text field; its width follows that field, including the block editor’s media picker. Mark as decorative shows the short scope note Applies to the Media Library. The info button opens the full explanation; click it again or press Escape to close it. The native Image block panel also starts collapsed and shows the proposal field and review actions only after successful generation.

1. Open a supported image in the library.
2. Select Generate suggestion in the card directly below the Alternative Text field.
3. The suggestion appears separately from the current alt text. You can discard it, generate another suggestion, or select Apply suggestion.
4. Only Apply suggestion changes the Alternative Text field. Review that field again and save the attachment.

Workflow after a single-image upload

• Ask before generating: The image tile remains visible and receives a compact card with Skip and Generate. This is not an additional popup. If the tile is not ready yet, the same prompt temporarily appears as a floating bottom bar.
• Generate automatically: The same image tile shows progress and then a brief saved state. In this mode, the generated alt text is stored on the attachment without another confirmation.
• Both variants apply only when exactly one image file is selected. A multi-image selection does not start the upload workflow.

What is transmitted?

• Image URL (for cloud analysis)
• Settings: language, min/max length, optional media fields
• Site identity via Freemius/proxy auth (no API key stored in WordPress)

The cloud proxy fetches images only over HTTP/HTTPS, revalidates DNS targets and every redirect, and rejects local, private, or reserved network addresses. Each image is limited to 10 MiB, and only content detected as JPEG, PNG, WebP, or GIF is accepted. Certificate failures and mismatched file types are not bypassed.

Examples

Example 1: Backlog without alt text

From Basic: filter the batch to missing alt text, generate AI suggestions, review every proposal, then explicitly approve and save it.

Example 2: New uploads (from Basic)

Enable upload flow with confirmation; skip decorative images, leave their alt text empty, and then confirm their purpose in the Media Library.

Example 3: Multilingual site

Pick a fixed language when alt text should not follow the WordPress admin locale.

Tips & common issues

• Always edit-check AI output—especially charts, diagrams, and brand visuals.
• Privacy: keep “published only” on; enable library-wide analysis only with an updated privacy policy.
• Image only in WooCommerce/ACF/custom types? Published check may fail—use advanced scope or set alt manually.
• The quota display states the remaining allowance explicitly, for example “999 of 1000 remaining.” If usage cannot be loaded, the interface says so instead of showing a misleading number.
• No automatic “AI-generated” label in HTML—only the saved attachment alt field changes.

Note: Requires Freemius opt-in, acknowledgment, and the master toggle. External AI runs via the managed proxy—no personal API key in the plugin.

Who can generate? Free: administrators. From Basic: configurable upload-capable roles. Saving settings requires manage_options.