Difference between Image Alt Text and Title in WordPress

Many websites contain images, but few optimize them for faster loading or better search engine rankings. WordPress provides the option to add alt text and image titles, but beginners may not know how to use them effectively. This article explains the difference between image alt text and image titles in WordPress, and how they can be used to improve image SEO.

Alt Text vs Image Title in WordPress: Understanding the Difference

Images are widely used in web content, but many website owners fail to optimize them for speed and search rankings. While WordPress offers the option to add alt text and image title, beginners often confuse their usage.

In this article, we explain the difference between alt text and image title in WordPress. Alt text is a short description of the image added as an attribute to an HTML image tag, which helps search engines and visitors with visual impairments understand the image. In contrast, the image title appears as a small popup box when the cursor hovers over the image.

While both alt text and image title improve website accessibility, alt text is more important for SEO. Therefore, we strongly advise adding alt text to all images on your website.

How to Add Alt Text to Images in WordPress

Alt text can be easily added to images in WordPress using the block editor, classic editor, or Media Library.

In the block editor, simply add an Image block and upload or drag and drop the image. Then set the alt text on the right-hand side of the page.

In the classic editor, add the alt text when adding the image.

In the Media Library, click on the image and add the alt text.

Note that changing alt text in the Media Library will not affect previously inserted images in posts or pages.

Adding Image Titles in WordPress

It’s important to distinguish between two types of titles for images in WordPress: the default image title used internally by WordPress, and the HTML image title attribute used in your posts and pages.

To add the default WordPress image title, simply edit the image in the Media Library and enter a title in the ‘Title’ field. This is used by WordPress to identify the image, but it’s not necessary for image SEO or accessibility.

To add the HTML image title attribute, click on the image in the block editor or classic editor and select ‘Advanced’ or the pencil icon, respectively. Then, enter the title in the ‘Title Attribute’ field and click ‘Update’. The HTML title attribute is important for both SEO and accessibility purposes.

Automatically Setting Alt Text and Image Titles with AIOSEO

AIOSEO is a leading SEO plugin for WordPress, providing advanced features such as image sitemaps and automatic image title and alt text generation. To use these features, install and activate the AIOSEO plugin and access the Image SEO tab in All in One SEO » Search Appearance. To enable premium image SEO functionality, click the ‘Activate Image SEO’ button.

The Title tab in Image SEO allows you to select tags that will automatically generate title attributes for your images, such as the WordPress media title. The Alt Tag tab lets you customize the alt text for each image on your website, including adding your website’s title and other information. AIOSEO can also format the alt text automatically.

Why Use Alt Text and Image Titles in WordPress?

Using alt text for images is highly recommended, and adding a title to images is also helpful. Alt text is essential because Google considers it as a ranking factor for images, and it’s used by screen readers to make your content accessible to people with visual impairments.

It’s important to avoid keyword stuffing in alt and title tags and focus on making them descriptive and useful for visitors who rely on them. Keywords can be used where relevant, but overusing them should be avoided.

For instance, if you are writing about the best WordPress hosting and including a screenshot showing how to set up an account with Bluehost, using “Account setup” as the alt text is not descriptive or relevant to your keyword. Using “Best WordPress hosting, WordPress hosting, best web hosting for WordPress” is keyword-stuffed and not descriptive. A better option would be “Setting up a WordPress hosting account,” which is descriptive and uses a natural and appropriate part of the keyword.