AI Alt Text Generator

AI Alt Text Generator writes clear, descriptive alt text for every image on your WordPress site — improving accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.2, ADA, Section 508, and the European Accessibility Act) and image SEO at the same time. It works out of the box: activate the plugin and start generating, no API key and no signup required. Every site gets 50 free images per month through the built-in managed credits service.

That makes it a fit for small organizations that need accessible, legally compliant websites but don’t want to wrangle developer accounts or AI billing — nonprofits, churches, schools, clinics, and small businesses working toward WCAG / EU Accessibility Act compliance.

Alt text is required for accessible, legally compliant websites, and it helps search engines understand your images. But writing it by hand across an entire media library rarely happens — so this plugin does it for you, in bulk or automatically on upload. It produces concise, WCAG-aligned descriptions (no “image of…” filler, sensible length) and can fold in the page context and your SEO focus keyphrase for sharper, more relevant alt text. It pairs perfectly with accessibility audit tools that flag missing alt text — this is the plugin that fills the gaps.

How it works — two ways to generate:

1. Managed credits (default, recommended) — No API key, no signup. The plugin connects to the AI Alt Text Generator managed service automatically and gives every site 50 free images per month. Need more? Affordable paid credit plans are available. This uses an external, account-based service (see the disclosure below) and is optional beyond the free tier.
2. Bring your own API key (advanced) — Prefer to run on your own OpenAI or Anthropic account? Add your own API key in the Advanced settings and generation runs at-cost, directly with your provider, with no per-image fees or vendor lock-in. You choose the provider and model.

Key Features:
– Works out of the box: no API key needed — 50 free images per month on every site
– Accessibility & compliance: WCAG-aligned output to support ADA, EAA, and Section 508 requirements
– SEO keyphrase integration: automatically weaves in focus keyphrases from Yoast SEO, Rank Math, and SEOPress (without keyword stuffing)
– Page-context aware: uses the page/post the image belongs to for more relevant descriptions
– Bring your own key (optional): advanced users can plug in their own OpenAI or Anthropic key — any vision-capable model, no lock-in
– Bulk Processing: generate alt text for your whole library at once, or automatically on upload
– Custom Prompts: tailor the AI prompt to your brand and needs
– Multi-Language Support: generate alt text in many languages
– Testing Feature: preview prompts before applying them to images
– WP-CLI Support: bulk-generate from the command line
– Developer-friendly: extensible via action/filter hooks for custom integrations and add-ons

WP-CLI:
The plugin registers a wp ai-alt-text command suite, making it easy to automate alt text generation across one or many sites.

# Bulk-generate alt text for all images missing it (uses managed credits by default)
wp ai-alt-text generate

# Optional: configure your own provider and API key (advanced)
wp ai-alt-text activate --provider=openai --key=sk-xxxxxxxx

# Regenerate alt text for specific attachments
wp ai-alt-text generate --ids=12,34,56 --force

# Preview what would be processed without calling the API
wp ai-alt-text generate --limit=20 --dry-run

# Show current configuration and coverage
wp ai-alt-text status

A typical install-and-generate workflow needs no key at all:

wp plugin install ai-alt-text-generator --activate
wp ai-alt-text generate --yes

New in Latest Version:
– Managed credits are now the default: generate alt text with no API key and no signup — 50 free images per month on every site
– Bring-your-own OpenAI/Anthropic key moved to an “Advanced” option for users who prefer to run on their own account
– WCAG-aligned output, SEO focus-keyphrase integration (Yoast / Rank Math / SEOPress), and page-context awareness
– Optionally set the image Title, Caption, and Description from the generated alt text
– Future-proof model handling (no hard-coded model versions; configurable defaults)

Important: This plugin uses an external AI service to generate alt text — either the optional managed-credit service (account-based, free tier plus paid plans) or your own OpenAI/Anthropic key. See the External Service Usage Disclosure below.

AI Alt Text Generator Pro (optional upgrade)

Need automation at scale? The optional Pro add-on builds on this free plugin with:
– WooCommerce product context for commerce-aware, SEO-rich alt text
– Scheduled background scans that describe new and existing images automatically
– A coverage analytics dashboard to track your progress toward 100%
– Automatic updates and priority support

Learn more about Pro — the free plugin remains fully functional on its own.

External Service Usage Disclosure

Read the full description on the official page →