Audio & video

Audio Has No Text Version for People Who Can't Hear

A podcast or audio clip with no transcript or captions leaves people who are Deaf or hard of hearing with nothing at all.

audio-captionWCAG 2.0Introduced in WCAG 2.0.Level AA — the minimum. Missing it blocks people outright.

Status: CriticalCritical — Someone can complete the task only with great difficulty or outside help.Retiredaxe-core no longer runs this rule. Its card says why, and what still applies.
Owner: DevContentTestProduct
Audit: Automated+ManualA scanner finds it; a person confirms the fix.

Retired rule. Retired as an automated check: a scanner can't tell whether audio has a complete, accurate text alternative. WCAG 1.2.1 still applies — check it by hand.

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Why it matters

Audio-only content, like a podcast, interview or voice message, holds all its meaning in sound. People who can't hear it get none of that meaning unless there is a text version.

The scanner looks for a captions <track> on the <audio> element. Most browsers don't show captions for audio, so the reliable fix is a full transcript on the page. axe-core has deprecated (retired) this rule for that reason, but the need is still real.

Who it affects

Who it affects, and how much
Who	What they experience	Impact
Deaf and hard of hearing	They see a play button but get no words, so the whole clip is lost to them.	High impact
Cognitive and neurodivergent users	Without a transcript they can't read at their own pace, reread or search for a key point.	Partial impact

Business & product impact

Business & product impact, with how much each claim weighs
Area	Why	Impact
Legal	Prerecorded audio without a text alternative fails 1.2.1 at Level A, the minimum. It also fails EN 301 549 and invites complaints under Australia's Disability Discrimination Act.	High impact
Conversion	If a product demo or offer is only in audio, some customers never hear it.	Moderate impact
SEO	A transcript adds real text that search engines can index. That is a genuine but small benefit.	Moderate impact
Brand trust	Posting podcasts with no transcript tells Deaf audiences they weren't considered.	Moderate impact
Cost to fix	Transcripts cost time or a small service fee per episode. Build it into the publishing workflow, not as a fix later.	Moderate impact

Fixing it in code

A podcast episode on a page

Don't

<h2>Episode 12: Starting out</h2>
<audio controls src="ep12.mp3"></audio>

A screen reader says: “Audio player — no words available to read.”

<h2>Episode 12: Starting out</h2>
<audio controls src="ep12.mp3"></audio>
<h3>Transcript</h3>
<p><b>Mia:</b> Welcome to episode 12…</p>

A screen reader says: “Audio player, followed by a heading "Transcript" and the full text.”

A transcript on the page works in every browser, unlike captions on audio.

Fixing it in design and content

Writing the transcript

Don't

A short summary: "In this episode we chat about getting started."

Every spoken word, with who is speaking, plus key sounds like [laughter] or [music fades].

A summary drops detail; a full transcript gives people the same content.

Designer's handoff note

Place the transcript right next to the player, or link to it clearly with words like "Read the transcript".

Design a transcript layout that shows speaker names and is easy to scan.

Quick test

Tool

Your eyes, with the sound muted

Duration

1 min

Checklist

Step 1: Mute your computer.
Step 2: Find each audio player on the page.
Step 3: Look for a transcript nearby or a clear link to one.
Step 4: Check the transcript covers the whole clip, not a summary.

Pass: Every audio clip has a full transcript you can find easily.
Fail: Any clip has no transcript, or only a short summary.

Check these at the same time

A link has no text a screen reader can read link-name
Sound plays by itself and can't be stopped quickly no-autoplay-audio
A video has no captions video-caption

What a green scan still misses

A scanner can only check for a <track> tag, not whether a transcript exists. It can't judge whether the text is complete or accurate — a person must read it.

Reference

Status: RetiredRetired as an automated check: a scanner can't tell whether audio has a complete, accurate text alternative. WCAG 1.2.1 still applies — check it by hand.
Rule ID: audio-caption
Raised by: axe-core: “<audio> elements must have a captions track”
WCAG: 1.2.1 Audio-only and Video-only (Prerecorded) (opens in a new tab) · Level A · since WCAG 2.0
Other standards: EN 301 549 9.1.2.1
Read more: Deque University: audio-caption (opens in a new tab)
Last reviewed: 16 October 2026