Adding alt text to images one at a time through the Media Library works fine for a handful of files, but becomes genuinely impractical once you’re dealing with hundreds — this takes a spreadsheet you supply, matching filenames or IDs to the descriptions you’ve written, and applies it in bulk directly to your existing media library. Doing this manually across hundreds of images means opening each one individually, typing the same kind of description over and over, and hoping nothing gets missed or mismatched along the way — a genuinely tedious task that bulk application handles far more reliably.
This applies alt text, it doesn’t write it
This works best when you supply a genuinely accurate spreadsheet, since we apply what you’ve written rather than writing original alt text ourselves as part of this specific service.
If you haven’t written the descriptions yet, that’s worth doing first, or let us know if you’d like a quote for writing them as a separate, additional piece of work.
It’s also worth thinking about whether your filenames are descriptive enough to match reliably against a spreadsheet, since generic filenames like “IMG_2384” are harder to confidently match than something more specific. We flag anything ambiguous rather than guess at a match that might be wrong. Better to ask than to apply the wrong description confidently. Accuracy matters more here than speed. A slower, correct batch beats a fast, wrong one. There’s no rush that justifies guessing. We’d rather take the extra time.
Bulk alt text import from supplied file
Alt text added to your images in bulk from a spreadsheet you supply, matching filenames to descriptions rather than doing it one by one.
- Full backup taken before we start
- If we can’t fix it, you get your money back
- We never ask for your own password
What we need from you
- A spreadsheet matching each image’s filename or Media Library ID to its intended alt text
- Confirmation of whether existing alt text, if any, should be overwritten or only added where missing
- Access to the Media Library, or the specific images if only a subset needs updating
This or something else?
| You have alt text written and want it applied in bulk from a supplied file | This fix covers it |
| You need the alt text itself written, not just applied | A separate, related content-writing service; ask us for a quote |
| You want general content uploaded and formatted, not specifically alt text | Publish-ready content upload & formatting – per piece, a different service |
| You want a broader bulk content import, not just alt text | Bulk content import from supplied file, a different service |
| Only a handful of images need alt text, not hundreds | Often quicker to add directly yourself in the Media Library |
What we do
- Review your supplied spreadsheet for completeness and matching accuracy
- Match each entry to its corresponding image in the Media Library
- Apply the alt text in bulk, following your instruction on overwriting versus adding only
- Spot-check a sample across the batch to confirm correct application
- Flag any entries that couldn’t be matched confidently, rather than guessing
- Confirm the full batch is applied and report on anything unresolved
What is included
- Bulk application of your supplied alt text across the matched images
- Spot-checking to confirm correct, accurate application
- Clear flagging of any entries that couldn’t be confidently matched
- A written confirmation of what was applied
Not included
- Writing the alt text itself, which is a separate, related service if needed
- Auditing existing alt text for quality beyond applying your supplied file
- Ongoing application as you upload new images in future
- Broader bulk content import beyond alt text specifically
Questions about this fix
Can you write the alt text for me as well?
That's a separate, related service, since this one specifically applies alt text you've already written — happy to quote writing it too if that's what you need.
What if my spreadsheet has a few images that don't match anything in the library?
We flag those specifically rather than guess or skip them silently, so you can supply the correct match or filename.
Will this overwrite alt text I've already carefully written for some images?
Only if you tell us to — by default we can apply only to images currently missing alt text, leaving anything already set untouched.
How large a batch can this realistically handle?
From a handful of images up to many thousands — the process scales the same way regardless of batch size, just taking longer for larger ones.
Does this help with accessibility compliance?
Meaningfully, since alt text is a genuine accessibility requirement, though full compliance involves more than alt text alone, so treat this as one solid piece of a broader effort.
Related fixes
If this is the second time this year
A bad update breaking the site is a symptom of updates not being tested first. Care plans run every update on a staging clone before it reaches your live site, which is the actual fix for this happening again.
Your access, your rules
Create a separate admin account for us and delete it when we are done. For anything else, we get in touch and agree a method — never a form field on this site, never by reply to an email.
We back up first, always
Before anything is touched we take a full backup and keep it for 30 days. If a fix goes wrong, we put the site back exactly as it was.
If it is not what you bought
If the problem turns out smaller than what you ordered, we refund the difference. If it is bigger, we stop and send a quote before doing any extra work.
If we cannot fix it
You get back what we received. Diagnosis is on us — you only pay when the problem is actually solved. The payment processor takes its fee before the money reaches us, so we never hold it and it is not ours to return. That is true here as everywhere else.
If it comes back
Reply within seven days of delivery and we put it back on the bench at no cost. The fix is not finished until it holds.
What we are responsible for
If something goes wrong with a fix, our responsibility is limited to what you paid for it. We take a full backup first so mistakes can be undone, and we tell you before doing anything outside what you bought.