Adobe Express Premium is an easy-to-use, web-based tool for quick, lightweight design work such as flyers, social media graphics, and videos. It is available to all active students, faculty, and staff. Licenses for active students are automatically provisioned at the beginning of the semester. Faculty and staff can request a license by submitting a ticket through our
Adobe Product Licensing Request (opens in a new window).
Making your Adobe Express designs accessible ensures that all users, including those with disabilities, can access and understand your content. Following these best practices for both digital and print designs will help you create materials that are inclusive and compliant with accessibility standards.
This guide is divided into best practices for the design process itself and how to properly export your finished product.
General Design Best Practices (For Both Print & Digital)
These core principles apply to any design you create in Adobe Express, regardless of how it will be shared.
Use simple, sans-serif fonts.
Why: Sans-serif fonts are generally cleaner and easier to read, especially for users with reading disabilities like dyslexia. Adobe Express provides access to thousands of Adobe Fonts that meet these criteria.
How-to: Select your text box and browse the font menu. Choose clear, sans-serif options like Open Sans, Lato, Montserrat, Poppins, or Verdana. Avoid using highly decorative, script, or "handwritten" fonts for large blocks of body text.
Use high contrast colors.
Why: Sufficient contrast between text and its background is essential for users with low vision or color blindness.
How to Use the Color Contrast Checker Add-on
Adobe Express includes a dedicated add-on that checks if your text and background colors meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards.
- Open the Add-ons menu: In your Adobe Express project, click on the Add-ons icon (the puzzle piece) located in the left-hand sidebar.
- Search for the checker: In the search bar at the top of the Add-ons panel, type "Color Contrast" and press Enter.
- Launch the add-on: Select the Color Contrast add-on (usually the one developed by Adobe) and click Add or Open.
- Select your elements:
- With the add-on panel open, click on the text you want to check. The add-on will automatically pull the hex code for the text color.
- Next, click on the background element behind the text. The add-on will pull that hex code as well.
- Review the results: The add-on will display a "Pass" or "Fail" rating for both WCAG AA (minimum contrast) and WCAG AAA (enhanced contrast) standards. It will also show you how the contrast ratio changes based on the size of the font.
- Adjust as needed: If the contrast fails, you can use the color sliders within the add-on or the Adobe Express color picker to adjust the brightness or saturation until you achieve a passing score.
Do not use color alone to convey meaning.
Why: Remember that not everyone sees color in the same way. People with colorblindness may miss your meaning if you use color only. Always pair color with text, labels, icons, or some other visual cue.
How to Use the Color Blindness Simulator Add-on
This tool allows you to see your design through the eyes of users with different types of color vision deficiencies, helping you ensure that your information is not conveyed by color alone.
- Access the Add-ons panel: Click the Add-ons icon (puzzle piece) on the left-hand sidebar of the Adobe Express editor.
- Locate the simulator: Search for "Color Blindness Simulator" in the search bar and select the add-on to open its settings panel on the right.
- Select a simulation type: Choose from the different types of color blindness in the list, such as:
- Protanopia: Red-blind (insensitivity to red light).
- Deuteranopia: Green-blind (the most common form).
- Tritanopia: Blue-blind (rare).
- Use the External Previewer: For a more detailed view, click the Open external previewer button. This will open a larger window where you can compare the original design side-by-side with the simulated version.
- Verify Clarity: While the simulation is active, ensure that all text is still legible and that buttons, icons, or data points are still distinguishable from their backgrounds.
- Close the preview: Once you have finished your audit, close the previewer or the add-on panel to return to your standard design view.
Reduce movement like transitions and animations.
Why: Flashing or fast-moving content can be distracting and may cause physical reactions for users with motion sensitivities or vestibular disorders.
How-to: If you use animations, select the element and click Animation. Stick to subtle "In" or "Out" animations like Fade. Avoid high-movement options like "Stomp," "Drift," or "Tumble" for essential information.
Best Practices for Digital Designs
These practices are crucial for designs that will be viewed on a screen, such as social media graphics, web pages, and digital PDFs.
Add alt text to images and elements.
Why: Alt text (alternative text) provides a description of an image for screen reader users.
How-to:
- For Web Page projects: Select an image and click the gear icon (Settings) to type your alt text.
- For Graphics/Social posts: Adobe Express does not currently allow you to embed alt text directly into a flat image file (like a PNG). You must add the description in the "Alt Text" field of the social media platform (Instagram, Facebook, etc.) or within the Content Scheduler when you publish.
Enable closed captions for videos.
Why: Captions are essential for users who are deaf or hard of hearing and help those viewing in loud environments.
How-to: When editing a video, select the video clip and use the Video Captions tool. Review the auto-generated captions for accuracy and adjust the text to ensure high contrast against the video background.
Use descriptive link text.
Why: Screen reader users often jump between links; "Click here" provides no context for where the link goes.
How-to: When adding a link to a Web Page project, use text that describes the destination, such as "Download the Spring 2026 Orientation Guide" instead of "Read more."
Best Practices for Print Designs
This advice is specific to materials that will be physically printed, like posters and flyers.
Provide the full URL for a QR code.
Why: Not everyone can scan a QR code. Providing a visible URL ensures everyone can access the linked resource.
How-to: When you generate a QR code using the Stickers and QR Codes tool, always add a text box nearby that includes the full, human-readable web address (e.g., binghamton.edu/events).
Exporting Your Accessible Design
The file format you choose determines how accessible your content remains after it leaves the editor.
Exporting for Digital Use
PDF (Tagged):
How-to add accessibility tags:
- Go to Download in the top right.
- Select PDF as the file type.
- Ensure the option for Accessibility Tags is enabled (if available in your version).
Important Note: For full compliance, open your exported PDF in Adobe Acrobat Pro and run the Accessibility Checker to verify the reading order and add any missing tags.
JPG and PNG:
Issue: These are "flat" image files. Text inside them is seen as a picture and cannot be read by screen readers.
How-to: If you must use an image, you must provide the text in your post's caption or the platform's alt-text field so the information is not lost to users with visual impairments.
Exporting for Print
PDF Print:
How-to: When downloading for professional printing, select PDF and choose the CMYK color profile. This ensures colors print accurately.
Note: While this version is optimized for ink and paper, it is often not the best version for screen readers. If you are also sharing the file digitally, export a separate "standard" PDF version for your website or email.
Recommended Accessibility Add-ons
Here are some free Adobe Express add-ons that will improve the accessibility of your designs.
Contrast Checker
What it does: Compares the color of your text against its background to calculate a contrast ratio based on WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines).
Accessibility Benefit: It ensures your design is legible for everyone, including people with low vision or those viewing your design on a screen in bright sunlight. It takes the guesswork out of "is this readable?"
Accessibility Assistant
What it does: Acts as a comprehensive "audit" tool that scans your entire design for common issues like missing alt text, poor reading order, or tiny font sizes.
Accessibility Benefit: It provides a checklist for creators, making it easier to catch and fix invisible barriers before you publish or share your work.
Low Vision
What it does: Simulates how your design appears to individuals with various visual impairments, such as blurred vision or glaucoma.
Accessibility Benefit: It builds empathy and awareness, allowing you to see where your layout might fail—such as thin lines disappearing or elements blending together—so you can adjust your design for better clarity.
Color Blindness Simulator
What it does: Re-renders your design through filters that mimic different types of color vision deficiency (like Protanopia or Deuteranopia).
Accessibility Benefit: It helps you ensure that color is not the only way information is conveyed. For example, it helps you realize if a "red for stop, green for go" button looks exactly the same to a colorblind user.
Readability
What it does: Analyzes your copy to determine the complexity of the language, often providing a grade-level score or suggestions for simplification.
Accessibility Benefit: Improves access for people with cognitive disabilities or those who are not native speakers of the language, ensuring your message is clear and easy to digest.
Text Extractor
What it does: Uses OCR (Optical Character Recognition) to identify and pull editable text out of flattened images or screenshots.
Accessibility Benefit: It allows you to quickly convert "image-only" content into real text that can be read by screen readers, ensuring that users with visual impairments don't miss out on information trapped in a static graphic.
