Examples of Accessibility in Slide Design: 3 Practical Examples You Can Copy Today

Let’s start with one of the most common examples of accessibility in slide design: 3 practical examples you’ll see in modern decks—the opening slide. Most title slides are pretty, but not very usable. Tiny text, low-contrast images, and vague subtitles make it hard for people with low vision, cognitive disabilities, or those viewing on a small screen.

Here’s how to turn that around.

Before: The Typical Hard-to-Read Title Slide

Picture this:

You’ve got a full-bleed photo of a city skyline at dusk, a semi-transparent dark overlay, and your title in stylish thin white text: “Quarterly Results.” Underneath, a light gray subtitle in 18 pt: “Q2 2025 Performance Review.” The logo is tucked in the bottom right, and there’s a trendy gradient bar at the top.

It looks modern. It’s also hard to read for:

• Anyone with low vision
• People in the back row of a large room
• People watching on a phone in a noisy train

This is where a simple example of accessibility in slide design can make a big difference.

After: An Accessible Title Slide That Still Looks Polished

Now imagine the same slide, redesigned with accessibility in mind:

• The background is a solid, dark navy instead of a busy photo.
• The title is in a bold sans-serif font (like Arial or Calibri) at 48–60 pt, in white.
• The subtitle is at least 28–32 pt, also in white, with slightly lower weight.
• The contrast ratio between text and background meets WCAG AA standards (at least 4.5:1). You can check this with tools like the WebAIM Contrast Checker (https://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/).
• There’s clear left alignment, with a generous margin so the text doesn’t hug the edges.
• The logo is still present, but smaller and not competing with the title.

This might sound simple, but it’s one of the best examples of accessibility in slide design because it solves multiple problems at once: readability, contrast, and cognitive load.

Why This Example Works in Real Rooms and Real Meetings

In a real conference room, people are:

• Looking at your slides from 20–40 feet away
• Dealing with glare from windows or projectors
• Checking email on their phones while half-listening

Making your title slide accessible means:

• People with low vision can still read the main message.
• People with ADHD or cognitive fatigue aren’t overwhelmed by visual noise.
• People joining late can instantly see what the session is about.

This is one of those quiet real examples of accessibility in slide design that also makes your deck look more professional. Accessibility and aesthetics don’t have to fight each other; they usually want the same things: clarity, hierarchy, and focus.

Example 2: An Accessible Data Slide for Charts and Graphs

If you’re looking for examples of accessibility in slide design: 3 practical examples that really affect understanding, data slides are the gold mine. This is where people with color vision deficiencies, cognitive disabilities, or small screens can get completely lost—unless you design deliberately.

Before: The Rainbow Bar Chart That Nobody Can Read

Here’s a very typical data slide:

• A clustered bar chart with six categories, each in a different bright color.
• No data labels on the bars; you have to look back and forth between legend and chart.
• The legend sits below the chart in tiny 10 pt text.
• The title says, “Sales Performance.” That’s it.
• The y-axis labels are small and gray, barely visible on the projector.

This is rough for:

• People with red-green color blindness (the most common type, according to the CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/visionhealth/resources/features/color-blindness.html)
• People who process information more slowly
• Anyone trying to follow along on a phone during a webinar

After: An Accessible Data Slide with Redundancy and Clarity

Let’s turn that into one of our best examples of accessibility in slide design:

• Use two or three colors max and rely on text labels, patterns, or direct labeling instead of a color-only legend.
• Place data labels directly on or above each bar (e.g., “$2.3M”).
• Increase axis and label fonts to at least 18–20 pt.
• Use high-contrast colors (e.g., dark blue bars on a white background) and avoid red/green pairings.
• Write a descriptive title like: “Q2 2025: West Region Leads with 35% of Total Sales.”
• Add a short takeaway below the chart in plain language: “West region outperformed all others, driven by new product launches.”

This single slide is a textbook example of accessibility in slide design because it:

• Doesn’t rely on color alone (a key WCAG principle: https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG21/quickref/)
• Supports screen magnification users with larger fonts and clear labels
• Helps everyone understand the story without working so hard

Extra Accessibility Touches for Data Slides

To push this even further into the category of best examples:

• Make sure the chart has a logical reading order so screen readers move from title → chart → takeaway.
• Provide a short text summary in the speaker notes or a nearby text box: “In Q2 2025, West region achieved \(2.3M, compared with \)1.5M in East, \(1.2M in Central, and \)900K in South.”
• If you’re sharing a PDF afterward, consider adding alt text for the chart that summarizes the trend instead of just saying “bar chart.”

These small decisions add up. They turn your slide from “pretty but confusing” into one of those real examples of accessibility in slide design that people remember because they actually understood what you were saying.

Example 3: An Accessible Slide for Remote and Hybrid Presentations

The third of our examples of accessibility in slide design: 3 practical examples focuses on something that has exploded since 2020: remote and hybrid presentations.

When half your audience is in the room and half is on Zoom, accessibility issues multiply:

• Audio quality varies.
• Internet connections drop.
• People join from phones, tablets, laptops, and TVs.
• Some people can’t have sound on at all.

Designing slides that support all of that is one of the most powerful real examples of accessibility in slide design.

Before: A Slide That Only Works If You’re in the Room

Imagine a slide for a product demo:

• A single screenshot of the app UI, crammed with tiny text.
• The speaker says, “As you can see here…” and points with a laser.
• No captions, no on-screen labels, no summary text.
• The speaker talks fast and jumps between screens.

In the room, some people can follow. Online, many can’t. People with hearing loss, people on mute, or anyone with a lagging connection will miss half the content.

After: An Accessible Hybrid-Friendly Slide

Now let’s redesign this as another strong example of accessibility in slide design.

• Instead of one dense screenshot, break the process into three separate slides, each focusing on one step.
• On each slide, highlight just one area of the UI and add a short, clear label: “Step 1: Enter Customer Email.”
• Add 2–3 bullet points in plain language describing what’s happening: “Type the customer’s email. The system will auto-check if they’re already in the database.”
• Turn on live captions in your meeting platform (Zoom, Teams, Google Meet). In 2024–2025, these tools have improved accuracy significantly, and organizations are increasingly expected to use them (see guidance from the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/frontpage/pro-students/disability-rights.html).
• Speak your labels out loud: “On this slide, you’ll see Step 1 highlighted on the left: Enter Customer Email.”

This hybrid-ready slide is a practical example of accessibility in slide design that:

• Supports people who can’t hear well or can’t use audio
• Helps people with cognitive disabilities follow a step-by-step process
• Makes the recording more usable later because captions and on-screen labels reinforce each other

More Real-World Accessibility Tweaks You Can Steal

The three big scenarios above are our anchor examples of accessibility in slide design: 3 practical examples, but let’s layer in a few more real examples you can apply across any deck.

Clear, Consistent Headings

Use consistent heading styles throughout your deck:

• Same font, size, and color for all main slide titles
• Same style for subheadings

This helps:

• People using screen readers navigate the deck more predictably
• Everyone quickly scan and understand structure

Keyboard-Friendly and Screen Reader-Friendly Slides

When you build slides, check the selection pane or reading order tool (PowerPoint and Google Slides both offer this). Make sure the order is:

1. Title
2. Main content
3. Supporting elements (like images or icons)

This is a subtle but important example of accessibility in slide design that many people skip. Screen reader users will thank you.

Avoiding Text Blocks That Feel Like Walls

Large paragraphs on a slide are hard for everyone, but especially for people with dyslexia or ADHD.

Instead:

• Break text into short chunks.
• Use line spacing of at least 1.2–1.5.
• Stick to left-aligned text; avoid full justification.

These are quiet, but powerful, real examples of accessibility in slide design that support comprehension.

Font Choices That Actually Work in 2024–2025

In 2024–2025, most accessibility guidelines still recommend:

• Sans-serif fonts like Arial, Calibri, Verdana, or Tahoma
• Minimum 24 pt for body text on slides

Research and guidance from organizations like the DO-IT Center at the University of Washington (https://www.washington.edu/doit/) continue to emphasize clear, readable typography for accessible learning materials. Your slides are no different.

Pulling It All Together: Patterns You Can Reuse

If we zoom out from these examples of accessibility in slide design: 3 practical examples, a few patterns emerge that you can reuse:

• High contrast and large text on title and content slides
• Redundant cues on data slides (labels, patterns, text summaries)
• Step-by-step structure for process or demo slides
• Captions and transcripts for remote and hybrid sessions
• Logical reading order and consistent headings for assistive tech

These patterns are not just for people with permanent disabilities. They help:

• Someone watching your talk on a phone in bright sunlight
• A tired parent attending a webinar at 10 p.m.
• A non-native English speaker trying to follow complex content

Accessibility isn’t a special add-on. These real examples of accessibility in slide design show that it’s simply good communication.

FAQ: Common Questions About Accessible Slide Design

What are some simple examples of accessibility in slide design I can use right now?

Some of the fastest wins include:

• Increasing font sizes to at least 24 pt for body text
• Using high-contrast color pairs (e.g., dark navy text on white)
• Adding direct labels and data values to charts instead of relying on color
• Turning on live captions during online presentations
• Checking slide reading order so screen readers read titles and content in a logical sequence

Each one is a practical example of accessibility in slide design that takes minutes, not hours.

Can you give an example of an accessible slide layout for a text-heavy topic?

Yes. Start with a clear title at the top, then split the content into two main areas: a short bullet list on the left and a brief summary or key takeaway on the right. Use 2–4 bullets max, 24–28 pt font, with generous line spacing. Keep the background plain and high-contrast. This layout is a strong example of accessibility in slide design because it reduces cognitive overload and supports screen magnification users.

How do I know if my colors are accessible?

Use an online contrast checker, such as the one from WebAIM (https://webaim.org/resources/contrastchecker/). Enter your text color and background color, and aim for at least a 4.5:1 ratio for normal text. This is one of the best examples of how simple tools can guide accessible slide design.

Do I always need captions for accessible slides?

If you’re presenting live online or sharing recordings, captions are strongly recommended. They support people who are deaf or hard of hearing, people in noisy or quiet environments, and non-native speakers. Most major platforms now offer built-in live captions, which makes this one of the easiest real examples of accessibility in slide design to adopt.

Are accessible slides only for people with disabilities?

No. Accessible design helps everyone. High-contrast text helps in bright rooms, larger fonts help in big auditoriums, and clear data labels help busy executives who are half-listening between meetings. The best examples of accessibility in slide design almost always double as examples of good communication, full stop.