Forum Discussion
Accessibility Issues (tab order, alt text)
Hi
I have a published Power BI file. I have set all the accessibility features up ie tab order, alt text.
The tab order seems to work but when I use a screen reader (Windows narrator and Edge Read Aloud), it seems to ignore the tab order and is pretty random, and it also seems to read what it wants to - alt text is ignored. It also goes to elements I have hidden in the Tab Order (lines etc).
Any ideas what I am doing wrong?
Thanks
Hey discolisa ,
You’re not doing anything wrong — this is actually a common point of confusion with Power BI accessibility.
The Tab Order pane only controls keyboard navigation order (when you press Tab). Screen readers like Windows Narrator don’t strictly follow that tab order when reading the page. Instead, they often follow the underlying structure (DOM) that Power BI Service generates when the report is rendered. Unfortunately, that reading order isn’t something we can fully control, which is why it can seem random even though your tab order is set correctly in Desktop.
A couple of other important points:
Edge “Read Aloud” isn’t a true screen reader. It reads visible page text, not the accessibility metadata behind Power BI visuals. So it won’t reliably read alt text.
Alt text is only read when the visual receives keyboard focus. If the screen reader isn’t navigating via Tab (or is in the wrong mode), it may ignore the alt text.
If decorative shapes or lines are still visible on the canvas (even if removed from tab order), screen readers may still detect them. If they’re purely decorative, either:
Hide them completely using the Selection pane, or
Give them blank alt text ("") so they’re ignored.
Also make sure you’re testing in Power BI Service (not just Desktop), using keyboard navigation with Narrator in scan mode. That will give you the most accurate result.
Unfortunately, full control over reading order isn’t currently possible in Power BI Service, so some inconsistencies are a known limitation rather than a setup issue on your side.
If you’re using any custom visuals, those can also behave differently from standard Microsoft visuals.
If it solved your issue, feel free to mark it as the solution so others can benefit too.
Thanks for being part of the community.
4 Replies
Hii discolisa
Tab Order mainly controls keyboard navigation, while screen readers use the visual layer structure and accessibility tree generated in the browser. If hidden objects are still in the Selection Pane (even if not visible), they can still be read. Also, alt text is ignored if the visual is not properly focused or if “Maintain layer order” isn’t aligned with tab order. Ensure hidden visuals are removed (not just hidden), check Selection Pane order matches Tab Order, and test using Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F11 (Power BI accessibility mode). This behavior is a known Service limitation, not necessarily something you are doing wrong.
Hey discolisa ,
You’re not doing anything wrong — this is actually a common point of confusion with Power BI accessibility.
The Tab Order pane only controls keyboard navigation order (when you press Tab). Screen readers like Windows Narrator don’t strictly follow that tab order when reading the page. Instead, they often follow the underlying structure (DOM) that Power BI Service generates when the report is rendered. Unfortunately, that reading order isn’t something we can fully control, which is why it can seem random even though your tab order is set correctly in Desktop.
A couple of other important points:
Edge “Read Aloud” isn’t a true screen reader. It reads visible page text, not the accessibility metadata behind Power BI visuals. So it won’t reliably read alt text.
Alt text is only read when the visual receives keyboard focus. If the screen reader isn’t navigating via Tab (or is in the wrong mode), it may ignore the alt text.
If decorative shapes or lines are still visible on the canvas (even if removed from tab order), screen readers may still detect them. If they’re purely decorative, either:
Hide them completely using the Selection pane, or
Give them blank alt text ("") so they’re ignored.
Also make sure you’re testing in Power BI Service (not just Desktop), using keyboard navigation with Narrator in scan mode. That will give you the most accurate result.
Unfortunately, full control over reading order isn’t currently possible in Power BI Service, so some inconsistencies are a known limitation rather than a setup issue on your side.
If you’re using any custom visuals, those can also behave differently from standard Microsoft visuals.
If it solved your issue, feel free to mark it as the solution so others can benefit too.
Thanks for being part of the community.
Thanks all!
Hi discolisa,
Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Fabric Community Forum. Also, thanks to MohdZaid_, rohit1991, for those inputs on this thread.Has your issue been resolved? If the response provided by the community member MohdZaid_, rohit1991, addressed your query, could you please confirm? It helps us ensure that the solutions provided are effective and beneficial for everyone.
Hope this helps clarify things and let me know what you find after giving these steps a try happy to help you investigate this further.
Thank you for using the Microsoft Community Forum.
