Add a caption to an image in an email

Tips for creating useful image captions that make your email accessible for your recipients with screen readers

Image captions are useful for pointing out who's in a photo, or elaborating on what's happening in the image, but they're also very helpful for those who may be using a screen reader to view your email.

• Tips for writing and styling image captions
• Add a caption above or below an image
• Add a caption to the left or right of an image
• Add a caption to an image wrapped with text

Did you know? Some screen readers can be configured to pick up image file names. Using a combination of the file name, image description, and a caption ensures your images are truly accessible to everyone who receives your emails.

Tips for writing and styling image captions

The best image captions get to the point, include essential information, and don't simply restate the text content in your email.

• Image captions should be formatted differently than the rest of your text, and the style should be used consistently for each image.
• If you have text embedded in your image, consider also including a caption with the same text; screen readers can't distinguish the text when it's layered over the image.
• Image captions are generally only a sentence or two. If you need more room to give lots of information about the contents of an image, use the image caption to give your image a distinct name and then clearly refer to it in the body of your email.
• When you have an image that doesn't need a caption or doesn't add anything to your email besides visual appeal, it's a good idea to include an image description in place of a caption for screen readers. You can do this by editing the image from within your email draft or in the Library.

Add a caption above or below an image

Adding a caption above or below an image is easy to do with a Text block. It doesn't matter if your image is in a column or spans the width of your template.

1. Drag a Text block into your template. Use the pink guideline to help you place it above or below your image.
   
   
    
2. Add your caption text
3. Use the toolbar to style your caption text.
   
   
    

Add a caption to the left or right of an image

Use an Article block to add image captions on the side of an image. There are several different styles, and the image can be moved so that it sits on the left or right side of the block.

1. Drag one of the Article blocks into your template.
   
   
    
2. Insert your image into the placeholder.
3. Add and style your caption text, and delete the default headline and link text.
   
   
    
4. Drag a Spacer block above the caption text. Increase or decrease the thickness of the spacer to center your caption.
   
   
    
5. Adjust the image size and column width to find the right balance. 
   
   
    

Add a caption to an image wrapped with text

When you wrap text around an image, it's a little trickier to add a caption, but it can be done with a Spacer block and a Text block above the image.

1. Add a Text block above the image. Use the pink guideline to make sure it spans the width of the entire template.
   
   
    
2. Add a Spacer block above your image and next to the Text block to create a new column.
   
   
    
3. Replace the default text with your caption and use the toolbar to style the text.
4. Adjust the width of the Text block so that the caption is aligned with your image. Keeping the text in one row is ideal.
5. Reduce the thickness of your Spacer to prevent gaps when your content stacks on a mobile device.
   
   
    
6. Click Preview & Test > Preview.
   
   
    
7. Click the Mobile tab to make sure things line up the way you intend. Columns stack from left to right, so if your image is on the left side of your template, the spacer stacks on top of the caption, while the caption stacks on top of the spacer when the image is on the right side.
   
   
    

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