Screen Readers and Font Accessibility

Screen Readers Read Text Content, Not Font Files

When your CSS specifies font-family: "Open Sans", the browser downloads the font file and uses it to render glyphs visually on screen. The screen reader never accesses this font file. Instead, it reads the underlying HTML text content:

<p style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'">Hello World</p>
<p style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'">Hello World</p>

<!-- Screen reader announces: "Hello World" for both paragraphs
     Font difference is completely invisible to screen readers -->

Visual Emphasis vs Semantic Emphasis

Visual styling (font weight, italics) differs from semantic emphasis. Screen readers can optionally announce semantic HTML elements but ignore pure CSS styling:

<!-- Semantic emphasis (screen readers can announce) -->
<p>This is <strong>important</strong> text.</p>
<p>This is <em>emphasized</em> text.</p>

<!-- Visual-only styling (screen readers ignore) -->
<p>This is <span style="font-weight: bold">bold</span> text.</p>
<p>This is <span style="font-style: italic">italic</span> text.</p>

<!-- Both look identical visually, but semantic version
     provides meaning to screen readers -->

Dyslexia Fonts and Screen Readers

Fonts like OpenDyslexic benefit sighted dyslexic readers through visual characteristics (weighted bottoms, distinct letter shapes). Screen reader users who are also dyslexic don't benefit from these fonts because they're listening to content, not reading it visually. However, many people with dyslexia use screen readers in combination with visual reading (dual-mode learning), so implementing both dyslexia-friendly fonts for visual users and proper semantic structure for screen readers serves both use cases.

Focus on What Actually Matters

Instead of worrying about which font screen readers prefer (they don't have preferences), focus on:

• Proper semantic HTML (use correct heading levels, lists, landmarks)
• Descriptive link text ("Read more about accessibility" vs "Click here")
• Alt text for images and informative graphics
• ARIA labels for interactive elements and dynamic content
• Keyboard accessibility for all interactive features
• Logical focus order and tab navigation

Heading Hierarchy

Screen reader users navigate by headings more than any other method. Proper heading hierarchy is critical:

<div class="big-text">Page Title</div>
<div class="medium-text">Section</div>
<div class="small-text">Subsection</div>

<h1>Page Title</h1>
<h2>Section</h2>
<h3>Subsection</h3>

Lists and Navigation

Screen readers announce list length and current position ("list, 5 items, item 1 of 5"), helping users understand structure:

<!-- Semantic navigation list -->
<nav aria-label="Main navigation">
  <ul>
    <li><a href="/">Home</a></li>
    <li><a href="/about">About</a></li>
    <li><a href="/contact">Contact</a></li>
  </ul>
</nav>

<!-- Screen reader announces:
     "Main navigation, navigation landmark"
     "List, 3 items"
     "Item 1 of 3, Home, link" -->

Landmark Regions

HTML5 landmarks allow screen reader users to skip directly to page sections:

<header>
  <nav aria-label="Primary navigation">...</nav>
</header>

<main>
  <article>...</article>
  <aside>...</aside>
</main>

<footer>...</footer>

<!-- Screen readers allow jumping to:
     Header, Main content, Navigation, Footer, etc. -->

Form Labels and Instructions

Properly labeled forms are essential. Visual-only labels (placeholder text, adjacent text without <label>) fail screen reader users:

<!-- Good: Explicit label association -->
<label for="email">Email address</label>
<input type="email" id="email" required>

<!-- Good: Wrapped label -->
<label>
  Phone number
  <input type="tel" required>
</label>

<!-- Bad: No programmatic label -->
<input type="email" placeholder="Email address">

Link Context and Descriptive Text

Screen readers can list all links on a page. Link text must be descriptive out of context:

<a href="#">Click here</a>
<a href="#">Read more</a>
<a href="#">Learn more</a>

<a href="#">Download PDF report</a>
<a href="#">Read accessibility guide</a>
<a href="#">Learn about WCAG 2.1</a>