1.2.7 Extended Audio Description (Prerecorded)
Level AAA · added in WCAG 2.0
When pauses in the dialogue are too short to describe what matters, the video pauses so the description can play, then resumes. This is level AAA, which most laws and policies don't require, but it is worth doing for dense, fast-moving video.
Who it helps
Blind people and people with low vision get the full visual content of fast-paced or dialogue-heavy videos. People with cognitive disabilities also benefit from the extra time to take in what happens.
How to meet it
- Start with standard audio description (1.2.5), then mark the spots where the needed description doesn't fit the gaps.
- At those points, freeze the video, play the description, then continue.
- Produce a separate extended-described version, since standard players don't pause for descriptions on their own.
- Link the extended-described version clearly next to the standard player.
- Keep descriptions short even with extra time; describe only what people need to follow the content.
- If the soundtrack already leaves enough pauses, standard audio description is enough and this criterion is met.
Examples
<video controls src="/video/safety-training.mp4">
<track kind="captions" src="/video/safety.en.vtt"
srclang="en" label="English">
</video><video controls src="/video/safety-training.mp4">
<track kind="captions" src="/video/safety.en.vtt"
srclang="en" label="English">
</video>
<p><a href="/video/safety-training-extended-ad.mp4">
Watch with extended audio description</a>
(the video pauses for each description)</p>Can a scanner detect this?
No
No axe-core rule tests extended audio description. A tool can't judge whether the pauses in a video are long enough for the descriptions it needs. A person has to watch the video and the described version.
No automated rule tests this criterion. Check it by hand.
Common mistakes
- Cramming descriptions into short gaps so they talk over the dialogue.
- Speeding up the narration to fit, which makes it hard to follow.
- Making an extended version but not linking it from the page with the video.
- Assuming a description text track will pause the video; standard browsers don't do this.
Related criteria
Check your own page
See which automated WCAG checks your page fails, with the failing elements and how to fix them.
Reviewed November 2, 2026