# How Can Backend Developers Improve Accessibility?

DevFeed: [How Can Backend Developers Improve Accessibility?](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/how-can-backend-developers-improve-accessibility-38444.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://eevis.codes/blog/2022-07-07/how-can-backend-developers-improve-accessibility/>)

Author: Eevis Panula

Published: 2023-01-03T08:57:42.731000Z

Content type: tutorial

Language: en

Sources: [Eevis Blog](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/eevis-blog.md>)

Topics: [Back end](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/backend.md>), [Accessibility](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/accessibility.md>), [API](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/api.md>), [Documentation](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/documentation.md>), [Database](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/database.md>)

Tags: [accessibility](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/accessibility.md>), [alt-text](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/alt-text.md>), [api](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/api.md>), [backend](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/backend.md>), [documentation](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/documentation.md>), [html](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/html.md>), [keyboard](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/keyboard.md>), [language](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/language.md>)

## AI overview

This article explains how backend developers can improve accessibility through API design, accessible documentation, localization, performance considerations, and backend-rendered pages. It gives examples such as requiring alt text or decorative-image indicators when images are uploaded.

## Source excerpt

This question might feel a bit strange. Backend developers often touch the UI less, so they don't need to care, right? I beg to differ. This blog post will look at some practices backend developers can do to ensure the accessibility of the end product and documentation. We'll look into API structure, documentation, performance aspects, and backend rendered pages. This is in no way an exhaustive list of things, and there is definitely more backend devs can do, but let's start with these four. API structure There is actually a huge opportunity to improve accessibility when building APIs. This opportunity comes from reusable structures and ensuring that the content requires accessible roles, names, states, or properties. Also, APIs can enforce requiring things like having captions and transcripts for videos and audio content. One concrete example of API supporting accessibility is images. When uploading an image, the API should require an alternative text or information that the image is decorative. So, when validating the sent input, there should be a check for having the alt-text (for example, as a separate parameter). And if the image is purely decorative, and thus the alt-text is not needed, then, for example, a boolean value indicating that. Localization is another thing that helps with accessibility. Enabling people to use products in their native language can make barriers smaller. When designing an API, developers should consider localization and how that API can support it. I know there are cases where another service handles localization, or it's handled in the front end, but it's rarely only about the texts on the site. Often values stored in the database should be localizable too. Documentation Another aspect where backend developers can help with accessibility is the documentation. There are two sides to this: The site or platform, and the content. Platform or Site First of all, the site where the documentation is should be accessible. So, for example, the