Using Google Docs With A Screen Reader
In this tutorial, you will learn how to configure Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides to work with screen readers.
You will also learn how to configure your screen reader to work with the Google productivity apps. In addition,
you will learn some important keyboard shortcuts for navigating and interacting with Google productivity apps
using some of the most common screen readers.
Learning Objectives
In this tutorial, you will:
- Learn how to configure Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides to work with screen readers.
- Learn how to configure your screen reader to work with the Google productivity apps.
- Learn some important keyboard shortcuts for navigating and interacting with Google productivity apps
using some of the most common screen readers.
Opening A Blank Doc
In the Chrome web browser, in the address bar, type either docs.new, sheets.new, or slides.new and press the Enter key.
As the page opens, listen for “screen reader support enabled”.
Turning On Screen Reader Support
To turn on or verify screen reader support, you can use either of these methods in any editor.
Use The Menu Bar To Turn On Screen Reader Support
To open the Tools menu:
- On Windows and ChromeOS:
Press Alt + Shift + t.
-
On MacOS:
Press Control + Option + t.
- In the Tools menu, select Accessibility settings.
- Tab to and check Turn on screen reader support.
- To close the dialog, press Enter.
- Tip: Once any menu option is open, press the Right arrow or Left arrow to navigate to the other menus.
Use A Keyboard Shortcut To Turn On Screen Reader Support
On ChromeOS:
- Screen reader support is automatically turned on when ChromeVox is on.
On Windows:
- Press Ctrl + Alt + z.
On MacOS:
- Press Command + Option + z.
Configuring Your Screen Reader
The Google editors should be used as a web application instead of a web page. For guidance on how to configure your screen reader, follow these instructions:
Configure ChromeVox
To configure ChromeVox, ensure sticky mode is turned off. To turn off, press the Search key twice until you hear \“Sticky mode disabled.\”
Configure JAWS
For editing content, ensure that JAWS Virtual PC cursor is off. To turn off, press JAWS + z until you hear \”Use virtual PC cursor off.\”
Depending on your Forms mode configuration, this can be required more than once.
Configuring NVDA
With NVDA, Focus mode generally provides a better experience for editing content than browse mode.
- To switch between focus and browse modes: Press NVDA + space.
- The Ctrl + Alt + n keyboard shortcut is used for efficient navigation in these editors, so make sure it isn’t used for the NVDA desktop shortcut.
- To verify or change your NVDA keyboard shortcut:From the context menu on the NVDA desktop shortcut, open Properties.
- On the Shortcut tab, edit the Shortcut key so it doesn’t conflict with the Google editors, for example, Ctrl + Alt + slash.
Configure VoiceOver
With VoiceOver running, ensure Quick Nav is turned off: Press the Left arrow and Right arrow keys at the same time until you hear \“Quick Nav off.\”
- If VoiceOver doesn’t automatically focus on the correct part of the page, like if a dialog window appears: Press Escape to return your focus to the editing area.
- To return to the editing area: Press VoiceOver + Shift + Down arrow.
VoiceOver Keyboard Shortcuts
The default VoiceOver keyboard shortcut, Control + Option, conflicts with Google editors menu shortcuts. There are 2 ways to avoid this conflict:
Change the VoiceOver modifier to use only the Caps Lock key:
- To open the VoiceOver Utility, press VoiceOver + F8.
- Tab to \“Keys to use as the VoiceOver modifier.\”
- Down arrow to the Caps Lock option (or any that omits Control + Option).
- To close the Utility: press Command + q.
If you don’t expect to use the menus frequently, you can:
- Use the VoiceOver pass-through command:
- Press VoiceOver + Tab.
- Type the menu shortcut, like for the Tools menu, Control + Option + t.
To search the menus:
- Press Option + slash.
- Search for a term, like: accessibility.
Turning On Braille Support
Docs, Sheets and Slides have a Braille mode that’s needed when using a Braille display but can also be used when using spoken feedback. If you turn on braille support, you can notice the following improvements:
- Your braille display starts showing content.
- You can use the cursor routing buttons on your braille display to move the cursor.
- Faster screen reader typing echo.
- Faster screen reader navigation handling when you navigate by character.
- Better screen reader announcements of punctuation and whitespace.
- While you type, your screen reader uses its settings for character echo and word echo instead of always echoing characters.
If you aren’t using a braille display, or notice poor responsiveness in Sheets or Slides, turning off braille support can help. To turn off:
- Open the Tools menu.
- To open the Accessibility settings dialog, select Accessibility.
- Tab to the ”Turn on braille support” checkbox, then press Space to toggle.
- To accept the change and close the dialog. press Enter.
You can also use this shortcut:
- On Windows and ChromeOS: Press Ctrl + Alt + h.
- On MacOS: Press Command + Option + h.
Common UI Elements
The Google productivity apps (Docs, Sheets, and Slides) all have some common User Interface (UI) elements which aid in navigating and using the apps. Understanding the name, purpose, and how to interact with these elements is essential for screen reader accessibility and usability within the Google applications.
Explore each of the common UI elements described in the following modules to increase your familiarity with the interface.
Landmarks
In Docs, Sheets, and Slides you can quickly navigate between the Menu bar, Side panel, and the Main landmarks with the following shortcuts:
On Windows: Press Ctrl + Alt + period.
On ChromeOS: Press Alt + Shift + period.
On MacOS: Press Command + Option + period.
Tips:
Replacing period with comma will navigate in the reverse direction.
While landmarks can be announced by your screen reader, using the screen reader landmark navigation can be unreliable due to performance optimizations.
The Menu Bar and Menus
The editors have a menu bar with menus for File, Tools, and Accessibility:
To open the File menu:
- On Windows and ChromeOS: Press Alt + Shift + f.
- On MacOS: Press Control + Option + f.
- To explore that menu: Use Up arrow and Down arrow.
- To open other menus, like Tools or Accessibility: Use the Right arrow or Left arrow.
To open each menu directly: You can usually use the first letter, like:
- For Tools on Windows and ChromeOS: Press Alt + Shift + t.
- For Accessibility on MacOS: Press Control + Option + a.
Tips:
- If the menu shortcut doesn’t move focus, it is likely because the menus have been hidden. Turn on menu visibility (and function) with the keyboard shortcut: Ctrl + Shift + f.
- To quickly find a menu option, press Alt + slash (on MacOS, press Option + slash). After pressing the shortcut, type part of the name and the matching items can be found with a Down arrow. This shortcut is available even when the menus are hidden.
The Top Level Buttons
There are top level buttons for document level actions like renaming, sharing, or moving to a different folder, between the Menu bar landmark and the menu bar.
To navigate to the last button:
- Open the File menu.
- To navigate to the “Google account” button, press Shift + Tab.
To navigate to the first button:
- Navigate to the Menu bar landmark.
- To navigate to the “Home” and the other top level buttons, press Tab.
- To explore other top level buttons: Press Shift + Tab or Tab.
- To return to the main content: Press Escape.
The Toolbar
A toolbar is a horizontal row of common action buttons that usually duplicate menu actions.
- To get to the main toolbar: From the menu bar or menus, press Tab.
- To navigate to each of these toolbar actions for the application: Press the Right arrow.
Tip: Many of the keyboard shortcuts are presented along with the name for quick usage later without navigating to the toolbar.
The Context Menu
A context menu is provided that has actions that are related to the current context, like editing or keyboard focus.
To open the context menu, press Shift + F10.
Keyboard Shortcuts For Using The Google Editors
The editors include many keyboard shortcuts for navigation and editing.
To open a popup list of keyboard shortcuts while you’re editing:
- On Windows and ChromeOS: Press Ctrl + slash.
- On MacOS: Press Command + slash.
The Popup List Of Keyboard Shortcuts
This User Interface is most helpful when you know that a shortcut exists because you can search.
When the “Keyboard shortcuts” dialog is displayed, tab once to the “Search keyboard shortcuts” combo box and type part of the function name like, “menu” and press Enter. The results will be presented in one or more tables that include that term. From there:
- Switch your screen reader to Virtual, Browse, Sticky, or QuickNav mode.
- If focus isn’t already on the table, navigate to the next table.
- Navigate down the column to hear the function names (matching your search).
- Navigate to the next column to hear the shortcut.
- If needed, navigate back to the first column and continue, or navigate to the next table to explore matches in another category of functions.
- When you find the desired shortcut, turn off your screen reader Virtual, Browse, Sticky, or QuickNav mode. To return to the content, press Escape.
Tip: These steps also work to browse all presented shortcuts even without performing a search.
Windows Keyboard Shortcut Considerations
If you aren’t using the default US English keyboard layout, many shortcuts that include the Ctrl + Alt modifier won’t work as expected. They’ll act as if the AltGr key was pressed instead. If you would like to use these shortcuts, consult the Windows documentation on installing and temporarily switching to the US English keyboard layout.
Additional Learning Resources
Learn more about using Google editors with a screen reader in the following help pages and videos.
Note: All of the links open in a new tab.
- Use Google Docs with a screen reader
- Use Google Sheets with a screen reader
- Use Google Slides with a screen reader
- Collaborate and comment with a screen reader
Tip: In Docs, Sheets, and Slides, you can turn off the screen reader announcements about other people entering, editing, or leaving the file. Learn how to turn off collaborator announcements.
Video Tutorials
Check out these screen reader tutorial videos for using Docs, Sheets, and Slides
Note: all links open in a new tab.
- Get started with Google Docs (18.9 minutes)
- Get started with Google Sheets (26.3 minutes)
- Get started with Google Slides (16 minutes)
In this video, you’ll learn how to get started with Google Docs using NVDA.
In this video, you’ll learn how to get started with Google Sheets using NVDA.
In this video, you’ll learn how to get started with Google Slides using NVDA.
Attribution
This tutorial was created using content from Use Google Editors With A Screen Reader on December 2, 2024.