Word to PDF: why Save As keeps accessibility tags and Print to PDF throws them away

Two Word documents can look identical as PDFs and be completely different to a screen reader. One was exported with structure; the other was printed. This guide gives the exact settings on both platforms, explains what each path writes, and lists the source-document fixes that make the export worth doing.

Windows: Save As with document structure tags

1. Run the Accessibility Checker (Review > Check Accessibility) and resolve what it finds.
2. Choose File > Save As (or Save a Copy) and pick **PDF (*.pdf)** as the file type.
3. Select Options in the Save As dialog.
4. Make sure Document structure tags for accessibility is selected. In the same dialog you can also select Create bookmarks using: Headings, which turns your heading hierarchy into a PDF outline, and PDF/A compliant if an archive or court requires it.
5. Select OK, then Save.

The same Options dialog exists in Excel and PowerPoint. Microsoft's guidance is identical for all three: check first, then Save As with the structure tags option.

macOS: the online accessibility export

1. Run the Accessibility Checker and resolve what it finds.
2. Press Command+Shift+S (Save As) and enter a file name.
3. Choose PDF as the file format.
4. Select Best for electronic distribution and accessibility (uses Microsoft online service), then Export.

Two details from Microsoft's documentation matter here. First, this option sends the document to a Microsoft service to produce the PDF, which is worth knowing for documents that must not leave the organisation. Second, files with Information Rights Management or an open password cannot be saved with this option in Excel and PowerPoint; remove the protection, export, then reapply it if needed. Microsoft also notes that PowerPoint for macOS only preserves hyperlinks on objects when this option is selected.

Why Print to PDF loses everything

A print driver receives drawing instructions: put these glyphs here, this line there. It has no concept of a heading, a list, or an image description, so the PDF it writes has none. That is true of Microsoft Print to PDF, of third-party PDF printers, and of "export" buttons in some tools that are print drivers underneath. WebAIM's guidance on converting documents makes the same point: to generate a tagged PDF, use Save As rather than printing. If a PDF opens in a tag viewer with an empty tree, the print path is the likely reason.

Fix the source before you export

Export copies structure; it does not invent it. The checks below take minutes in Word and save hours of remediation later.

• Headings come from Heading 1 to Heading 6 styles, in order, not from bold text. The Navigation pane shows the outline the PDF will inherit.
• Images need alt text (right-click > View Alt Text). Mark purely decorative images as decorative so they become artifacts rather than unnamed figures.
• Lists must be built with the bullet and numbering tools, not typed characters.
• Tables need a header row set through Table Design > Header Row, and Table Properties > Row > "Repeat as header row at the top of each page". Avoid merged cells and never use a table to position text.
• Title is set under File > Info > Properties. Many viewers show it instead of the file name.
• Language is set under Review > Language for the document and for any passages in another language.
• Links should be real hyperlinks with descriptive text rather than pasted URLs, which are read character by character.

Verify the PDF

Open the result in the free PDF tag viewer and confirm the tree matches your outline, then run the PDF accessibility checker. Acrobat's own checker fails a document of 21 or more pages that has no bookmarks paralleling the structure, which the "Create bookmarks using Headings" option prevents. For the manual checks no tool can do, reading order and alt text quality above all, use the PDF accessibility checklist.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

The statements above rest on the primary sources below. Where a source is a law or standard, the version and date named in the text are the ones checked on the review date. This guide is general information, not legal advice.

1. Microsoft Support: Create accessible PDFs . Step-by-step export settings for Windows and macOS, the PowerPoint hyperlink note, and the rights-management limitation.
2. WebAIM: PDF Accessibility, Converting Documents to PDF
3. Adobe: Create and verify PDF accessibility (Acrobat Pro) . The Bookmarks check fails when a document has 21 or more pages and no bookmarks paralleling the structure.