For Narrator, the built-in Windows screen reader, there are a number of tips and tricks that you might find handy when you're using the Microsoft 365 for the web apps.
Tips:
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To learn how to get started with Narrator, go to Complete guide to Narrator.
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To display the access keys (keyboard commands) on the classic ribbon in Word for the web, Excel for the web, PowerPoint for the web, and OneNote for the web, press Alt+Period (.).
Word for the web
Navigation. To navigate commands in Word for the web, use the Tab key, Shift+Tab, and Enter. Use Ctrl+F6 to move the focus between the command ribbon and the content of your document.
Text. In Reading view, press the Tab key to move to the View document in more accessible mode command. Press Enter, and then press Enter again to open the document rendered as a PDF. In Editing view, select the entire document (Ctrl+A). Narrator reads text formatting such as background color, font color, size, and style when you press Caps lock+0.
Note: Narrator doesn’t read formatting such as headers, styles, tables, lists, spelling errors, and alignment.
Hyperlinks. Hyperlinks work, but Narrator does not identify them as links while reading the document.
Rich Media. Narrator reads videos as images. Select content with Shift+Left, Right, Up, or Down arrow key for Narrator to call out images (using the arrow keys won’t work). Narrator reads alt text for videos and images.
Excel for the web
Navigation. To navigate commands in Excel for the web, use the Tab key, Shift+Tab, and Enter. Use Ctrl+F6 to move the focus between the command ribbon and the cell grid.
Cell grid. Use the Tab key or the arrow keys to move from one cell to another. Select a cell or range for Narrator to read it. Narrator reads text formatting such as background color, font color, size, and style when you press Caps lock+0.
Sheets: adding, deleting, and renaming tabs. Press Ctrl+F6 until you hear “Scroll to the first sheet button,” then press the Tab key to get to the sheet tabs. When focused on a sheet tab, press Shift+F10 or the Windows Menu key to get additional options such as Insert, Delete, Rename, and Hide/Unhide.
Charts: chart type, alt text title and description. Narrator reads charts as images, including the name of the chart and its tooltip, but no other details.
Formulas. Press F2 in a cell, and use Ctrl+A to select the formula.
Comments. Narrator reads a comment after reading the content of a cell.
Hyperlinks. Narrator reads link text and destination after reading the content of a cell.
PivotTables. Use the Tab key or the arrow keys, or tap or click to select a cell in the PivotTable. Then press Ctrl+F6 to open the PivotTable Fields pane. Use the arrow keys to move from one field button to another, and press Enter to select a field. Press the Tab key to jump to the lower section of the pane, where you use the arrow keys to access the contextual commands. Press Esc to close context menus.
Note: Narrator does not read the following kinds of elements: tables, conditional formatting and slicers, and form controls.
PowerPoint for the web
Navigation. To navigate commands in PowerPoint for the web, use the Tab key, Shift+Tab, and Enter. Use Ctrl+F6 to move the focus to different parts of the PowerPoint for the web interface (from a slide to the thumbnail pane, for example), and to move in and out of the content of a slide.
Thumbnail pane. Press Ctrl+F6 to switch focus to the thumbnail pane, then press the Tab key or use the Up/Down arrow keys to move through the slides. To edit the selected slide, press Ctrl+F6 once to go to the slide’s speaker notes (if the notes area is open), then once again to go to the slide content.
Speaker notes. Press Ctrl+F6 until speaker notes are selected.
Slide text. Narrator reads the type of placeholder and its content. Narrator reads text formatting such as background color, font color, size, and style when you press Caps lock+0.
SmartArt. Narrator reads the content of the SmartArt. Press Enter to edit SmartArt text.
Slide objects such as shapes, text boxes, images, and charts. Narrator reads text box shapes and information about images.
Comments. Press Ctrl+F6 to move focus to the command ribbon. Press the Tab key to View, press Enter, and then press the Tab key to Show Comments > Comments Pane. If the command pane is already open, press Ctrl+F6 to move focus to the pane.
Not supported. Narrator does not read slide content in Reading view, Slides Show view, or the Notes pane. Instead, in Reading view, go to File > Help > Accessibility Mode for an outline view that is accessible to screen readers. For many kinds of objects (for example, images, media, and charts), Narrator identifies the object only as “object placeholder.” For other kind of objects (such as Microsoft 365 for the web art shapes), Narrator does not read the object at all. For hyperlinks, Narrator reads the link text and destination, but the link is not clickable. Narrator does not read spell-check misspellings.
OneNote for the web
Navigation. To navigate commands in OneNote for the web, use the Tab key, Shift+Tab, and Enter. Use Ctrl+F6 to move the focus between the command ribbon and the content of your notebook. To move from one note container to another on a page, press Ctrl+A three times, and then use the Tab key and Shift+Tab to move back and forth among the note containers.
Section and page tabs. Press the Tab key to move through the section and page tabs. To expand or collapse a section, press Enter while the section tab is selected. To jump to the content of a page, press Enter while the page tab is selected. When you go to a password-protected section, press Enter and then type the password.
Search. Press the Tab key until you hear “Empty line,” and then type your search.
Text. The easiest way to read a page is to use Ctrl+A to select all the content on the page (press Ctrl+A three times).
Ink (drawings). Narrator reads ink drawings as images.
Not fully supported. Narrator reads the content of a bulleted list or tag with no indication that it is a list of items or a tagged item. Narrator reads the content of the table with no indication of rows or columns.
