Chrome Accessibility Features: How to Turn Them On

Chrome includes a full set of built-in accessibility features that make browsing easier for people with low vision, hearing impairments, or motor difficulties. This guide walks you through enabling the most useful ones, from the built-in screen reader and page zoom to keyboard navigation and caption settings. You’ll need a current version of Google Chrome on Windows, Mac, or Chromebook, and you may need to restart the browser after changing some settings.

What You’ll Need

Google Chrome installed (version 90 or newer recommended; the exact menus may differ slightly on older versions)
Administrator rights on your computer if you want to change system-wide accessibility settings (not strictly required for Chrome’s own settings)
Optional: a screen reader like NVDA (Windows) or VoiceOver (Mac) if you want to use Chrome’s built-in screen reader features

Step-by-Step

Open Chrome’s settings. Click the three-dot menu in the top-right corner of the browser window, then select Settings from the drop-down. Alternatively, type chrome://settings in the address bar and press Enter.
Go to the Accessibility section. In the left sidebar, click Accessibility. If you don’t see it, scroll down or use the search box at the top of the Settings page and type “accessibility”.
Turn on the built-in screen reader. Under the “Accessibility” section, toggle on Enable screen reader support (on Windows and Mac, this is often labeled “Screen reader”). This allows Chrome to work with screen readers like ChromeVox, NVDA, or VoiceOver. On Chromebooks, this option is called “ChromeVox” and is enabled by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Z.
Adjust page zoom. If you need larger text, use the zoom controls. Click the three-dot menu and use the + and − buttons next to “Zoom”, or press Ctrl++ (Windows/Linux) or ⌘++ (Mac) to zoom in. Chrome remembers the zoom level for each site, and you can set a default zoom in Settings > Appearance > Page zoom.
Enable the caret browsing feature. This lets you navigate a webpage with the keyboard arrow keys, which is helpful if you have motor impairments. Press F7 (Windows/Linux/Mac) to toggle it. A dialog will appear asking you to confirm; click Turn on. You can also enable it permanently in Settings > Accessibility > “Navigate pages with a text cursor”.
Turn on live captions. Chrome can automatically generate captions for audio and video played in the browser. Go to Settings > Accessibility and toggle on Live Caption. You may need to download the speech recognition files the first time you use it. This works for English, and you can customize the caption style (font, size, color) by clicking the settings gear next to the toggle.
Use the high-contrast mode (Windows only). If you have high-contrast mode enabled in Windows (Settings > Ease of Access > High contrast), Chrome will automatically use it. To force high contrast in Chrome itself, go to Settings > Appearance and select a high-contrast theme under “Themes”. On Mac, you can enable “Increase contrast” in System Preferences > Accessibility > Display, and Chrome will respect that.
Set keyboard shortcuts for accessibility. Chrome has many built-in keyboard shortcuts. For example, Ctrl+L focuses the address bar, Tab moves between interactive elements, and Shift+Tab moves backwards. You can also enable “Full keyboard access” on Mac (System Preferences > Keyboard > Shortcuts > “Use keyboard navigation to move focus between controls”) to make all webpage elements reachable via Tab.
Install accessibility extensions (optional). Chrome Web Store has extensions like “High Contrast” (official Google extension) that force a black-on-white or white-on-black theme on all sites. Search for “accessibility” in the Chrome Web Store and install the ones you need. Remember to review permissions before installing.
Use the accessibility tools in Chrome DevTools (for developers). If you build websites, open DevTools (F12), go to the “Elements” panel, and use the “Accessibility” tab to inspect how assistive technology sees your page. This helps ensure your site is usable.

Common Mistakes

Forgetting to restart Chrome after enabling a feature. Some changes, like enabling the screen reader, may require a full browser restart to take effect. Close all Chrome windows and reopen it.
Confusing page zoom with text size. Page zoom scales everything (images, layout, text), while text size only affects text. If you want larger text without breaking the layout, use the “Font size” setting in Settings > Appearance, not zoom.
Turning on Live Captions but not downloading the speech files. The first time you enable Live Captions, Chrome needs to download a few megabytes of speech recognition data. If you don’t wait for the download, captions won’t appear. Check the status in Settings > Accessibility.
Using F7 accidentally and not knowing why the cursor appears. The caret browsing feature is toggled by F7. If you press it by accident, you’ll see a blinking cursor on the page and arrow keys will scroll instead of moving the mouse. Press F7 again to turn it off.
Assuming all accessibility features are in the Accessibility settings. Some are in Appearance (zoom, font size), some are in Privacy and Security (site permissions for captions), and some are system-level. Check the search box in Settings to find them all.

Tips

Use the Chrome Web Store’s accessibility collection. Google curates a list of vetted accessibility extensions. Search for “accessibility” and look for the “Made by Google” badge for trusted options.
Customize Live Captions. You can change the caption text size, color, and background to make them more readable. Click the gear icon in the Live Caption settings.
Set a default zoom for all sites. Instead of zooming each site individually, go to Settings > Appearance > “Page zoom” and pick a default (e.g., 125%). This applies to every site unless you override it.
Use the Chrome Accessibility API for testing. If you’re a developer, run Lighthouse in DevTools (Audits tab) to get an accessibility score and suggestions for fixing issues.
Learn the keyboard shortcuts. Chrome has a full list at chrome://settings/keyboard (on Chromebooks) or in the help center. Print it out or keep it handy.

Troubleshooting

Screen reader not working? Make sure you’ve enabled the “Screen reader support” toggle in Settings > Accessibility. If you’re using a third-party screen reader (NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver), ensure it’s running before you open Chrome. On Windows, you may need to press Alt+F1 to bring up the Chrome menu if the screen reader is interfering with the three-dot menu.

Live Captions not appearing? Check that the audio is playing in a Chrome tab (not in a separate app). Captions only work for audio/video played directly in Chrome. Also, ensure the language is set to English (or one of the supported languages) in your Chrome language settings (Settings > Languages). If captions still don’t show, restart Chrome and try again.

Zoom not sticking? Chrome remembers zoom per site. If you want a global default, set it in Settings > Appearance > Page zoom. If a site still overrides it, clear that site’s data (click the lock icon in the address bar > Site settings > Clear data).

F7 doesn’t toggle caret browsing? Some keyboards have a function lock (Fn key) that changes the F7 key to a media key. Press Fn+F7 to trigger the function. Alternatively, go to Settings > Accessibility and toggle “Navigate pages with a text cursor” there.

High contrast not working on Mac? Chrome on Mac follows the system’s “Increase contrast” setting (System Preferences > Accessibility > Display). If that’s not enough, install a high-contrast extension from the Web Store.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does Chrome have a built-in screen reader?

Yes, Chrome has a built-in screen reader called ChromeVox, but it’s primarily available on Chromebooks. On Windows and Mac, Chrome relies on third-party screen readers (NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver) and provides a “screen reader support” toggle that makes Chrome work better with them.

2. How do I make text bigger without zooming the whole page?

Go to Settings > Appearance > “Font size” and select a larger size. You can also set a minimum font size (Settings > Appearance > “Customize fonts”) to ensure all text is at least a certain size.

3. Can I get captions for videos that don’t have captions?

Yes, the Live Caption feature generates captions in real time for any audio or video playing in Chrome, even if the original content has no captions. It works for English (and some other languages, depending on your OS).

4. Are accessibility features available on all platforms?

Most features are available on Windows, Mac, and Linux. Live Captions is available on Windows, Mac, and ChromeOS. Some features like high-contrast mode depend on the operating system’s own accessibility settings.

5. How do I turn off the caret browsing cursor?

Press F7 again to toggle it off. If you want to disable it permanently, go to Settings > Accessibility and turn off “Navigate pages with a text cursor”.

6. Are there any keyboard shortcuts for accessibility?

Yes, common ones include: Ctrl++/− to zoom, Ctrl+0 to reset zoom, F7 for caret browsing, and Ctrl+Alt+Z (Chromebook) to toggle ChromeVox. A full list is available in Chrome’s help center.

General steps for current mainstream versions; menus can differ by device and version. See the disclaimer or report an error.

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