In 2025, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) added an accessibility requirement to every eBook listing. If your eBook isn’t fully accessible—or if you just click “I don’t know”—that information is displayed on the Amazon product page for every eBook. It’s not just a checkbox. It could quietly shrink your audience, limit library and institutional purchases, damage your reputation, and make readers pass you by.

KDP is looking for a reflowable EPUB so the ebook adapts to the reader’s preferences and screen size. The book adjusts fonts, spacing, and colours, and allows zooming. The reader can switch between portrait and landscape modes. Graphics have captions and descriptions, and diagrams can be zoomed without becoming pixelized.

An accessible ebook is a pleasure to read – for everyone!

Is an ebook worth the hassle?

If creating a publishable ebook is not one-click-and-done, is it worth doing one if you already have a paperback?

• Global ebook revenue is projected at $15 billion in 2025, with sales growing across most genres.
• Genres like non-fiction have barely scratched the surface of sales, because they aren’t one-click formatting.
• Ebooks are more profitable for authors.
• Ebooks aren’t free to produce, but they cost a LOT less.
• Ebooks are the cheapest way to distribute copies to agents, reviewers, beta readers, and friends.
• Ebooks are instantly available worldwide, for rural and international audiences (no tariffs or logistics)
• Ebooks have more bookstores.
• Ebooks are easier to sell and distribute through your own website, avoiding Amazon costs.

What is the process for creating an ebook?

Creating an ebook is a small sub-project

1. Start with a clean source file (Word is best so keep your file up to date with changes made during proofing).
2. Apply accessibility styles and features from the beginning and save hours and money
3. If you are already doing a paperback, InDesign offers an export to EPUB that will only need minor adjustments.
4. Make sure your images are in an appropriate format (see below).
5. Validate and test
6. Answer KDP’s accessibility questions with confidence.

Accessibility is a growth strategy for authors

• Many readers switch from print to ebooks so they can read without glasses. They will return a book that doesn’t offer zooming. Amazon will flag your book and downgrade your visibility.
• Accessible ebooks  can be used with screen readers, and text-to-speech. That’s millions more readers.
•  Schools, libraries, and academic bulk buyers want accessibility. Get onto their shortlist.
• Accessibility signals quality.
• The EU Accessibility Act (effective June 2025) is shaping global standards. Amazon has moved early, but other platforms will follow.

Accessibility isn’t a nice to have! It’s the industry standard and it affects sales.

Accessibility checklist – what does accessibility mean?

1. Use “styles” for headings and body text (H1, H2 etc). Don’t use manual fonts, colours, bold, carriage returns or multiple spaces.
2. Logical reading order. Columns must be removed or structured as a table. Chapters must have page breaks.
3. Alt text for meaningful images. Use concise, useful descriptions.
4. Tag Decorative images (e.g. backgrounds) to be skipped.
5. Descriptive links: avoid generic buttons like “read more” or “download”.  Say where the link is going, and what is going to be downloaded.
6. Accessible tables: mark headers and columns with semantic tags, and avoid merged cells.
7. Readable typography: embedded fonts must be licensed for eBook use and coded so readers can override them if needed.
8. Contrast-friendly: check colour choices against WCAG standards for contrast.
9. Document language: declare the correct language code for foreign phrases (or screen readers mispronounce words).
10. Metadata: title, author, language, subject, and accessibility is coded into the EPUB package file (not just typed into Word).
11. Validate your file: View your EPUB on an iPad, Kindle and Kobo. Errors must be fixed in the underlying HTML and CSS.

Best source files for an accessible EPUB

Different authors start with different files. Here’s how they stack up when converting to a reflowable EPUB:

• Microsoft Word (.docx) is the easiest starting point because Word styles translate cleanly into EPUB. It’s the most common option, but it requires discipline—manual formatting or spacing will cause problems later. The good news is that authors can usually manage this themselves.
• Google Docs is also easy, since you can export to .docx and follow the Word workflow. However, you’ll need to double-check styles, because Google Docs often creates messy underlying code.
• InDesign is expensive to buy and harder to use, but it’s powerful for design-heavy books. It exports directly to EPUB, though it’s easy to accidentally create a fixed-layout file, and accessibility requires careful setup.
• PDF is very hard and not recommended as a source for eBooks. It is notoriously inaccessible, and converting it often introduces errors and typos.

Choosing the right graphics formats for your ebook

• If the graphic will be zoomed (sheet music, logos, diagrams, charts and some illustrations, and QR codes), it needs to be SVG.
• Photographs with subtle detail should be JPG or WEBP
• Cartoons and flat colour graphics can be WEBP, PNG or SVG.
• EPS, AI, PDF embeds and TIFF cannot be used on ebooks.
• Watch out for the file size. Amazon charges authors a fee for each download, and it’s based on size.