The common misunderstanding
Is a transcript enough?
At Level A, often yes. At Level AA, no — and Level AA is what almost every institutional policy and the ADA Title II rule actually target.
| Level | Criterion | What it allows |
|---|---|---|
| A | SC 1.2.3 | Audio description or a full media alternative. A transcript can satisfy it. |
| AA | SC 1.2.5 | Audio description. The choice is removed. |
So the question is not really about transcripts. It is about which level you are being held to — and if the answer is AA, a transcript alone does not get you there no matter how complete it is.
When description is genuinely not needed
If the soundtrack already conveys everything the picture does, the video may already conform and need nothing from anybody. A talking head, a narrated slideshow whose narration reads every slide, a recorded meeting where speakers identify themselves — these often pass as they are.
It is worth having somebody watch before you commission anything. We would rather tell you a video is fine than describe one that did not need it.
Last checked 10 September 2026. These rules move: the ADA Title II deadline was extended in April 2026 and many pages still print the old date. If you are reading this long after the date above, check the citations rather than trusting the summary.