Ask yourself: Must this content be in the PDF format?

The answer is almost always, "No." PDFs are meant to be printed, not viewed and used online. There are very few instances where a PDF document is required, namely when the document is regulatory and the digital version must replicate the paper version.

People who don't rely on screen readers or who forget that many people use mobile devices are often fond of PDFs because they provide a fixed, print-like design and are slightly more difficult to edit than other formats. But they usually provide a poor experience for everyone else:

• If the visual layout has not been annotated with structure tags, screen reader users often hear fragments of columns and tables read out of order, and cannot locate topic headings and bookmarks.
• If the field labels, reading order and tab order have not been manually configured on PDF forms, keyboard and screen reader users often find them difficult or impossible to fill out.
• Mobile and screen magnifier users must zoom in and then repeatedly scroll horizontally and diagonally in a Z pattern to read long lines or follow columns.