Troubleshooting & FAQ

Images are not getting alt text

Check the following:

  1. Account is linked
    • In WordPress, go to IMG Alt Gen → Account & Tokens.
    • Confirm the account email and access key are present.
    • If not, re-link the account.
  2. Tokens are available
    • Check the token balance on the Account & Tokens page or in the account portal.
    • If the balance is zero, buy a new token bundle.
  3. Automatic generation vs manual
    • If automatic generation is turned off, new uploads will not be queued.
    • You can still use:
      • Bulk Process Images (if your role allows).
      • Per-image Generate Alt Text actions.
  4. Cron is running
    • IMG Alt Gen relies on WP-Cron or a real cron job hitting wp-cron.php.
    • If cron is blocked or disabled, queued items will not process.

Bulk Process page is empty

  • The Bulk Process page only lists images that do not currently have alt text.
  • If you just ran a bulk job successfully, the list may legitimately be empty.
  • Make sure you are looking at the right media library (no multisite confusion).

I can’t see “Account & Tokens” or “Settings”

This is almost always a permissions issue:

  • Only roles mapped to Full access can see:
    • Account & Tokens
    • Settings
    • Usage History
  • Partial and Generate-only roles see a reduced UI.
  • Ask a site administrator (with Full access) to adjust your role mapping under IMG Alt Gen → Settings → Role Access if needed.

Will existing alt text be overwritten?

No. The plugin never overwrites existing alt text. It only fills empty alt fields.

If you want to change existing alt text, you should:

  • Edit the image manually in the Media Library, or
  • Clear the existing alt text and then run IMG Alt Gen on that image.

What data is sent to the AI service?

When generating alt text, the plugin sends:

  • A reference to the image (URL).
  • Context such as:
    • Post or product title.
    • Captions, product attributes and short descriptions.
    • SEO hints (focus keyphrase, meta description) if a supported SEO plugin is active.

The service uses this to generate a concise description and only the alt text is stored back in WordPress.

How do I move a site to a different IMG Alt Gen account?

  1. In WordPress on the old account, go to Account & Tokens and log out / unlink the site.
  2. On the same site, enter the new account email and click Link / Relink.
  3. Confirm the new account has tokens available.

The site will now draw tokens from the new account.