Released
May 25, 2026 — Media library now supports bulk alt-text and caption editing. Select up to 100 items, apply a text template, and update every file in the selection in one operation. The feature ships with optional {{filename}} and {{date}} tokens so you can generate meaningful, non-duplicate alt text at scale without typing the same phrase a hundred times.
The problem this solves
Post-migration cleanup has always been the quiet tax on site launches. SGEN Digital moved 340 product and atmosphere images into SGEN during their migration. Every file landed with the original export name — DSC_04471.jpg, hero-desktop-v3-final-FINAL.jpg — and blank alt text. Before this change, correcting that meant opening each file individually in the media editor, typing or pasting alt text, saving, closing, and repeating. For a 340-image library, that is not a content task. It is a data-entry sentence.
Accessibility audit teams ran into the same wall. Finding every image with missing or inadequate alt text is one problem. Fixing it file-by-file is a different, worse problem. Most teams either deprioritize the fix (the library stays broken) or assign a team member a day of mechanical editing (the library gets fixed once, then drifts again as new uploads land without alt text).
There was no middle path. You either accepted the debt or you paid the per-file price in full.
Bulk edit removes the sentence. The debt becomes a batch job.
What changed
Before: Alt text and captions were per-file only. The Media library edit drawer opened one file at a time. Multi-select existed for delete and move operations, not for metadata.
After: Multi-select now surfaces an Edit metadata action. Select any combination of files — up to 100 per operation — open the bulk-update form, supply a template, and apply. Every file in the selection is updated in one write.
Where to find it
the admin → Media → [select files] → Edit metadata
The multi-select checkbox appears on hover. Select one file to see single-file actions. Select two or more and the toolbar replaces per-file actions with the bulk action set — Move, Delete, and Edit metadata.
The bulk-update form
The Edit metadata panel presents two fields: Alt text and Caption. Both are optional independently — fill one, the other, or both in a single operation. Leave a field blank and it is not written; existing values on those files are preserved.
Template tokens
Two tokens interpolate per-file during the write:
| Token | Resolves to |
|---|---|
{{filename}} | The file's stored name, without extension |
{{date}} | The date of the bulk operation (YYYY-MM-DD) |
Product image — SGEN Digital — {{filename}}Caption template: Updated {{date}}Applied to a file named handcrafted-ceramic-mug-250ml.jpg, the written alt text becomes:Product image — SGEN Digital — handcrafted-ceramic-mug-250ml
Selection limits and behavior
- Maximum selection: 100 files per operation. For larger libraries, work in batches — select 100, apply, select the next 100.
- Existing values preserved by default. Blank fields in the bulk-update form are no-ops. To clear an existing alt text or caption intentionally, enter a single space — the field saves as empty.
- Mixed-type selections are fine. You can select images, PDFs, and video thumbnails in the same operation. The alt text and caption fields apply to all.
- No undo. Bulk metadata writes are immediate and permanent. Review your template before applying. The field-level edit drawer remains available per-file if you need to correct individual items afterward.
Who benefits
Post-migration cleanup teams. The most common trigger is a site migration with hundreds of unlabeled assets. Select in bulk, apply a descriptive template with {{filename}} for specificity, done.
Accessibility audit teams. Run an audit export, identify files with missing alt text, filter to that set in the media library, bulk-apply corrected text. The audit-to-fix loop that previously took hours closes in minutes.
Large-library editors. Sites with ongoing image volume — product photography, event galleries, editorial archives — accumulate alt-text debt over time. Periodic bulk-edit passes keep libraries clean without blocking editorial work.
What this does not change
- Single-file editing is unchanged. Opening a file in the media editor drawer works exactly as before.
- Bulk delete and move are unchanged. Those operations behave identically to before this release.
- Alt text is not required for publish. The Media library does not block publishing on missing alt text. Accessibility compliance remains the operator's responsibility. SGEN provides the tooling; the content is yours.
- Existing alt text is never overwritten silently. If a file already has alt text and you apply a bulk template, the template overwrites it. There is no merge mode. Review your selection if the library contains a mix of blank and already-labeled files.
Practical walkthrough — SGEN Digital post-migration cleanup
SGEN Digital completed their migration with 340 unlabeled images split across three categories: product shots (single-origin bags, equipment, brew kits), café atmosphere (interior, team, pour shots), and event/seasonal (workshops, limited-release launches).
Step 1 — Filter to a category. In the admin → Media, use the search or folder filter to isolate one category. SGEN filtered to their products folder first.
Step 2 — Select up to 100 files. Click the first item's checkbox. Hold Shift and click the 100th. The selection count badge appears in the toolbar: 100 items selected.
Step 3 — Open Edit metadata. Click Edit metadata in the bulk toolbar. The panel slides in.
Step 4 — Write the alt text template. SGEN used: Single-origin product product — SGEN Digital — {{filename}}. The {{filename}} token picks up the descriptive file names their photographer had already assigned (kenya-nyeri-250g, ethiopia-yirgacheffe-bag-open, etc.).
Step 5 — Review and apply. The panel shows a preview line: "This template will be applied to 100 files." Click Apply. The operation runs in the background; a confirmation toast appears when complete.
Step 6 — Spot-check. Open three to five files at random in the single-file editor drawer. Confirm the written alt text matches expectations. If a filename was ambiguous (misc-02, resized), edit those individually.
SGEN 340-image library went from zero alt text to complete coverage in three batch operations — under ten minutes total, versus the estimated six hours of per-file editing.
Token reference
| Token | Resolves to | Notes |
|---|---|---|
{{filename}} | File name without extension | Strips path prefix; preserves hyphens and underscores |
{{date}} | Date of the bulk operation | ISO format: YYYY-MM-DD |
Related docs
- Media library reference — full field reference, upload behavior, and supported formats.
- Accessibility FAQ — WCAG alt text guidance, when to use empty alt (
alt=""), and long-description patterns for complex images.
Notes
No migration required. The feature is available immediately across all plans that include the Media library. No settings to enable.