TAB ORDER GUIDELINES
Overview
Keyboard Table of Contents
Overview
Not all users navigate the page with the mouse or a trackpad; some users only rely on keyboard to navigate. Many users with motor disabilities rely on a keyboard. Assistive technology users will also typically use a keyboard for navigation. In addition to traditional keyboards, some users may use a modified keyboard or other hardware that mimics the functionality of a keyboard.
Keyboard tab order allows keyboard users to properly navigate a web page. If tab order is implemented correctly a webpage will read similar to a book to a keyboard user. When done incorrectly a keyboard user may miss out or become confused with the order of the web page.
Ensure that when users navigate sequentially through content, they encounter information in a focus order that is consistent with the meaning of the content and can be operated from the keyboard.
Enable a user agent to provide an alternative presentation of content while preserving the reading order needed to understand the meaning.
Tab Order Guidelines
Keyboard accessibility is one of the most important aspects of web accessibility. Not all users navigate the page with the mouse or a trackpad; some users only rely on keyboard to navigate. Many users with motor disabilities rely on a keyboard. Assistive technology users will also typically use a keyboard for navigation. In addition to traditional keyboards, some users may use a modified keyboards keyboard or other hardware that mimics the functionality of a keyboard.
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Normal flow in the keyboard tab order will be broken when tabbing through the interactive elements.
If content is dynamically added in between of elements with positive tabindex, it will interfere with the normal flow of tabbing.
General Guidelines
The best practices for keyboard tab order should include the following:
Tab order should have a logical reading order, similar to a book. It should be from left to right and top to bottom.
As you are tabbing through a website, there must be a visible indication of where the tab focus is at.
When using the tabindex to adjust the tab order, use tabindex= "0" or tabindex= "-1" ONLY
Tabindex values of 1 or higher must NOT be used.
Example
The image below shows the correct reading order on a page that has multiple navigation links on the side panels.
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Please see more detailed information on how to comply with this guideline.
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Focus Order Guidelines
Keyboard users should be able to navigate content in a correct order.
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Please see more detailed information on how to comply with this guideline.
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Provide Content In a Meaningful Sequence
Enable a user agent to provide an alternative presentation of content while preserving the reading order needed to understand the meaning.
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