• Success Criterion 1.3.2
  • Conformance level A

Hidden or Off-Screen Content Left in the Reading Order

1.3.2 — Meaningful Sequence

Scenario

Setting

A food-delivery app's order-tracking screen

What’s wrong

Visually hidden or off-screen content (inactive carousel slides, skeleton states, stale views) left in the reading order, so the announced sequence diverges from the visible one.

Example

Here's what happens on a food-delivery app's order-tracking screen: visually hidden or off-screen content (inactive carousel slides, skeleton states, stale views) left in the reading order, so the announced sequence diverges from the visible one.

Why it matters

Screen-reader and keyboard users who encounter content in DOM order. On a food-delivery app's order-tracking screen, this barrier means they lose track of what belongs to what.

How to test

Read the full page with a screen reader without looking at the screen: if off-screen/hidden content (inactive carousel slides, skeleton loaders, stale views) gets read as if visible, it fails.

How to fix

The screen reader must read content in an order matching the visual/logical order, item by item — nothing skipped, merged, fragmented, or added.

Outcome

Corrected, a food-delivery app's order-tracking screen now lets a visitor move through the content with confidence, specifically for the “Hidden or Off-Screen Content Left in the Reading Order” issue on a food-delivery app's order-tracking screen.

Who is affected

Screen-reader and keyboard users who encounter content in DOM order.

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