- Success Criterion 1.4.10
- Conformance level AA
- W3C reference F102
Content or Controls That Vanish Entirely When the Page Reflows
1.4.10 — Reflow
Scenario
Setting
A social media platform's settings menu
What’s wrong
When the page reflows at small width / high zoom, some content or controls simply disappear with no other way to reach them.
Example
A social media platform's settings menu shows the problem clearly: when the page reflows at small width / high zoom, some content or controls simply disappear with no other way to reach them.
Why it matters
Low-vision users at high zoom and people reading on narrow mobile viewports. Here, on a social media platform's settings menu, the result is they can't perceive part of the content because of how it's displayed.
How to test
Set the viewport to 320 CSS px wide (or zoom desktop to 400%): scroll only vertically and check that no content or controls have vanished compared to the normal view.
How to fix
Keep all content and controls available at 320px — reflow, stack, or provide an accessible alternative path.
Outcome
After the fix, the same visitor to a social media platform's settings menu can now read the text clearly against its background.
Who is affected
Low-vision users at high zoom and people reading on narrow mobile viewports.
Learn more
- Understanding Understanding document (opens in a new tab)
- Technique Related technique (opens in a new tab)
Related scenarios
- Vertical Content That Forces Horizontal Scrolling at 320px
- Fixed-Width Container Forcing Scrolling in Two Directions
- Overlapping Content When the Page Is Zoomed to 400%
- Sticky Bars That Eat Up Most of a 320px Mobile Screen
- Desktop Breakpoint That Never Switches to Mobile Layout
- Long Unbroken Text or URL That Forces Horizontal Scrolling