- Success Criterion 2.4.4
- Conformance level A
Card Component Link With No Accessible Name of Its Own
2.4.4 — Link Purpose (In Context)
Scenario
Setting
A community forum's discussion thread
What’s wrong
Card patterns where the clickable area's name is empty and the visible title is a sibling not referenced.
Example
Open a community forum's discussion thread and this is what you'll see: card patterns where the clickable area's name is empty and the visible title is a sibling not referenced.
Why it matters
People who browse by links list or voice commands and need unambiguous link purposes. The practical effect on a community forum's discussion thread: they can't tell how the page is organized.
How to test
Inspect a clickable card component in DevTools: if the wrapping link/element has no accessible name and the visible title is a sibling not referenced by it, it fails.
How to fix
The link's purpose must be clear from its accessible name (or name plus immediate programmatic context), and unique among links going to different destinations.
Outcome
That one change on a community forum's discussion thread means they navigate the content in a sensible order.
Who is affected
People who browse by links list or voice commands and need unambiguous link purposes.
Learn more
- Understanding Understanding document (opens in a new tab)
Related scenarios
- Link’s Purpose Explained Only in Unrelated Page Text
- Image-Only Link or Button With No Accessible Name
- Repeated ‘Click Here’ Links With No Way to Tell Them Apart
- Multiple ‘Download’ Links With No File Name or Type Given
- Icon-Only Link With No Accessible Name at All
- Link Text That’s Just a Long, Meaningless Tracking URL