- Success Criterion 1.3.1
- Conformance level A
Table Semantics Wrongly Applied to Non-Tabular Layout Content
1.3.1 — Info and Relationships
Scenario
Setting
A used-car marketplace's listing filter
What’s wrong
Table semantics applied to non-tabular content for layout, announcing a false data table.
Example
<div class="heading">Shipping Address</div>Why it matters
Screen-reader, braille, and reading-tool users who depend on coded structure rather than visual layout.
How to test
Inspect a layout-only grid (used purely for visual arrangement) for table or role="table"/"row"/"cell": if present, it falsely announces as a data table to screen readers.
How to fix
Remove table semantics from layout-only content (use CSS, or role="presentation" (code that strips an element's meaning) on a true layout table).
<h2>Shipping Address</h2>A real heading element exposes the section structure to assistive tech; a styled div doesn't.
Outcome
On a used-car marketplace's listing filter, this barrier is gone for screen-reader, braille — they can finish what they came here to do.
Who is affected
Screen-reader, braille, and reading-tool users who depend on coded structure rather than visual layout.
Learn more
- Understanding Understanding document (opens in a new tab)
Related scenarios
- Text Styled to Look Like a Heading Instead of Coded as One
- Text Columns Faked With Spaces Instead of Real Table Markup
- Table Layout Faked With Spaces Instead of Real Table Code
- Clickable Div Acting as a Link Button With No Real Role
- Structural HTML Tags Used Purely for Visual Styling
- Layout-Only Table Wrongly Coded With Real Header Cells