- Success Criterion 1.4.10
- Conformance level AA
Long Unbroken Text or URL That Forces Horizontal Scrolling
1.4.10 — Reflow
Scenario
Setting
A pharmacy app's prescription-refill form
What’s wrong
Long unbroken strings/URLs without overflow-wrap forcing horizontal scroll.
Example
<p>Confirm your pharmacy: https://pharmacy-portal.example.com/locations/confirm?rx=8827456193&store=downtown-main-street-branch</p> Why it matters
This one long confirmation link stretches the page wider than a 320px phone screen, forcing horizontal scroll to read the rest of the form.
How to test
Set the viewport to 320px and check long unbroken strings/URLs: without overflow-wrap, they can force horizontal scrolling.
How to fix
Add overflow-wrap so long tokens like URLs and confirmation numbers wrap instead of overflowing the container.
p { overflow-wrap: break-word; word-break: break-word; } Outcome
A patient reads the full confirmation link wrapped onto several lines instead of scrolling to see where it ends.
Who is affected
Mobile users and anyone zoomed to 400% must scroll sideways past this single line before reaching the confirm button below it.
Learn more
- Understanding Understanding document (opens in a new tab)
Related scenarios
- Content or Controls That Vanish Entirely When the Page Reflows
- 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