• Success Criterion 3.3.3
  • Conformance level AA

Rejected Password With No List of the Unmet Requirements

3.3.3 — Error Suggestion

Scenario

Setting

A recipe site's ingredient list

What’s wrong

Password rejected without listing unmet rules.

Example 

<!-- shown in the 'Create a free account to save this shopping list' signup prompt on the ingredient page -->
<label for="password">Password</label>
<input id="password" type="password">
<p role="alert">Password does not meet requirements.</p>

Why it matters

A home cook trying to create a free account to save their grocery list has no idea if they're missing a number, a symbol, or enough length, so they retype randomly while the recipe waits open in another tab.

How to test

Enter a rejected password: if the message doesn't list which specific rules weren't met, it fails.

How to fix

List every unmet requirement individually so the user knows exactly what's left to fix, especially in a lightweight signup prompt where people expect a fast, low-friction path to save their list.

<label for="password">Password</label>
<input id="password" type="password" aria-describedby="pw-error">
<ul id="pw-error" role="alert">
  <li>Needs at least one number</li>
  <li>Needs at least 8 characters</li>
</ul>

Outcome

The cook adds a number to their password, the account is created on the first try, and their ingredient list saves as a shopping list.

Who is affected

People with cognitive disabilities and screen reader users who need each unmet rule spelled out rather than a single vague rejection.

Learn more

Related scenarios