1.3.1 Info and Relationships
Official description of the success criterion
Information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text.
What to do?
Ensure that information and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text.
Why is it important?
Helps assistive technologies interpret and present content in a meaningful way.
Common pitfalls
Common issues are with incorrect use of HTML semantic elements. For example, using a <div> instead of <button>, <a> or heading tags.
Problems with ARIA use can also belong under this criterion.
How to test for it?
Check the content for the use of headings:
- Missing H1 headings.
- Incorrect heading levels if they are genuinely problematic (otherwise incorrect heading levels are part of accessibility best practices and do not cause an error in this criterion).
- Use of heading tags in content that should not be headings.
Check the menus to see if the aria-current attribute is used in addition to the visual active path indicator. If not, it is an error. If the visual indicator is not used to indicate an active menu element, then ARIA is not needed either.
Automated tools are quite good at finding flaws in this criterion.
Related criteria: 4.1.2.