Semantic HTML does a lot more accessibility work than we usually give it credit for already — and ARIA is simple to abuse when we use it both as a shortcut and as a supplement.

CSS-Tricks is a go-to destination for web designers and front-end developers seeking insights into CSS techniques, web design trends, and best practices. Through a rich collection of articles, tutorials, and code snippets, CSS-Tricks equips developers with the knowledge and tools needed to create visually stunning and user-friendly websites. Whether you're looking to master CSS layout techniques, explore responsive design principles, or stay updated with the latest CSS features and browser compatibility issues, CSS-Tricks offers practical guidance and inspiration for elevating your web design skills.

CSS-Tricks

A developer shares their experience of breaking a button's accessibility by adding an ARIA role attribute. The button worked perfectly as native HTML, but adding role="link" caused keyboard navigation and screen reader issues. The fix was simple: remove the ARIA attribute and use CSS classes for styling instead. The key lesson is that semantic HTML already provides robust accessibility features, and ARIA should only be used to communicate missing state information, not to redefine element roles. When you override native semantics with ARIA, you take on responsibility for keyboard interactions, focus management, and cross-platform behavior.

I Learned The First Rule of ARIA the Hard Way

1: Start with the simplest possible markup

2: Observe the native behavior before adding anything

I didn’t know we can break a11y by adding random attributes without knowing what they do. Nice catch!

I’ve never been bothered about accessibility until the day I saw a visually impaired student use their phone in a way I had never seen before. That was the day everything changed for me. Now, I don’t take accessibility concerns lightly.

Thanks! Just read tldr, that was super neat!

Good advice thanks for sharing 🙌🏻

The one thing stressed over and over is no ARIA is better then bad Aria.