Headings & Text: Writing for Accessibility
Clear and structured text content is essential for making web pages accessible to everyone, including users with disabilities. When used properly, headings and text formatting help screen readers interpret content, improve keyboard navigation, and make pages easier to scan for all users.
Use Semantic Headings (H1–H6)
Headings are not just visual styling tools—they provide a semantic structure to your content. Assistive technologies use headings to create an outline of the page, allowing users to skip to sections quickly.
Best Practices:
- Use only one
<h1>per page to represent the main topic. - Use headings hierarchically:
<h2>for major subsections,<h3>for sub-subsections, and so on. - Avoid skipping levels (e.g., jumping from
<h2>to<h4>) unless there is a logical reason.
Note: IN.gov pages use an <h1> tag for page titles, so there is no need to add them when creating content.
Example:
<h1>Accessibility Training</h1>
<h2>Headings & Text</h2>
<h3>Using Semantic Headings</h3>
Avoid Visual-Only Emphasis
Relying solely on visual styles like bold or enlarged font to indicate headings is not accessible. Screen readers do not interpret bold text as a heading unless it's marked up as one with a proper heading tag.
What to avoid:
<p><strong>Section Title</strong></p> <!-- Not accessible as a heading -->
What to do instead:
<h2>Section Title</h2>
Use Meaningful Link Text
Descriptive links provide clarity and context, especially for screen reader users who often navigate by links.
Avoid:
- “Click here”
- “Read more”
- “Learn more”
Do:
- “Download the accessibility checklist”
- “Read our guide on semantic headings”
- “View our captioning tutorial”
Why It Matters
- Screen readers: rely on heading tags to navigate content.
- Keyboard users: benefit from predictable content structure.
- SEO: properly structured headings improve search engine ranking.
- All users: quickly scanning a page becomes easier with well-defined sections.
Quick Checklist
✅ Use one <h1> per page
✅ Maintain a logical heading order
✅ Never use bold or font size alone as a heading
✅ Ensure all links are clear out of context
✅ Avoid “click here” and similar phrases