Focus order
AccessibilityDefined term
Focus order is the path the Tab key traces through a page's focusable elements. By default it follows DOM order; tabindex, dialogs, and scripted focus management can reorder it — or break it.
WCAG Success Criterion 2.4.3 requires an order that preserves meaning and operability, and 2.4.11 (added in 2.2) requires the focused element to remain at least partially visible. The classic failures are modals that leak focus into the background page and CSS layouts whose visual order diverges from DOM order.
Deep dive: full analysis with this mechanism →
Browse the glossary
Accessibility6 of 28 terms
- Accessibility treeThe parallel structure a browser derives from DOM, CSS, and ARIA that assistive technology actually reads.Accessibility
- Accessible nameThe single text label assistive technology announces for an element, computed by a W3C-specified algorithm.Accessibility
- Focus orderThe sequence keyboard focus follows through interactive elements — WCAG requires it to preserve meaning and operability.Accessibility
- ARIA roleThe WAI-ARIA attribute that declares what an element is to assistive technology — a promise of behavior, not a behavior.Accessibility
- Assistive technology (AT)Software and hardware — screen readers, magnifiers, switch devices — that consume the accessibility tree to operate interfaces.Accessibility
- Contrast ratio⦿ liveThe WCAG-defined luminance ratio between text and background: 4.5:1 minimum for body text at level AA.Accessibility