


Enhancing Web Accessibility Through Proper HTML Structure and Attributes
Jul 04, 2025 am 03:01 AMThe key to improving web accessibility is clear HTML structure and semantic tags. 1. Priority is given to the use of semantic tags such as
OK, let’s just talk about the key point: the accessibility of web pages is not just visual clarity, but more importantly, whether the underlying HTML structure is clear and whether the semantics are in place. Many websites look OK, but they look like a mess for screen reader users. Want to improve accessibility? The most effective way to start with structure and attributes.

Use semantic tags instead of common tags
Many people are used to using a bunch of <div> and <code><span></span>
when writing pages, but this is not friendly to assistive technology. Semantic tags should be used first, such as <header></header>
, <nav></nav>
, <main></main>
, <article></article>
, <footer></footer>
and so on.
The benefit of this is that the screen reader can recognize the page structure, helping users quickly jump to main content or navigation areas. For example, a <nav></nav>
tag can let visually impaired users know that this is a set of navigation links, rather than a bunch of random links.
Suggestion: Try to avoid stacking layouts with multiple
<div> . If you must use <code><div> or <code><span></span>
, remember to enhance accessibility with the ARIA attribute.
Add meaningful
alt
attributes to the imageThe picture has no text description, which is equivalent to blank for screen reader users. So every
<img src="/static/imghw/default1.png" data-src="chart.png" class="lazy" alt="Enhancing Web Accessibility Through Proper HTML Structure and Attributes" >
should have analt
attribute. Note that not all situations require a lot of words to be written, the key is to "describe clearly the purpose."
- If it is a decorative picture,
alt=""
is enough.- If it is an infographic, you must describe the content concisely.
- If it is an image in the link,
alt
should explain what will be done after clicking.for example:
<img src="/static/imghw/default1.png" data-src="chart.png" class="lazy" alt="Bar chart shows sales growth trend in 2023">Note: Don’t write redundant content like “the picture shows a chart”, it’s important to directly talk about what is in the picture.
Form elements must have clear labels and prompt information
Form filling is the source of many barrier-free problems. The easiest way to improve is that each input box has a corresponding
<label>
and is associated withid
through thefor
attribute.<label for="email">Email address:</label> <input type="email" id="email" name="email">In addition to label, you can also use
aria-describedby
to add additional instructions, such as the format requirements of the password input box:<input type="password" id="password" aria-describedby="password-help"> <div id="password-help">At least 8 characters, including upper and lower case letters and numbers</div>In this way, the screen reader will read the prompt content when focusing on the input box, greatly reducing user confusion.
The shortcomings of supplementing HTML with ARIA attributes
Sometimes native HTML tags are not enough, so ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) is needed to help. For example:
aria-label
is used to add instructions to controls that do not have visible text.aria-hidden
controls whether certain elements are hidden from assistive technology.role
can define component types, such asrole="button"
orrole="navigation"
.However, please note: if you can use native HTML, you don’t need to use ARIA . Because the behavior and semantics that come with native tags are the most stable.
For example, if you wrote a div to simulate button function:
<div role="button" tabindex="0" aria-pressed="false">Submit</div>Although it can be read out, it will not automatically respond to keyboard events and requires additional JS processing. It is not as simple and reliable as using
<button></button>
directly.
Basically that's it. The HTML structure is clear and rationally used to solve most basic barrier-free problems. No complex tricks are required, but details are easy to ignore.
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