The inert attribute in HTML makes elements non-interactive and inaccessible to users. 1. It prevents focus, clicks, text selection, and screen reader access. 2. It is useful for modals, tabbed interfaces, loading states, and conditional UIs. 3. Browser support is limited, especially in Safari and older browsers. 4. Workarounds like tabindex, pointer-events, and ARIA attributes can be used, but are not perfect replacements. 5. A polyfill like wicg-inert can help ensure broader compatibility.
The inert
attribute in HTML is a way to make parts of a webpage "ignore" user interaction. When you add inert
to an element, it becomes non-interactive — meaning users can't focus it, click it, select its text, or access it using screen readers. It's like putting a “do not disturb” sign on that part of the page.

This can be useful in various UI scenarios where certain elements shouldn’t be accessible at a given time, such as when a modal dialog is open and you want to prevent interaction with the background content.
How Does the Inert Attribute Work?
When you set the inert
attribute on an element, the browser makes that element and all its children inaccessible to both mouse and keyboard interactions. It also removes those elements from the accessibility tree, so screen readers won't read them either.

For example:
<div inert> <p>This text can't be selected.</p> <button>Click me</button> </div>
In this case, the button won't be clickable, and the text can't be highlighted.

You can toggle inert
dynamically using JavaScript:
document.querySelector('div').inert = true; // disables interaction document.querySelector('div').inert = false; // re-enables interaction
Common Use Cases for Inert
Here are some typical situations where inert
comes in handy:
- Modals and overlays: Preventing background content from being interacted with while a dialog is active.
- Tabbed interfaces: Disabling inactive tab panels to avoid accidental interaction.
- Loading states: Blocking user input during data fetching or processing.
- Conditional UIs: Temporarily disabling sections based on user choices or app state.
Using inert
helps improve accessibility by ensuring that users (especially those navigating via keyboard or screen readers) don’t accidentally interact with irrelevant or disabled parts of the UI.
Browser Support and Fallbacks
As of now, browser support for inert
is still limited, especially in Safari and older browsers. Chrome supports it well, but Firefox and Safari may only partially support it or not at all.
If you need broader compatibility, you might have to use workarounds like:
- Adding
tabindex="-1"
to prevent keyboard focus. - Using CSS
pointer-events: none
to block mouse interactions. - Managing ARIA attributes manually to control screen reader behavior.
However, these methods aren’t perfect replacements — they don’t fully replicate what inert
does. For now, you might consider using a polyfill like wicg-inert if you want to use inert
reliably across all browsers.
So, basically, inert
gives you a clean and semantic way to disable interaction with parts of your page. While it’s not yet universally supported, it's worth keeping an eye on as adoption grows.
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