All WCAG criteria
WCAG 2.1.1 · OperableLevel A

2.1.1Keyboard

All functionality must be operable through a keyboard interface — no mouse, no touch required.

Common failures

Patterns that fail this criterion.

  • 01Custom dropdowns that only respond to click events
  • 02Sliders without arrow-key handling
  • 03Cards/tiles with `onClick` on a `<div>` — keyboard cannot reach
  • 04Drag-and-drop interfaces without keyboard alternative
How to test

Testing approach: manual.

Manual — unplug your mouse. Tab, Shift+Tab, Enter, Space, Arrow keys. Can you use every feature?

axe-core rules

button-namelink-nametabindex
How to fix

Remediation steps.

  1. 1

    Use semantic elements

    Native `<button>`, `<a>`, `<input>` get keyboard support for free. Custom `<div>` with onClick gets nothing.

  2. 2

    For custom widgets

    Implement the WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices keyboard pattern for combo box, listbox, menu, dialog, tablist, etc.

  3. 3

    tabindex thoughtfully

    `tabindex="0"` to include in tab order; `tabindex="-1"` to make programmatically focusable but not in tab order. Never `tabindex="2"` or higher.

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Related criteria

Often appears with…

WCAG 2.1.2 · Level A

No Keyboard Trap

WCAG 2.4.7 · Level AA

Focus Visible

WCAG 2.5.1 · Level A

Pointer Gestures

All 50 WCAG 2.1 Level A + AA success criteria explained.

View the full checklist