All WCAG criteria
WCAG 2.4.2 · OperableLevel A

2.4.2Page Titled

Every page must have a `<title>` that describes its topic or purpose.

Common failures

Patterns that fail this criterion.

  • 01Default `<title>` of "Document" or framework default never updated
  • 02All pages with the same title ("Site Name")
  • 03Title that just repeats the brand without page context
How to test

Testing approach: automated.

axe-core checks for the presence of a non-empty title element.

axe-core rules

document-title
How to fix

Remediation steps.

  1. 1

    Unique per-page titles

    Pattern: "Page topic — Brand". e.g. "Pricing — AccessProof".

  2. 2

    Front-load the topic

    Tab labels and bookmarks show the start; put the unique part first.

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