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Glossary · ARIA

ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications)

A W3C specification of HTML attributes that expose roles, states, and properties of UI components to assistive technology.

Sitecheck Team

ARIA — Accessible Rich Internet Applications — is a W3C specification that adds semantic meaning to HTML through attributes such as role, aria-label, aria-hidden, aria-expanded, and aria-live. Screen readers, voice control software, and other assistive technologies use these attributes to describe widgets that plain HTML cannot express on its own, like custom tabs, modals, comboboxes, or toast notifications.

Why it matters

Without ARIA, dynamic JavaScript components are invisible or confusing to screen reader users. But misused ARIA is worse than none — a button with role="link" will be announced incorrectly and break keyboard expectations. The community rule, repeated in the official ARIA Authoring Practices, is "no ARIA is better than bad ARIA." Conformance to WCAG 2.2 success criteria often depends on getting ARIA right for non-native widgets.

How to use it

  • Reach for native HTML first: <button>, <a href>, <details>, <dialog> already carry the right roles for free.
  • Add aria-label or aria-labelledby to icon-only buttons and form controls so they have an accessible name.
  • Use aria-expanded, aria-controls, and aria-selected to expose component state on menus, accordions, and tabs.
  • Announce non-blocking updates with aria-live="polite"; reserve assertive for genuine emergencies.
  • Test with a real screen reader (VoiceOver, NVDA, or TalkBack) plus an automated check in Lighthouse or axe.
  • Keep parity across breakpoints since mobile-first indexing and mobile screen readers see the same markup.

See also