Use the aria-label property to provide additional information to users
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Make sure the purpose of links is made meaningful using the aria-label property
Providing meaningful link text that is both descriptive and conveys the proper information about the purpose of links back to users is a basic accessibility concept. Yet, many pages on the Web, even to this day, display a slew of links whose meanings can hardly be determined, even within the immediate context of their parent containers. When uninformed design decisions lean towards link text such as “Read More” or “Click Here”, the aria-label property can be used to provide additional context to the link, so it becomes more meaningful to screen reader users.
To do so, simply rely on the aria-label property to provide complementary meaning to the link, so its purpose becomes unmistakably clear to users who cannot benefit from the context provided by placement or visual design. Authors will need to keep in mind that the way assistive technology supports the aria-label property will vary. While VoiceOver announces the value of the aria-label text right after the link text, NVDA completely supplements the link text with the value of the aria-label property. Jaws, on the other hand, begins by announcing the value of the aria-label property, and then read the link text. This means that authors need to be mindful of the value provided, so the combination of link text and aria-label value remains informative.
User Story
As a visually impaired user using assistive technology, I want the purpose of links I encounter in a page to be meaningfully conveyed, so that I can reliably determine which one interests me most.
Simple Code Example
<a href="products.html" aria-label="About our products.">Read more…</a>
Testing Methodology
Using the Jim Thatcher’s Favelets for Firefox, select the “ARIA” test and look for any occurrence of aria-label displayed over a link that has ambiguous meaning, such as “Click here”, “Read more”, or the like. Check the value of the aria-label property for each such link, and determine if this value contributes enough information to help users figure out what the purpose of the link actually is.
Specification Details
WCAG 2.0: Level A
Principle: Operable
Guideline: 2.4 Navigable
Success Criterion: 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context)
Related Technique: ARIA8
Category: ARIA














