Accessibility glossary

ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications)

A set of HTML attributes that add accessibility information to custom widgets when native HTML isn’t enough.

ARIA roles, states, and properties describe the purpose and state of UI elements to assistive technology — for example aria-expanded on a custom menu.

The first rule of ARIA is: don’t use ARIA if a native HTML element will do. Misused ARIA frequently makes things worse, not better.

Example

<button aria-pressed="true">Mute</button> tells a screen reader the toggle is currently on.

Related terms

Frequently asked questions

What does ARIA mean?
A set of HTML attributes that add accessibility information to custom widgets when native HTML isn’t enough.

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