What are landmarks in web accessibility?
Landmarks are the HTML elements that mark the regions of a page: header, nav, main and footer. Screen reader users can jump straight to the main content instead of hearing the menu on every page, and a "skip to content" link does the same for keyboard users. Modern HTML makes this almost free: wrap the main content in a main element and the menus in nav.
Why it matters
Every page on a site starts with the same header and menu. A sighted visitor's eye skips past it in an instant. A screen reader user without landmarks hears all of it, on every page, before reaching anything new: the logo, twelve menu items, the search box. With landmarks they press one key to jump to the main region, or to the navigation when they want it. Keyboard users who cannot use a mouse get the same relief from a skip link at the top of the page.
The landmarks
- header for the site header (the banner region).
- nav for each set of navigation links; give each a label if there is more than one.
- main for the unique content of the page; exactly one per page.
- aside for sidebars and related material.
- footer for the site footer.
- A "Skip to content" link as the first thing in the page, pointing at the main element, visible when it receives keyboard focus.
How to check
Our check looks for main, nav and header or footer elements on your home page and for a skip link. Browser extensions such as WAVE or the Accessibility Insights tool show the landmark regions outlined on the page.
How to fix it
Any theme built in the last few years uses these elements, so a site without them is usually running an old theme or a page builder template made entirely of divs. Ask the developer to change the outer wrappers to the semantic elements; it is a small change with no visual effect. Add a skip link if the theme lacks one. Older themes can add role attributes (role="main", role="navigation") to existing divs as a quick fix.
Not sure how your own site does on this? Run the free check: it takes about twenty seconds and reports on this and thirty other things.