A short guide to accessible forms

We end up explaining this on discovery calls often enough that it deserved writing down. Everything we would tell a client about accessible forms in the time it takes to drink a coffee.

The cost of retrofitting accessibility is several times the cost of building it in. Assume whoever inherits this will have half your context and none of your patience.

What is actually at stake

Every input needs a real label element. That sounds obvious written down. It is still the thing most often skipped. Doing this properly once is usually cheaper than doing it approximately three times.

The practical version

Errors must be announced, not only coloured red. That sounds obvious written down. It is still the thing most often skipped. Doing this properly once is usually cheaper than doing it approximately three times.

What to watch for

Group related fields so the structure is clear. Getting it slightly wrong is survivable. Ignoring it entirely is not. Doing this properly once is usually cheaper than doing it approximately three times.

How to tell if yours is fine

Most of it is correctness rather than charity: use the right element and much of it happens automatically. Three things worth confirming about accessible forms before you move on:

• Someone can say what the current setup is without going to look
• Errors must be announced, not only coloured red — and you know whether that is true here
• There is a way to tell whether the last change to this helped

If you want a second opinion on how yours is set up, ask.