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ARIA Validator

Paste your HTML to validate ARIA roles and attributes. Detect invalid roles, missing required properties, misused aria-hidden, and other ARIA accessibility issues.

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How to Use ARIA Validator

  1. 1

    Paste your HTML

    Copy the HTML source code you want to validate and paste it into the input area.

  2. 2

    Click Validate ARIA

    Press the button to scan all elements for ARIA roles, attributes, and accessibility patterns.

  3. 3

    Review issues by severity

    Issues are categorized as errors (must fix), warnings (should review), and info (best practice suggestions).

  4. 4

    Apply the suggested fixes

    Each issue includes a specific fix recommendation. Apply the fix and re-validate to confirm.

Frequently Asked Questions

ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) is a set of HTML attributes that define ways to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities. Use ARIA only when native HTML elements cannot provide the required semantics. The first rule of ARIA is: if you can use a native HTML element with the semantics and behavior you require, do so instead of adding ARIA. For example, use <button> instead of <div role='button'>.

ARIA roles define what an element is or does. They tell assistive technology how to interpret an element. For example, role='navigation' identifies a navigation landmark, role='alert' announces content as an alert, and role='tab' identifies a tab in a tabbed interface. Roles must be valid values from the WAI-ARIA specification; custom or misspelled roles are ignored by assistive technology.

When aria-hidden='true' is set on a focusable element (like a button or link), the element becomes invisible to screen readers but can still receive keyboard focus. This creates a confusing experience where keyboard users tab to an element that screen readers cannot announce. Either remove aria-hidden or add tabindex='-1' to also remove it from the tab order.

Some ARIA roles require specific properties to function correctly. For example, role='checkbox' requires aria-checked to indicate the checked state, role='slider' requires aria-valuenow for the current value, and role='combobox' requires aria-expanded. Without these required properties, assistive technology cannot convey the full meaning of the element.

No. All ARIA validation is performed entirely in your browser using JavaScript. Your HTML source code is never transmitted to any server. This tool is completely private and safe to use with any codebase.

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Understanding ARIA and Web Accessibility

WAI-ARIA (Web Accessibility Initiative - Accessible Rich Internet Applications) is a technical specification that provides a framework for adding accessibility information to HTML elements. It bridges the gap between complex web applications and assistive technology by defining semantics that native HTML cannot express. ARIA allows developers to communicate the purpose, state, and behavior of custom interface components to screen readers and other assistive tools.

The First Rule of ARIA

The most important principle of ARIA usage is deceptively simple: do not use ARIA if you can use native HTML instead. Native HTML elements like <button>, <nav>, <input>, and <select> have built-in accessibility semantics, keyboard behavior, and focus management that ARIA cannot replicate. Adding role="button" to a <div> announces it as a button but does not add keyboard activation, focus styles, or form submission behavior. Developers must implement all of that manually, and the result is invariably more fragile than using the native element.

ARIA becomes essential when building custom widgets that have no HTML equivalent: tab panels, tree views, comboboxes, drag-and-drop interfaces, and live notification regions. In these cases, ARIA roles, states, and properties communicate the component's behavior to assistive technology that would otherwise have no way to interpret it.

ARIA Roles Explained

ARIA roles fall into several categories. Landmark roles (banner, navigation, main, complementary, contentinfo, search, form, region) define major sections of a page, allowing screen reader users to jump directly to the content they need. Widget roles (button, checkbox, slider, tab, dialog, etc.) define interactive components. Document structure roles (article, heading, list, table, etc.) provide structural information that supplements or overrides the native HTML semantics. Live region roles (alert, log, status, timer) indicate content that updates dynamically and should be announced by screen readers.

Common ARIA Mistakes This Tool Catches

Invalid roles are the most basic error. A misspelled role like role="buttn" or a non-existent role is completely ignored by assistive technology, leaving the element with no enhanced semantics. This tool checks every role value against the complete WAI-ARIA 1.2 specification.

Missing required properties leave roles incomplete. A checkbox without aria-checked does not communicate its state. A slider without aria-valuenow does not communicate its position. Screen readers may announce the role but cannot convey the critical state information, making the component unusable.

aria-hidden on focusable elements creates a dangerous disconnect. The element vanishes from the accessibility tree (screen readers cannot see it) but remains in the tab order (keyboard users land on it). This is one of the most confusing patterns for screen reader users, who encounter an element they cannot identify. This tool flags every instance so you can either remove aria-hidden or make the element unfocusable with tabindex="-1".

aria-label on non-interactive elements often does nothing. Most screen readers only announce aria-label on elements that have an implicit or explicit role. Adding aria-label to a plain <div> or <span> without a role means the label will likely be ignored. This tool warns when aria-label may not be effective so you can either add an appropriate role or use a visible label.

ARIA States and Properties

Beyond roles, ARIA provides states and properties that communicate dynamic information. States change during user interaction: aria-expanded toggles when an accordion opens, aria-checked updates when a checkbox is clicked, aria-selected changes as users navigate options. Properties are more static: aria-label provides an accessible name, aria-describedby links to a description, aria-controls identifies the element being controlled. Keeping these values synchronized with the visual state is critical. A checkbox that appears checked but has aria-checked="false" creates a confusing mismatch for screen reader users.

Testing ARIA Implementation

This validator provides a static analysis of ARIA usage in your HTML. It catches structural issues like invalid roles, missing properties, and conflicting attributes. For a complete accessibility audit, combine this tool with manual testing using a screen reader (NVDA on Windows, VoiceOver on Mac, TalkBack on Android) and keyboard navigation testing. Automated tools catch approximately 30-50% of accessibility issues; the remainder require manual evaluation of the user experience. Use our complete suite of tools, including the color contrast checker, heading analyzer, alt text checker, and link accessibility checker, to cover the most impactful automated checks.