Ensuring web accessibility goes beyond visual design—it requires testing how users interact with a webpage using only a keyboard. This guide provides a step-by-step approach to inspecting HTML elements without a mouse, utilizing Developer Tools and keyboard navigation techniques. Learn how to identify focusable elements, analyze the DOM structure, and detect common accessibility issues to create a more inclusive web experience. Whether you’re a developer, UX designer, or accessibility tester, this resource will help you improve usability for all users, including those relying on assistive technologies.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Understanding HTML Basics
- Why Inspecting HTML Elements Matters for Accessibility
- Methods for Inspecting HTML Elements Using a Keyboard
- Common Issues to Look For
- Conclusion
- Useful Resources
Introduction
HTML (HyperText Markup Language) forms the structure of web pages, defining everything from headings and paragraphs to buttons and input fields. Understanding how to inspect these elements is important for accessibility testing, as it allows testers to evaluate whether users who rely on keyboards or assistive technologies can interact effectively with a site.
This guide explains how to inspect HTML elements using only the keyboard, covering techniques that help testers evaluate structure, attributes, and interactions for accessibility compliance.
Understanding HTML Basics
Before diving into inspection techniques, it’s important to understand HTML structure.
- Elements: The building blocks of web pages, such as
<button>,<input>, and<a>. - Attributes: Properties of elements, such as
id,class,role, andaria-label, which provide additional functionality and accessibility information.
These two core components of HTML make up the DOM (Document Object Model): The hierarchical representation of a webpage that can be navigated programmatically or manually.
Think of the DOM as a tree. At the top level, you see specific elements such as <html>, <head>, and <body>. Each of these elements often has descending elements. Below is a simple HTML document as an example.
<html> <head> <title>Hello World!</title> </head> <body> <h1>Hello world!</h1> <a href="https://google.com">Google</a> </body> </html>
This example consists of several key parts:
- The <html> tag is the root of the document, containing all other elements.
- The <head> section includes metadata, such as the <title>, which sets the browser tab title.
- The <body> section contains the visible content of the webpage.
- The <h1> tag represents a heading.
- The <a> tag defines a hyperlink, with the
hrefattribute specifying the link destination.
Each element in this document is structured in a hierarchical manner, forming parent-child relationships that define how content is displayed.
Why Inspecting HTML Elements Matters for Accessibility
Manually inspecting elements ensures compliance with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and improves usability for keyboard and assistive technology users.
When testing for accessibility, key aspects to verify include:
- Are all interactive elements keyboard-accessible?
- Does focus move through elements in a logical order?
- Do elements have the correct attributes for screen readers?
- Are ARIA roles and properties properly set?
Methods for Inspecting HTML Elements Using a Keyboard
Using Developer Tools on Windows with Chrome
Viewing the underlying HTML code of a webpage is essential for understanding its structure and diagnosing potential issues. For example, you might discover that a button is actually a link with a `button` role incorrectly assigned. This insight allows you to identify problematic elements and copy specific code snippets for developers or bug reports.”
Inspecting HTML code helps understand page structure and identify accessibility issues. Chrome Developer Tools allows users to inspect, analyze, and modify elements.
Open Developer Tools using one of the following methods:
- Press
F12to open the full page Developer Tools interface. - Press
Shift + F10, then pressN(or navigate to ‘Inspect’) to inspect a specific element.
To easily skip all the tool bars, buttons and tabs at the top of the page, navigate by region to the ‘DOM tree explorer’ region.
Navigating the Elements Panel
- Press
Ctrl + Shift + Cto activate the element selector. - Navigate the tree using arrow keys.
- Press
F2to edit an element’s content.
Using the Keyboard to Find Focusable Elements
- Press
Tabto navigate through focusable elements. - Use
Shift + Tabto move backward. - If an element is unreachable, check if it has
tabindex="-1".
Common Issues to Look For
- Missing or incorrect ARIA attributes (e.g.,
aria-hidden="true"on interactive elements). - Elements that are not focusable (
tabindex="-1"on essential controls). - Keyboard traps (users unable to navigate away from modals, dropdowns).
- Improperly labeled elements (buttons without text or accessible names).
- Incorrect roles, such as links presented as buttons.
Conclusion
Inspecting HTML elements using a keyboard is essential for accessibility testing. By leveraging Developer Tools, keyboard navigation, and screen readers, testers can ensure a smooth, inclusive experience for all users. Whether verifying focusable elements, checking attributes, or navigating the DOM, these techniques help create accessible and user-friendly web content.