aria-label

Sometimes, the default accessible name of an element is missing or the accessible name does not accurately describe the contents of the element and there is no content visible in the DOM that can be associated with the object to give it meaning. A common example of such an element is a button containing an SVG icon without any text.

In cases where an element that is not part of the prohibited list, has no accessible name or an accessible name is not accurate and there is no content visible in the DOM that can be referenced via the aria-labelledby attribute, the aria-label attribute can be used to define a string that labels the interactive element on which it is set. This provides the element an accessible name.

The code below shows an example of how to use the aria-label attribute to provide an accessible name for a <button> element. The button in this example contains an SVG graphic and lacks textual content, making the aria-label essential for screen reader users to understand its function, which in this case is "Close".

<button aria-label="Close" onclick="myDialog.close()">
  <svg
    aria-hidden="true"
    focusable="false"
    width="17"
    height="17"
    xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg">
    <path
      d="m.967 14.217 5.8-5.906-5.765-5.89L3.094.26l5.783 5.888L14.66.26l2.092 2.162-5.766 5.889 5.801 5.906-2.092 2.162-5.818-5.924-5.818 5.924-2.092-2.162Z"
      fill="#000" />
  </svg>
</button>

Most content has an accessible name generated from its immediate wrapping element's text content. Accessible names can also be created by certain attributes or associated elements.

By default, a button's accessible name is the content between the opening and closing <button> tags, an image's accessible name is the content of its alt attribute, and a form input's accessible name is the content of the associated <label> element.

If none of these options are available or if the default accessible name is not appropriate, use the aria-label attribute to define the accessible name of an element.

When using aria-label, you also need to consider aria-labelledby:

• aria-label can be used in cases where text that could label the element is not visible. If there is visible text that labels an element, use aria-labelledby instead.
• The purpose of aria-label is the same as aria-labelledby. Both provide an accessible name for an element. If there is no visible name for the element you can reference, use aria-label to provide the user with a recognizable accessible name. If label text is available in the DOM and it's possible to reference it for an acceptable user experience, prefer to use aria-labelledby. Don't use both on the same element because aria-labelledby will take precedence over aria-label if both are applied.

Keep the following additional guidelines in mind when using aria-label:

• The aria-label attribute can be used with regular, semantic HTML elements; it is not limited to elements that have an ARIA role assigned.

• Don't "overuse" aria-label. Remember that it's primarily for assistive technologies. To provide additional instructions or to clarify the UI, use visible text with aria-describedby or aria-description, not aria-label. Instructions should be accessible to all users, not just to those with screen readers (or preferably, make your UI more intuitive).

  Note: Since aria-label content isn't displayed outside assistive technologies, consider making important information visible for all users.

• Not all elements can be given an accessible name. Neither aria-label nor aria-labelledby should be used with inline structural roles such as with code, term, and emphasis, and roles not mapped to the accessibility API, including none. The aria-label attribute is intended for elements including links, videos, form controls, and those with landmark roles or widget roles; aria-label provides an accessible name when no visible label exists in the DOM.

• If you assign a title to an <iframe>, define an alt attribute for an <img>, or add <label> for an <input>, aria-label is not necessary. However, if an aria-label attribute is present, it will take precedence over the iframe's title, the image's alt, or the input's <label> text as the accessible name for that element.

<string>

A string of text that will be the accessible name for the object.

Element.ariaLabel

The ariaLabel property, part of the Element interface, reflects the value of the aria-label attribute.

ElementInternals.ariaLabel

The ariaLabel property, part of the ElementInternals interface, reflects the value of the aria-label attribute.

Used in almost all roles except roles that cannot be provided an accessible name by the author.

The aria-label attribute is NOT supported in:

• code
• caption
• definition
• deletion
• emphasis
• generic
• insertion
• mark
• paragraph
• presentation / none
• strong
• subscript
• superscript
• suggestion
• term
• time

• <label> element
• aria-description
• aria-labelledby
• Using HTML landmark roles to improve accessibility on MDN blog (2023)