3.3.5 Help

WCAG 2.2 · 3.3.5 AAA Understandable

What it requires

When a web page contains a form or other process that asks the user to complete a task, and context-sensitive help is available, that help must be provided. Context-sensitive help is information that explains how to complete a specific step or field — not general help about the whole site.

At least one of these forms of help should be available for each request for input, where appropriate:

  • Spelled-out instructions — e.g. the expected date format shown next to a field.
  • Context-sensitive help linked from or beside the field.
  • A way to reach a human, such as a phone number, email address, chat, or contact form.

The criterion does not demand help where the input is self-explanatory; it requires that when help could reasonably be offered, it is offered in a discoverable way.

  • People with cognitive and learning disabilities who may struggle to interpret unlabelled or ambiguous fields without guidance.
  • People with reading or language difficulties, including non-native speakers, who benefit from plain instructions or a human contact.
  • People with anxiety or low digital confidence who need reassurance and a fallback route when a process is unclear.
  • Anyone completing an unfamiliar or high-stakes task (e.g. a benefits or payment form) who would otherwise abandon it.

How to detect it

Concrete checks for 3.3.5 Help
Check What to look for
Manual review For each form or process, ask whether help is available elsewhere on the site; if so, confirm it is also reachable from the task itself.
Field-level guidance Check that fields needing a specific format or value give instructions or a help link near the input.
Human contact Verify a contact route (phone, email, chat, contact form) is provided where self-service help is not enough.
Screen reader / keyboard Confirm help links and instructions are reachable and announced — not visual asides hidden from assistive tech.
Automated tools Tools such as axe cannot reliably detect this — it requires human judgement about whether help is available and exposed.

How to fix it

  1. Inventory the help your site already offers (FAQs, contact details, instructions).
  2. For each form or process, surface the relevant help within reach of the task.
  3. Add concise, field-level instructions where a format or rule applies, and associate them programmatically with the field.
  4. Provide at least one human-contact route for the process.
  5. Keep the help mechanism consistent across pages (see 3.2.6 Consistent Help).
<label for="dob">Date of birth</label>
<input id="dob" type="text" inputmode="numeric"
       aria-describedby="dob-help">
<p id="dob-help">Use the format DD/MM/YYYY, e.g. 27/03/1990.
  <a href="/contact">Need help? Contact us.</a></p>

Copy-paste tests

Automated coverage

There is no fully automated axe-core rule for 3.3.5 Help — axe cannot judge whether context-sensitive help exists or is reachable. This criterion needs manual review, using the console check and steps below.

Run this in the browser console

help-audit.js 
// Read-only: surface forms and any help/contact links for manual review.
const forms = [...document.querySelectorAll('form')];
const helpRe = /help|contact|support|assist|faq|guide/i;
const rows = forms.map((f, i) => {
  const links = [...f.querySelectorAll('a[href]')]
    .filter(a => helpRe.test(a.textContent) || helpRe.test(a.getAttribute('href') || ''));
  const described = f.querySelectorAll('[aria-describedby]').length;
  if (helpRe.test(f.textContent)) f.style.outline = '2px solid hotpink';
  return { form: i, fields: f.querySelectorAll('input,select,textarea').length,
           describedBy: described, helpLinks: links.length };
});
console.table(rows);
console.log('Outlined forms appear to mention help — verify it is real, in-context help.');

What to check manually: for each form, confirm the help actually explains this task or field (not generic site help), and that at least one human-contact route (phone, email, chat, contact form) is reachable from the process.