Landmarks of the same role must be distinguishable

Rule landmark-unique · Structure & semantics · impact moderate · Static + live

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Why it matters#

If a page has two <nav> regions, a screen-reader user hears "navigation" twice with no way to tell them apart. Unique names ("Primary", "Footer") resolve the ambiguity.

How to fix#

Add aria-label or aria-labelledby to each landmark that repeats a role.

Example#

<nav>…</nav><nav>…</nav>

<nav aria-label="Primary">…</nav><nav aria-label="Footer">…</nav>

Example#

<div role="navigation">…</div><div role="navigation">…</div>

<form action="/search"><input type="search"></form><form action="/subscribe"><input type="email"></form>

An unnamed <form> has no landmark role (HTML-AAM), so repeated unnamed forms are not duplicate landmarks.

WCAG success criteria#

1.3.1 Info and Relationships — Level A#

Structure and relationships conveyed visually (headings, lists, tables, labels, groups) must also be available programmatically.

Understanding 1.3.1

Standards#

This rule contributes to the following standards:

WCAG A EN 301 549 Best practice

References#

• ARIA APG — Landmarks