WCAG 2.2 success criterion, Level A

WCAG 2.4.2 Page Titled

Every page needs a title that says what the page is about, so people can tell where they are from the title alone.

Number: 2.4.2
Level: A
Added in: WCAG 2.2
Guideline: 2.4 Navigable
Principle: Operable

What it asks

The title is the text in the title element in the page’s head. Browsers show it on the tab, screen readers read it first when a page loads, and it is what appears in bookmarks, history and search results. This rule asks that every page has one, and that it describes the page’s topic or purpose.

A good title says what this page is, and usually which site it belongs to. "Delivery options | Acme Garden Supplies" tells someone with eight tabs open which one to pick. "Acme Garden Supplies" on every page tells them nothing. The W3C suggests putting the page-specific part first, so it is not cut off and is the first thing read out.

The common systemic failure today is in single-page applications, where the whole site is one document and the content changes without a page load. If the code never updates the title when the view changes, every screen in the app carries the same title. It is Level A, so it is in scope for every WCAG claim.

Its official name is success criterion 2.4.2 Page Titled, at Level A. It was added in WCAG 2.2, under guideline 2.4 Navigable and the principle Operable. The W3C’s normative text says, in part:

“Web pages have titles that describe topic or purpose.”

From WCAG 2.2, W3C. Full explanation: Understanding 2.4.2 Page Titled.

Who it helps

Screen reader users, for whom the title is the first thing announced on a new page and the quickest way to confirm a link went where they expected. People with cognitive disabilities and memory difficulties, who use titles to keep track of where they are.

Anyone with many tabs open, and anyone using browser history or bookmarks, which show the title and not much else.

What passes and what fails

These pass

"Delivery options | Acme Garden Supplies" on the delivery page and "Returns | Acme Garden Supplies" on the returns page.
"Search results for ‘compost’ | Acme Garden Supplies" on a search results page.
An article page titled with the article’s own headline, followed by the site name.
A web app that updates the title on every route change, so "Inbox", "Compose message" and "Settings" each read differently.
"Step 2 of 4: Delivery address | Checkout" on a multi-step form.

These fail

Every page on the site titled "Acme Garden Supplies" and nothing else.
An empty title element, or none at all, so the browser shows the URL instead.
"Untitled", "Home" or "Page title" left over from a template.
A single-page application where the title stays "Dashboard" as the person moves through every screen.
A title that is the file name, such as "index.html" or "product-page-v2".

How to test it by hand

Open each template of the site and read the browser tab. The title should name the page’s topic, not only the site.
Check the title element in the page source, including pages you reach by submitting a form or a search.
Open two pages of the same kind, such as two product pages, and check their titles differ in a way that tells them apart.
In a web app, move between screens without reloading and watch whether the tab title changes.
Note any page whose title is empty, a placeholder, or identical to a page about something else.

What automated testing can decide

What a machine can decide

Whether a title exists and is not empty is a plain fact about the page, and a missing title is a clear failure. Automated testing can also compare titles across the pages it visited and point out the ones that repeat, which is how a title that never changes shows up.

What it cannot

Whether a title describes the page is a question about meaning. "Products" might be fine on a one-product catalogue and useless on one with a thousand. Judging that takes someone who can see the page and the title together. Automated testing also only knows the pages it reached, so a title that never updates inside a signed-in app will not be seen unless that app is audited.

How Dreven handles it

Dreven records the title of every page in an audit and shows it to you beside the page. A reviewer decides whether each title describes its page, and the report says how each result was decided.

Every result is one of four: passed, failed, not applicable or can’t tell.

No automated check makes a site conform. In Dreven, a person reviews the results and signs the report.

2.4.6 Headings and Labels (Level AA). Headings and labels must describe their content, the same idea applied within the page.
3.1.1 Language of Page (Level A). The page’s language, like its title, is set in the head and read out first.
2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A). Link text should tell people where they are going; the title confirms where they arrived.

Questions people ask

Should the site name come first or last in a page title?

Put the page-specific part first and the site name after it, for example "Returns | Acme Garden Supplies". Screen readers read the start of the title first, and browser tabs cut off the end. The order is not a strict requirement of 2.4.2, but it is the W3C’s advice and the version people find easier.

Does a single-page application need to change its title?

Yes. If the content changes to a new view, the title should change to describe it. An app where every screen carries the same title fails 2.4.2 in the same way a site with one title on every page would.

Is a missing page title a failure?

Yes. A page with no title element, or an empty one, fails 2.4.2. Browsers show the address instead, and a screen reader has nothing to announce.

All WCAG 2.2 criteria, in plain words