Use Headings to Organize the Structure of your Content

Headings, when used correctly, outline the content on the page and is required for ADA Compliance.

Heading Levels

Proper use of Headings is required for Assistive Technology to navigate the page. This also allows the visitor to quickly review the content on the page. Heading styles are designed to be used in order (see example below).

Heading 1 Requirement  

• Every Page of the website must have an H1 (Heading 1 or Page Title)
• You should only use the Heading 1 once on each page.
• The Heading 1 should be descriptive of the page content.
• If your editor format drop list does not have a Heading 1, your website design has a built-in Heading 1, making you compliant.

Outline Your Content

Use Headings to indicate and organize your content structure. The screen reader will create an outline of the page content based on the heading levels. Do not use heading levels out of order (e.g. H2, H4, H3, H2) as this will cause the content to get mixed up. For an example please visit Proper Use of Headings for Content.