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Pulseaccessibility

Skip Links Are Focusable

What This Audit Checks

This audit verifies that skip links (links that let users bypass repetitive navigation) are focusable and their target exists in the page. A skip link typically reads "Skip to main content" and jumps keyboard focus past the header and navigation.

Why It Matters

Keyboard users must tab through every navigation link on every page load without a skip link. For sites with extensive headers, this means dozens of tab presses before reaching the main content. Skip links are required by WCAG 2.4.1 (Level A).

How to Fix It

  • Add a skip link as the first focusable element in the document, before the main navigation.
  • Make the target id match the skip link's href. If the link points to #main-content, an element with id="main-content" must exist.
  • Don't hide it with display: none -- use CSS to position it off-screen and bring it into view on focus.
  • Ensure the target is focusable. Add tabindex="-1" to the target element if it's not natively focusable.
<!-- Skip link (visible on focus) -->
<a href="#main-content" class="skip-link">Skip to main content</a>

<nav><!-- site navigation --></nav>

<main id="main-content" tabindex="-1">
  <!-- page content -->
</main>

.skip-link {
  position: absolute;
  left: -9999px;
}
.skip-link:focus {
  position: static;
  left: auto;
}

How Pulse Tracks This

Pulse flags this audit in your Lighthouse accessibility score. When the audit fails, Pulse shows which elements triggered it so you can fix them directly.

Resources