PowerMapper
PowerMapper
HTML attributes Screen reader compatibility
ARIA HTML
Dec 14, 2025
Shows how different HTML attributes behave in commonly used screen readers.
The results include two types of test:
- Expected to work - these tests show support when accessibility features are used correctly
- Expected to fail - these tests show what happens when accessibility features are used incorrectly
alt
aria-describedby
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (94% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 93% | 100% | 83% | 100% | |
Click Here link with aria-describedby attribute | |||||||||
input type=text with aria-describedby attribute | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (87% average) | 100% | 85% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 17% | 100% | |
img with aria-describedby | |||||||||
aria-label
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (79% average) | 88% | 84% | 86% | 82% | 75% | 83% | 86% | 71% | |
Interactive iframe with role=presentation and aria-label attribute | |||||||||
Link text replaced by aria-label attribute | |||||||||
applet with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
area with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
audio with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
button containing img with aria-label | |||||||||
button with aria-label containing img with null alt | |||||||||
embed with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
img with aria-label | |||||||||
input type=image with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
input type=text with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
object with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
video with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (22% average) | 20% | 21% | 20% | 20% | 21% | 20% | 22% | 29% | |
Link with aria-label containing img with no alt | |||||||||
button with aria-label containing img with no alt | |||||||||
img with null alt and non-null aria-label attributes | |||||||||
aria-labelledby
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (71% average) | 85% | 83% | 83% | 81% | 62% | 83% | 72% | 69% | |
Link text replaced by aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
applet with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
area with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
audio with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
button containing img with aria-labelledby | |||||||||
embed with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
img with aria-labelledby | |||||||||
input type=image with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
input type=text with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
object with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
video with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (26% average) | 20% | 22% | 20% | 20% | 21% | 20% | 23% | 31% | |
Link with aria-labelledby containing img with no alt | |||||||||
img with null alt and non-null aria-labelledby attributes | |||||||||
input with aria-labelledby pointing to role=presentation element | |||||||||
aria-level
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (95% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
ARIA role=heading | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (96% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 67% | |
| Nested ARIA headings | |||||||||
for
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (100% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
input type=text with label for | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (88% average) | 75% | 75% | 75% | 96% | 89% | 97% | 100% | 100% | |
input type=text with blank label for | |||||||||
label elements reference controls with duplicate ids | |||||||||
headers
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (58% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 31% | 100% | 0% | 0% | |
Data table with td headers attribute | |||||||||
href
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Issues when used incorrectly (38% average) | 25% | 24% | 25% | 25% | 34% | 25% | 24% | 48% | |
CSS content: property on link | |||||||||
Link with onclick but no href | |||||||||
id
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (92% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 87% | 100% | 81% | 69% | |
Data table with td headers attribute | |||||||||
input type=text with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
input type=text with label for | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (62% average) | 50% | 51% | 50% | 64% | 64% | 65% | 69% | 71% | |
input type=text with blank label for | |||||||||
input with aria-labelledby pointing to role=presentation element | |||||||||
label elements reference controls with duplicate ids | |||||||||
ismap
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Issues when used incorrectly (100% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
img with server side image map | |||||||||
lang
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (100% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
Page with lang set on the html and p elements | |||||||||
media
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Issues when used incorrectly (100% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
CSS stylesheet link with media=aural | |||||||||
CSS stylesheet link with media=speech | |||||||||
name
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (74% average) | 100% | 67% | 100% | 100% | 56% | 100% | 76% | 14% | |
area and img with alt attributes | |||||||||
area with alt attribute and img with null alt | |||||||||
area with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
area with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
area with title attribute | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (83% average) | 83% | 70% | 88% | 83% | 79% | 88% | 100% | 100% | |
Image map with no name attribute | |||||||||
area with no alt | |||||||||
area with null alt | |||||||||
role
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (78% average) | 83% | 79% | 82% | 78% | 90% | 82% | 80% | 58% | |
ARIA role=heading | |||||||||
Data table with role=columnheader headers but no th | |||||||||
Data table with role=grid | |||||||||
Data table with role=table | |||||||||
Interactive iframe with role=presentation and no accessible name | |||||||||
Layout table with role=presentation | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (62% average) | 60% | 64% | 60% | 60% | 64% | 60% | 62% | 70% | |
Data table with role=note | |||||||||
Data table with role=presentation | |||||||||
| Nested ARIA headings | |||||||||
input with aria-labelledby pointing to role=presentation element | |||||||||
scope
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (66% average) | 100% | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 36% | 0% | |
Data table with th scope on cell headers | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (29% average) | 0% | 50% | 0% | 0% | 8% | 0% | 0% | 100% | |
Data table th cell headers with no scope | |||||||||
src
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Issues when used incorrectly (87% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 11% | 100% | |
iframe where src is a PNG image | |||||||||
summary
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (86% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 85% | 100% | 91% | 18% | |
Data table with summary and th | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (97% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | |
Data table with summary but no th | |||||||||
Data table with null summary and no th | |||||||||
tabindex
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Issues when used incorrectly (50% average) | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 50% | 75% | 0% | |
Interactive iframe with role=presentation and negative tabindex and no accessible name | |||||||||
Interactive iframe with negative tabindex and no accessible name | |||||||||
target
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Issues when used incorrectly (84% average) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 42% | 33% | |
Link target opens in new window | |||||||||
title
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (75% average) | 87% | 74% | 85% | 81% | 72% | 83% | 75% | 63% | |
Click Here link with title attribute | |||||||||
Interactive iframe with role=presentation and title attribute | |||||||||
Link containing img with title | |||||||||
abbr with title | |||||||||
applet with title attribute | |||||||||
area with title attribute | |||||||||
audio with title attribute | |||||||||
button containing img with title attribute | |||||||||
button with title containing img with null alt | |||||||||
embed with title attribute | |||||||||
iframe with title attribute | |||||||||
img with title | |||||||||
input type=image with title attribute | |||||||||
input type=text with title attribute | |||||||||
object with title attribute | |||||||||
video with title attribute | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (36% average) | 38% | 43% | 39% | 30% | 34% | 30% | 46% | 31% | |
Link with title containing img with no alt | |||||||||
acronym with title | |||||||||
button with title containing img with no alt | |||||||||
iframe with title matching frame filename | |||||||||
iframe with blank title | |||||||||
img with null alt and non-null title attributes | |||||||||
usemap
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (74% average) | 100% | 67% | 100% | 100% | 56% | 100% | 76% | 14% | |
area and img with alt attributes | |||||||||
area with alt attribute and img with null alt | |||||||||
area with aria-label attribute | |||||||||
area with aria-labelledby attribute | |||||||||
area with title attribute | |||||||||
| Issues when used incorrectly (83% average) | 83% | 70% | 88% | 83% | 79% | 88% | 100% | 100% | |
Image map with no name attribute | |||||||||
area with no alt | |||||||||
area with null alt | |||||||||
xml:lang
| Screen Reader | NVDA | JAWS | VoiceOver | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browser | Edge | FF | Cr | Edge | FF | Cr | Mac | iOS | |
| Reliability when used correctly (38% average) | 28% | 20% | 35% | 50% | 40% | 55% | 40% | 40% | |
Match lang subtags | |||||||||
Page with xml:lang set on the html and p elements | |||||||||
application/xhtml+xml page with mismatching lang and xml:lang on the html element | |||||||||
text/html page with mismatching lang and xml:lang on the html element | |||||||||
Key
- Stable - works, or doesn't cause problems, in all versions of a specific combination of screen reader and browser
- Better - works, or doesn't cause problems, in the most recent version of a specific combination of screen reader and browser (improvement)
- Worse - causes problems in the most recent version of a specific combination of screen reader and browser, but used to work in older versions (regression)
- Broken - causes problems in all versions of a specific combination of screen reader and browser
Test notes
All tests were carried out with screen reader factory settings. JAWS in particular has a wide variety of settings controlling exactly what gets spoken.
Screen readers allow users to interact in different modes, and can produce very different results in each mode. The modes used in these tests are:
- Reading Content read using the “read next” command in a screen reader
- Tabbing Content read using the “tab” key in a screen reader
- Heading Content read using the “next heading” key in a screen reader
- Touch Content read when touching an area of screen on a mobile device
In the “What the user hears” column:
- Commas represent short pauses in screen reader voicing
- Full Stops represent places where voicing stops, and the “read next” or “tab” or “next heading” command is pressed again
- Ellipsis … represent a long pause in voicing
- (Brackets) represent voicing that requires a keystroke to hear