elements side by side. Setting role="list"/role="navigation" (or role="group" with a label) on the existing container conveys the grouping without restructuring.
Example#
✕ Fails <div><a href="/1">One</a><a href="/2">Two</a><a href="/3">Three</a></div>
✓ Passes <ul><li><a href="/1">One</a></li><li><a href="/2">Two</a></li><li><a href="/3">Three</a></li></ul>
Example#
✕ Fails <footer><a href="/terms">Terms</a> | <a href="/privacy">Privacy</a> | <a href="/cookies">Cookies</a></footer>
✓ Passes <p>Read our <a href="/terms">terms</a>, <a href="/privacy">privacy policy</a> and <a href="/cookies">cookie policy</a> before signing up.</p>
Inline links in a sentence are prose, not a link group — they must not be converted to a list.
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
Standard
Criteria
EN 301 549
9.1.3.1
References#