Can You Use Your Website Without a Mouse? Try This Keyboard Check

[Admin]

If you build or manage a website, try using it with only your keyboard. It is a simple way to spot barriers for visitors who cannot use a mouse.

Try this on your homepage and a contact form:

1. Press Tab to move through links and controls. Use Shift + Tab to move backwards.
2. Check that you can clearly see which link, button or field is selected.
3. Use Enter to open links. Test buttons with Enter or Space, as appropriate.
4. Check that you can reach and use the navigation menu and form fields.
5. Make sure you can move away from each control without getting trapped.

Write down any place where the selection disappears, the order becomes confusing, or a control cannot be used.

This is a starting check, not a complete accessibility audit. See W3C’s Easy Checks for Web Accessibility for more guidance.

Have you tried this on a site you built? Which part was hardest to use with a keyboard, and how did you fix it?

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