Missing or insufficient page title

document-title

WCAG success criterion: 2.4.2 (level A)
Outcome class: Automatic. An automated check that can report a confirmed violation.
Area: Accessibility, Navigation & Operation
Default severity: high
axe-core rule: document-title

Why we flag this

Screen reader users cannot identify the page.

Empty or generic <title> tag.

What the rule checks

Scope. Top-level HTML documents whose title element has non-empty text.

Expectation. Fails when the whole title, trimmed and compared case-insensitively, is an authoring-tool or placeholder default that identifies no content (F25: "Untitled Document", "New Page", "Untitled"). A descriptive title that merely contains such a word ("Index of tool specifications – ...") passes. A missing or empty title is not applicable (document/title-missing, document/title-empty). Only the top-level document's title counts; a default title inside an embedded frame document does not make the host page fail. A title written by script before the audit counts. One finding at the head element.

Source. WCAG 2.2 SC 2.4.2 Page Titled; failure F25 (title that does not identify the contents); G88

Detection: page; needs dom.

Failing example

The check reports a violation here. Corpus case structure_title_untitled, element head. The page may contain further findings for other rules.

structure_title_untitled.htmlHTML

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
    <title>  UNTITLED DOCUMENT  </title>
    <style>
        body { font: 16px/1.5 sans-serif; margin: 0 16px; }
        a { display: inline-block; min-width: 44px; min-height: 44px; line-height: 44px; }
        input, button { min-width: 44px; min-height: 44px; }
    </style>
</head>
<body>
    <!-- An editor's default title left in place (#783, WCAG F25): the title
         exists and is not empty, but it says nothing about the page. Case and
         surrounding whitespace do not change that. -->
    <a href="#main" class="skip-link">Skip to content</a>
    <header>
        <p>Acme Hardware</p>
    </header>
    <nav aria-label="Main">
        <ul>
            <li><a href="/">Home</a></li>
            <li><a href="/returns/">Returns</a></li>
        </ul>
    </nav>
    <main id="main">
        <h1>Returns and refunds</h1>
        <p>You can return unused items within 30 days.</p>
    </main>
    <footer>
        <p>Acme Hardware, Berlin</p>
    </footer>
</body>
</html>

Passing example

The check passes here and reports nothing. Corpus case structure_modal_dynamic. The page may contain further findings for other rules.

structure_modal_dynamic.htmlHTML

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
    <meta charset="utf-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
    <title></title>
    <style>
        body { font: 16px/1.5 sans-serif; margin: 0 16px; }
        button { min-width: 44px; min-height: 44px; }
    </style>
</head>
<body>
    <!-- A consent wall (#783): the application has not rendered yet, and a
         script sets the page language and the document title and opens a modal
         dialog after load.
         While the dialog is open, the page's headings and main landmark are
         missing for the moment of measurement, not necessarily for the page. -->
    <div id="app"></div>
    <dialog id="consent" aria-label="Cookie settings">
        <p>We use cookies to remember your shopping basket.</p>
        <form method="dialog">
            <button value="accept">Accept</button>
            <button value="reject">Reject</button>
        </form>
    </dialog>
    <script>
        document.documentElement.lang = 'en';
        document.title = 'Cookie settings – Acme Hardware';
        document.getElementById('consent').showModal();
    </script>
</body>
</html>

This page is generated from the rule catalogue and the rule contracts; see therule overview for how the outcome classes are derived.