| name | draggable-accessibility |
| description | Use when reviewing templates, rendered HTML, or shared components related to Make drag and drop accessible. Validate the final browser-facing markup, not just the source framework abstraction. |
| metadata | {"category":"html","priority":"medium","difficulty":"advanced","estimatedTime":"35","source":"frontendchecklist.io","url":"https://frontendchecklist.io/en/rules/html/draggable-accessibility"} |
Make drag and drop accessible
Drag and drop is mouse-dependent by default—keyboard and screen reader users are completely locked out without proper alternatives and ARIA announcements.
Quick Reference
- Always provide keyboard alternatives to drag and drop
- Use aria-grabbed and aria-dropeffect (or newer attributes)
- Announce drag operations to screen readers via live regions
- Support both mouse/touch and keyboard interaction patterns
Check
Verify drag and drop interfaces have keyboard alternatives, proper ARIA attributes, and live region announcements.
Fix
Implement keyboard alternatives (arrow keys, Enter/Space), aria-grabbed, aria-dropeffect, and status announcements.
Explain
Explain how accessible drag and drop implementations provide equivalent functionality for keyboard and screen reader users.
Code Review
Review templates, server-rendered HTML, and shared components that output markup related to Make drag and drop accessible. Flag exact elements, attributes, and routes where the rendered HTML violates the rule.
For full implementation details, code examples, and framework-specific guidance,
see references/rule.md.
Rule page: https://frontendchecklist.io/en/rules/html/draggable-accessibility
