Accessibility in UI5 Web Components

UI5 Web Components have built-in accessibility: ARIA roles, keyboard navigation, screen reader support, and high contrast themes are handled automatically in the shadow DOM. Applications should use the accessibility APIs described here to provide additional context that only the app can know (labels, descriptions, relationships).

Built-in Accessibility (No App Code Needed)

Components automatically provide:

ARIA roles and attributes mapped in the shadow DOM (e.g., ui5-combobox renders role="combobox" internally)
Keyboard navigation within complex components (arrow keys in lists, tables, date pickers, etc.)
Focus management with visible focus indicators
State mapping — disabled, readonly, required, checked are automatically mapped to their ARIA equivalents (aria-disabled, aria-readonly, aria-required, aria-checked)

Accessibility APIs

Use these properties to enrich the accessibility context for your application.

accessibleName

Maps to aria-label. Provides a text alternative when the visual label is insufficient or absent.

<ui5-button icon="sap-icon://edit" accessible-name="Edit document"></ui5-button>

<ui5-combobox accessible-name="Select country">
    <ui5-cb-item text="Germany"></ui5-cb-item>
</ui5-combobox>

Use accessibleName when there is no visible text label, for example icon-only buttons or inputs without a <ui5-label>.

accessibleNameRef

Alternative to aria-labelledby that works across shadow DOM boundaries. Takes one or more IDs of elements whose text content serves as the label.

<ui5-label id="lblName">Full name</ui5-label>
<ui5-input accessible-name-ref="lblName"></ui5-input>

<!-- Multiple refs -->
<span id="prefix">Shipping</span>
<ui5-label id="lblAddr">Address</ui5-label>
<ui5-input accessible-name-ref="prefix lblAddr"></ui5-input>

Prefer accessibleNameRef over accessibleName when a visible label exists — this keeps the label and the ARIA text in sync automatically.

accessibleDescription / accessibleDescriptionRef

Maps to aria-description. Provides additional descriptive text beyond the label.

<ui5-input accessible-name="Password"
           accessible-description="Must be at least 8 characters">
</ui5-input>

<!-- Or reference an existing element -->
<p id="hint">Must be at least 8 characters</p>
<ui5-input accessible-name="Password"
           accessible-description-ref="hint">
</ui5-input>

accessibleRole

Overrides the default ARIA role of a component.

<ui5-panel accessible-role="Complementary">...</ui5-panel>
<ui5-list accessible-role="Menu">...</ui5-list>
<ui5-button accessible-role="Link">Navigate</ui5-button>

Only change the role when the component is used in a non-standard way (e.g., a List used as a menu).

accessibilityAttributes

An object that sets additional ARIA attributes on the component's root element. Use for aria-expanded, aria-haspopup, aria-controls, and similar relationship attributes.

<ui5-button id="menuBtn">Open Menu</ui5-button>
<ui5-menu id="menu">...</ui5-menu>

<script>
document.getElementById("menuBtn").accessibilityAttributes = {
    expanded: false,
    hasPopup: "menu",
    controls: "menu"
};
</script>

For composite components like ui5-shellbar, the object contains nested objects for different internal elements — check the component's API docs.

Label-Input Relationships

Due to shadow DOM, standard HTML <label for="..."> does not work with custom elements. Use these patterns instead:

Using Label's for property (preferred for forms):

<ui5-label for="nameInput" required show-colon>Name</ui5-label>
<ui5-input id="nameInput" required></ui5-input>

The for property connects the label to the input. Clicking the label focuses the input. Setting required on the label shows an asterisk; setting required on the input sets aria-required.

Using accessibleNameRef:

<ui5-label id="dateLabel">Date of birth</ui5-label>
<ui5-date-picker accessible-name-ref="dateLabel"></ui5-date-picker>

Headings and Semantic Levels

Use the level property on ui5-title and header-level on ui5-panel to set the correct heading level for the document outline.

<ui5-title level="H1">Page Title</ui5-title>

<ui5-panel header-text="Settings" header-level="H2">
    <ui5-title level="H3">General</ui5-title>
</ui5-panel>

Screen readers use heading levels to build a page outline. Skipping levels (e.g., H1 to H4) is an accessibility violation.

Icon Accessibility

The ui5-icon component has a mode property that controls its accessible behavior:

Mode	Behavior	Use when
`Image` (default)	`role="img"`	Icon conveys meaning (needs `accessible-name`)
`Interactive`	`role="button"`, focusable	Icon is clickable
`Decorative`	`aria-hidden="true"`	Icon is purely visual, no meaning

<!-- Meaningful icon — needs accessible-name -->
<ui5-icon name="sap-icon://warning" mode="Image"
          accessible-name="Warning"></ui5-icon>

<!-- Clickable icon -->
<ui5-icon name="sap-icon://delete" mode="Interactive"
          accessible-name="Delete item"></ui5-icon>

<!-- Decorative icon — hidden from screen readers -->
<ui5-icon name="sap-icon://favorite" mode="Decorative"></ui5-icon>

Always set accessible-name on icons in Image or Interactive mode.

Invisible Messaging

Use InvisibleMessage to announce dynamic content changes to screen readers (e.g., search results count, form validation, live updates).

import announce from "@ui5/webcomponents-base/dist/util/InvisibleMessage.js";
import InvisibleMessageMode from "@ui5/webcomponents-base/dist/types/InvisibleMessageMode.js";

// Polite: announced at the next pause (e.g., search results)
announce("5 results found", InvisibleMessageMode.Polite);

// Assertive: announced immediately (e.g., errors)
announce("Invalid email address", InvisibleMessageMode.Assertive);

Use Polite for non-urgent updates (search results, status changes)
Use Assertive for urgent notifications (errors, warnings)

Tooltip

Use the tooltip property instead of the native title attribute.

<ui5-button icon="sap-icon://edit" tooltip="Edit document"></ui5-button>

Do not set title directly on custom elements — this can cause repetitive speech output or incorrect accessibility tree mapping.

High Contrast and Theming

UI5 Web Components ship with high contrast themes:

Theme	Use case
`sap_horizon`	Default light theme
`sap_horizon_dark`	Dark theme
`sap_horizon_hcb`	High Contrast Black
`sap_horizon_hcw`	High Contrast White

Detect OS preferences and apply the appropriate theme:

import { setTheme } from "@ui5/webcomponents-base/dist/config/Theme.js";

const darkMode = window.matchMedia("(prefers-color-scheme: dark)");
const highContrast = window.matchMedia("(prefers-contrast: more)");

function applyTheme() {
    if (highContrast.matches) {
        setTheme(darkMode.matches ? "sap_horizon_hcb" : "sap_horizon_hcw");
    } else {
        setTheme(darkMode.matches ? "sap_horizon_dark" : "sap_horizon");
    }
}

darkMode.onchange = applyTheme;
highContrast.onchange = applyTheme;
applyTheme();

Quick Reference

Goal	Property / API
Label a component without visible text	`accessible-name="..."`
Link a visible label to a component	`accessible-name-ref="labelId"` or `<ui5-label for="inputId">`
Add a description	`accessible-description="..."` or `accessible-description-ref="id"`
Change ARIA role	`accessible-role="..."`
Set expanded/haspopup/controls	`accessibilityAttributes = { expanded, hasPopup, controls }`
Set heading level	`level="H2"` on Title, `header-level="H2"` on Panel
Make icon accessible	`mode="Image"` + `accessible-name="..."`
Hide decorative icon	`mode="Decorative"`
Announce dynamic changes	`announce(message, InvisibleMessageMode.Polite)`
Set tooltip	`tooltip="..."` (not `title`)
Respond to OS contrast settings	Use `prefers-contrast` media query + `setTheme()`

accessibility