Table headers are not linked to their data

Automated check th-has-data-cells, run with axe-core

WCAG

1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A)

Severity

Serious: completable, but painful

Typical effort

Moderate, 1 to 4 hours

Category

Content

Who this affects

Screen reader users reading data tables — pricing, specifications, timetables.

Why it matters

Without header association, each cell is read as a bare value with no context, so a table of numbers becomes meaningless.

How to fix it

Use <th scope="col"> and <th scope="row">. For complex tables, link cells with headers and id attributes.

Related checks: Content

• Meters have no accessible name
• Progress bars have no accessible name
• Tooltips have no accessible name
• Table header cells are empty
• Images have no text alternative
• Image alt text duplicates nearby visible text
• Embedded objects have no text alternative
• Elements with role="img" have no text alternative

All checks