Accessible form labels

Provide labels to identify all form controls, including text fields, checkboxes, radio buttons, and drop-down menus; in most cases this is done with the <label> element, and labels need to describe the purpose of the control. A label and its form control should be associated with each other either implicitly or explicitly. Prefer explicit association: the for attribute of the label must exactly match the id of the form control. Association matters because browsers expose the label as a larger clickable area for selecting or activating the control, and because it lets assistive technology refer to the correct label when presenting the control. Where the purpose of a control is already clear from the visual context, the label can be hidden visually, but it still needs to be present in the code and associated, so that screen reader and speech input users get the same identification. Scope: Web accessibility. Reviewed October 4, 2026.