WordPress 7.1 continues to polish accessibility Accessibility (commonly shortened to a11y) refers to the design of products, devices, services, or environments for people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design ensures both “direct access” (i.e. unassisted) and “indirect access” meaning compatibility with a person’s assistive technology (for example, computer screen readers). (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accessibility) across WordPress Core Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. and Gutenberg The Gutenberg project is the new Editor Interface for WordPress. The editor improves the process and experience of creating new content, making writing rich content much simpler. It uses ‘blocks’ to add richness rather than shortcodes, custom HTML etc. https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/, advancing the goals to meet accessibility standards. In this release, high-impact changes include the new accessible tooltips API An API or Application Programming Interface is a software intermediary that allows programs to interact with each other and share data in limited, clearly defined ways., improved predictability for screen readers, and improved labeling in many places in the admin (and super admin). The editor ships with new Tab and Playlist blocks and extensive improvements to editor navigation and interaction.

Core

Enhancements to WordPress core include 45 accessibility enhancements and bug A bug is an error or unexpected result. Performance improvements, code optimization, and are considered enhancements, not defects. After feature freeze, only bugs are dealt with, with regressions (adverse changes from the previous version) being the highest priority. fixes. Major changes include enhancements to focus states, improvements to screen reader support in post list tables, and the introduction of a tooltip mechanism for exposing accessible names in WordPress core.

Media

WordPress 7.1 delivers an enhanced media experience including refined labels for caption fields to provide clearer usage guidance (#43178). Navigation within theme and media modals was adjusted to prevent single-key arrow interactions from conflicting with screen reader patterns (#63760). Technical fixes address duplicate ID elements in figcaption elements when reusing images (#65315) and ensure accurate visible labeling for untitled items in the grid view (#65438). In the image editor, the width input label was corrected (#65685). Improvements to the Media grid include resolving unlabeled date filters (#65711), styling fixes for bulk editing toolbars (#65732), and ensuring focus indicators remain fully visible (#65755).

Classic Editor

The editing environment is landing with architectural improvements, such as support for invoker command attributes in KSES (#64576) and the autofocus attribute for dialog elements (#65491). Classic editor users will benefit from layout enhancements to the Publish box visibility controls (#65530) and status dropdown menus (#65532).

List Tables

List table structures were updated to identify the post title cell as the row header The header of your site is typically the first thing people will experience. The masthead or header art located across the top of your page is part of the look and feel of your website. It can influence a visitor’s opinion about your content and you/ your organization’s brand. It may also look different on different screen sizes. instead of the selection checkboxes (#32892, #65743). To assist blind users, subpages in page lists now include proper structural indicators (#64932), while untitled posts can display an excerpt An excerpt is the description of the blog post or page that will by default show on the blog archive page, in search results (SERPs), and on social media. With an SEO plugin, the excerpt may also be in that plugin’s metabox. of the content in post lists (#65022).

Labeling and Accessible Names

Work continues on semantic clarity, addressing missing plural forms for specific strings (#29299) and adding necessary visible text to responsive preview icons in the Customizer Tool built into WordPress core that hooks into most modern themes. You can use it to preview and modify many of your site’s appearance settings. (#36447). Core now includes a standardized mechanism for accessible tooltips (#51006), which has been applied to metabox A post metabox is a draggable box shown on the post editing screen. Its purpose is to allow the user to select or enter information in addition to the main post content. This information should be related to the post in some way. order buttons (#50921) and the “Remember Me” login option (#55343).

Users

The user management flow was improved with better guidance during user deletion (#56914) and clearer identification of links on the login page (#65075). The language switcher now consistently employs visible labels and icons (#65464), and the “Add User” screen no longer forces initial focus onto the password field (#65630).

Administration

Administrative improvements focus on high contrast and consistency. Contrast in admin color schemes was boosted for sidebar A sidebar in WordPress is referred to a widget-ready area used by WordPress themes to display information that is not a part of the main content. It is not always a vertical column on the side. It can be a horizontal rectangle below or above the content area, footer, header, or any where in the theme. compatibility with the block Block is the abstract term used to describe units of markup that, composed together, form the content or layout of a webpage using the WordPress editor. The idea combines concepts of what in the past may have achieved with shortcodes, custom HTML, and embed discovery into a single consistent API and user experience. editor (#65382), and active states for buttons and tabs are now properly identified in Windows High Contrast Mode (#65153, #65419). UI User interface inconsistencies during tag A directory in Subversion. WordPress uses tags to store a single snapshot of a version (3.6, 3.6.1, etc.), the common convention of tags in version control systems. (Not to be confused with post tags.) management (#63372), Quick Draft error handling (#64952), and Settings API section titles (#65027) have been resolved. Further enhancements include toolbar visibility in the Site Editor (#65091), standardized focus indicators of at least 2 CSS Cascading Style Sheets. pixels (#65645), and labeling improvements for data export requests (#65246).

Focus states on the admin bar and the admin menu have been improved (#65765, #65726, #65445), enhancing the usability of the now-universal toolbar. Mouse cursor interaction inconsistencies when the admin menu is collapsed have been fixed (#65250). Route-based admin pages now all render appropriate feedback when JavaScript JavaScript or JS is an object-oriented computer programming language commonly used to create interactive effects within web browsers. WordPress makes extensive use of JS for a better user experience. While PHP is executed on the server, JS executes within a user’s browser. https://www.javascript.com rendering is not available or fails (#65690).

The theme browser now has consistent navigation behavior when navigating from the first theme (#65715), and the scrollbar is no longer partially hidden in the plugin A plugin is a piece of software containing a group of functions that can be added to a WordPress website. They can extend functionality or add new features to your WordPress websites. WordPress plugins are written in the PHP programming language and integrate seamlessly with WordPress. These can be free in the WordPress.org Plugin Directory https://wordpress.org/plugins/ or can be cost-based plugin from a third-party. installer modal (#65334). When performing setup or installation, the language of the page is made available (#65454).

Front-end

On the front end, password-protected content receives styling and usability upgrades (#64569). The RSS widget A WordPress Widget is a small block that performs a specific function. You can add these widgets in sidebars also known as widget-ready areas on your web page. WordPress widgets were originally created to provide a simple and easy-to-use way of giving design and structure control of the WordPress theme to the user. was updated to prevent accessibility issues when multiple instances are present (#47670), and the comment reply link no longer triggers unexpectedly on touch interactions (#46713).

Editor

The editor includes 43 accessibility enhancements and bug fixes covering screen reader, forced colors, and keyboard navigation improvements, as well as shipping two new front-end blocks for post content. The editor changes in 7.1 greatly improve consistency on a number of fundamental components that should lead to a better experience for all.

Editing Experience

Refinements to the editing interface include fixing keyboard activation for template action previews (#78641) and resolving focus loss issues when dismissing the pattern creation dialog (#78957). Localized aria-live regions were replaced with the more robust speak() function to improve auditory feedback (#79600). The DataForm panel layout now correctly exposes accessible names via tooltips on edit buttons (#77024), and tooltips now also display keyboard shortcuts for block movement (#76992). 

Visual and interaction fixes address cursor instability in the color picker (#80205) and prevent layout shifts by relocating contrast warnings within the color popover (#79512). Advanced contrast checking now extends to viewport and pseudo-states (#80223), while note selections are now preserved across browser tab transitions (#75955).

Additional refinements include adding word-break support to screen reader classes (#75539) to prevent inconsistencies, and an error in spoken messages announced during block insertion was fixed (#79004).

Blocks

Block-level improvements focus on semantic accuracy and control. The Breadcrumbs block now hides decorative separators from assistive technology Assistive technology is an umbrella term that includes assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities and also includes the process used in selecting, locating, and using them. Assistive technology promotes greater independence by enabling people to perform tasks that they were formerly unable to accomplish, or had great difficulty accomplishing, by providing enhancements to, or changing methods of interacting with, the technology needed to accomplish such tasks. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assistive_technology (#78524), while the icon browser provides full labels for better identification (#80256). The Image block introduces a dedicated toggle for marking media as decorative (#78064), and the Cover block gains attributes to restrict video providers, helping prevent inaccessible embeds (#80092). 

In Accordion blocks, navigation shortcuts using arrows and the “home” and “end” keys were removed (#75891) due to conflicting behaviors, and a focus loss in settings was fixed in the Stretchy Text block (#75092).

Admin Screens

Updates to admin screens emphasize readability and standard compliance. Centered text is removed from Connectors to improve scanning (#78125), and Page component headers are promoted to h1 by default to align with core semantic structures (#77617). Focus issues in the Font Library (#78671) and labeling mismatches in the NavigableRegion (#75899) have been addressed.

Admin Components

The component library received numerous technical fixes. Focus traps broken by specific display properties were resolved (#77381), and invalid A resolution on the bug tracker (and generally common in software development, sometimes also notabug) that indicates the ticket is not a bug, is a support request, or is generally invalid. object-based labels in ValidatedRangeControl were corrected (#77042). Help text associations were improved for ComboboxControl (#76761) and ToggleGroupControl (#76740). RadioControl fieldsets now properly employ the radiogroup role (#76745).

For users in High Contrast mode, focus rings are now consistently rendered on Tab panels and CollapsibleCard headers (#77469, #77468). 

Button states were also refined, addressing focusable defaults when disabled (#78526), loading indicator visibility in forced colors (#78820), and click feedback styling (#76833). Furthermore, label associations in ContentEditableControl were fixed (#80344), Dialog components now prioritize focusing content over the close button (#76910), and screen reader text for DataForm card toggles was standardized (#76039).

Visual Revisions The WordPress revisions system stores a record of each saved draft or published update. The revision system allows you to see what changes were made in each revision by dragging a slider (or using the Next/Previous buttons). The display indicates what has changed in each revision.

The Visual Revisions experience received significant updates. Contrast for difference position marker stripes was increased (#78473), and title attributes were replaced with aria-describedby for better annotation support (#80440). The timeline now includes specific labels for autosaves (#79950). Navigation was improved by auto-focusing the revisions slider (#79691) when the editor is activated.

Non-color indicators were added using CSS outlines as secondary indicators for document changes (#78393), and proper pluralization for revision count labels (#78382) was added. The Post Summary sidebar now includes an aria-label for the revisions trigger (#78140) to provide better context for screen reader users.

New blocks

WordPress introduces new interactive elements, including a Playlist Block (#80203) and a Tabs Block (#80163). Both blocks have been tested for accessibility concerns, although feedback is always welcome.

Known Accessibility Regression A software bug that breaks or degrades something that previously worked. Regressions are often treated as critical bugs or blockers. Recent regressions may be given higher priorities. A "3.6 regression" would be a bug in 3.6 that worked as intended in 3.5.

In WordPress 7.1, the default behavior of the media library is being changed from including a load more button to having infinite scroll, a known inaccessible pattern. 

To compensate for this, there is an option in the User Profile allowing individual users to turn it off. You can also use the existing filter media_library_infinite_scrolling to disable it by default, returning the value false.

A feature has been added in the WP Accessibility plugin that inverts the logic, switching the default value to ‘false’ and altering the User Profile option to allow users to turn it on.

You can also try the Gutenberg Experiment to replace the media library. This feature is still in development, and has not had a full accessibility review. The infinite scroll in the updated media library will be governed by an in-modal toggle, and is not currently enabled.

There is also work continuing to try to add a similar toggle to the existing media library in #65775. That work is progressing, but the implementation did not reach consensus in time to land in WordPress 7.1

Reviewed by @annezazu, @amykamala, @sabernhardt

#7-1, #accessibility, #dev-notes, #dev-notes-7-1