Data Display

Accessible Table

A sortable, read-only data table with proper headers, scope, and caption. It presents static content the user reads, not a widget they operate cell-by-cell.

Last verified against WCAG 2.2 and WAI-ARIA APG 1.2 on 2026-07-02.

Implementation

Team members and their current account status
	Role		Last active
Amara Okafor	Engineer	Active	2026-07-01
Diego Fuentes	Product Manager	Invited	—
Priya Natarajan	Designer	Active	2026-06-29
Sofia Marchetti	Support	Active	2026-07-02
Wren Callahan	Engineer	Suspended	2026-05-14

<!-- aria-sort lives on the <th>, not the button, that's where AT looks
     for a column's sort state. The <button> inside is what makes the
     control keyboard-operable. Only ONE column is sorted at a time. -->
<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th scope="col" aria-sort="ascending"><button data-key="name">Name</button></th>
      <th scope="col" aria-sort="none"><button data-key="email">Email</button></th>
      <th scope="col" aria-sort="none"><button data-key="signup">Signed up</button></th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <!-- data rows -->
  </tbody>
</table>

For an interactive tabular widget, editable, selectable, or arrow-key-navigable cells, see the Grid pattern (role="grid") instead.

Required roles, states & properties

Required roles, states, and properties
Element	Attribute	Why
<table>	<caption>	Gives the table an accessible name/purpose announced before a screen reader user enters it (not itself an ARIA attribute, but the required native equivalent).
Column header <th>	scope="col"	Associates the header with every cell in its column, so jumping to any cell also announces the relevant column label.
Row header <th>	scope="row"	Associates the header with every cell in its row, giving row context (e.g. person's name) alongside any cell value.
Sortable column <th>	aria-sort="ascending" \| "descending" \| "none"	Communicates the column's current sort state. Lives on the header cell, updated dynamically as sort changes, never left stale.
Sort control	Real <button> inside the <th>, with a composed aria-label	Keeps the control keyboard-operable and gives it an unambiguous accessible name like "Sort by Name, currently sorted ascending" instead of just the icon or a bare column label.

Keyboard interaction model

Keyboard interaction model
Key	Behavior
`Tab / Shift+Tab`	Moves between interactive elements (sort buttons, any row action buttons) in reading order, normal document tab order, nothing custom.
`Enter / Space`	Activates the focused sort button, re-sorting the table and updating aria-sort.

A basic sortable table does not need arrow-key grid/cell navigation, that belongs to a spreadsheet-style ARIA grid pattern and is out of scope here. Testers should not expect arrow keys to move between cells in this pattern.

Focus management rules

Only interactive elements (sort buttons, row action buttons) are ever in the Tab order, static data cells are never focus stops.
Activating a sort button never moves focus away from that button, even though the row order changes underneath it.
Column header aria-sort and the button's accessible name are updated together, synchronously with the re-sort, so they never fall out of sync.

WCAG 2.2 success criteria mapping

WCAG 2.2 success criteria that apply to this component
SC	Name	Level	Why it applies
1.3.1	Info and Relationships	A	Structure and relationships conveyed visually are also programmatically determinable.
2.1.1	Keyboard	A	All functionality is operable through a keyboard interface with no specific timing.
4.1.2	Name, Role, Value	A	For all UI components, name, role, and value are programmatically determinable; states and changes are announced.
4.1.3	Status Messages	AA	Status messages can be programmatically determined via role or properties (e.g. aria-live) without receiving focus.

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