Accessibility Guide

Squarespace Accessibility Guide

Squarespace provides beautiful templates but gives users limited control over the underlying HTML. This means accessibility fixes often require workarounds through custom code injection. Squarespace has improved their templates recently, but many older sites still have significant issues.

Common Squarespace accessibility issues

Decorative images without empty alt attributes

Squarespace sometimes adds alt text to decorative images that should have empty alt attributes, confusing screen readers.

moderate

Gallery blocks lack keyboard navigation

Image galleries and slideshows in Squarespace often can't be navigated with arrow keys or Tab.

serious

Form blocks missing proper labels

Squarespace form blocks sometimes use placeholder text instead of visible labels, which disappear on focus.

serious

Insufficient heading structure

Squarespace's visual editor lets users choose heading styles for appearance rather than semantic meaning, breaking document structure.

moderate

Hamburger menus not keyboard-accessible

Mobile navigation menus on Squarespace may not respond to Enter/Space keys or trap focus properly when open.

serious

How to fix Squarespace accessibility

Use Code Injection (Settings → Advanced) to add skip links and ARIA attributes

Always add alt text through the image editor — click the image, then edit in the design panel

Choose headings by semantic level, not visual size — use CSS to style them separately

Test on mobile with VoiceOver (iOS) to catch responsive accessibility issues

Consider adding an accessibility statement page linked from your footer

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