An interactive reference to an internal or external resource that, when activated, causes the user agent to navigate to that resource.

A link or hyperlink is a HTML element that connects one web page to another. Using the HTML < a> tag, the pages are linked with the "href" attribute. Screen readers are customized to recognize < a> and inform the user of the link along with the link text. However, by the introduction of web 2.0 technologies, any HTML element can be made clickable. This means that a link between two pages can be made without using the < a> tag.

Due to this advanced style of coding, users of screen readers will not recognize the link and will ignore the content of that page. Users who use only the keyboard will not be able to focus on this element.

To bridge this gap, ARIA introduces link (role). In the < span> or < div> where you use the clickable functionality just add role=”link”. Now your screen reader will recognize the element as a link. To gain keyboard focus to this element, add the "tabindex" attribute.The look and feel of a link can be customized with CSS.

Example

<span role="link" tabindex="0" onClick="somefunction()">ARIA role with link</span>

If this is a native link in the host language (such as an HTML anchor with an href value), activating the link causes the user agent to navigate to that resource. If this is a simulated link, the web application author is responsible for managing navigation.

Note: If pressing the link triggers an action but does not change browser focus or page location, authors are advised to consider using the button role instead of the link role.