Do not nest layout tables

Rule ID Layout 2
Definition Tables must not be nested for layout of content.
Purpose
  • The sequence of content (i.e. order) in the document code affects its meaning, nesting layout tables often makes the sequence of content less understandable.
Required No for HTML4 Legacy Techniques ruleset mapping
WCAG Success Criteria

1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence (Level A, Primary Success Criterion)

Rule Category Styling/Content
Scope Element
Target Resources table elements used for layout
  • table
Techniques
  • Use CSS and web standards techniques for the coding of content, and the graphical styling and positioning of content.
  • Avoid using table markup for graphical layout, if you do use tables for layout make sure the content still is meaningful when the table markup is disabled.
  • Avoid using nested tables for layout, the deeper the level of nesting the more chance there of having a confusing sequence of content.
  • Tables that are used for layout should use only tr and td elements, and the table, tr and td elements should have a role="presentation" attribute to clearly indicate the table markup is being used for layout.
Informational Links