![]() ![]() There is generally one good reason to open a page in a new window, and that is that the user will need to refer to that content in order to complete a task in another window. New windows or tabs are not inclusive for blind or low-vision users - especially when they open outside of the area that's magnified.New windows or tabs prevent the use of the Back button for returning to the previous page and force the user to spend effort to find their way back to the previous content.(On tablets, where users can have both multiple windows and tabs for the browser, it’s even more confusing.) Less-technical users struggle to manage multiple windows and tabs, especially on mobile.This problem is exacerbated on mobile, where the old window is never visible. New windows or tabs can cause disorientation, with users often not realizing that a new window or tab has opened.More windows or tabs increase the clutter of the user’s information space and require more effort to manage.All of these also apply to opening new browser tabs and are still valid today: There are a lot of ways to do this, but here’s one way.Since 1999, it's been a firm web-usability guideline to refrain from opening new browser windows for several reasons. The is styled to hide the text visually, but not from screen readers. If you don’t like the extra verbiage appearing in your links, then you can tweak things a bit to hide the message visually while keeping it available to screen readers (we’ll discuss adding a visual cue back in later in this article). The most straightforward way is to put a message in the link text. This helps keep your site predictable, which is important for accessibility. The important thing is to inform your users if a link will open in a new tab. I’m not here to judge, but I will help you make these links more accessible. Or maybe your boss/client is making you do it. Maybe you have one of those situations where a new tab is more accessible, as discussed earlier. I’m Doing It AnywayĪlright, let’s assume you still want to open links in a new tab. In other words, you can ignore this advice and still be fully WCAG 2.0 compliant. It’s also worth noting that the W3C’s advice against opening links in a new tab is expressed as an informative technique and not a success criteria. For example, a link on a page with a long form could open in a new tab so the user doesn’t lose any data they’ve entered. In some situations, navigating the current tab can be very disruptive, in which case opening a new tab is preferable. ![]() There are exceptions to the rule, though. They hit their trusty “back” keyboard shortcut to return to the previous page, but nothing happens. “In general, it is better not to open new windows and tabs since they can be disorienting for people, especially people who have difficulty perceiving visual content.”Ĭonsider a user that doesn’t know/understand that they’re now in a different tab. With regards to accessibility, the W3C recommends against opening links in a new tab. Instead, I want to focus on one particular reason to not open external links in a new tab: accessibility. They’ve got some good points, which I won’t rehash here. There are smart folks out there arguing against the idea, as you can see in this article by Chris Coyier and this article by Vitaly Friedman. I thought it was convention.īut not everyone agrees. I know I’m not alone here - many of my fellow web developers do this. If a link pointed to something not on the current domain, it got a target="_blank" slapped on it. Somewhere along the way, I learned to open external links in a new tab. ![]()
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