Itqualityassurance
- Should a disabled button be clickable?
- Are disabled buttons accessible?
- Why you shouldn't use disabled buttons?
- Should disabled button be focusable?
Should a disabled button be clickable?
A disabled button is unusable and un-clickable. The disabled attribute can be set to keep a user from clicking on the button until some other condition has been met (like selecting a checkbox, etc.).
Are disabled buttons accessible?
Imagine a form where the submit button is hidden and only visible when you completely fill out the form. That's what some people feel like when the disabled attribute is used. Fortunately, buttons with disabled are not totally unreachable by screen readers.
Why you shouldn't use disabled buttons?
Bad accessibility
Sometimes disabled buttons are designed in a way that they cannot be read by a screen reader (buttons are not focusable, and hence users can't reach them with a keyboard). No need to explain that users with disabilities will face problems with such behavior.
Should disabled button be focusable?
As Adam Silver notes in his excellent book “Form Design Patterns”, usually disabled buttons are not focusable and hence users can't reach them with a keyboard. The reason why we usually skip focus on these buttons is because they can't really be interacted with.
