Links & buttons
Link text is a web address
WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (Level A)
- WCAG 2.2
- 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context)
- Level
- A
- Default severity
- Tip
- Available in
- Free
Updated for Lumtera 1.2.2 and Lumtera Pro 1.1.1.
Why does it matter?
A pasted address is read aloud symbol by symbol — "h t t p s colon slash slash…" — and says little about the page it leads to.
Who it affects: Screen reader users who browse by a list of links, keyboard users, and people using voice control who say a link's words to click it.
What does Lumtera flag?
Links whose visible text is a full web address with a path or query string. Short bare domains such as example.com are left alone.
Check ID link-url-as-text — use it to filter the content report or with wp lumtera issues --rule.
How do I fix it in WordPress?
Select the address in the editor and type words that describe the page instead, e.g. "Spring menu at Rosa's Café"; the link stays the same. If visitors need to see the address (for example in a printed handout), keep it but add the page name in front of it.
Example
<a href="https://example.com/2026/03/spring-menu/?ref=nav">https://example.com/2026/03/spring-menu/?ref=nav</a>
<a href="https://example.com/2026/03/spring-menu/?ref=nav">Spring menu at Rosa's Café</a>
How do I check the fix?
- Update the post. The issue disappears from the Lumtera Accessibility sidebar on the next check, and from the site report on the next scan.
- Press Tab through the page. Every link and button should receive visible focus, and its text should make sense read on its own.
Find this issue across your whole site
Lumtera runs this check in the block editor sidebar as you write, in the Elementor panel, in Review mode on the live page, and across the whole site in the content report and with wp lumtera scan. You can change its severity or turn it off in Lumtera → Settings.
Related checks
-
WCAG 2.4.4 · AError
Link has no text
-
WCAG 2.4.4 · ANeeds review
Link text is vague
-
WCAG 4.1.2 · ANeeds review
Link does not go anywhere
-
WCAG 3.2.5 · AAATip
Link opens a new tab without warning
-
WCAG 4.1.2 · AError
Button has no text
-
WCAG 2.4.4 · ANeeds review
Link opens a document file
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