Resource guide
2.4.1 Bypass Blocks
A mechanism must exist to skip repeated blocks of content such as navigation menus.
By Calling All Minds·Last updated April 2026
Success criterion
Conformance level
Essential baseline — must meet for any compliance.
What it means
Keyboard users navigate a page sequentially. Without a skip mechanism, they must Tab through every navigation link and header on every page before reaching the main content. On a site with 40 navigation links, that is 40 Tab presses just to get to the first piece of content.
A skip link, placed at the very top of the page before any navigation, allows keyboard users to jump directly to the main content with a single Tab and Enter.
In practice
Add a skip link as the very first element inside the body tag: <a href="#main-content" class="skip-link">Skip to main content</a>.
The skip link can be visually hidden until it receives focus, as long as it becomes clearly visible when tabbed to.
The target anchor (#main-content) must exist and point to the start of the main content area.
On single-page applications, ensure skip links work after navigation events, not just on initial page load.
Common failures
- Page with no skip link and a long navigation menu at the top
- Skip link that is present in the HTML but invisible when focused (completely hidden, not just visually hidden off-screen)
- Skip link target that does not exist or does not move focus to the correct location
AXS Audit
AXS Audit checks your site against 2.4.1 and flags issues your team can act on straight away. It covers criteria that automated scanners often miss.