2.5.7 Dragging Movements

What does it mean?

Dragging means pressing down, moving the pointer while holding it, and releasing at a target. Sortable lists, sliders, kanban boards, map panning and file uploads by drag and drop often depend on this. Many people find it hard or impossible to hold a pointer down while moving it accurately.

Every function that uses dragging must also work with simple single-pointer actions, such as tapping buttons, choosing from a menu or clicking a start and end point. This is separate from keyboard access (2.1.1): a keyboard alternative alone does not meet this criterion. Exceptions are dragging that is essential, and dragging handled by the browser that the author has not changed.

Who does it help?

• People with tremors or limited hand strength who cannot hold a pointer down while moving
• People using a head pointer, eye tracking or voice-controlled mouse grids
• People using a trackpad or touch screen in difficult conditions

Common failures

• A sortable list that can only be reordered by drag and drop
• A range slider with a custom handle that only moves by dragging
• A file upload area that accepts files only by drag and drop, without a "Choose file" button
• A map that can only be panned by dragging, with no arrow buttons

How we test it

• evidence Evidence: our scanner collects material such as screenshots, lists and measurements.

Test question: Everything done by dragging (sliders, sortable lists, maps) also works with single clicks.

A person decides every criterion. No criterion ever passes automatically.

How to fix it

<li draggable="true">Task A</li>
<li draggable="true">Task B</li>

<li>
  Task A
  <button type="button" aria-label="Move Task A up">↑</button>
  <button type="button" aria-label="Move Task A down">↓</button>
</li>

Drag and drop can stay, but each item also has buttons that move it with a single click or tap.

Practical tips

• For sliders, let users click or tap on the track to jump to a value, and add a number input beside it.
• Always pair drag-and-drop upload areas with a regular file input.

Official source

Understanding WCAG 2.2 at the W3C: 2.5.7 Dragging Movements