Form Control Labeling Technique Summary

label elements

• Labels are visible
• Should be first choice for backward compatibility support
• Increases selection area for moving focus or toggling the state of a form control

title attribute

• Labels are hidden, except many browsers generate a popup tooltip when user hovers pointer over form control
• Backward compatibility support

ARIA 1.0 aria-labelledby attribute

• Complex form labeling, where label text is visible on the page
• Require creating ids and idrefs
• Can be used to retrofit form controls without labels, without affecting visual rendering

ARIA 1.0 aria-label attribute

• Labeling text is not visible
• Can be used to retrofit form controls without labels, without affecting visual rendering

HTML5 placeholder attribute

• Avoid use for form control labeling
• Used for both labeling and example input, so it is in a gray area of accessibility right now
• Compatibility issues