Non-empty <td> elements must have a table header

Critical1.3.1AXE · td-has-headerDocs

Pages 4on W3C BAD Demo

Elements 10

Open 21d 23hsince 08.09.26

First seen 08.09.26

Last seen 08.09.26

Every data cell in a large table must be associated with headers.

Scanner evidence

Engine: axeRule: td-has-headerWCAG: 1.3.1

Ensure that each non-empty data cell in a <table> larger than 3 by 3 has one or more table headers

How to fix

Fix all of the following: Some non-empty data cells do not have table headers

Affected pages (4)

Affected elements (10)

https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/reports/home.html4

```
<table id="p" class="report script_on">
```
#p
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/reports/home.html
```
<table id="o" class="report script_on">
```
#o
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/reports/home.html
```
<table id="u" class="report script_on">
```
#u
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/reports/home.html

https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/after/reports/home.html4

```
<table id="p" class="report script_on">
```
#p
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/after/reports/home.html
```
<table id="o" class="report script_on">
```
#o
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/after/reports/home.html
```
<table id="u" class="report script_on">
```
#u
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/after/reports/home.html

https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/survey.html1

```
<table width="500" border="0" cellspacing="2" cellpadding="0">
```
table[width="500"]
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/survey.html

https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/tickets.html1

```
<table width="600px" cellspacing="0" class="prices">
```
.prices
on https://www.w3.org/WAI/demos/bad/before/tickets.html

AI guidance

Remediation suggestions generated by AI. Review before applying.

Why this matters: Screen reader users cannot understand table structure or locate data when cells lack associated headers, making the table unusable for navigation and comprehension.

Before

<table id="p" class="report script_on">
  <tr>
    <td>January</td>
    <td>1,250</td>
    <td>88%</td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>February</td>
    <td>1,400</td>
    <td>92%</td>
  </tr>
</table>

After

<table id="p" class="report script_on">
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Month</th>
      <th>Revenue</th>
      <th>Growth</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>January</td>
      <td>1,250</td>
      <td>88%</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>February</td>
      <td>1,400</td>
      <td>92%</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Notes: Replace <td> with <th> for header cells and wrap header rows in <thead>. If row or column headers exist in non-first positions, use scope="row" or scope="col" attributes on <th> elements, or use id/headers attributes for complex tables. Apply this pattern consistently across all three affected tables (#p, #o, #u).

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