Orientation - Success Criterion 1.3.4 (Level AA)

Question

Does your site or application allow users to choose the display orientation (landscape or portrait) of content on their device?

Why is this important?

People with disabilities such as visual and mobility impairments, may rely on a specific orientation (portrait or landscape) on their device. If a site or application is not responsive to both, the content display may not be rendered as intended. This may make it difficult or even impossible to read or operate information displayed on the screen.

Whom does it benefit?

Example 1

As a person with low vision who relies on enlarged text,
I want the content on my iPad to automatically display in a landscape orientation
so that I can read large text on the screen without a lot of scrolling.

Example 2

As a person with dexterity impairments, it is difficult to hold my mobile phone.
I want to mount and lock my device in a landscape orientation
so that I can have all content display appropriately without removing the phone from its mount.

What should you do?

Ensure users can choose the display orientation (landscape or portrait) for their content. Exceptions are cases where an orientation is essential to view or operation, such as bank checks, piano applications, etc.

How do you do it?

Make sure that content and operational display are not restricted to portrait or landscape
Build your site or application to automatically adapt to the orientation of the user’s device.