HTML autocomplete attribute

Detailed explanation

WCAG 2.1 SC 1.3.5 (Identify Input Purpose) at Level AA requires user-input fields collecting information about the user to use the corresponding autocomplete value. The full list of standardized values is in the HTML Living Standard (name, email, tel, street-address, postal-code, cc-number, bday-day, etc.).

Misusing or omitting autocomplete increases typing burden for everyone and disproportionately harms users with motor or cognitive disabilities who depend on autofill. The common anti-pattern is autocomplete="off" on signup forms to "discourage password managers" — this is a 1.3.5 violation and a usability regression.

How this applies to Shopify stores

Shopify-managed checkout and merchant-controlled theme or custom-storefront forms have different ownership and edit paths. AccessComply can report selected missing or invalid autocomplete findings on reached pages and present an eligible safely source-mapped candidate for merchant approval; selecting the correct token requires knowing the field's purpose.

What merchants should check next

Treat this term as a practical audit prompt, not just a definition. Check the storefront pages where the concept shows up in real customer journeys: product discovery, add-to-cart, cart drawer, checkout handoff, account login, and support contact flows. If the issue affects code, verify the rendered HTML and computed browser output after the theme change. If it affects copy or media, keep the merchant-facing wording accurate and easy to maintain.

Primary source: html.spec.whatwg.org