Target Size (Minimum)

What it requires

WCAG 2.2 introduced this criterion specifically for mobile and touch interfaces. The 24×24 CSS-pixel threshold prevents users with motor impairments or imprecise touch input from missing controls.

Exceptions: inline text links inside a paragraph, controls that have an equivalent larger target elsewhere on the page, controls in user-customized layouts.

Common Shopify failure

Mobile-nav hamburger and cart icons rendered at 16×16. Quantity steppers (+/-) on cart drawer at 18×18. Cookie banner close button at 14×14.

How to fix it

Increase the interactive hit area or spacing so the rendered target meets the applicable WCAG 2.2 requirement, then verify it at each responsive breakpoint. Inline and other documented exceptions still need case-by-case review.

Merchant QA checklist

• Scan the storefront page where this pattern appears: product pages, collection pages, cart drawer, customer-account pages, and any landing page built with theme sections.
• Confirm the issue is fixed in the rendered browser output, not only in the Liquid file. Shopify section settings, app blocks, and third-party scripts can reintroduce the same 2.5.8 failure after a theme edit.
• Re-test the affected component with keyboard navigation and a screen-reader accessibility tree before publishing the theme, especially when the fix changes markup or ARIA attributes.

How AccessComply handles it

AccessComply uses automated rules to check supported patterns in the pages reached during a scan. Some WCAG requirements need human judgment, assistive-technology testing, or access to third-party content and cannot be established by an automated scan. This criterion is generally treated as a guided or hands-on fix pattern. If the app can safely match the issue to supported source code, nothing is written until the merchant says yes (one confirmation for the run, or change by change), and the result is checked afterward. Otherwise the merchant should use the guidance above and independent hands-on testing. The label is not a guarantee of detection, a fix, WCAG conformance, or legal compliance.

Primary source: W3C, Understanding WCAG 2.2 2.5.8