1.4.12 Text Spacing

1. What is the goal of this criterion?

Imagine trying to read a book where the words are squeezed together like commuters on a rush-hour train. For some people, that’s everyday life on the web – text without enough spacing makes reading a struggle.

People with dyslexia, low vision or cognitive disabilities often need more space between lines, words and letters to read text well. The goal of Success Criterion 1.4.12 is to make sure users can adjust text spacing to their needs without content disappearing or functionality breaking.

2. What exactly does it require?

Put simply, your website must keep working when users change text spacing with their own stylesheets, browser extensions or other tools. All of the following values must be able to be set at the same time without loss of content or functionality:

• Line height: at least 1.5 times the font size
• Spacing after paragraphs: at least 2 times the font size
• Letter spacing: at least 0.12 times the font size
• Word spacing: at least 0.16 times the font size

Important: you don’t have to use these values by default! The point is that your layout mustn’t fall apart when someone applies them – for example because text gets clipped, overlaps or disappears behind other elements.

Exception: languages and scripts that don’t use some of these properties only need to support the properties relevant to them.

3. Why does it matter for accessibility?

Imagine wanting to read an important article, but the text is so densely packed that you keep losing your line or the letters blur together. That’s what many people experience on the web every day.

Adjustable text spacing makes content accessible because it:

• Helps people with dyslexia, for whom wider letter and word spacing can make reading easier
• Supports people with low vision who need more space between lines and words
• Makes orientation easier for people with cognitive disabilities because blocks of text are more clearly separated
• Makes reading easier for older people, who often benefit from more spacing
• Helps everyone in difficult reading situations – such as poor lighting or tired eyes

The criterion complements Visual Presentation at Level AAA, which also aims to make generous spacing adjustable.

4. How to meet the criterion

The good news: flexible, responsive layouts often meet this criterion to a large extent already. Problems usually come from fixed heights and clipped containers. Here are the most important tips:

Flexible layouts are your friend:

• Use relative units (em, rem, %) instead of fixed pixel values
• Let containers grow with their content instead of forcing them into fixed sizes
• Avoid overflow: hidden on containers with text
• Don’t set fixed heights for text areas

Size containers correctly:

• Leave room for text that doesn’t wrap, for example in buttons, tabs and navigation items
• Use min-height instead of fixed height values
• Let Flexbox and CSS Grid do the work

Test with simple CSS rules: you can easily test your website by temporarily applying these CSS rules:

* {
  line-height: 1.5 !important;
  letter-spacing: 0.12em !important;
  word-spacing: 0.16em !important;
}
p {
  margin-bottom: 2em !important;
}

Then check every page template: is all text fully visible? Does anything overlap? Do all controls still work?

Testing tools:

• Browser extensions such as Stylus that let you inject your own CSS rules
• Your browser’s developer tools
• Text spacing bookmarklets that apply exactly these values with one click

What to avoid:

• Absolute positioning for text containers
• Fixed sizes that don’t grow with the content
• Nested containers that clip overflowing text

5. Why this criterion matters for businesses

Success Criterion 1.4.12 is another case where accessibility isn’t an end in itself – it brings real benefits for your business.

1. Reach a wider audience

Many people with dyslexia, low vision or declining eyesight adjust text spacing to read better. According to the WHO, around 1.3 billion people worldwide live with a significant disability, and many more have reading difficulties without a recognized disability. Flexible layouts don’t shut them out.

2. Improve robustness and flexibility

Layouts that can handle increased spacing are also better prepared for longer translations, different fonts and different devices. That saves rework with every new language or redesign.

3. Higher user satisfaction

When text is easier to read, people understand your content better – especially on text-heavy services such as online shops or information portals.

Last but not least: legal requirements. The European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882) has applied since 28 June 2025 to many consumer products and services, such as online shops; in Germany it is implemented by the Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz (BFSG). The technical benchmark is the harmonised standard EN 301 549, which references WCAG 2.1 Level AA for web content – and 1.4.12 is part of that. Public sector bodies are covered by the Web Accessibility Directive (EU) 2016/2102. This section is general information, not legal advice.

6. The success criterion in the W3C’s words

Success Criterion 1.4.12 Text Spacing (Level AA)

In content implemented using markup languages that support the following text style properties, no loss of content or functionality occurs by setting all of the following and by changing no other style property:

• Line height (line spacing) to at least 1.5 times the font size;
• Spacing following paragraphs to at least 2 times the font size;
• Letter spacing (tracking) to at least 0.12 times the font size;
• Word spacing to at least 0.16 times the font size.

Exception: Human languages and scripts that do not make use of one or more of these text style properties in written text can conform using only the properties that exist for that combination of language and script.

Note 1: Content is not required to use these text spacing values. The requirement is to ensure that when a user overrides the authored text spacing, content or functionality is not lost.

Note 2: Writing systems for some languages use different text spacing settings, such as paragraph start indent. Authors are encouraged to follow locally available guidance for improving readability and legibility of text in their writing system.

In short: when users increase line height and paragraph, letter and word spacing to the values given, no content or functionality may be lost.