Published October 14, 2026

WCAG 1.4.4 Resize Text, Level AA

Does WCAG require text to resize to 200%?

Yes. Success criterion 1.4.4 Resize Text is Level AA. Except for captions and images of text, text can be resized without assistive technology up to 200% without loss of content or functionality. The criterion does not require a text-size button on the page. It requires that text can get to twice its size and that the page still works. The text is in the W3C WCAG 2.2 Recommendation.

What does resizing to 200% require?

Twice the width and twice the height. Headings, paragraphs, links, and text labels on controls are included. Captions and images of text are excepted from this criterion. If the steps between 100% and 200% clip or hide something, that step fails too. The W3C explanation is in Understanding Success Criterion 1.4.4. The documented failure is text, images, or controls that are clipped, truncated, or obscured at 200%, listed as technique F69. Text contrast is a separate check, covered on the color contrast page.

Does a text-size button meet the criterion?

A button can be one way to meet it. It is not required. The usual sufficient technique is to use a technology whose browsers support zoom, and to not block that zoom. It is documented as technique G142. A viewport setting that disables scaling, such as user-scalable=no, takes that mechanism away. A widget that only changes a font on part of the page, while the rest clips, does not satisfy 1.4.4. An overlay toolbar is not a substitute for the success criteria, which is covered on the overlays page.

How is reflow different from 200% resize?

Success criterion 1.4.10 Reflow is also Level AA, and it was added in WCAG 2.1. For content that scrolls vertically, it must be presentable at a width of 320 CSS pixels without loss of information or functionality, and without scrolling in two directions. Note 1 in the criterion says 320 CSS pixels is a starting viewport of 1280 CSS pixels wide at 400% zoom. The text is in the WCAG 2.2 Recommendation, and the explanation is in Understanding Success Criterion 1.4.10. A page can meet 1.4.4 at 200% and still fail 1.4.10 if lines of text run off the side at that narrower width. The full answer for reflow is on the reflow page. Whether larger line and letter spacing clips text is on the text spacing page. Which version added 1.4.10 is on the WCAG 2.1 vs 2.2 page. Target size is measured in CSS pixels and does not change with zoom, which is a different rule, covered on the target size page.

What content may scroll in two directions?

Parts of the content that need a two-dimensional layout for use or meaning. The criterion’s note lists images needed for understanding, such as maps and diagrams, plus video, games, presentations, data tables, and interfaces where a toolbar has to stay in view while the person works. The rest of the page still has to reflow. A data table may scroll in two directions. The text inside each cell still has to meet the criterion. Responsive layouts that stack sections into one column are a common way to meet 1.4.10, as long as the content and the controls are still available.

Does the Title II web rule include these criteria?

Yes. The Department of Justice rule for state and local government websites names WCAG 2.1 Level AA. That level includes 1.4.4 and 1.4.10. Who must comply, and the April 2027 and April 2028 dates, are on the Title II web rule page. A scanner can see a viewport that blocks zoom, and it can sometimes see overflow that clips text. It cannot decide whether a person can still use every control after the page is enlarged. Those checks are done by a person, which is why a passing score is not conformance, as covered on the scanner page. The fix belongs in the layout, which is remediation.