Why Webflow Forms Fail Accessibility & How I Fixed Mine

Why Accessible Forms Matter More Than You Think

Let’s be real: most websites exist to get people to take action—whether that’s to make a purchase, request a quote, sign up for a service, or join a newsletter. And all of those actions have one thing in common: they end in a form.

Forms are conversion tools.
Forms are communication bridges.
Forms are the final step in your user's journey.

So why are they so often neglected?

Forms Are One of the Most Misunderstood UX Components

Most designers focus on visual polish. Most developers focus on functionality. But form usability—especially for people with disabilities—falls through the cracks. And it's costing you conversions, users, and trust.

Even users without disabilities find forms confusing, overwhelming, or frustrating. Now imagine navigating those same forms with a screen reader, or relying solely on a keyboard, or having ADHD and facing 12 ungrouped radio buttons with no explanation.

We’re not talking about edge cases. We’re talking about millions of people who are being left behind by poorly built forms.

Research-Backed Proof: Forms Are a UX Nightmare

• Baymard Institute reports that 69.2% of users abandon online forms before completing them—often because of poor usability or unclear validation feedback.
• WebAIM’s screen reader survey shows that forms are among the most problematic areas for screen reader users on the web.
• NNGroup has repeatedly emphasized the UX pitfalls of forms, especially when errors are not announced clearly, and when instructions aren't visible from the start. Read their article: Placeholders in Form Fields Are Harmful.

The common denominator? Forms are hard.
And accessible forms are even harder—but they are non-negotiable.

⚠️ Are Webflow Forms Accessible by Default?

Short answer: No.

Webflow’s built-in form system relies entirely on HTML5 default validation. That means your forms are getting all their error handling, field format requirements, and focus behavior from the browser—not from carefully structured, semantic, or inclusive code.

What’s Wrong with HTML5 Validation?

HTML5 form validation can feel magical to newer developers—it adds required fields, gives you instant warnings, and prevents submissions when data is invalid.

But under the surface, it has significant limitations when it comes to accessibility and WCAG conformance:

❌ It’s Inconsistent Across Browsers

• The appearance, timing, and behavior of native validation messages vary wildly between Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Edge.
• Some browsers show tooltips. Others announce nothing.
• There’s no consistency in how errors are presented, and no way to standardize the experience for users.

❌ It Doesn’t Respect Field Associations

Validation messages are not programmatically tied to the input field in error. That means:

• Screen readers don’t announce the error in context
• Users don’t know which field the error refers to
• There’s no use of aria-describedby to link errors and inputs

This breaks key WCAG criteria around 1.3.1 Info and Relationships, and leaves screen reader users guessing.

❌ The Error Messages Disappear

HTML5 validation messages are temporary and transient. They disappear as soon as the user interacts with the form again, even if the error isn’t fixed. This:

• Leaves users confused
• Offers no persistent visual feedback
• Fails WCAG success criteria related to perceivability and error identification

❌ No Feedback on Format Requirements

For inputs like email, phone number, or date, the browser checks for format behind the scenes—but rarely explains what the expected format is. Users are left to guess why their input was rejected.

This is especially problematic for neurodivergent users, users with cognitive disabilities, and anyone who doesn’t follow rigid formatting conventions without explicit instruction.

❌ You Can’t Reliably Style the Messages

Want to add an error icon or animation for visual users? Want to include helpful hints in red text or place messages above the field? Too bad.

❌ It Offers No Support for Checkbox/Radio Groups

HTML5 validation treats each checkbox or radio input independently, with no understanding of grouped questions. This means:

• Required groups don’t get flagged correctly
• There’s no way to use <fieldset> and <legend> meaningfully
• Users may skip essential questions without even knowing they were required

❌ It Often Obscures Other Content

On mobile devices and smaller screens, validation messages often obscure other inputs or content on the page, which leads to frustration and prevents users from correcting their inputs easily.

Accessible ≠ WCAG Conformant: Know the Difference

This part confuses many developers, so let’s clarify:

Accessible

A form is accessible when it is usable by real people equally. That means:

• Persistently visible labels
• Clear instructions when needed
• Proper keyboard navigation
• Error messages that make sense to screen reader users
• Logical focus order and interaction
• No confusing patterns like “Submit” buttons that disable themselves without feedback

WCAG Conformant

A form is WCAG conformant when it passes the success criteria in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). This includes:

• Labels and instructions (SC 3.3.2)
• Error suggestions (SC 3.3.3)
• Error prevention (SC 3.3.4)
• Color contrast (SC 1.4.3)
• Focus indicators (SC 2.4.7)
• Info and Relationships (SC 1.3.1)

👉 You can have a form that technically passes WCAG but is still frustrating to use. Conformance is the baseline—usability is the goal.

My Experience Working with Webflow Forms for 3+ Years

I’ve spent years wrestling with form validation inside Webflow—auditing and building forms for banks, nonprofits, and service-based businesses. I've seen it all and here’s what I’ve learned:

• Webflow’s native form system is not accessible.
  Out of the box, it doesn’t meet basic WCAG requirements for labels, errors, or focus handling.
• HTML5 validation looks helpful, but breaks down fast.
  It's inconsistent, inaccessible, and doesn’t support real control over error messaging or grouping.
• Custom validation requires full control over structure and logic.
  WCAG-compliant forms need semantic HTML, ARIA support, and custom JavaScript for real feedback.
• Overriding Webflow’s default submit behavior is frustrating.
  The native form handler often interferes with custom validation scripts, making overrides harder than they should be.
• Disabling the submit button was my go-to fix—but it created more harm than good.
  It blocks users from discovering what went wrong, especially those using assistive tech, and can easily trap keyboard users.

🔥 The Submit Button Dilemma: Why I Kept Disabling It—And Why I Finally Stopped

For the past few years, I’ve been disabling Submit buttons on Webflow forms as a way to control client-side validation. It felt like a necessary workaround—especially given the platform’s limitations around native error handling.

I read Adrian Roselli’s article last year (2024). I agreed with everything he said. But I didn’t have a better solution—so I kept doing what I was doing: disabling the button, adding a few inline messages, and hoping that was “good enough.”

More recently, I started digging into Adam Silver’s blog. His writing really caught my attention. His approach is focused, thoughtful, and deeply practical. I’ve learned so much just from reading.

I even asked Adam to review one of my forms. And—no surprise—he was not a fan of the disabled submit button. I gave him the same answer I’ve told myself for years:
“Well, this is the best I can do in Webflow.”

But here’s the truth: that wasn’t an honest answer.
I could do better—and now, I am doing better.

Thanks to what I’ve learned (and finally accepted), I am now building forms that no longer rely on disabled buttons. Instead, they offer:

• Real-time, accessible error messaging
• Inline feedback tied to each field
• Active Submit buttons with graceful, informative error handling

It took time to admit that what I was doing wasn’t working. But this shift has been freeing—and far more aligned with my commitment to accessibility and user-centered design.

I’m grateful for the honesty of experts like Adam Silver and Adrian Roselli. They challenged me to rethink my approach—and pushed me toward building a solution that actually works for everyone.

A Real Solution: The Graceful Web Forms Validation in Action

After years of workarounds, I’ve finally implemented a custom form validation solution tailored for Webflow—one that checks all the boxes for usability, accessibility, and WCAG conformance.

This is the Graceful Web Forms solution, and it’s now live on my own website:

• My Request a Project Quote form
• My Contact form, which opens in a slide-out dialog from the navigation menu

Both forms use accessible inline error messaging, proper field associations, keyboard-friendly interaction, and support for checkbox and radio groups—all built with real users in mind. I even fixed the non-existent Webflow <fieldset> and <legend> issue with another bit of scripting!

What’s Next?

This solution is now going to be rolled out to all of my current clients. They’ll be the first to have Graceful Web Forms implemented across their websites if they choose to upgrade.

Next, I’m exploring how to share this with the wider Webflow community. I’m currently evaluating:

• Creating a Relume component library of pre-built, WCAG-conformant form layouts
• Packaging the solution into a Webflow app that simplifies adding accessible form validation without needing external scripts

🌱 Stay Tuned…

Accessible forms aren’t just a feature—they’re a responsibility. And now that I’ve built something better, I’m committed to bringing it to more teams, businesses, and creators.

Let’s make inclusive form design the standard.
Let’s build forms that work—for everyone.

Let’s Bloom with Grace.