Design Principle
A visually small control does not need a tiny hit area; targets require stable size and clear feedback.
Principle
A visually small control does not need a tiny hit area; targets require stable size and clear feedback.
Design action
Give interactive targets stable minimum sizes; icon buttons need tooltips or aria-labels, and mobile needs larger spacing and hit zones.
Examples
Positive example: Toolbars, table actions, mobile navigation, and card actions. Counterexample: Tiny icons sit too close together.
Apply when
Toolbars, table actions, mobile navigation, and card actions. Icon buttons or dense controls are used.
Source notes
Source note: Synthesized from W3C WCAG 2.2, Apple Accessibility, IBM Carbon Accessibility, and accessibility practices in major design systems. WCAG 2.2: https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG22/ WCAG Contrast Minimum: https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG21/Understanding/contrast-minimum.html WCAG Non-text Contrast: https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG22/Understanding/non-text-contrast.html Apple HIG Accessibility: https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/accessibility Carbon Accessibility Overview: https://carbondesignsystem.com/guidelines/accessibility/overview/
Agent Directive
Give interactive targets stable minimum sizes; icon buttons need tooltips or aria-labels, and mobile needs larger spacing and hit zones.