WCAG 3.2.6 Consistent Help

Success criterion 3.2.6 is new in WCAG 2.2. It helps people who need help to finish a task — often people with cognitive or learning disabilities — find it without searching. If the "Contact us" link sits in the header on product pages but at the bottom of the footer in checkout, the moment someone needs it most is when it is hardest to find. It is level A and appears in EN 301 549 as clause 9.3.2.6.

What the criterion requires

If a web page contains any of these help mechanisms, and they are repeated on multiple pages within a set of web pages, they must occur in the same order relative to other page content, unless the user initiates a change:

• human contact details — phone number, email address, opening hours;
• a human contact mechanism — chat, contact form, messaging or social media channel;
• a self-help option — an FAQ, help centre or support page;
• a fully automated contact mechanism — a chatbot.

Help may be on the page itself or reached through a direct link. "Same order" is judged by how the content is ordered when the page is serialised (the order in the code), not by pixel position; the layout may differ between page variations such as phone and desktop widths.

What it does not require: offering help at all, putting help on every page, a human being available at all times, or contextual help inside forms (that is 3.3.5, level AAA).

Typical failures on an online shop

• the contact link sits in the header on most pages but is moved below the order summary in checkout;
• the chat widget loads on product pages but the FAQ link moves from the header to the footer on blog pages;
• landing pages built with a page builder place the contact block in a different position in the code;
• a help link inside the account area comes before the main navigation, while elsewhere it comes after.

How to check it

Automated: our checker has no rule for this criterion; it needs a manual check.

By hand: list the help mechanisms on the site. Open home, category, product, cart, checkout, account and content pages. For each, note what comes before and after each help item, in reading order (press Tab or read the page with styles off). The help items should sit between the same neighbours on every page. Repeat at phone width.

How to fix it

• Put contact details and the help link in a shared header or footer component.
• If checkout uses a reduced layout, keep the help link in the same relative place as in the main layout.
• Load the chat widget at the same point in the page on every template.

Related criteria

• 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation — repeated navigation in the same order.
• 3.3.7 Redundant Entry — another new 2.2 criterion that reduces effort.
• WCAG 2.2 checklist — the new criteria in context.

Frequently asked questions

Does WCAG 3.2.6 require a contact page or chat?

No. It does not require any help to be offered. It only applies when a help mechanism such as contact details, a contact form, an FAQ link or a chatbot is repeated on several pages.

Does the help link have to be in the same visual position?

The test is the order relative to other page content, as the content is serialised in the code. The visual position may differ between page variations such as mobile and desktop layouts.

Which help mechanisms are covered?

Human contact details (phone, email, hours), a human contact mechanism (chat, contact form, social channel), a self-help option (FAQ, help page) and a fully automated contact mechanism (chatbot).

Can an automated tool check consistent help?

No. Our checker has no rule for 3.2.6. You compare where help appears across page types by hand.