Page titles are clear and descriptive

WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.4.2 requires that web pages have descriptive titles that identify their purpose — this is a Level A requirement, meaning it applies to all conformance levels including Section 508 compliance. Vague page titles like "Home" or framework defaults like "Create Next App" break screen reader navigation (users tab through open tabs by title), degrade search engine indexing, and prevent bookmark identification. For government sites with dozens of service pages, non-descriptive titles make the site unusable for the blind users who rely on page title as their primary navigation landmark.

Export a metadata object from every page file. Use the pattern "Page Name | Agency Name" so titles are unique and scannable. Target under 70 characters total.

// app/about/page.tsx
export const metadata = {
  title: 'About the Department of Example | Agency Name',
  description: 'Learn about our mission, leadership, and organizational structure.',
}

// app/services/benefits/page.tsx
export const metadata = {
  title: 'Benefits Programs | Agency Name',
}

Avoid generic titles on any page: "Page", "Home", "Services", or any framework default are all failures. Run a title audit across all routes by grepping for title: in page files and confirming each is unique and descriptive.

• ID: gov-web-standards.plain-language.page-titles

• Severity: medium

• What to look for: Examine the <title> tag and H1 heading on each main page (home, about, contact, policies). Enumerate all page titles found and for each, quote the exact title text. Titles should clearly describe the page content without jargon.

• Pass criteria: At least 90% of page titles are descriptive and match the page content. A visitor can infer what the page is about from the title alone. Each title should be no more than 70 characters.

• Fail criteria: Titles are vague ("Page 1", "Section A") or use unexplained jargon. A title that only contains the framework default (e.g., "Create Next App") does not count as pass.

• Skip (N/A) when: Never — all pages should have clear titles.

• Detail on fail: "Home page title is 'Home' — too generic. Contact page title is 'Contact Us | Agency' — good. About page title is 'Org Structure Summary' — uses jargon" or "Multiple pages share identical title 'Site'"

• Remediation: Use descriptive, jargon-free page titles:

  // app/about/page.tsx
  export const metadata = {
    title: 'About Our Agency | Agency Name',
  }