Web projects
Write button labels that describe their action
By SI100x · Published
A label such as Submit can be technically correct but unclear in context. A useful button label tells the user what will happen next and helps distinguish several nearby actions.
Try this exercise
- List the actions on a practice page and rewrite each label using a concrete verb. Compare Reserve a demo, Save draft and Send message with a repeated Submit label.
- Give icon-only buttons accessible names. Mark decorative arrows and icons as decorative so they do not create confusing duplicate announcements.
- Check pending and completed states. The label should describe the current action or result without claiming success before the operation finishes.
Check your result
Read the page’s buttons without the surrounding text and see whether their purpose is clear. Use consistent wording for the same action across desktop, mobile and error recovery.
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