Design Principle
Placeholders are useful for examples, not as the only instruction or critical guidance.
Principle Placeholders are useful for examples, not as the only instruction or critical guidance.
Design action Use label for field name, help text for rules, and placeholder only for short examples; keep rules visible when errors appear.
Examples Positive example: Fields need format examples, search hints, or short prompts but have high error risk. Counterexample: Placeholder contains the full rule.
Apply when Fields need format examples, search hints, or short prompts but have high error risk. Users need to judge state, scope, risk, or next action quickly.
Source notes Source note: Synthesized from W3C WCAG 2.2, Apple Accessibility, IBM Carbon Accessibility, and accessibility practices in major design systems.
Agent Directive
Use label for field name, help text for rules, and placeholder only for short examples; keep rules visible when errors appear.