<blink> elements are deprecated and must not be used

The <blink> element was once used to draw attention to content by making it flash repeatedly. While it may have seemed like an eye-catching effect, it creates serious accessibility barriers for multiple groups of users. The element has been deprecated from the HTML specification, and although most modern browsers no longer render the blinking effect, the element should still be removed from your markup to ensure compliance and avoid issues in any environment that might still support it.

Why this is an accessibility problem

Blinking content affects several groups of users:

• Users with cognitive disabilities may find blinking text distracting or incomprehensible. The constant flashing can make it very difficult to focus on and understand the content.
• Users with low vision struggle to read text that appears and disappears rapidly. The intermittent visibility makes the content effectively unreadable.
• Users with motor disabilities may have difficulty clicking on blinking links or buttons, since the target is not consistently visible and requires precise timing to activate.
• Users with photosensitive conditions can experience discomfort or, in extreme cases, seizures from flashing content, depending on the frequency.

This rule relates to WCAG 2.2 Success Criterion 2.2.2: Pause, Stop, Hide (Level A), which requires that for any moving, blinking, or scrolling content that starts automatically and lasts more than five seconds, users must be able to pause, stop, or hide it. Since the <blink> element provides no mechanism for users to control the flashing, it fails this criterion outright.

This rule also applies to Section 508 §1194.22(j), which states that pages must be designed to avoid causing the screen to flicker with a frequency greater than 2 Hz and lower than 55 Hz.

How to fix it

1. Remove all <blink> elements from your HTML. Replace them with standard elements like <span>, <strong>, or <em>.
2. Remove text-decoration: blink; from your CSS, as this is the CSS equivalent of the <blink> element.
3. Use alternative emphasis techniques to make content stand out — bold text, color, larger font size, borders, background highlights, or icons.

Important: Many modern browsers silently ignore the <blink> element, so the text won’t visually blink even though the element is present in the source code. Don’t rely on how the page looks in the browser to determine whether <blink> tags exist. Always check the actual HTML source.

Examples

Incorrect: using the <blink> element

<p><blink>Moving Sale Thursday!</blink></p>

This causes the text to flash on and off (in browsers that support it), making it inaccessible.

Incorrect: using text-decoration: blink in CSS

<style>
  .attention {
    text-decoration: blink;
  }
</style>
<h2 class="attention">Limited Time Offer!</h2>

The CSS text-decoration: blink value achieves the same inaccessible effect as the <blink> element.

Correct: using static visual emphasis

<p><strong>Moving Sale Thursday!</strong></p>

Using <strong> makes the text bold and conveys emphasis to screen readers without any flashing.

Correct: using CSS for visual emphasis without blinking

<style>
  .highlight {
    background-color: #fff3cd;
    border-left: 4px solid #ffc107;
    padding: 8px 12px;
    font-weight: bold;
  }
</style>
<p class="highlight">Limited Time Offer!</p>

This draws attention to the content using color, a border, and bold text — all without any flashing or blinking, keeping the content readable and accessible for everyone.

Learn more:

Deque Reference

Deque University - How To Fix

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W3C Reference

WCAG 2.1 - Failure of Success Criterion 2.2.2 due to using blink

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