Bad value “nope” for attribute “autocomplete” on element “input”: The string “nope” is not a valid autofill field name.

The autocomplete attribute tells the browser how to handle autofill for a form field. The HTML specification defines a strict set of valid values, which include "on", "off", and a list of autofill field names such as "username", "new-password", "cc-number", "postal-code", and many others. When you use a value that isn’t in this list — such as "nope", "false", "none", or any other made-up string — the W3C validator reports it as an invalid autofill field name.

A common reason developers use values like "nope" is as a workaround because some browsers historically ignored autocomplete="off". In older versions of Chrome and Firefox, the browser would still show autofill suggestions even when off was set, so developers discovered that using an unrecognized value like "nope" effectively tricked the browser into not showing suggestions. While this hack may have worked in practice, it produces invalid HTML and is not a reliable long-term solution since browser behavior around unrecognized values can change at any time.

Why this matters

• Standards compliance: Invalid attribute values make your HTML non-conforming, which can cause issues with tooling, testing pipelines, and accessibility auditors.
• Accessibility: Screen readers and assistive technologies rely on valid autocomplete values to help users fill in forms. Using a correct autofill field name like "given-name" or "email" can significantly improve the experience for users with disabilities. In fact, WCAG 2.1 Success Criterion 1.3.5 specifically recommends using valid autocomplete values for fields that collect user information.
• Browser behavior: Modern browsers have improved their handling of autocomplete="off". Using the standard value is now more reliable than it once was, and using it correctly ensures predictable behavior across browsers.

How to fix it

1. To disable autocomplete, replace the invalid value with "off".
2. To enable smart autofill, use the appropriate autofill field name from the HTML specification’s list of autofill field names. This is the preferred approach for most user-facing forms.
3. For new passwords (e.g., registration or password-change forms), use "new-password" — this tells the browser to suggest a generated password rather than filling in a saved one.

Examples

Invalid: made-up autocomplete value

<input type="text" name="firstName" autocomplete="nope">

Other common invalid values that trigger the same error include "false", "none", "disable", and "no".

Fixed: disabling autocomplete with "off"

<input type="text" name="firstName" autocomplete="off">

Fixed: using a valid autofill field name

Using a specific autofill field name is often better than "off" because it helps browsers and assistive technologies understand the purpose of the field:

<input type="text" name="firstName" autocomplete="given-name">

Fixed: common valid autocomplete values in a form

<form method="post" action="/register">
  <label for="name">Full Name</label>
  <input type="text" id="name" name="name" autocomplete="name">

  <label for="email">Email</label>
  <input type="email" id="email" name="email" autocomplete="email">

  <label for="newpass">Password</label>
  <input type="password" id="newpass" name="password" autocomplete="new-password">

  <label for="tel">Phone</label>
  <input type="tel" id="tel" name="phone" autocomplete="tel">

  <button type="submit">Register</button>
</form>

Some of the most commonly used valid values include: "name", "given-name", "family-name", "email", "username", "new-password", "current-password", "street-address", "postal-code", "country", "tel", "cc-number", and "organization". Refer to the full list in the HTML specification for all available options.

Learn more:

WHATWG Spec

HTML Spec: autocomplete

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