Mega Navigation

A mega navigation presents a large, multi-column dropdown from the site header, giving users a structured overview of available sections and pages.

Demo

Hover over or focus a top-level navigation item to open the mega panel. Use Tab to move between links inside the panel, and press Escape to close it and return focus to the trigger.

What to Observe

Top-level items open the mega panel when focused or activated by keyboard.
Focus moves into the panel automatically and cycles through all links in a logical order.
Pressing Escape closes the panel and returns focus to the item that opened it.
The expanded state of each trigger is communicated to screen readers via an attribute that toggles as the panel opens and closes.
Clicking or tabbing away from the open panel causes it to close without losing the user's place on the page.

Anatomy

[Anatomy image placeholder — will be added when assets are available]

Nav wrapper: The landmark element that wraps the entire navigation and provides a label for screen readers.
Top-level trigger: The button or link in the header bar that opens its associated mega panel when activated.
Mega panel: The large dropdown container holding grouped links, organized into columns or categories.
Column heading: A visible label that groups a set of related links within the panel.
Link list: The set of individual page or section links within each column of the panel.
Overlay / backdrop: An optional dimmed layer behind the panel that signals the rest of the page is temporarily inactive.

Accessibility Behavior

Each top-level trigger must communicate whether its panel is currently open or closed.
When a panel opens, keyboard focus must move into the panel so users do not have to Tab through the entire header to reach panel content.
Pressing Escape must close the open panel and return focus to the trigger that opened it.
All links within the panel must be reachable and activatable by keyboard alone.
The navigation landmark must have an accessible label so screen reader users can identify it in the page's landmark list.
Focus must not escape to the rest of the page while the mega panel is open.

Common Mistakes

Using a non-interactive element such as a div or span as the panel trigger instead of a button, which makes it unreachable by keyboard.
Forgetting to update the expanded/collapsed state on the trigger when the panel opens or closes.
Not returning focus to the trigger after the panel is closed with Escape, leaving keyboard users lost in the page.
Opening the panel on hover only, with no keyboard-accessible way to open it.
Omitting an accessible name on the navigation landmark, making it indistinguishable from other nav elements on the same page.

Why This Matters

Mega navigations are among the most complex interactive patterns on content-rich sites. When focus management is broken or triggers are mouse-only, keyboard users and screen reader users lose access to large portions of the site's structure. A user relying on a keyboard cannot browse categories, and a screen reader user receives no indication that an entire panel of links exists. Getting this pattern right ensures that everyone — regardless of input method — can navigate the full breadth of the site.

Accessibility Validation

This component is validated against internal accessibility criteria aligned with WCAG standards, using our internally developed system, Resonance Specs.

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