Making Your Website Dementia-friendly

Why This Matters

Long before my diagnosis, I had a career as a senior Consultant in Business Information Technology. I was a Technical Communicator and a member of the Institute of Scientific and Technical Communicators. I watched the Worldwide Web Consortium (W3c) develop its accessibility standards and provided input and feedback. I designed and created many websites based on their principles of Accessibility, Internationalisation, Privacy and Security, and I have seen that they work successfully.

Now, as a person living with dementia, I want to share my knowledge, augmented by the insights granted to me by the way that my dementia affects me.

I hope you find my insights useful.

Introduction

As web developers, we often focus on accessibility in terms of screen readers, keyboard navigation, or colour contrast—and that's essential. But there's a group of users we often overlook: people living with dementia.

Dementia affects memory, attention, language, and problem-solving. For someone experiencing cognitive challenges, a confusing website can quickly become overwhelming, frustrating, or completely unusable.

But here's the good news: with just a few thoughtful design choices, we can make the web more welcoming and supportive—not just for people with dementia, but for anyone who might be tired, stressed, or struggling to concentrate (and let's be honest, that's all of us at some point).

The checklist I've added is a practical, developer-friendly guide to designing digital spaces that are calmer, simpler, and easier to navigate. It's not about dumbing things down—it's about respecting attention, reducing friction, and building with empathy.

Please feel free to use and share it if you think it's useful.

A dementia-friendly website is also a better website—for everyone.

1. Keep It Simple, Stupid (a.k.a. the KISS Principle)

What it means: Avoid visual chaos. Limit distractions. No blinking unicorn banners or auto-play videos shouting into the void.

💡 Try this:

• Stick to a clean, consistent layout.

• Use large, readable fonts (16px minimum).

• High contrast between text and background.

• One clear idea per page or section.
  

2. Make Navigation simple and intuitive

What it means: Getting lost on a website is frustrating for anyone. For someone with dementia, it can be overwhelming.

💡 Try this:

• Use clear, descriptive labels (e.g., "Contact Us", not "Reach Out and Touch Someone").

• Include a visible home button—always!

• Add a breadcrumb trail so users know where they are and how to get back.
  

3. Avoid Surprise Parties (a.k.a. Unexpected Behaviours)

What it means: Pop-ups, sudden page changes, or vanishing menus can be jarring.

💡 Try this:

• Keep interactions predictable.

• Avoid hiding important content behind hover or swipe actions.

• Use plain language: "Click here to submit" is better than "Blast off!"
  

4. Be a Friendly Guide

What it means: People living with dementia benefit from gentle guidance.

💡 Try this:

• Use icons and images alongside text for context.

• Provide step-by-step instructions for forms or processes.

• Include confirmation messages like "Success! We've got your message."
  

5. Reduce the Load, Increase the Readability

What it means: Cognitive load is the enemy. Let's lighten it.

💡 Try this:

• Break up long chunks of text into bite-sized pieces.

• Use bullet points (like this!) to help scan and absorb info.

• Repeat important information in key places.

• Whitespace is your friend. Tabs, newlines, spaces between paragraphs and bulleted lists make reading text much less of a chore.
  

6. Colour Me Helpful

What it means: Colour can help with recognition and emotion—but don't rely on it alone.

💡 Try this:

• Use colour with labels or icons, not instead of them.

• Stick to soothing tones—nothing too garish or neon (unless your site is about 90s rave culture, in which case... maybe reconsider).
  

7. Test Like a Human

What it means: Testing accessibility isn't just about screen readers and checklists. It's about real people.

💡 Try this:

• Ask people with lived experience (including dementia) to test your site.

• Watch where they hesitate, click the wrong thing, or get stuck.
  

Final Thought: Design with Empathy

Websites that are easier for people with dementia are also better for tired parents, overworked students, or anyone who's ever had brain fog (aka all of us). So, let's build the web with kindness, one <div> at a time.

Because good UX (User eXperience) isn't just functional—it's human.

Need a checklist?

 ✅ Layout & Design

•  Clean, uncluttered layout

•  Consistent navigation and page structure

•  Large, readable fonts (16px or larger)

•  High color contrast (e.g., dark text on light background)

•  One main idea per section/page.
  

✅ Navigation & Orientation

•  Clear menu labels (e.g., "Home," "Contact Us")

•  Visible and accessible Home button

•  Breadcrumb navigation if the site is multi-level

•  Easy-to-spot call-to-action buttons

•  Logical, linear page flow.
  

✅ Content & Language

•  Plain, simple language (avoid jargon or puns)

•  Short paragraphs and bullet points

•  Headings that clearly describe content sections

•  Repetition of key info across pages when helpful

•  Use of images/icons to support text.
  

✅ Interactions & Behaviour

•  Avoid unexpected page changes or pop-ups

•  Forms are broken into manageable steps

•  Clear feedback after user actions (e.g., "Form submitted successfully")

•  No autoplay videos or sounds

•  Hover or swipe actions are optional and not required.
  

✅ Color & Visuals

•  Colour is never the only way to convey meaning

•  Soothing, non-overstimulating colour palette

•  Icons and images support comprehension

•  Consistent visual cues across the site.
  

✅ Testing & Empathy

•  Tested with real users, including people with cognitive challenges

•  Feedback incorporated into design updates

•  Team understands cognitive accessibility basics

•  Pages work well with browser zoom (up to 200%)

•  Site passes basic accessibility tools (but doesn't stop there - WC3 guidance).
  

🌟 Bonus Tip

If it feels good to use when you're tired, overwhelmed, or distracted—it's probably dementia-friendly.

Useful links:

1. W3C accessibility fundamentals: Accessibility Fundamentals Overview | Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) | W3C

2. Website Accessibility checker: Free Website Accessibility Checker for WCAG 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, ADA