Just use a button
Daily Tips October 31, 2025 Just use a button One of the weirdest “debates” I seem to perpetually have with framework-enthusiastic developers is whether or not a <div> is “just as good” as a <button>. Spoiler: it’s not. Let’s dig in. The problem Among the React crowd, and also among people who seem to enjoy HTMX, I see a lot this… <div onclick=”showSignIn()”> Open Modal </div>function showSignIn () { // Code to show the sign-in modal. // The details of what happens here vary by stack. } What’s wrong with this? This element does not announce itself as an interactive element to screen reader users. You can’t focus on a <div> with a keyboard. The event only fires on click, not when the Enter or Space Bar keys are pressed (again,…
