Keyboard-first app design

Use when designing or reviewing applications that should feel excellent to use without a mouse.

Mental model

• A keyboard-first app is not just “accessible by keyboard”. It is optimized so keyboard use feels fast, predictable, and native to the product.
• Design around focus, intent, and muscle memory.
• Treat keyboard interaction as a first-class product surface, not a fallback for accessibility compliance.

Focus as architecture

• Make focus movement explicit and predictable across the entire app.
• Every major surface should answer three questions clearly:
  • where focus starts
  • how focus moves
  • how focus escapes
• Do not let focus behavior emerge accidentally from DOM order alone when the product has dense workflows.