nesting-heading gauge

Audit Document Heading Structure Depth (Option D) — Free

Skipping heading levels disorients screen reader users navigating long documents. Divide heading structures into logical levels. (Option D scope).

The proof surface

Accessibility evaluation tools audit Web content accessibility guidelines. This checks document heading depth to ensure smooth screen reader navigation. Optimized for option d workflow.

Inputdocument section | total headings | maximum recommended depth level; screen reader maximum target depth

Rare deviceAccessibility evaluation tools audit Web content accessibility guidelines. This checks document heading depth to ensure smooth screen reader navigation. Optimized for option d workflow.

Output artifactsections exceeding heading depth per row with transparent workings

Cost$0 · local-first · one free run · samples labelled

Sample, not your facts: Illustrative sample: Introduction section | 5 | 3. With screen reader maximum target depth set to 2, total sections exceeding depth is 1.60 sections exceeding heading depth.

Why the flat version breaks

Using bold text instead of true heading tags

Screen readers rely on structural HTML heading tags to build navigation menus.

Skipping heading levels for visual styling

Never choose an H4 tag just because you want smaller text size.

Creating single-heading sections

A section should generally contain multiple headings or none.

How to work the nesting-heading gauge

Count headings per document section

Scan text for H1, H2, H3, and H4 tags.

Set maximum heading level target

WCAG recommends keeping nesting logical without skipping levels.

Set screen reader depth threshold

Aim for at most 3 nesting levels in standard documents.

Identify deeply nested sections

Simplify heading structures that exceed navigation depth targets.

What the nesting-heading gauge replaces

Question	Before	Visible working
Using bold text instead of true heading tags	Screen readers rely on structural HTML heading tags to build navigation menus.	Set maximum heading level target
Skipping heading levels for visual styling	Never choose an H4 tag just because you want smaller text size.	Set screen reader depth threshold
Creating single-heading sections	A section should generally contain multiple headings or none.	Identify deeply nested sections

A local arithmetic aid replaces hand calculation, not expert review. No paid AI service is needed.

Run it on the samples, right here

FIRST-LOAD

Input is processed locally and a draft is saved automatically in this browser profile when storage is available. Reset to sample clears that draft; Pro history has its own clear button. A state link encodes your inputs in its URL: share only non-sensitive rows. Browser history, clipboard and anyone receiving the link may retain it. Optional AI use below leaves this device; it is not required.

Structural audit arithmetic on heading counts. Not legal accessibility compliance certification.

Data note: Everything runs in this browser tab on the nesting-heading gauge: your document section | total headings | maximum recommended depth level stays on this device, nothing is uploaded, and the reading is rebuilt only when you press run.

Go deeper: the companion app files the same reading as a meter band gauge

The article demo above runs without limits. The companion app keeps a local history, exports the rows as CSV, prints the nesting-heading gauge reading, and holds your drafts on this device — one free run, then $ 4 one-time for the layer that keeps filing.

The nesting-heading gauge reading is complete for free. The optional $4 layer adds print, row CSV and the last five local reading summaries; it does not add hidden answers. Checkout is not configured yet; the article demo remains unlimited.

Open the audit document heading structure depth (option d) companion

Boundary

Structural audit arithmetic on heading counts. Not legal accessibility compliance certification.

What this is built on

Method: Aim for at most 3 nesting levels in standard documents.
All sample records are invented examples. The app does not fetch measurements, policies, files or personal records.
Google’s official pricing page, fetched 2026-09-29, lists free-tier access including AI Studio. Optional formatting only; limits and availability can change. Free-tier content may be used to improve products. Never paste private records there.

Before: Screen readers rely on structural HTML heading tags to build navigation menus. After: the nesting-heading gauge shows the working beside each named row so the reader can change the assumption and inspect the consequence.

Optional AI formatting, not calculation

For this nesting-heading gauge, use the free AI Studio interface only if available to you, with no paid API key. Manual entry completes the same workflow for free. Supply only fictional or non-sensitive notes. Review its output against the source; never paste unresolved questions into the numeric rows.

Format my non-sensitive notes for a nesting-heading gauge. Return plain rows only: document section | total headings | maximum recommended depth level. Preserve supplied quantities exactly. Do not guess missing values; list questions separately. Do not calculate or add advice. I will check every row before pasting into the local tool.

Accepted schema: document section | total headings | maximum recommended depth level. No AI response is executed as code.