How to fix landmark banner is top level on Squarespace
Ensure your site's banner landmark (<header> or role="banner") sits at the top level of the page, not nested inside another landmark region.
Steps for Squarespace
- Squarespace controls page structure through its core templates. Go to Website → Pages → click the gear icon on your page → Advanced → and check any Custom CSS or Code Injection that may be adding landmark roles.
- Go to Settings → Advanced → Code Injection and check the Header code block — ensure no wrapping element with a landmark role (e.g., `<main>`, `<section>`) is being injected around your header content.
- In the Squarespace Style Editor (Design → Site Styles or Design → Custom CSS), look for any CSS that uses `role` attributes in selectors, which might hint at injected ARIA roles.
- If you have Developer Mode enabled (legacy Squarespace 7.0), open `base.region` or your template's layout files via the Template Editor and confirm the `<header>` block is a direct child of `<body>`.
- Re-test with axe DevTools or WAVE after saving changes.
<header role="banner">
<!-- Site logo, main navigation, etc. -->
</header>
<main id="main-content">
<!-- Page content -->
</main>
<footer>
<!-- Footer content -->
</footer>
<!-- ✅ All three are direct children of <body> — correct structure -->
<!-- ❌ WRONG — banner nested inside <main>: -->
<!--
<main>
<header role="banner">...</header>
...
</main>
-->What is landmark banner is top level?
Every webpage has structural "landmarks" — named regions that screen readers and assistive technologies use to let users jump around the page quickly, similar to chapters in a book. The "banner" landmark is the one that identifies your site-wide header (logo, navigation, etc.). It must live directly inside the `<body>` of your HTML page, not wrapped inside another landmark like `<main>`, `<section>`, `<article>`, or `<aside>`. When it is accidentally nested inside another landmark, it breaks the expected page structure that screen readers rely on.
Screen reader users — including many people with visual impairments — rely on landmarks to navigate pages efficiently. When the banner landmark is nested incorrectly, assistive technologies may not recognize it as the site-wide header, making it impossible for those users to quickly find the top of your page or skip to main content. This is a WCAG 2.1 failure (Success Criterion 1.3.1 and 4.1.2), meaning it creates real legal accessibility risk in regions with accessibility laws (ADA, EN 301 549, UK Equality Act). Beyond compliance, fixing it improves the experience for the growing segment of shoppers using assistive technology — directly protecting your store from exclusion complaints and broadening your customer reach.
See the complete Landmark banner is top level guide for every platform and the full background.
Not sure if your Squarespace store has this?
Run a free SEOLZ audit — we’ll find landmark banner is top level and every other issue across your whole site.
Scan my site free