Multiple Ways
Users must have more than one way to locate a page within a set — typically a combination of navigation menu, search, sitemap, table of contents, or related-pages list. The exception is pages that are steps in a process (checkout, multi-step forms).
What it asks
For any page that is part of a larger set (a documentation site, a blog, a product catalogue, a help centre), users need at least two ways to find it. Different users navigate differently: some browse via hierarchical menus, some search, some scan a sitemap, some follow related links. Forcing everyone through a single mechanism — usually a deeply nested menu — disadvantages screen-reader users, users with cognitive disabilities, and anyone who doesn’t share the IA team’s mental model.
The SC explicitly exempts pages that are mid-process (a step inside a checkout, a wizard step) because adding navigation there would harm completion.
How to meet it
- Provide a persistent primary navigation menu plus a working site-wide search.
- For documentation and long-form sites, add an HTML sitemap or a structured table of contents.
- For blogs and article archives, expose tag pages, category pages, or chronological archives.
- Add “Related articles” or “See also” sections at the foot of long-form content.
- Make sure search returns the same pages reachable via the menu — orphaned pages that only exist via search violate the spirit if not the letter of the SC.
Common failures
- Site has a navigation menu but no search, and the menu is the only way to reach deep pages.
- Search exists but indexes only a subset of pages — many help-centre articles aren’t indexed and have no menu entry.
- Sitemap is XML-only (for crawlers) with no HTML version users can browse.
- “Related articles” widget surfaces only the most-viewed pages, leaving long-tail content unreachable.
- Mobile menu collapses categories so deeply that finding a page takes 5+ taps, with no search fallback.
Why it matters
Every navigation mechanism has failure modes. Menus rely on guessing the right category. Search relies on knowing the right keyword. Sitemaps reward systematic browsers. Offering two means whichever strategy a user’s cognition, vision, or motor profile favours, they still find what they need. The SC is especially important for users with cognitive disabilities who may not infer where a page lives in a taxonomy they didn’t help design.