diff --git a/src/components/stepper/step-label/readme.md b/src/components/stepper/step-label/readme.md
index 5d8ac005a9..e58b231f9b 100644
--- a/src/components/stepper/step-label/readme.md
+++ b/src/components/stepper/step-label/readme.md
@@ -10,10 +10,10 @@ It has an implicit slot name: `step-label`.
 
 ## States
 
-It can ben selected or `disabled`.
+It can be `disabled`.
 
 ```html
-<sbb-step-label>Step label</sbb-step-label> <sbb-step-label disabled>Step label</sbb-step-label>
+<sbb-step-label disabled>Step label</sbb-step-label>
 ```
 
 ## Style
@@ -38,7 +38,6 @@ The aria values `aria-controls`, `aria-setsize`, `aria-posinset` are set automat
 
 | Name       | Attribute   | Privacy | Type                     | Default    | Description                                                                                                                      |
 | ---------- | ----------- | ------- | ------------------------ | ---------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
-| `disabled` | `disabled`  | public  | `boolean`                | `false`    | Whether the component is disabled.                                                                                               |
 | `form`     | `form`      | public  | `string \| undefined`    |            | The <form> element to associate the button with.                                                                                 |
 | `iconName` | `icon-name` | public  | `string \| undefined`    |            | The icon name we want to use, choose from the small icon variants from the ui-icons category from here https://icons.app.sbb.ch. |
 | `name`     | `name`      | public  | `string`                 |            | The name of the button element.                                                                                                  |
diff --git a/src/components/stepper/step-label/step-label.ts b/src/components/stepper/step-label/step-label.ts
index 56af1a6769..e6e51fc62a 100644
--- a/src/components/stepper/step-label/step-label.ts
+++ b/src/components/stepper/step-label/step-label.ts
@@ -4,7 +4,6 @@ import { customElement } from 'lit/decorators.js';
 import { SbbButtonBaseElement } from '../../core/base-elements.js';
 import { SbbConnectedAbortController } from '../../core/controllers.js';
 import { hostAttributes } from '../../core/decorators.js';
-import { SbbDisabledTabIndexActionMixin } from '../../core/mixins.js';
 import { SbbIconNameMixin } from '../../icon.js';
 import type { SbbStepElement } from '../step.js';
 import type { SbbStepperElement } from '../stepper.js';
@@ -22,11 +21,10 @@ let nextId = 0;
 @customElement('sbb-step-label')
 @hostAttributes({
   slot: 'step-label',
+  tabindex: '-1',
   role: 'tab',
 })
-export class SbbStepLabelElement extends SbbIconNameMixin(
-  SbbDisabledTabIndexActionMixin(SbbButtonBaseElement),
-) {
+export class SbbStepLabelElement extends SbbIconNameMixin(SbbButtonBaseElement) {
   public static override styles: CSSResultGroup = style;
 
   /** @internal */
@@ -44,6 +42,7 @@ export class SbbStepLabelElement extends SbbIconNameMixin(
    * @internal
    */
   public select(): void {
+    this.tabIndex = 0;
     this._internals.ariaSelected = 'true';
     this.toggleAttribute('data-selected', true);
   }
@@ -53,6 +52,7 @@ export class SbbStepLabelElement extends SbbIconNameMixin(
    * @internal
    */
   public deselect(): void {
+    this.tabIndex = -1;
     this._internals.ariaSelected = 'false';
     this.toggleAttribute('data-selected', false);
   }
diff --git a/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.scss b/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.scss
index 0a8ea7acc8..d46feaad31 100644
--- a/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.scss
+++ b/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.scss
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@
 :host {
   --sbb-stepper-orientation: row;
   --sbb-stepper-marker-size: 0;
+  --sbb-stepper-marker-width: var(--sbb-border-width-3x);
   --sbb-stepper-animation-duration: var(
     --sbb-disable-animation-zero-time,
     var(--sbb-animation-duration-6x)
@@ -54,7 +55,7 @@
 
     &::before {
       inset-block-end: calc(var(--sbb-border-width-1x) * -1);
-      height: #{sbb.px-to-rem-build(3)};
+      height: var(--sbb-stepper-marker-width);
       width: var(--sbb-stepper-marker-size);
       transition: width var(--sbb-stepper-animation-duration) var(--sbb-animation-easing);
     }
@@ -66,7 +67,7 @@
 
     &::before {
       inset-block-start: 0;
-      width: #{sbb.px-to-rem-build(3)};
+      width: var(--sbb-stepper-marker-width);
       height: var(--sbb-stepper-marker-size);
       transition: height var(--sbb-stepper-animation-duration) var(--sbb-animation-easing);
     }
diff --git a/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.ts b/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.ts
index b2d9e4f91e..eded3eac41 100644
--- a/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.ts
+++ b/src/components/stepper/stepper/stepper.ts
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import {
 } from 'lit';
 import { customElement, property } from 'lit/decorators.js';
 
+import { getNextElementIndex, isArrowKeyPressed } from '../../core/a11y.js';
 import { SbbConnectedAbortController } from '../../core/controllers.js';
 import { breakpoints, isBreakpoint } from '../../core/dom.js';
 import type { SbbHorizontalFrom, SbbOrientation } from '../../core/interfaces.js';
@@ -85,6 +86,10 @@ export class SbbStepperElement extends LitElement {
     return Array.from(this.querySelectorAll('sbb-step'));
   }
 
+  private get _enabledSteps(): SbbStepElement[] {
+    return this.steps.filter((s) => !s.label?.hasAttribute('disabled'));
+  }
+
   /**
    * Selects the next step.
    */
@@ -155,9 +160,6 @@ export class SbbStepperElement extends LitElement {
     step.select();
     this._setMarkerSize();
     this._configureLinearMode();
-    if (this._loaded) {
-      step.label?.focus();
-    }
   }
 
   private _setMarkerSize(): void {
@@ -248,6 +250,7 @@ export class SbbStepperElement extends LitElement {
   public override connectedCallback(): void {
     super.connectedCallback();
     const signal = this._abort.signal;
+    this.addEventListener('keydown', (e) => this._handleKeyDown(e), { signal });
     window.addEventListener('resize', () => this._onStepperResize(), {
       signal,
       passive: true,
@@ -276,6 +279,26 @@ export class SbbStepperElement extends LitElement {
     }
   }
 
+  private _handleKeyDown(evt: KeyboardEvent): void {
+    const enabledSteps: SbbStepElement[] = this._enabledSteps;
+
+    if (
+      !enabledSteps ||
+      // don't trap nested handling
+      ((evt.target as HTMLElement) !== this && (evt.target as HTMLElement).parentElement !== this)
+    ) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    if (isArrowKeyPressed(evt)) {
+      const current: number = enabledSteps.indexOf(this.selected!);
+      const nextIndex: number = getNextElementIndex(evt, current, enabledSteps.length);
+      this._select(enabledSteps[nextIndex]);
+      enabledSteps[nextIndex]?.label?.focus();
+      evt.preventDefault();
+    }
+  }
+
   protected override render(): TemplateResult {
     return html`
       <div class="sbb-stepper">