What Is Web Accessibility?
Web accessibility means designing websites usable by everyone - including people with visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive disabilities. Making your site accessible expands your audience and often improves SEO.
The WCAG Standard: POUR Principles
- Perceivable - Content presentable to all senses (alt text for images, captions for video)
- Operable - Interface usable by keyboard, no time pressure
- Understandable - Clear language, consistent navigation
- Robust - Works with screen readers and assistive technologies
Most businesses should aim for WCAG 2.1 Level AA.
Why Accessibility Matters
- Larger audience - serves users with disabilities, elderly users, mobile users in difficult conditions
- Better SEO - alt text, semantic HTML, proper headings improve search rankings
- Legal compliance - accessibility is becoming law in many countries
- Better UX for everyone - accessible design is universally good design
10 Key Improvements to Make Today
- Descriptive alt text on all informational images (empty alt="" for decorative)
- Proper heading hierarchy - H1 once, then H2, H3 in order
- Color contrast ratio minimum 4.5:1 for normal text
- All interactions keyboard-accessible (Tab, Enter, Arrow keys)
- ARIA labels on interactive elements without visible text
- Visible focus indicators - never remove without replacement
- Captions for all video content
- Descriptive link text - avoid "click here"
- Form labels associated with every field, specific error messages
- Test with NVDA (Windows) or VoiceOver (Mac/iOS) screen reader
Free Testing Tools
- WAVE (wave.webaim.org) - visual accessibility error overlay
- Lighthouse in Chrome DevTools - accessibility score 0-100
- axe DevTools browser extension - detailed issue list
- WebAIM Contrast Checker - verify color contrast ratios
Need an accessibility audit? Contact me - WCAG AA compliance is included in all my web projects.
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