Websites · 29 Oct 2026 · 9 min read
Website Accessibility Checklist and Why It Matters
A plain website accessibility checklist: what it means, what WCAG is, easy fixes to start with and how to test your site. Rules differ by country.
What website accessibility means
An accessible site can be used by more people, on more devices, in more situations. This guide explains the idea, the standard behind it and the checks to start with.
Website accessibility means designing and building a site so that people with disabilities can use it. It also helps people on small screens, in bright light or on slow connections. WCAG, published by the W3C, is the widely used set of guidelines. A good first checklist covers text for images, contrast, keyboard use, clear headings, labelled forms and captions on video.
A website accessibility checklist starts from a simple idea: a site is accessible when people with disabilities can use it. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), which develops web standards, says accessible design lets people perceive, understand, navigate and interact with the web, and contribute to it. The disabilities involved include auditory, cognitive, neurological, physical, speech and visual ones.
It also helps people without a disability. W3C lists people on phones and other small screens, older people whose abilities change, people with a broken arm or lost glasses, people in bright sunlight or somewhere they cannot play audio, and people on slow or expensive connections. Almost every visitor is in one of these situations at some point.
Why website accessibility matters for a business
The first reason is plain. A visitor who cannot read, operate or understand your site cannot buy from you or contact you, and they will not tell you why. Removing barriers widens the group of people who can finish a task.
The second is quality. Clear headings, readable text, labelled forms and links that say where they go make a site easier for everyone, including someone on a phone in poor light. Several of these also help search engines read the page. Descriptive page titles, real headings, text for images and meaningful link text serve both audiences, though accessibility work is not a ranking trick.
The third is the law. W3C notes that web accessibility is required by law in many situations. Which laws apply, to whom, and which standard they point to differ by country, by sector and by the size of the organisation, and they change. This guide cannot tell you if you are covered. Ask a lawyer, or check the official source for each place where you operate.
The fourth is cost. W3C says it is most efficient to include accessibility from the beginning of a project, so that work does not have to be redone. Fixing a finished site can cost more than building it in.
What is WCAG?
WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. It is published by the W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative and is a widely used technical standard for web accessibility. W3C describes it as developed with individuals and organisations around the world, with the aim of one shared standard that meets the needs of individuals, organisations and governments internationally.
Three versions are published: WCAG 2.0, 2.1 and 2.2. Content that meets 2.2 also meets the earlier two, and W3C encourages use of the latest version. The guidelines sit under four principles, and each guideline has testable success criteria at three levels, A, AA and AAA. The success criteria decide whether content conforms.
| Principle | What it asks | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Perceivable | Information can be presented in ways every user can perceive | Text for images, captions on video, enough contrast |
| Operable | The interface and navigation can be used in different ways | Everything works from a keyboard, the focus marker is visible, and time limits can be extended |
| Understandable | Content and behaviour are clear and predictable | The page language is set, form fields have labels, error messages help |
| Fourth principle (compatibility) | Content works reliably with browsers and assistive technology, now and later | Valid markup, and custom controls that expose a name and role |
WCAG is written for people who build websites and tools, and W3C says it is not an introduction to accessibility. You do not need to read it to begin. The checklist below turns its main points into checks that anyone can do. Which version and level a law, contract or client asks for differs, so check the document that applies to you.
Website accessibility checklist: easy fixes first
These checks follow areas that W3C names in its own guidance and in its Easy Checks for a first review. They are a starting point, not a full evaluation.
| Check | What good looks like | Who usually fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| Page titles | Each page has a short, descriptive title in the browser tab | Content editor |
| Text for images | Images that carry meaning have a short description, purely decorative ones are marked as decorative, and buttons and icons have a label | Content editor, developer |
| Headings | Headings are real headings in a logical order, and large bold text on its own does not count | Content editor, developer |
| Colour contrast | Normal text has a contrast ratio of at least 4.5 to 1 against its background, and large text at least 3 to 1, which is the WCAG level AA target | Designer |
| Text size | Text can be enlarged up to 400% without losing information | Designer, developer |
| Keyboard use | Every link, button and form works from the keyboard, the focus marker is visible and you can always move on | Developer |
| Links | Link text makes sense on its own, so avoid "click here" | Content editor |
| Forms | Every field has a visible label, and errors say what went wrong and how to fix it | Designer, developer |
| Colour as a signal | Colour is not the only way of showing information, such as red for an error | Designer |
| Moving content | Anything that moves or blinks can be paused or is avoided, and nothing flashes rapidly | Designer, developer |
| Video and audio | Captions on video that has speech, and a text transcript for audio | Content editor |
| Language | The page's main language is set, so screen readers pronounce text correctly | Developer |
Start with the pages that matter most: the home page, your main service or product pages, the contact page and the checkout. Fix the template items, such as contrast, focus markers and form labels, once and every page benefits. Then work through the content items, such as image descriptions, headings and captions, page by page.
Accessibility is shared work
Many of the items above are design decisions. Contrast, type size and the look of buttons and focus markers are set in UI design. Page structure and flow are set in UX, and the code underneath belongs to development. The guide to web design vs UI design vs UX design shows who decides what, which helps you give each fix to the right person.
Content editors matter as much as developers. A site built with perfect structure loses its accessibility when someone uploads an image with no description, skips heading levels or posts a video with no captions. Whoever edits the site should have the short checklist above.
How to test your site for accessibility
- Work through the Easy Checks that W3C publishes. They are free, written for non-specialists and cover page title, image descriptions, headings, contrast, text size, keyboard use, forms, moving content, video and audio, and basic structure.
- Put the mouse aside and use the Tab key to move through a key page. Can you see where you are, reach every control, operate the menu and forms, and leave every part?
- Zoom the page in your browser to a large size and look at it on a phone. Does text still fit, and can you still read it?
- Turn on the screen reader built into your phone or computer and listen to one page. Even a few minutes shows missing labels and a confusing order.
- Run an automatic checker for a quick list of problems. W3C says no tool alone can decide whether a site meets accessibility standards and that knowledgeable human evaluation is required, so treat the report as a prompt for further checking.
- Ask people who use assistive technology to try your main tasks. W3C advises involving users in evaluation.
Record what you find: the page, the problem and who will fix it. Test again after the fixes. Slow connections are one of the situations W3C lists, so the website speed guide overlaps with this work, since a page that loads quickly helps both.
Building accessibility into a new site or a redesign
Put accessibility in the brief from the start. Ask which WCAG version and level the developer will test against, whether designs are checked for contrast and keyboard use before the build begins, and who tests the finished site and how. The website brief guide shows where such requirements fit.
If you are planning a new build or a redesign, the website development service page describes the web development work Liftup does. Whoever you choose, ask for the answers in writing.
Keeping a site accessible
Accessibility slips as content changes, so build a few habits.
- Check every new page against the list above before publishing.
- Run the Easy Checks again on your key pages every few months, and after a redesign or a new plugin.
- Keep a short list of known problems with the date you plan to fix each one.
No site is perfect. An honest list with dates is a better position than silence, and it gives the next developer or editor a place to start.
Questions and answers
What is website accessibility?
It means designing and building a website so that people with disabilities can use it, including people with visual, hearing, physical, speech, cognitive or neurological disabilities. It also helps people on small screens, in bright light or on slow connections. The W3C publishes the standards that define it.
Why does website accessibility matter for a business?
People who cannot use your site cannot buy from you or contact you. Accessible sites are also clearer for every visitor, and in many places the law requires accessibility in some situations. Rules differ by country and change, so check with a lawyer or the official source.
What is WCAG?
WCAG is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, published by the W3C. It has versions 2.0, 2.1 and 2.2, organised under four principles, with testable criteria at levels A, AA and AAA. It is a technical standard for people who build websites, and W3C encourages use of the latest version.
How do I test my site for accessibility?
Start with W3C's free Easy Checks, then try your key pages using only the keyboard, zoomed in and on a phone. Automatic tools help but cannot decide alone whether a site meets the standards, so add human checks and, ideally, testing with people who use assistive technology.
What are the easiest accessibility fixes?
Add descriptive page titles, short descriptions for meaningful images, proper headings, enough text contrast, visible labels on form fields and captions on video. Make sure the whole site works from a keyboard. Most of these are quick once you know where to look.
Is website accessibility a legal requirement?
W3C says web accessibility is required by law in many situations. Whether it applies to you depends on your country, your sector and your size, and the rules change. This guide cannot tell you, so ask a lawyer or check the official source for each place you serve.
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