Website Accessibility: Making Your Site Usable for Everyone

Web accessibility ensures that people with disabilities can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with your website. But accessibility isn't just the right thing to do—it's also good for business, SEO, and reaches a wider audience.

This comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know about making your website accessible to all users.

Understanding Web Accessibility

Web accessibility means that websites, tools, and technologies are designed and developed so that people with disabilities can use them. More specifically, people can perceive, understand, navigate, interact with, and contribute to the web.

Types of Disabilities to Consider:

• Visual: Blindness, low vision, color blindness
• Auditory: Deafness, hard of hearing
• Motor: Limited fine motor control, inability to use a mouse
• Cognitive: Learning disabilities, distractibility, inability to focus on large amounts of information
• Neurological: Seizure disorders triggered by flashing content

Why Accessibility Matters

Legal Requirements

Many countries have laws requiring web accessibility:

• Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): US law requiring accessible websites
• Section 508: US federal agencies must make their electronic content accessible
• European Accessibility Act: EU requirement for accessible websites and mobile apps
• UK Equality Act 2010: Requires service providers to make reasonable adjustments

Lawsuits over inaccessible websites have increased dramatically in recent years, with companies facing significant fines and legal fees.

Business Benefits

• Larger Audience: 15% of the global population has some form of disability—that's over 1 billion potential customers
• Better SEO: Many accessibility practices align with SEO best practices
• Improved Usability: Accessible sites are easier for everyone to use
• Brand Reputation: Demonstrates corporate social responsibility
• Future-Proofing: As populations age, more users will benefit from accessible design

WCAG Guidelines

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are the international standard for web accessibility, organized around four principles known as POUR:

1. Perceivable

Information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive.

Key Requirements:

• Text Alternatives: Provide alt text for images and non-text content
• Captions and Transcripts: Include captions for videos and transcripts for audio
• Adaptable Content: Structure content so it can be presented in different ways without losing information
• Distinguishable Content: Make it easy to see and hear content, including separating foreground from background

2. Operable

User interface components and navigation must be operable.

Key Requirements:

• Keyboard Accessible: All functionality available via keyboard
• Enough Time: Users have adequate time to read and use content
• No Seizures: Don't design content that can cause seizures (no flashing more than 3 times per second)
• Navigable: Provide ways to help users navigate, find content, and determine location
• Input Modalities: Make it easier to operate functionality through various inputs beyond keyboard

3. Understandable

Information and operation of the user interface must be understandable.

Key Requirements:

• Readable: Make text content readable and understandable
• Predictable: Make web pages appear and operate in predictable ways
• Input Assistance: Help users avoid and correct mistakes

4. Robust

Content must be robust enough to be interpreted by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies.

Key Requirements:

• Compatible: Maximize compatibility with current and future user tools
• Valid Code: Use clean, standards-compliant HTML
• Name, Role, Value: Ensure all UI components can be programmatically determined

Practical Accessibility Implementation

Semantic HTML

Use proper HTML elements for their intended purpose:

• Use <header>, <nav>, <main>, <footer> for page structure
• Use heading tags (<h1>-<h6>) in hierarchical order
• Use <button> for buttons, not <div> with click handlers
• Use <a> for links, not buttons styled as links
• Use lists (<ul>, <ol>) for list content

Alt Text for Images

Every image needs descriptive alternative text for screen readers.

Best Practices:

• Descriptive: Describe what's in the image and its purpose
• Concise: Keep it under 125 characters when possible
• Context-Aware: Consider the image's context in the content
• Decorative Images: Use empty alt="" for purely decorative images
• Complex Images: Provide longer descriptions for charts, graphs, infographics

Example:

Color Contrast

Text must have sufficient contrast against its background.

WCAG Requirements:

• Level AA: 4.5:1 contrast ratio for normal text, 3:1 for large text
• Level AAA: 7:1 contrast ratio for normal text, 4.5:1 for large text

Tools to check contrast:

• WebAIM Contrast Checker
• Colour Contrast Analyser
• Browser dev tools accessibility features

Keyboard Navigation

All functionality must be accessible using only a keyboard.

Key Requirements:

• Tab Order: Logical tab order following visual flow
• Focus Indicators: Visible focus states for all interactive elements
• Skip Links: Allow users to skip repetitive navigation
• Keyboard Shortcuts: Document any keyboard shortcuts used
• No Keyboard Traps: Users must be able to navigate away from any focused element

Forms Accessibility

Forms are critical interaction points that must be fully accessible.

Best Practices:

• Label All Inputs: Use <label> elements associated with inputs
• Required Fields: Clearly indicate required fields
• Error Messages: Provide clear, specific error messages
• Instructions: Give clear instructions before forms
• Fieldsets and Legends: Group related form elements

ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications)

ARIA attributes provide additional semantic information for assistive technologies.

Common ARIA Attributes:

• aria-label: Provides accessible name for elements
• aria-labelledby: References another element as the label
• aria-describedby: References descriptive content
• aria-hidden: Hides decorative elements from screen readers
• role: Defines element's purpose (button, navigation, etc.)
• aria-live: Announces dynamic content changes

Important: Use semantic HTML first; ARIA should supplement, not replace proper HTML.

Testing for Accessibility

Automated Testing Tools

• WAVE (Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool): Browser extension for accessibility analysis
• axe DevTools: Comprehensive accessibility testing in browser dev tools
• Lighthouse: Built into Chrome DevTools, includes accessibility audit
• Pa11y: Command-line accessibility testing tool

Manual Testing

Automated tools catch only 30-40% of accessibility issues. Manual testing is essential.

Manual Testing Checklist:

• Keyboard Navigation: Navigate entire site using only keyboard
• Screen Reader: Test with NVDA (Windows), JAWS (Windows), or VoiceOver (Mac/iOS)
• Zoom Testing: Zoom to 200% and verify usability
• Color Blindness: Use simulators to test for colorblind users
• Content Structure: Verify logical heading structure and content flow

User Testing

Include people with disabilities in your user testing process. They'll identify issues that automated tools and non-disabled testers miss.

Common Accessibility Mistakes

1. Missing Alt Text

Images without alt text are invisible to screen reader users.

2. Poor Color Contrast

Low contrast text is difficult or impossible to read for users with low vision.

3. Not Keyboard Accessible

Custom interactive elements that don't work with keyboard exclude many users.

4. Unclear Link Text

"Click here" and "Read more" don't provide context. Use descriptive link text.

5. Automatic Media Playback

Auto-playing audio or video interferes with screen readers and is generally disruptive.

6. Missing Form Labels

Placeholder text isn't a replacement for proper labels.

7. Inaccessible PDFs

PDFs must be made accessible separately; don't assume they're automatically accessible.

8. Using Only Color to Convey Information

Color-blind users can't distinguish information conveyed only through color.

Accessibility and SEO

Many accessibility practices improve SEO:

• Alt Text: Helps search engines understand images
• Heading Structure: Helps search engines understand content hierarchy
• Descriptive Links: Better for both users and search engine crawlers
• Transcripts: Provide indexable text for audio/video content
• Mobile Accessibility: Improves mobile rankings
• Page Speed: Accessible sites often load faster

Maintaining Accessibility

Accessibility isn't a one-time fix—it requires ongoing commitment.

Best Practices:

• Include in Design Process: Consider accessibility from the start
• Developer Training: Ensure team knows accessibility requirements
• Regular Audits: Test accessibility quarterly
• User Feedback: Provide easy ways for users to report accessibility issues
• Documentation: Maintain accessibility statement and conformance documentation
• Component Library: Build accessible components for reuse

Resources for Learning More

• WCAG Guidelines: Official W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
• WebAIM: Comprehensive accessibility resources and articles
• A11y Project: Community-driven accessibility education
• Deque University: Accessibility training and resources
• Gov.uk Accessibility Blog: Practical accessibility guidance

Conclusion

Web accessibility isn't optional—it's essential for reaching all users, meeting legal requirements, and building better websites. The good news is that accessible websites are better for everyone, not just users with disabilities.

Key takeaways:

• Accessibility benefits all users and improves business outcomes
• Follow WCAG guidelines for systematic accessibility implementation
• Use semantic HTML and ARIA appropriately
• Test with both automated tools and real users
• Make accessibility part of your development process from the start
• Accessibility and SEO complement each other
• Regular audits and updates are necessary

Need help making your website accessible? DevRocket builds accessibility into every website we create, ensuring compliance with WCAG guidelines and providing an inclusive experience for all users. We can also audit and remediate existing websites to meet accessibility standards.

Contact us today for a free accessibility consultation and quote. Let's make the web accessible for everyone!