Accessibility Checklists

Ever see a project requirement "Must be accessible to WCAG 2.0 Level A" and wonder what the heck that means? We're here to rescue you with this quick and easy checklist!

WCAG checklists for Web Developers

If you're a TL;DR type, click the link, remember that your work should meet Level A guidelines, and move on with your life. But for the curious…

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines are published by the W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative. The earliest version was published in 1999, with a mere 14 guidelines that were provided as principles of accessible design. The current guidelines were revisited and updated in 2008.

The Four Principles of Accessibility

Perceivable. All information and UI components must be presented to users in ways the user can perceive.
Operable. It should be possible to operate all UI, and find your way around.
Understandable. Content should be readable, behavior should be predictable, and you should help users avoid making mistakes.
Robust. Your content must be robust enough that it can be interprested not just by conventional PCs but also by assistive technologies.

The Three Levels of Compliance

Like the original WCAG, version 2.0 has three levels of compliance ("conformance" in their jargon). A, AA, and AAA. The more A's, the more demanding the requirements.

Level A is so basic that a conformant site won't look any different from any other decently designed and usable website.

Level AA adds elements such as captions for live video, clear use of headings and labels, visible keyboard focus, and error suggestion and prevention. Most of these are fairly straightforward.

Level AAA is so strict that even the WC3 authors don't recommend it for everyone:

"Note 2: It is not recommended that Level AAA conformance be required as a general policy for entire sites because it is not possible to satisfy all Level AAA Success Criteria for some content."

Examples of AAA requirements include:

sign-language translations of videos
extended audio description of videos
full text alternative to video and audio
link purposes provided for every link
reading difficulty never exceeds 9th grade level
help or instruction is available for everything
active error prevention
smart re-authentication, including saving user data if a session times out

Legal Requirements

In the United States: WCAG Level A

In 2017 a Federal Court identified WCAG as the "industry standard" for accessibility. If you don't meet level A, you have violated the Americans with Disabilities Act. (So don't be the next Winn-Dixie.)

In the European Union: WCAG Level AA

In 2016 the EU Parliament required that public sector websites conform with Level AA.