Published March 27, 2026 · 18 min read

Web Accessibility Checklist 2026: WCAG 2.2 Complete Guide

Web accessibility is not a nice-to-have. It is a legal requirement in most jurisdictions, a moral imperative, and increasingly a ranking factor for search engines. Over 1.3 billion people worldwide live with some form of disability. If your website is not accessible, you are excluding roughly 16% of the global population from using your product.

This checklist covers WCAG 2.2 Level AA requirements, which is the standard that most accessibility laws reference. Each item includes what to check, why it matters, and how to fix it. Use our Accessibility Checker tool to automate the technical checks.

Table of Contents

  1. Perceivable
  2. Operable
  3. Understandable
  4. Robust
  5. New in WCAG 2.2
  6. Testing Tools
  7. Legal Requirements

1. Perceivable

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

Text Alternatives

/* Good: Meaningful alt text */
<img src="chart.png" alt="Bar chart showing 40% increase in
  sign-ups from January to March 2026">

/* Good: Decorative image */
<img src="divider.png" alt="" role="presentation">

/* Good: Icon button */
<button aria-label="Search">
  <svg>...</svg>
</button>

Color and Contrast

Test contrast ratios with our Contrast Checker. Common fails: light gray text on white backgrounds, placeholder text in form fields, and disabled button states that are too faded to read.

Media

Responsive and Adaptable

2. Operable

UI components and navigation must be operable by all users.

Keyboard Navigation

/* Skip link CSS - visible on focus */
.skip-link {
  position: absolute;
  top: -100%;
  left: 0;
  background: #ff5f1f;
  color: #0a0a0a;
  padding: 8px 16px;
  z-index: 9999;
  font-weight: 700;
}
.skip-link:focus {
  top: 0;
}

/* Visible focus indicators */
:focus-visible {
  outline: 2px solid #ff5f1f;
  outline-offset: 2px;
}

/* Never do this */
*:focus { outline: none; } /* REMOVES ALL FOCUS INDICATORS */

Timing and Motion

@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
  *, *::before, *::after {
    animation-duration: 0.01ms !important;
    animation-iteration-count: 1 !important;
    transition-duration: 0.01ms !important;
    scroll-behavior: auto !important;
  }
}

Navigation

Pointer and Touch

3. Understandable

Information and operation of the UI must be understandable.

Language and Readability

Forms

/* Accessible form field */
<div class="field">
  <label for="email">
    Email address <span aria-hidden="true">*</span>
    <span class="sr-only">(required)</span>
  </label>
  <input type="email" id="email" name="email"
    required autocomplete="email"
    aria-describedby="email-error">
  <div id="email-error" role="alert"
    class="error" hidden>
    Please enter a valid email address (e.g., name@example.com).
  </div>
</div>

Consistency

4. Robust

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

HTML and ARIA

/* ARIA live region for dynamic updates */
<div aria-live="polite" aria-atomic="true" class="sr-only">
  <!-- JavaScript updates this when content changes -->
</div>

/* Accessible modal dialog */
<div role="dialog" aria-modal="true"
  aria-labelledby="dialog-title">
  <h2 id="dialog-title">Confirm deletion</h2>
  <p>This action cannot be undone.</p>
  <button>Delete</button>
  <button>Cancel</button>
</div>

New in WCAG 2.2

WCAG 2.2, published in 2023 and now the recommended standard, added several new success criteria:

Testing Tools and Process

Automated Testing

Manual Testing Checklist

  1. Navigate the entire site using only the keyboard (Tab, Enter, Escape, Arrow keys).
  2. Test with a screen reader (VoiceOver on Mac, NVDA on Windows, TalkBack on Android).
  3. Zoom to 200% and verify everything is still usable.
  4. Test with high contrast mode enabled.
  5. Disable CSS and verify content is still readable in a logical order.
  6. Test on mobile with screen reader enabled.

Automated tools catch roughly 30-40% of accessibility issues. Manual testing is required for the rest. No automated tool can verify that alt text is actually descriptive, that focus order makes sense, or that error messages are helpful.

The trend is clear: accessibility requirements are expanding from public sector to private sector globally. Building accessible websites now is not just ethical — it is risk management.

Audit Your Site's Accessibility

Run a free accessibility check on any URL. Instant results with specific recommendations.

Accessibility Checker Contrast Checker

Related Tools and Resources