ADA compliant website checklist: 25 checks a small business can run this week
An ADA compliant website checklist should list the checks a small business can actually run: text contrast, image descriptions, form labels, link names, keyboard use, page titles, headings, video captions and a way to reach you. No checklist makes a site "ADA compliant" in a legal sense, because the ADA names no technical standard; courts and settlements usually point to WCAG 2.1 level AA. The list below is built from the WCAG 2.1 AA criteria that small sites fail most, in the order that clears the most errors first.
How to use this ADA compliant website checklist
Pick your five most important pages: home, the page with your main service or menu, contact, your booking or checkout page, and one inner page. Run each check on each page. Tick the box, note the page, write the date. A dated list is also your record if anyone asks what you have done. We are not lawyers and this is not legal advice; for a demand letter, speak to an attorney first.
Two free tools do most of the work: the axe DevTools or WAVE browser extension for the automated part, and your own keyboard for the rest. Our free checker comparison says which to pick.
What the standard asks, in one table
| Group | Plain meaning | Can a tool check it? |
|---|---|---|
| Perceivable | People can see or hear the content: alt text, captions, contrast, text that resizes | Partly |
| Operable | People can use it without a mouse; nothing flashes dangerously; enough time | Partly; keyboard needs a person |
| Understandable | Pages are readable and predictable; forms explain errors | Mostly a person |
| Robust | The code works with assistive technology | Partly |
WCAG 2.1 has 78 success criteria: 30 at level A, 20 at AA and 28 at AAA. A target of "2.1 AA" means the 50 at A and AA. Most small-business failures come from a handful.
Checklist part 1: things a scanner finds
- Text contrast. Body text at least 4.5 to 1 against its background; large text 3 to 1. Check buttons, footers, placeholder text and text on images.
- Image descriptions. Every meaningful image has short alt text; decorative images have an empty alt.
- Form labels. Each field has a visible label tied to it; placeholders do not count as labels.
- Link names. No empty links; avoid "click here". Icon links such as Instagram have a name.
- Button names. Menu toggles, cart and close buttons have names.
- Page language. The page sets
lang="en"(or the right language). - Page titles. Each page has a different title saying what it is.
- Headings. One h1; headings follow in order without skipping for looks.
- Duplicate IDs and broken markup. Scanner errors about invalid structure get fixed by a developer.
WebAIM's yearly analysis of one million home pages finds that the first six categories above account for most detectable failures, so if you only have an afternoon, do these.
Checklist part 2: things you check with a keyboard
Put your mouse aside. Press Tab to move forward and Shift+Tab to go back, Enter to open links and buttons, Space to tick boxes, arrow keys in menus, and Esc to close pop-ups.
- Everything reachable. You can reach every link, button, field and menu item.
- Visible focus. You can see where you are; a focus outline is not removed by the theme.
- Logical order. Focus moves in an order that matches the page.
- No traps. You can leave a pop-up, chat widget or map with the keyboard.
- Skip link. A "skip to content" link lets keyboard users jump past a long menu.
- Menus open by keyboard. Drop-downs do not need mouse hover.
- Carousels and motion. Auto-moving content can be paused.
Checklist part 3: content you write
- Link text makes sense alone. "Read the lunch menu", not "here".
- Plain language. Short sentences; define abbreviations.
- Error messages. A form tells people what went wrong and how to fix it.
- Video captions. Videos with speech have captions; audio has a transcript.
- Not colour alone. A required field or error is not shown only in red.
- Text resizes. At 200% zoom nothing is cut off or overlapped.
- Documents. Menus and price lists are on a page, not only a scanned PDF.
Checklist part 4: the record
- A statement and a contact route. Publish an honest page using our accessibility statement template, with an email or phone for people who hit a barrier.
- Dated rechecks. Rerun the scan after each change and at least monthly for a busy site; keep the dated results.
How to score yourself
Count the checks that pass on all five pages. Twenty or more is a good place to be; below ten means start with the scanner items, which are the fastest. This is a working tool, not a certificate. A tool cannot say you comply, and neither can we. Automated testing finds only a share of the problems WCAG describes, which is why parts 2 and 3 use a human.
What to do with failures
- Colours and labels: edit the theme or the content. See website accessibility remediation cost for what a developer charges.
- Widgets and plugins: ask the vendor for an accessibility report, or replace them.
- Keyboard traps: hire a specialist for those.
- "Fix it all with a script": see UserWay alternatives for why that falls short.
Checklist for common platforms
WordPress: choose an accessibility-ready theme; check plugins that add sliders, pop-ups and forms. Shopify: start from a current theme and check the cart and checkout. Wix, Squarespace, GoDaddy: use the platform's built-in alt text and heading tools; report platform-level errors to support.
The checks that fail most often, and the quick fix
| Check | Typical failure | Quick fix |
|---|---|---|
| Contrast | Light grey text, white text on a pale button | Darken the text to at least a 4.5 to 1 ratio; check with a contrast checker |
| Alt text | Photos with no description, filenames as alt text | One short sentence per meaningful image |
| Labels | Placeholder text only | Add a visible label tied to the field |
| Links | "Click here", icon links with no text | Describe the destination |
| Keyboard | Menu works only on hover | Ask your developer for a keyboard-operable menu |
| Focus | Outline removed by the theme | Restore a visible focus style |
Writing good alt text in one minute
Say what the image shows and why it is there, in a short sentence: "Plate of grilled salmon with lemon and rice" rather than "image1.jpg" or "photo". Leave the alt empty on purely decorative pictures. If the image holds text, such as a sign with opening hours, put that text in the alt or in the page. Skip "image of" because screen readers announce it already.
Testing with a screen reader, just once
You do not need to become an expert. Turn on VoiceOver on a Mac or iPhone, or NVDA (free) on Windows, and listen to your home page for two minutes. If a button is read as just "button", a link as "link", or an image as a filename, you have found errors a scanner may have caught too. Hearing it once makes the fixes make sense. Then switch it off and carry on with the list.
A one-afternoon plan
Hour one: run axe or WAVE on the five pages and save screenshots of the results with the date. Hour two: fix contrast and the missing names and labels that you can edit yourself. Hour three: do the keyboard pass and write down anything you cannot fix, with the page. Then send that short list to your web person, or get it written for you by a service such as Site Record. Rerun the scan the next day and keep both results.
What this checklist leaves out
It does not cover every one of the 50 criteria at A and AA. Things like timing limits, motion triggered by device movement, consistent navigation across pages and status messages for screen readers need a person who tests with assistive technology. If your site is a store with a checkout, an account area or a complex booking system, plan for a specialist look at those flows. Treat this list as the 80 per cent you can do yourself.
Frequently asked questions
What is on an ADA compliant website checklist?
Contrast, alt text, labels, link and button names, headings, keyboard use, captions, a statement and a recheck habit, built from WCAG 2.1 AA.
Is there an official ADA website checklist?
The ADA does not name one. The W3C publishes WCAG with a quick reference, and the Department of Justice has pointed to WCAG 2.1 AA for state and local governments.
Can I use this checklist as proof of compliance?
No. It is a dated record of what you checked. Do not claim full compliance.
How long does the checklist take?
About two to three hours for five pages the first time, less on reruns.
Which items are the most important?
Contrast, alt text, form labels, link and button names, and keyboard access cover the most common failures.
Do I need to hire someone?
Not to run the checklist. You may want help with code-level fixes.
Related: WCAG color contrast checker and ADA website compliance checker.
Sources
- W3C, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 and How to Meet WCAG quick reference.
- WebAIM, The WebAIM Million, and WebAIM's WCAG 2 checklist.
- U.S. Department of Justice, Title II web rule (April 2024), which names WCAG 2.1 AA for state and local governments.