ADA Compliance Website Checklist

According to bthechange.com , up to 20% of your traffic could come from users with some form of disability. People with disabilities may interact with a website differently than others, so it is crucial to ensure your content is accessible to various types of disabilities. This is where ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliance becomes important.

Ensuring your website is ADA compliant not only broadens your audience but also helps you avoid potential legal issues. In this blog post, we'll outline a comprehensive ADA compliance checklist to help you make your website accessible to all users.

How WCAG Relates to ADA Compliance

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including websites. While the ADA does not explicitly outline web accessibility standards, compliance with WCAG is widely recognized as a means to meet ADA requirements.

Legal Precedents and Enforcement: Numerous legal cases have established that websites are considered places of public accommodation under the ADA. Consequently, businesses must ensure their websites are accessible to avoid potential lawsuits. Adhering to WCAG standards is often cited in these cases as a benchmark for compliance.

Best Practices for ADA Compliance: Implementing WCAG guidelines helps businesses create accessible websites that cater to a broader audience, including individuals with disabilities. By following WCAG, businesses can:

• Ensure their websites are usable by people with a range of disabilities, including visual, auditory, cognitive, and motor impairments.
• Avoid potential legal issues by meeting established accessibility standards.
• Enhance the user experience for all visitors, leading to increased engagement and customer satisfaction.

In summary, while the ADA mandates accessibility, WCAG provides the practical framework to achieve it. By aligning your website with WCAG standards, you not only comply with legal requirements but also create a more inclusive and user-friendly online environment.

Poor Color Contrast

A colorful and vibrant site is fun and engaging for your audience, but you need to consider the contrast between the text and the background. People with limited vision or color blindness may have trouble reading areas with low contrast (think yellow text on a green background). Another common issue is text over images, as images do not typically have a consistent background color, making it hard to pick a text color that stands out from the entire image. There are ways to improve this contrast, such as adding a color overlay between the image and text layer to increase legibility. You can also choose an image with a high-contrast area that is simple enough to allow text to stand out.

So how do I know if I’ve accounted for enough contrast? There are many tools at your disposal that offer quick ways for you to check the contrast level. Here are some that we love!

• WebAIM: Contrast Checker
  • Gives pass or fail for WCAG AA and AAA guidelines
• Color Contrast Checker - Coolors
  • Gives a nice visual of the two colors that you are checking
• Figma Plugin
  • A plugin for Figma that lets you select layers and view contrast levels
• Stark Plugin
  • A plugin for adobe XD

Alternative Text

Supportive text accompanying multimedia content on your site ensures that people who are blind or have limited vision can understand the content and purpose of images. This is called 'alt text,' and most website builders and CMSs offer this feature out of the box. Many sites may not use it properly, or admins may not know how to implement it correctly. Alt text allows someone using a screen reader to understand the purpose of an image on your site—whether it's a graph, an illustration, etc. Ensure that alt text is filled out on your site and written in a way that is helpful for screen reader users.

Legibility

Ensuring that your font choices are accessible to all users is important as well. There are two larger categories of fonts:

Serif - Serif typefaces have small decorative lines, or serifs, at the ends of letters, giving text a traditional look. They are often used in print for easier reading. Examples include Times New Roman and Georgia.

Sans-Serif - Sans serif typefaces lack the decorative lines at the ends of letters, giving a clean, modern look. They are popular for digital screens. Examples include Arial and Helvetica.

There are accessible fonts of both types but in general sans-serif is to be considered more legible as there are no less decorative elements. A good option is to utilize both in an effort to create hierarchy between your different headings and body copy. If you are worried about your font not loading properly for the end-user you can also utilize web safe fonts, Hubspot has a great blog going over these options.

Use Accessible Forms

Each form field should have a clear and descriptive label to help users understand the required information. Provide clear and specific error messages with suggestions to correct input.

Interactive Elements

Making interactive elements accessible is crucial for ensuring all users can navigate and interact with your website effectively. Use descriptive link text that clearly indicates the destination or function of the link, helping users understand where they will be directed. Ensure buttons are large enough to be easily clicked and have descriptive labels that convey their purpose. For interactive widgets like sliders, tabs, and accordions, use ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) roles and properties to ensure screen readers can properly interpret these elements. This enhances the user experience for individuals relying on assistive technologies.

Video Captions

If you use video on your site, hosting on platforms like YouTube and Vimeo allows you to use captions, enabling individuals with hearing disabilities to understand the content.

Keyboard Navigation

Someone with a disability that prevents them from using a mouse or trackpad will only be able to use your site if it supports keyboard navigation. When building your site, research platforms to ensure they support keyboard navigation. If you are having your site built, make sure this feature is included in the scope.

Conclusion

Making your website ADA compliant is not just about following regulations; it's about creating an inclusive experience for all users. By adhering to this checklist, you can ensure that your website is accessible to everyone, providing equal opportunities for all your visitors.

At August Ash, we are committed to creating accessible and user-friendly websites. Contact us today to learn how we can help you achieve ADA compliance and improve the accessibility of your online presence.