Thorough Accessibility Audit of Your Website to WCAG 2.1 AAA Level

Comprehensive Website Accessibility Audit to WCAG 2.1 AAA Standard

You have noticed that users with screen readers cannot fill out a form on your site. Elderly clients complain about small text with low contrast. These are typical problems that an accessibility audit at level AAA solves. We know how to identify such failure points and provide concrete fixes.

We have conducted accessibility audits for 50+ sites — from government portals to banking applications. Our experience shows that even seemingly minor violations can lead to a loss of up to 30% of the audience with disabilities.

WCAG 2.1 AAA is the highest level of web accessibility conformance. It includes 28 additional criteria on top of AA. Full AAA conformance across an entire site is practically unattainable. It is not the goal — W3C explicitly states this. AAA is used for critical sections: government services, healthcare platforms, educational services.

What additional requirements appear at AAA level?

Perceivable:

1.2.6 Sign Language (AAA) — synchronized translation of videos into sign language.
1.2.7 Extended Audio Description (AAA) — extended audio description for video where pauses are insufficient to describe the action.
1.4.6 Contrast Enhanced (AAA) — minimum contrast 7:1 for normal text, 4.5:1 for large text:

/* AAA: 7:1 for normal text */
body {
    color: #1a1a1a;       /* 17.1:1 on white ✓ */
    background: #ffffff;
}
.text-secondary {
    color: #595959;       /* 7.0:1 on white — exactly AAA */
}
/* Visual Presentation (1.4.8) — text block settings */
article {
    max-width: 80ch;
    line-height: 1.5;
}
p + p { margin-top: 1.5em; }
article { text-align: left; }

1.4.9 Images of Text (AAA) — text must not be rendered as an image (except logos).

Operable:

2.1.3 Keyboard (No Exception) (AAA) — all functionality must be operable through a keyboard interface, with no exceptions. AA allows exceptions for tasks like drawing; AAA allows none.
2.2.3 No Timing (AAA) — no time limits whatsoever.
2.2.6 Timeouts (AAA) — warn the user about a timeout 20+ seconds before it occurs.
2.3.2 Three Flashes (AAA) — nothing flashes more than three times per second.
2.4.8 Location (AAA) — the user knows where they are in the site structure:

<nav aria-label="Breadcrumb">
    <ol>
        <li><a href="/">Home</a></li>
        <li><a href="/products">Products</a></li>
        <li aria-current="page">Smartphones</li>
    </ol>
</nav>

2.4.9 Link Purpose — Link Only (AAA) — the purpose of each link can be determined from the link text alone, without context:

<!-- Violates AAA -->
<a href="/read-more">Read more</a>

<!-- Complies with AAA -->
<a href="/products/iphone-15">Smartphone iPhone 15 Pro — details</a>

Understandable:

3.1.3 Unusual Words (AAA) — a mechanism for explaining unusual words and jargon:

<abbr title="Unified Tax on Imputed Income">UTII</abbr>
<p>Used the <a href="/glossary#kpi">KPI</a> evaluation method.</p>

3.1.4 Abbreviations (AAA) — expansion of abbreviations via <abbr>.
3.1.5 Reading Level (AAA) — a simplified version of content if the reading level is above 9th grade:

<details>
    <summary>Simplified explanation</summary>
    <p>In simple words: ...</p>
</details>

3.2.5 Change on Request (AAA) — nothing changes without explicit user action. No automatic redirects, automatic content updates without request.
3.3.4 Error Prevention (All) (AAA) — for all form submissions: the ability to review, correct, or cancel.

When is AAA level really needed?

• Government portals and e-government services
• Medical information systems
• Educational platforms (e-learning, distance learning)
• Financial services with an elderly audience
• Any service where excluding part of the users is legally unacceptable

AAA audit methodology

AAA audit includes all of AA plus:

1. Video content — captions, audio description, sign language (if present)
2. Manual testing with users — involving people with various disabilities
3. Cognitive accessibility — readability checks (Flesch-Kincaid, Fog Index)
4. Monochrome rendering mode test — Windows High Contrast Mode

What is included in the work

• Detailed report listing each WCAG 2.1 AAA violation and its priority
• Remediation roadmap with effort estimates for each item
• Remediation recommendations with ready code examples (HTML/CSS/JS)
• Re-testing (regression) after changes are implemented
• Consultation with your developers on complex scenarios
• Access to our knowledge base on web accessibility

Deliverables

Deliverables include: accessibility documentation, access to our testing tools, training for your team, and post-remediation support.

Audit timeline

Our specialists are certified and have over 7 years of experience in web accessibility. We guarantee audit quality and provide support throughout the remediation process. Our full AAA audit typically costs between $3,000 and $10,000 depending on site size. Our manual audit identifies 5x more accessibility issues than automated tools alone. We combine accessibility auditing with usability testing for real-world feedback.

Contact us to discuss your project and get a consultation on the scope of work.

W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 — https://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/

Website Accessibility: WCAG, Screen Readers, Keyboard Navigation

On a major bank's website, the "Submit Application" button was marked up as <div class="btn" onclick="...">. The NVDA screen reader did not announce it, Tab skipped it, Enter didn't work. For thousands of blind users, this bank simply did not exist as an online service. We see such problems every day in dozens of projects — and developing accessible websites according to WCAG 2.2 AA has become the only way to avoid discrimination and legal risks. Fines for non-accessibility for legal entities can reach substantial amounts, and lawsuits millions.

In this card — how we make web accessibility a11y work, based on real cases, with a specific tech stack and numbers. No generic phrases.

Why is Semantic Markup the Foundation of Web Accessibility (a11y)?

Most accessibility problems are solved by correct HTML, not additional ARIA attributes. <button> instead of <div onclick>, <nav> instead of <div class="navigation">, <h1>–<h6> in proper hierarchy, <label for="field-id"> instead of <div class="label">. This is the basic level, but in practice, every second form in Russian online stores does not have correct <label> tags.

ARIA is needed where native HTML falls short: custom components — dropdown menus, tooltips, modal windows, tabs, accordions. And here the complexity begins.

A typical mistake in custom dropdowns: the screen reader does not know it is a combobox, does not announce the number of options, does not say which one is selected, focus does not move to the list when opened. Proper implementation:

• role="combobox" on the input
• aria-expanded="true/false" when opened/closed
• aria-controls="listbox-id" points to the list
• aria-activedescendant — ID of the currently selected item
• role="option" and aria-selected on each option

This is not theory; it is tested with a screen reader. NVDA + Chrome or VoiceOver + Safari is a mandatory part of QA.

<div role="combobox" aria-expanded="false" aria-controls="listbox-1" aria-activedescendant="" tabindex="0">
  <label for="input-1">Select city</label>
  <input id="input-1" type="text" role="combobox" aria-autocomplete="list" />
  <ul id="listbox-1" role="listbox" aria-label="Cities">
    <li role="option" aria-selected="false" id="opt-1">Moscow</li>
    <li role="option" aria-selected="false" id="opt-2">St. Petersburg</li>
  </ul>
</div>

The cost of fixing a single Level A violation varies depending on complexity. Implementing a11y from the design stage reduces the refactoring budget by 2–3 times compared to retrofitting a finished site.

How to Properly Build Keyboard Navigation?

Tab order should match the visual order of elements. If in HTML the "Cancel" button comes before "Confirm", but CSS swaps them — the keyboard user is confused.

Focus trap in modal windows. When a modal opens, Tab should cycle only within it. When closing, return focus to the element that opened the modal. Without this, the user ends up at the top of the page after closing.

tabindex="-1" — element does not enter Tab sequence but can receive focus programmatically. Used for elements that receive focus via JavaScript (section headings after anchor navigation).

tabindex="1" and above is almost always an error. Explicit order breaks natural order and creates unpredictable behavior. Control order via DOM, not tabindex.

Skip links — a "Skip to content" link, hidden visually, visible on Tab. Allows screen reader users to skip repetitive navigation.

Color and Contrast: Requirements and Common Violations

WCAG 2.2 AA requires contrast 4.5:1 for normal text, 3:1 for large text (18px+ or 14px+ bold). AAA requires 7:1 and 4.5:1.

The most common violations: gray placeholder in inputs (#999 on white = 2.9:1), light gray secondary text, white text on pastel backgrounds.

Color should not be the sole indicator: "required fields are red" without an asterisk — violation for color blind users.

Testing tools: axe DevTools, WAVE, Accessibility Inspector in Chrome DevTools. axe-core integrates into Playwright tests: automatic check of 80+ rules on every deployment. Manual testing finds about 60% more errors than automated.

What Is Important About Media Content and Dynamics?

Images without alt — a common basic failure. alt should be meaningful: not alt="image_123.jpg", but a description of content relevant to context. Decorative images — alt="" (empty, not missing attribute).

Video should have captions. YouTube auto-captions are not a standard; they make mistakes. WebVTT files with correct captions for all educational and marketing video content.

Animations — a problem for users with vestibular disorders. @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) — media query that disables or slows animations for users with that OS setting.

What Changed in WCAG 2.2?

Version 2.2 came into effect with new criteria:

These criteria raise the entry bar, but we already include them in our standard checklist.

Audit and Remediation

Automated tools find about 30–40% of violations. The rest is only manual testing. Minimum scenario: go through the entire critical user flow (registration, purchase, form) using only keyboard and screen reader.

Process

1. Automated audit — axe-core, Lighthouse, WAVE — outputs 80+ rules.
2. Manual testing — NVDA, VoiceOver, keyboard — 2–3 days for a typical site.
3. Violation prioritization — P1 (blocks usage), P2 (creates difficulties), P3 (enhancements).
4. Fixing — iteratively, integrate checks into CI via Playwright + axe.
5. Re-audit — close all P1/P2 before release.
6. Documentation and handover — report with results, maintenance recommendations, team training.

Results and Scope

• Full audit report with violation prioritization (PDF/HTML)
• Fixed code: semantic markup, ARIA, keyboard navigation
• Integration of axe-core into CI/CD for regression control
• Training for client developers on a11y (2-hour session)
• Access to repository with correct component examples
• Guarantee of WCAG 2.2 AA compliance at time of delivery

Timeline

Budget is calculated individually after the audit. Contact us — we will evaluate your project in 1 day. Get a consultation and free checklist when ordering an audit.

Experience and Guarantees

We have been working in web accessibility a11y for over 8 years. Completed more than 50 projects for banks, retail, and government. Certified specialists (IAAP CPACC, WAS). We guarantee passing a third-party audit or will fix for free.

WCAG 2.2 Standard — official W3C recommendation defining web content accessibility requirements.

Wikipedia: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
Wikipedia: ARIA

— web accessibility levels a11y per version 2.2.

Order an audit now — get a checklist and preliminary estimate for free. Contact us – we will respond within an hour.