Accessibility Audit: How to Test and Fix Web Accessibility Issues

Accessibility Audit: Making Your Website Work for Everyone

An accessibility audit systematically evaluates a website against WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) criteria to identify barriers that prevent people with disabilities from using the site effectively. Design Agency conducts accessibility reviews as part of website quality assurance for client projects.

Audit Approach: Automated + Manual

Automated tools catch approximately 30–40% of accessibility issues. Manual testing is required for the rest.

Automated tools:

• axe DevTools (browser extension) — Most widely used, integrates with Deque's accessibility expertise
• WAVE — Visual feedback tool that overlays accessibility information on the page
• Lighthouse (Chrome DevTools) — Built-in, provides accessibility score and specific issues

Manual testing checklist:

• Navigate the entire site using only the keyboard (Tab, Enter, Space, Arrow keys)
• Use a screen reader (VoiceOver on Mac, NVDA on Windows, TalkBack on Android)
• Test with a screen magnifier at 200–400% zoom
• Review all images for alternative text
• Test all forms for proper labelling and error messaging
• Verify colour contrast on all text and interactive elements

High-Priority Issues to Fix First

Missing image alt text: Screen readers announce "image" or the filename for images without alt attributes. Provide descriptive alt text for meaningful images; use empty alt="" for decorative images.

Missing form labels: Placeholder text is not a label — it disappears when users start typing. Use a proper label element associated with each input.

Insufficient colour contrast: The most common failure. Use the WebAIM Contrast Checker to verify 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text and UI components.

Missing keyboard focus indicators: Never remove focus outlines (outline: none) without providing a clearly visible replacement. Keyboard users cannot navigate without visible focus.

Missing skip navigation: Add a "Skip to main content" link as the first focusable element on every page — allows keyboard and screen reader users to bypass repeated navigation.

Optumio includes accessibility monitoring in website care plans — plugin updates and CMS changes can inadvertently introduce accessibility regressions that need to be caught and fixed.