Understand the basics
Make sense of ADA, WCAG and the language of website accessibility.
Read the introductionThe accessibility field guide
Understand accessibility.
Know what to do next.
ADA and web accessibility, explained in plain English. Find the guidance, examples and practical tools to move from a question to a useful next step.
Free to explore. Written for people who own, build and manage websites.
Follow your curiosity
Three popular starting points.
A practical place to start
Find the answer that moves you forward.
Build a better experience
Explore accessible patterns and test the journeys people use every day.
Explore interface patternsPlan the work
Define an audit scope, record your observations and prepare the next repair.
Build your audit scopeThe POUR Principles
WCAG is built on four foundational principles: Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust. Together, they make the web work for more people.
Select a principle to explore.
Keyboard: Tab to a principle, then Enter or Space.
Four principles. One accessible experience.
The four principles work together. An accessible website needs all four.
Choose a principle to see what it means and how it shows up on a website.
Go a little deeper
Find your next discovery.
12 featured resources to explore
Guide
What is ADA compliance?
Start with the language, responsibilities and practical next steps.
Guide
Does the ADA apply to my website?
Understand the questions to ask about your website and organization.
Guide
Understand WCAG
Get familiar with the guidelines behind accessible web experiences.
Interactive story
A day without accessible design
Follow everyday tasks and discover how barriers change the experience.
Pattern library
Accessible interface patterns
Explore forms, dialogs, navigation and feedback in practice.
Guide
Keyboard accessibility
Build a usable experience for people navigating without a mouse.
Guide
Write useful alt text
Make image descriptions useful in the context where they appear.
Guide
Plan accessibility improvements
Move from finding barriers to organizing and checking repairs.
Checklist
WCAG 2.2 checklist
Use a plain-language reference to plan what you will inspect.
Interactive tool
Color contrast checker
Try foreground and background colors and inspect the result.
Interactive tool
Build your audit scope
Choose the pages and journeys you want to examine.
Workflow library
Practical testing workflows
Work through complete journeys with repeatable testing steps.
The accessibility field guide
Understand the requirement.
Build and test the experience.
Move from an unfamiliar criterion to a working pattern and a practical test. Save your observations, download evidence notes and use the results to plan the next repair.
Start an audit scopeFree Accessibility Tools
Practical tools to help you understand, test, and improve your website's accessibility.
Compliance Checker
Free server-side WCAG 2.1 AA scan focused on the WebAIM Big Six — the failure types that account for 96% of all detected accessibility errors.
Accessibility Readiness Planner
Identify gaps in your accessibility process and download practical next steps.
Exemption Checker
Decision tree — find out which web accessibility statutes apply to you: ADA Title II/III, HHS Section 504, Section 508, EAA, with deadlines.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is ADA compliance for a website?
ADA compliance for a website means the site is accessible to people with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act. DOJ has not adopted a detailed web technical standard under Title III; WCAG provides useful accessibility guidance. Title II separately requires WCAG 2.1 AA conformance for state and local government websites by April 26, 2027 (population 50,000+) or April 26, 2028 (smaller), per the April 2026 DOJ Interim Final Rule.
Is ADA compliance mandatory for websites?
For state and local government websites: yes, under ADA Title II and the DOJ 2024 final rule (with deadlines extended one year by the April 2026 IFR). For private businesses: there is no formal DOJ deadline, and DOJ interprets Title III to cover websites of businesses open to the public; judicial treatment varies. In 2025, plaintiffs filed 3,117 federal website accessibility lawsuits — a 27% increase over 2024.
What WCAG version does the ADA require?
The DOJ Title II web rule specifies WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Title III does not have the same detailed web technical regulation. WCAG 2.1 Level AA contains 50 success criteria — 30 at Level A and 20 at Level AA. Section 508 still references WCAG 2.0 AA. WCAG 2.2 was published in October 2023; 2.0/2.1/2.2 are backwards-compatible.
How much does an ADA lawsuit cost?
Costs depend on the claims, jurisdiction, work required and how the case is resolved. Public settlement examples do not establish a reliable average for an individual business. Get case-specific legal advice and budget accessibility work separately using documented scope, supplier estimates and measured repair effort.
Do accessibility overlay widgets fix ADA compliance?
No. The FTC fined accessiBe $1 million in April 2025 for falsely claiming its overlay made websites WCAG-compliant. EcomBack found that 22.64% of websites sued in H1 2025 had an overlay installed. The American Bar Association and the National Federation of the Blind both publicly reject overlays as a compliance strategy.
Latest News & Analysis
View all posts →Lawsuit Roundups
ADA Website Lawsuits in 2026: The Mid-Year Trends Every Business Should Watch
Federal website accessibility lawsuits hit 3,117 in 2025 — a 27% jump. Here is what is driving the 2026 filings, which states and industries carry the most risk, and how to stay off the target list.
Regulatory Changes
The European Accessibility Act Is Live: What U.S. Businesses Selling to Europe Must Do in 2026
The EAA became enforceable on June 28, 2025 across all 27 EU member states — and it reaches U.S. companies that sell to European customers. Here is who is covered and what conformance requires.
News & Updates
You Got an ADA Demand Letter. Here's Exactly What to Do Next
A calm, step-by-step playbook for the first 48 hours after an ADA website demand letter — what to do, what to avoid, and how to turn a scary letter into a manageable fix.