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Content accessibility checklist

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Andrew Hick edited this page Feb 26, 2025 · 15 revisions

A quick accessibility checklist for anyone writing content for the web.

This covers common things, but does not guarantee that your content will fully meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. For a fuller test, use the WCAG decision tree. Alternatively, visit GOV.UK: Doing a basic accessibility check if you cannot do a detailed one.

Theme Detail
Content All content is written in clear language appropriate to the target audience, explaining jargon or acronyms wherever needed.
Zoom All web content is readable at 200% and 400% zoom without requiring horizontal scrolling.
Keyboard All interactive web components (such as links and buttons) can be reached using the Tab key, and you can always see where the focus is.
Contrast All text and user interface components have reasonable contrast against their backgrounds. A tool such as WAVE or Colour Contrast Analyser can usually provide accurate results.
Links All links can be understood from their text (for example, "View our events list" rather than "Read more").
Image alt text All images have alternative text, either by:
  • using an alt attribute
  • describing it nearby and setting alt=""
  • using the alt text option in your editing tool
Images of text Text is presented as text and not embedded in images. Logos are however allowed to contain text.
Media Any media has alternatives for people with visual and hearing impairments, such as an audio description or captions.
Distractions There's nothing that moves, flashes or auto-plays. If there is any moving or autoplaying content, it must be able to be turned off in an accessible way.
Code All content is marked up as it appears - for example, headings are formatted as headings rather than large text.
On web pages, the following tags are commonly used:
  • Headings: <h1> <h2> <h3>...
  • Links: <a href="/index.html">Home</a>
  • Lists: <ul> or <ol> containing <li>
  • Tables: <table> <tr> <th> <td>
Tables Table header cells are marked up correctly, for example with <th>, or marked as a header in your editing tool.
Language and title Web pages have an appropriate title and language set in the HTML, for example:
  • <html lang="en">
  • <title>My newsletter</title>

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