What Does An Audit Cost?
What drives the price of an accessibility audit, what each package includes and how to compare quotes before you buy.
Read the audit cost guideAccessibility Glossary: 200 Web Accessibility Terms Explained In Plain English
Clear definitions of the WCAG, ARIA, ADA, Section 508 and European Accessibility Act terms you will meet in audits, VPATs and legal letters. Reviewed by our founder, an IAAP CPACC, WAS and CPWA certified specialist with 10+ years of hands-on accessibility testing.
Start Here
Turn These Terms Into A Plan
Looked up a term? These guides answer the questions people ask next. New here and not sure what you need? Book a free 30-minute call: a first conversation to understand where you stand and scope your project. Already have scan results or audit findings to go through with your developer? The $100 one-hour technical consultation is built for that.
Got An ADA Demand Letter?
What to do in the first days after a demand letter or lawsuit, and how an audit and documented fixes support your response.
Read the ADA lawsuit guideHow Remediation Works
How audit findings become code, content and design fixes, and how each fix is retested so you can show it is resolved.
Read the remediation guideAutomated Scans Vs Manual Testing
What automated accessibility testing catches, where it stops, and why a manual review with a screen reader still matters.
Read the testing guideSelling In The EU?
What the European Accessibility Act requires, who it covers and how EN 301 549 and WCAG fit together.
Read the EAA guideDo Overlays Make A Site Compliant?
Why accessibility widgets do not fix the underlying code, and what courts and the FTC have said about them.
Read the overlays guideget in touch
Know where you stand. Know what to work on next.
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From Definition To Fix
Accessibility Glossary Terms Buyers Ask About Most
This accessibility glossary explains 200 terms in plain English. If you are buying an audit or answering a procurement request, start with accessibility audit, WCAG, success criterion, conformance level, VPAT, ACR, accessibility remediation, tagged PDF and accessibility roadmap. For the laws behind them, see ADA Title II, ADA Title III, Section 508, the European Accessibility Act and EN 301 549. Technical definitions follow the W3C’s WCAG 2.2 text.
Accessibility Audit
A structured review of your site against WCAG 2.2 Level AA using screen readers, the keyboard and automated scans. Our Quick Audit is $500 and a complete audit is $2,000.
Accessibility Audit ServicesVPAT And ACR
A VPAT is the ITI reporting template. Once it is filled in from real testing it becomes an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR), which buyers and Section 508 reviewers ask for.
VPAT And ACR DocumentationAccessibility Remediation
Fixing the issues an audit finds in your code, content or CMS settings, then retesting each fix so you can show it is resolved.
Accessibility RemediationADA Demand Letter
A letter claiming your website breaks the ADA, often sent before a lawsuit. An expert audit and documented fixes are the usual first response.
ADA Lawsuit RemediationTagged PDF
A PDF with a tag tree that gives screen readers its headings, reading order, tables and alt text. PDF/UA (ISO 14289) is the standard for accessible PDFs.
Document Accessibility TestingAccessibility Roadmap
A prioritised plan for fixing issues and keeping them fixed, with owners, dates and scheduled retests after each release.
Accessibility MonitoringAll Accessibility Glossary Terms From A To Z
200 definitions covering WCAG success criteria, ARIA, assistive technology, testing tools and accessibility laws around the world. Select a term to read the full definition.
Mobile App Accessibility
Accessibility as applied to native iOS and Android apps, covering platform-specific screen reader support, touch target sizing, and gesture alternatives distinct from web accessibility rules.
Modal Dialog Pattern
The WAI-ARIA design pattern for pop-up dialogs that trap keyboard focus inside the dialog, label it correctly, and return focus to its trigger when closed.
Motor Disability
Motor disability refers to conditions that limit fine motor control, hand strength, range of motion, or stamina, affecting how someone can use a mouse, touchscreen, or standard keyboard.
Neurodivergence
Neurodivergence describes natural variation in how brains process information, attention, and sensory input, including autism, ADHD, and dyslexia, and is increasingly used as an inclusive framing alongside clinical disability terms.
New York State Human Rights Law
A New York state civil rights law prohibiting disability discrimination in places of public accommodation, increasingly applied by courts and regulators to commercial websites.
Non-text Contrast
A WCAG 2.1 success criterion (1.4.11, Level AA) requiring buttons, form field borders, icons, and other meaningful graphics to have a contrast ratio of at least 3:1 against their surrounding color.
NVDA
NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access) is a free, open-source screen reader for Windows, and one of the two most commonly used desktop screen readers alongside JAWS.
On-Screen Keyboard
A software keyboard displayed on screen that users select with a mouse, touch, switch, or eye-tracking device instead of typing on a physical keyboard.
Operable
Operable is WCAG's second principle: all interface components and navigation must be usable, including entirely from a keyboard, without requiring a mouse or precise pointer control.
Pa11y
A free, open-source command-line accessibility testing tool that automates WCAG checks and is commonly wired into build pipelines for continuous testing.
Pause, Stop, Hide
A WCAG success criterion (2.2.2, Level A) requiring that users be able to pause, stop, or hide any moving, blinking, scrolling, or auto-updating content that lasts more than five seconds.
PDF Accessibility (Tagged PDF)
A tagged PDF is a PDF with a hidden tag tree that marks its headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, images and reading order, so screen readers and other assistive technology can read it correctly.
Perceivable
Perceivable is the first of WCAG's four principles: information and interface elements must be presented in ways every user can perceive, regardless of which senses they rely on.
Plain Language
A writing approach using clear, direct sentences and familiar words so content is understandable by the widest possible audience, including people with cognitive disabilities and limited English proficiency.
Pointer Cancellation
A WCAG 2.1 success criterion (2.5.2, Level A) requiring that functions triggered by a single pointer be actioned on the up-event, not the down-event, so a user can move away to cancel.
Pointer Gestures
A WCAG 2.1 success criterion (2.5.1, Level A) requiring that any function operated by a multipoint or path-based gesture, like pinch-to-zoom or swipe, also be operable with a single-pointer action.
POUR Principles
POUR is the acronym for the four core principles WCAG is organized around: content must be Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust.
Procurement Accessibility Requirements
Procurement accessibility requirements are accessibility conditions a buyer, often a government agency, university, or large enterprise, builds into its purchasing process, requiring vendors to demonstrate conformance before a contract is awarded.
Progressive Enhancement
A development approach that builds a fully functional, accessible baseline experience first, then layers on enhanced styling and interactivity for browsers and devices that support it.
PSBAR (Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations, UK)
UK regulations requiring public sector websites and mobile apps to meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA and publish a detailed accessibility statement.
Put The Terms To Work
Not Sure Which Of These Terms Apply To Your Site?
New here? Start with a free 30-minute call to understand where you stand and scope your project. Already have scan results or audit findings to work through with your developer? Book the $100 one-hour technical consultation. Ready for findings? Start with a $500 Quick Audit or a $2,000 complete audit.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an accessibility glossary?
An accessibility glossary is a list of the terms used in digital accessibility, from standards such as WCAG and EN 301 549 to laws, assistive technologies and testing methods, each explained in plain language. Ours has 200 terms, written and reviewed by the web accessibility experts who run our audits.
What is the difference between WCAG, the ADA and Section 508?
WCAG is the W3C’s technical standard for accessible web content. The ADA is a US civil rights law: the Department of Justice’s Title II web rule requires state and local governments to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA by April 26, 2027 (populations of 50,000 or more) or April 26, 2028 (smaller entities and special districts). Section 508 covers US federal agencies, and its standards incorporate WCAG 2.0 Level AA. See ADA Title II, ADA Title III and Section 508 in the glossary.
What is the difference between a VPAT and an ACR?
A VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) is the blank reporting template published by the Information Technology Industry Council. When it is completed from real testing, the result is an Accessibility Conformance Report (ACR). We write ACRs from hands-on testing through our VPAT and ACR documentation service.
What does WCAG 2.2 Level AA mean?
WCAG 2.2 became a W3C Recommendation on 5 October 2023. It adds nine success criteria to WCAG 2.1, such as Target Size (Minimum) and Accessible Authentication, and removes 4.1.1 Parsing (W3C: What’s New in WCAG 2.2). Level AA means a page meets every Level A and Level AA success criterion. It is the level most laws and contracts ask for.
How much does an accessibility audit cost?
Our packages are fixed prices: a one-hour technical consultation (audit walkthrough, developer Q&A or live issue review) is $100, a Quick Accessibility Audit is $500, and a complete audit is $2,000, including the Shopify Accessibility Audit. Remediation and VPATs are quoted after we see the findings. See accessibility audit pricing for what each package includes.
Can an automated scanner or overlay make my website compliant?
No. Automated tools cannot check every WCAG requirement, which is why the W3C’s guidance on evaluation tools says to combine them with manual review. An accessibility overlay does not fix the underlying code either; read why in accessibility overlays and ADA lawsuits. Our audits pair scans with manual testing in NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver and the keyboard.
Who writes and reviews these glossary definitions?
Our web accessibility experts. Reviews are led by founder Mohammad Shadab Saifi, who has 10+ years in digital accessibility and holds the IAAP CPACC, WAS and CPWA certifications. If a term on your audit report is unclear, book a $100 consultation and we will walk you through it.
I am new to accessibility. Where should I start?
Read WCAG and accessibility audit first, then the guide that fits your situation: audit cost, an ADA demand letter or the European Accessibility Act. When you want to talk it through, book a free 30-minute call. It is a first conversation to understand where you stand and scope a project. If you already have scan results or audit findings to go through with your developer, the $100 one-hour technical consultation is the better fit.