Website accessibility checker: WCAG 2.2 and the EAA
Website accessibility means people who are blind, have low vision, can’t use a mouse or have a hand tremor can still use a website, with a screen reader, keyboard or zoom. The yardstick is WCAG (currently version 2.2), usually at levels A and AA. Since 28 June 2025 the European Accessibility Act (EAA) has required it for e-shops and other selected consumer services, except microenterprises.
What website accessibility means
- The yardstick is the W3C’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). Version 2.1 dates from 2018, version 2.2 from October 2023. Each success criterion has level A, AA or AAA; laws and standards usually require levels A and AA.
- The guidelines rest on four principles: content must be perceivable, operable and understandable, and it must work with different browsers and assistive technologies.
- In practice, the website has to work with a screen reader, with the keyboard alone and when zoomed in. Images have a text description, form fields a label, buttons a name and text enough contrast.
The European Accessibility Act since June 2025
Since 28 June 2025 the European Accessibility Act (Directive (EU) 2019/882) has applied through national laws: in Czechia Act No. 424/2023 Coll. on accessibility requirements for certain products and services, in Germany the BFSG, in Spain Ley 11/2023. It covers selected consumer services, including e-commerce services: websites and apps through which a consumer concludes a contract at a distance. In Czechia the Czech Trade Inspection Authority supervises them. Whether an e-shop publishes accessibility information and other mandatory details is shown by the check of mandatory information for companies and e-shops. A service provider that is a microenterprise (put simply, fewer than 10 employees and annual turnover or balance sheet total of up to EUR 2 million) is exempt. A company website through which no contracts with consumers are concluded is usually outside the scope. Whether the rules apply to you is a question for a lawyer.
Law aside, this is about customers. Small type, weak contrast or a form without labels puts off older people, people with visual impairments and anyone using a phone in the sun. Many fixes also help in search engines, such as image descriptions or a clear page title (the SEO checker covers them).
Common website accessibility problems
- Images without alternative text, so a screen reader can’t say what they show.
- Icons without a name: the menu, cart, search or a social media link is announced only as “button” or “link”.
- Form fields without a label, so a screen reader user doesn’t know what to fill in.
- Light grey text on a white background, or text placed over a photo.
- Zooming disabled on mobile.
- A missing or mistyped page language, which ruins the screen reader’s pronunciation.
- Small icons and links packed closely together that are hard to hit on a phone.
Website accessibility check: what is covered
WebMeter opens the homepage in a real browser in desktop view and runs the automated axe-core test with the WCAG 2.0 to 2.2 rules at levels A and AA. The table sums up what the test finds and what a person has to try.
| Area | WebMeter’s automated test | A person has to try |
|---|---|---|
| Images and text | images without alternative text, insufficient contrast, a missing page language | how understandable the text is, video captions, PDF documents |
| Controls | buttons and links without a name, the minimum target size of 24 × 24 points, disabled zoom | keyboard operation, focus order and visibility |
| Forms and code | fields without a label, embedded frames without a title, misused ARIA attributes | use with a screen reader |
| Scope | the homepage in desktop view, before any choice in the cookie banner | subpages, cart, checkout and the mobile view |
Headings (a missing H1, skipped levels) are shown only as recommendations that don’t affect the score. If the page can’t be rendered, WebMeter runs only simplified checks on the HTML and marks the result as partial. An automated test covers only part of the WCAG criteria. The result therefore doesn’t show that the website meets WCAG or the law, and it doesn’t assess whether the law applies to you. The measurement methodology has the details, including what automated measurement can’t do.
Test your website’s accessibility for free
Enter a domain and see the result of the automated accessibility test, together with the other areas.
Not sure what to make of the result? We offer a no-obligation consultation — just write to kontakt@webmeter.eu.
Website design with accessibility built in
Accessibility works best when it is part of the design, not added afterwards. We design the new website from scratch with sufficient contrast, descriptions for images and form fields, and controls that work on mobile and desktop. Before handover we run it through the same automated test as here.
How website design works → Case study: from 73 to 97 points →
Frequently asked questions about web accessibility
Does the accessibility law apply to me?
The European Accessibility Act and the national laws based on it (in Czechia Act No. 424/2023 Coll.) cover selected consumer services, including e-shops and other websites through which a consumer concludes a contract at a distance. A service provider that is a microenterprise (fewer than 10 employees and annual turnover or balance sheet total of up to EUR 2 million) is exempt. A website that only presents a company is usually outside the scope. A lawyer can assess your specific case; WebMeter doesn’t.
Who checks whether an e-shop complies with the accessibility law?
Each EU country names the supervisory authority in its national law. In Czechia, the Czech Trade Inspection Authority supervises e-commerce services under Act No. 424/2023 Coll. Service providers that are microenterprises are exempt (see the question Does the accessibility law apply to me?).
Does a result without findings mean the website is accessible?
No. The automated test checks only part of the WCAG criteria, and only on the homepage. According to the W3C, tools can’t determine accessibility on their own; they only assist with the evaluation. Keyboard operation, use with a screen reader and how understandable the content is must be tried by a person.
What is WCAG and which level do I need?
WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) are the W3C’s rules for web accessibility. The current version, 2.2, dates from October 2023. Each criterion has level A, AA or AAA; laws and standards usually require levels A and AA. WebMeter’s automated test checks the WCAG 2.0 to 2.2 rules at levels A and AA.
What did WCAG 2.2 add?
WCAG 2.2 from October 2023 adds nine criteria to version 2.1, six of them at levels A and AA. They include a minimum target size of 24 × 24 points, a keyboard focus not hidden by other elements and login without transcribing or solving puzzles. Of the new criteria, the automated test checks only target size.
Other areas checked
- What is SEO
- Security headers
- SPF, DKIM and DMARC check
- SSL certificate check
- Domain and DNS check
- Cookies and GDPR on your website
- Website speed
- SEO checker
- CMS and technology
- Website exposure check
- AI search engines
- Company and e-shop
- Search engines beyond Google
- Third parties on your website
- NIS2 and your website
- Competitor comparison
- Overview of everything WebMeter checks
How the check treats your website is described on the page about the WebMeterBot robot; what is stored and for how long is in the data processing policy.