Start with the experience people need.
A customer may be able to see your products but unable to operate the checkout with a keyboard. Another may hear an unlabeled button announced by a screen reader without knowing what it does. Accessibility work starts by finding the barriers between people and the tasks they came to complete.
An ADA accessibility audit is a structured technical evaluation of an agreed set of digital experiences. It can cover websites, apps, and documents. The goal is a usable record of issues and a plan for addressing them, rather than a score that leaves your team wondering what to do next.
Agree on the standard and scope.
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, or WCAG, provide testable accessibility criteria. Common audit targets include WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 Level AA. An AA evaluation includes applicable Level A and Level AA requirements. For native apps and non-web documents, the scope should also explain how the criteria will be applied in that environment.
WCAG is a technical standard; the Americans with Disabilities Act is a law. An audit against WCAG should not be presented as a legal certification. Which legal requirements apply depends on the organization and context. Seek qualified legal guidance for those decisions.
Background: W3C’s WCAG overview and U.S. Department of Justice web accessibility guidance.
Combine tools with human evaluation.
Automated checks help find repeatable problems, but a clean scan cannot establish accessibility on its own. W3C emphasizes the need for knowledgeable human evaluation. Manual testing examines whether controls, content, and complete tasks behave as intended, including with assistive technology.
A review can examine:
- Keyboard use: access to controls, visible focus, and the ability to move through dialogs and menus.
- Content structure: meaningful headings, page titles, image alternatives, and reading order.
- Forms: understandable labels, instructions, and error messages.
- Presentation: contrast, zoom, and content visibility.
- Media and documents: appropriate alternatives and accessibility checks within the agreed scope.
Testing with people with disabilities can add valuable insight into actual use. It complements a systematic assessment rather than replacing it.
Further reading: W3C evaluation guidance and initial accessibility checks.
Automated checks
Repeatable checks across the agreed scope
Expert evaluation
Judgment, keyboard use, and assistive technology
Make the audit useful to the team fixing it.
Begin by listing the assets, user journeys, supported environments, and exclusions. A representative sample should reflect different templates, interactive states, and essential processes, rather than only the homepage.
For an online store, Endow Solution would discuss product discovery, the basket, checkout, and order-related interactions during scoping. For a customer portal, sign-in, account tasks, and document access may be priorities. These examples help define coverage; they are not a universal checklist.
A useful report records where an issue occurs, how to reproduce it, who it affects, the relevant criterion, and a proposed correction. Include the testing environment, assessment date, and any limitations. Assigning an owner and tracking remediation status makes the report easier to use in everyday delivery.
Methodology reference: W3C’s WCAG Evaluation Methodology.
- Agree the scopeAssets, journeys, environments, and WCAG target
- Evaluate the experienceAutomated and manual testing
- Document the barriersEvidence, criteria, and practical recommendations
- Plan remediationPriorities and owners for agreed fixes
- Recheck changesFollow-up verification when included in scope
Turn findings into a manageable plan.
Start the remediation discussion with barriers to essential tasks and issues in shared components. Agree who will fix each item and how the change will be reviewed. Keep design, development, and content owners involved so corrections reach the source of the problem.
Recheck the affected journeys after changes. Add accessibility review to future releases and content updates so new work does not quietly reintroduce barriers. For your business, the practical goal is to let more people use your services with confidence—not to promise a particular increase in sales.
Common questions
Does an audit guarantee ADA compliance?
No. It documents a technical assessment within a defined scope and time. It does not guarantee a legal outcome or replace advice about your organization’s obligations.
How much does an audit cost?
Endow Solution scopes pricing around the assets, templates, user journeys, platforms, and reporting needed. Remediation and follow-up testing are agreed separately or explicitly included in the proposal.
Do you review apps and digital documents?
They can be included in the engagement. Identify the platforms, file types, and representative examples before the audit begins so the team can agree on appropriate coverage.
When should we consider an audit?
Consider accessibility evaluation while planning a build, during development, and when reviewing an existing experience. Also discuss a review after substantial design or functionality changes.
Find the barriers.
Plan the improvements.
Endow Solution offers accessibility audits as part of web development and digital experience services. Start with your website, key customer tasks, and the assets you want assessed.
Plan your accessibility audit