We just finished meeting with a repeat Australian client who let us know they’re experiencing even more of a push for accessibility. What was interesting was they’re sourcing out work to Accessible.org, a U.S. company, because local Australian digital accessibility companies are prohibitively expensive.
The client let me know that quotes for audit and VPAT service from Australia-based companies were coming in at $20,000 – $40,000 due to a lack of competition.
We haven’t finalized services for this project yet, but the client has an educational course inside an LMS (learning management system) and will inquire about pricing for the following services:
- WCAG 2.1 AA desktop + mobile audit
- or WCAG 2.2 AA
- VPAT Service (INT edition)
- or WCAG Edition
- Technical Support Hours
- for issue validation
Their quote will very likely come in under $4,500.
During our meeting, the client also asked about audit scope, specifically whether every single page of their LMS needed to be tested. This is a common question, and the answer is no. A WCAG audit is conducted against a representative sample of pages and components.
The goal is to capture the full range of templates, interactive elements, and content types so that the findings apply across the entire platform. You don’t need to evaluate every page individually to get a thorough, accurate audit. A well-selected sample covers the unique functionality and produces findings that can be applied site-wide during remediation.
On pricing, we’ve watched accessibility companies steadily raise their rates over the past several years. This has been especially visible with enterprise-facing firms in the U.S., where audits and VPAT services that used to cost a few thousand dollars now routinely come in at $10,000 to $20,000 or more. We were aware of this trend domestically but had no idea it was happening in Australia to this degree. Hearing that Australian companies are quoting $20,000 to $40,000 for audit and VPAT work was eye-opening. It appears the limited number of local providers has created a pricing environment with almost no downward pressure.
What we want prospective clients to know is that lower pricing does not mean lower quality. Our audits are thorough, manual, and conducted against the full WCAG standard by experienced auditors. We identify real issues, provide actionable remediation guidance, and deliver reports that hold up to scrutiny.
The difference is our approach and outlook leads to much more reasonable pricing. We don’t have to increase stock prices for shareholders or anything of the sort.
This way clients get top-tier audit quality at a fraction of what many companies charge, whether those companies are based in the U.S. or abroad.
