The founder of Accessible.org literally wrote the book on ADA compliance for digital assets (“The ADA Book”) so we know exactly what clients need in an ADA website audit.
Our excellent ADA website audits evaluate your website to help prevent lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act Title III and prepare for the Title II web accessibility rule, ensuring equal access for customers and people with disabilities.
Our manual evaluation identifies accessibility issues that could trigger ADA Title III lawsuits or Title II complaints. Every audit is conducted by technical accessibility experts who understand both the technical requirements and the implications of web accessibility under the ADA.
We never rely on automated scans alone. A technical accessibility expert thoroughly evaluates your digital properties using the testing methodologies courts recognize: screen reader testing, keyboard navigation, visual inspection, and code inspection. This comprehensive approach ensures you understand your actual exposure to ADA lawsuits.
After completing your ADA audit, we provide a detailed report of all accessibility issues that could lead to litigation, written in clear language that both your legal team and developers can understand. You can upload your audit report to Accessibility Tracker and use the Risk Factor formula to prioritize issues based on how likely they are to be cited in ADA complaints. As you implement our recommendations, you’ll reduce lawsuit risk and improve accessibility for people with disabilities.
Our audit reports include everything needed to address ADA requirements:
- What the issue is
- Where the issue is located
- WCAG success criterion (the standard referenced by DOJ)
- Recommended fix
- Screenshot or screen recording of the issue
- Users affected
ADA Website Audit Process
| Step | Action & Details |
|---|---|
| Step 1: Identify Technical Standard | DOJ references WCAG 2.1 AA for ADA compliance. Title II rule requires WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Plaintiffs’ lawyers cite to WCAG 2.1 AA or WCAG 2.2 AA in complaints filed in state and federal court. |
| Step 2: Identify Page/Screen Layouts | Focus on essential pages, layouts, and templates most likely to be involved in a user flow. Also, focused on highly visible or trafficked pages. |
| Step 3: Set Audit Environments | Accessible.org uses default audit environments of Desktop: Windows, Chrome, NVDA. Mobile: iOS, Safari, VoiceOver. We also offer Mac and Android environments on request. |
| Step 4: Evaluate Against Standards | Evaluate against all 50 AA success criteria using keyboard testing, screen reader testing, visual inspection, and code review. |
| Step 5: Automated Scan Review | We use AXE automated scan as final review to ensure all issues correctly flagged by a scan are included in our audit. |
| Step 7: Deliver Audit Report | Clear, actionable ADA audit report delivered in Excel spreadsheet documenting all issues with recommended fixes. |
| Step 6: Prioritized Recommendations | Upload to Accessibility Tracker platform to prioritize accessibility issues by Risk Factor. This formula is based on issues named in lawsuits. |
Table of Contents
Understanding ADA Website Requirements
ADA Title III and Lawsuits
The ADA requires places of public accommodation to provide equal access to goods and services. Courts have consistently ruled that websites are extensions of physical places of public accommodation and must be accessible to people with disabilities. Our audit identifies issues that prevent equal access and could trigger Title III lawsuits.
Thousands of ADA website lawsuits are filed annually, with plaintiffs’ attorneys actively seeking websites with accessibility issues. Industries like retail, hospitality, education, and healthcare face the highest volume of litigation.
ADA Title II Web Accessibility Rule
The Department of Justice’s Title II rule requires state and local governments to make their web content and mobile apps accessible. This rule explicitly requires WCAG 2.1 Level AA conformance. Our audits prepare you for these specific requirements.
Process
1. Identify Technical Standard
The Department of Justice references WCAG 2.1 AA as the appropriate standard for ADA compliance. The Title II rule explicitly requires WCAG 2.1 AA. We default to WCAG 2.1 AA, though some clients opt for WCAG 2.2 AA.
2. Identifying Primary Page/Screen Layouts
We focus on the website features most likely to be involved in ADA lawsuits: purchase flows, appointment scheduling, account creation, form submission, and any functionality essential to accessing your goods or services. We can recommend an audit scope or work with you to determine coverage.
3. Set Audit Environments
We evaluate your website using the same assistive technologies used by people with disabilities and recognized by courts. Desktop environments include Windows with NVDA screen reader and Chrome. Mobile environments use iOS with VoiceOver and Safari. Mac desktop and Android mobile available as add-ons. We can also supplement with user testing for real-world validation.
4. Evaluating Against WCAG 2.1 AA or WCAG 2.2 AA
Our experts meticulously evaluate your website against all 50 AA success criteria in WCAG 2.1 AA or WCAG 2.2 AA—the standards referenced by DOJ for ADA compliance. We test your website using keyboard and screen readers, visually inspect each page/screen, and review code where needed.
5. Automated Scan Review
We use the AXE automated scan tool as a final review to complement our manual audit process, ensuring that all issues that can be correctly flagged by automation are contained in your report. We only use the AXE scan as a review, never as primary results.
6. Recommended Fixes with Risk-Based Prioritization
Our team provides precise recommendations with code examples to address identified issues. Upload your audit report to Accessibility Tracker to access the Risk Factor formula—a data-driven prioritization based on which issues are most commonly cited in ADA complaints. This helps you fix the issues most likely to lead to lawsuits first.
7. Clear ADA Audit Report in Excel Spreadsheet
Our audit report is designed to be actionable and easy to understand. We organize all issues in a clear Excel spreadsheet that your team can use to systematically address ADA compliance. The report is ready to upload to Accessibility Tracker for enhanced project management.
Post-Audit Support
Validation
After receiving your audit report, your team will begin fixing the issues identified. Most clients purchase technical support hours from us to help with validation of the fixes. This ensures issues are properly remediated and documents your compliance efforts.
Validation serves as a re-audit that ensures all accessibility issues have been effectively resolved and verifies your website meets ADA requirements. The cost depends on technical support hours needed. Many clients complete validation with 5 or fewer hours.
Investment in ADA Compliance
We’ve helped hundreds of organizations reduce their ADA lawsuit risk through comprehensive audits. Each audit follows the same rigorous process to identify issues that could lead to litigation.
ADA website audits typically range from $1,500 to $5,500, depending on factors such as the current state of accessibility, the number of pages/screens audited, and complexity of your website. With a typical turnaround of 1-2 weeks, you’ll quickly understand your exposure and have a clear path forward.
Critical ADA Audit Questions
Why Is an ADA Audit Different from Accessibility User Testing?
An ADA audit is focused on eliminating technical accessibility issues. User testing is a separate digital accessibility service that is focused on the experience of someone who has a disability. User testing can be extremely beneficial in defending against ADA website claims. Our user testing sessions come with screen recordings of the session and documentation attesting to the user’s experience.
What Are the Consequences of ADA Non-Compliance?
ADA violations can result in federal lawsuits seeking injunctive relief and attorney fees. Settlements often range from $5,000 to $20,000 or more. Serial plaintiffs and their attorneys use automated tools to identify potential targets, making any website with accessibility issues vulnerable.
How Do We Prioritize Which Issues to Fix First?
Upload your audit report to Accessibility Tracker to use the Risk Factor formula—a data-driven prioritization based on analysis of actual ADA complaints. This formula identifies which accessibility issues are most commonly cited in lawsuits, helping you address the highest-risk issues first. Tracker also offers User Impact scoring for prioritization based on severity and user experience.
What Makes Your ADA Audits Different?
Our audits are 100% manual, conducted by technical accessibility experts. We never copy and paste automated scan results. We understand both the technical standards and the litigation landscape, providing practical guidance for reducing lawsuit risk.
How Quickly Should We Address Issues?
Every day of non-compliance is potential exposure to lawsuits. Starting remediation immediately shows you’re addressing accessibility. Plaintiffs’ attorneys often target websites that show no effort toward accessibility. Using Accessibility Tracker helps you organize and track your remediation efforts efficiently.
Do You Test Mobile Websites?
Yes. Mobile accessibility is increasingly important in ADA litigation. We test with iOS, Safari, and VoiceOver for mobile evaluation, with Android available as an add-on.
Can an Audit Prevent Lawsuits?
An audit identifies issues that need to be fixed. Remediation of those issues reduces lawsuit risk. Having a recent audit and active remediation plan tracked in Accessibility Tracker may deter plaintiffs’ attorneys who typically seek easier targets with obvious, unaddressed accessibility issues.
What About the Title II Rule?
The DOJ’s Title II rule explicitly requires state and local government websites to meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Our audits evaluate against these exact standards, preparing you for compliance when the rule takes effect.
How Often Do ADA Website Lawsuits Happen?
ADA website lawsuits have increased dramatically, with thousands filed annually. Certain industries and regions see higher rates. Any business with an inaccessible website can become a target. The Risk Factor formula in Accessibility Tracker is based on actual lawsuit data, showing which issues plaintiffs’ attorneys target most.
What If We Receive a Demand Letter?
If you receive an ADA demand letter, you need documentation of your accessibility status immediately. Our expedited audit service can provide the technical assessment your legal team needs to respond effectively. Having your issues organized in Accessibility Tracker demonstrates systematic remediation efforts.
Service
Ready to understand your ADA compliance status and reduce lawsuit risk?
Contact us for a proposal and we’ll help you identify and address accessibility issues before they lead to litigation.
