75% of the time, clients already know what standard want to use for their accessibility audit. The other 25% of the time, they ask us what WCAG version we recommend.
WCAG 2.1 AA is still our audit recommendation in 2025. Here’s why.
Market and Legal Acceptance
WCAG 2.1 AA has become the default standard in the overwhelming majority of marketplaces. This is because it’s usually the default legal standard (or is expected to be in upcoming regulatory updates) and the network effect has led to it being the defacto standard organizations want to be in conformance with.
Both the 2024 rule updating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II regulation and EN 301 549 (European accessibility standard) have adopted/incorporated WCAG 2.1 AA as their chosen technical standard so this has been instrumental in furthering 2.1 AA acceptance.
Here is a quick list of benefits:
- Risk Management
- Meets or exceeds legal requirements
- Adoption likely for new laws or regulatory updates
- Satisfies most procurement requirements
- Established standard (published in 2018)
- Technical Benefits
- Adds 12 success criteria to WCAG 2.0 AA
- Addresses both desktop and mobile accessibility
- Covers modern interface patterns
Why Not Other Versions?
WCAG 2.0 AA
While we still see WCAG 2.0 AA used in certain circumstances (e.g., Section 508, the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act or AODA), it’s important to remember that WCAG 2.0 was published in 2008 and doesn’t address many aspects of mobile use.
So while WCAG 2.0 AA may be the technical threshold for compliance – and it still provides for very good accessibility – it’s important to keep in mind that there are important success criteria that were added with version 2.1 AA.
WCAG 2.2 AA
WCAG 2.2 AA is the most recent version of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, released in 2023. For level AA conformance, there are just six additional success criteria that need to be accounted for.
So why not make WCAG 2.2 AA our default recommended standard?
To be sure, there are benefits to electing for WCAG 2.2 AA as your audit standard:
- Take your accessibility to the next level
- Some contracts require conformance with the most recent WCAG version
- Market that you exceed legal requirements
- Be ahead of any potential accessibility legislation that incorporates 2.2
- Some website accessibility lawsuits name WCAG 2.2 AA issues
However, what we have found is that clients usually have more than enough issues to work through with a WCAG 2.1 AA audit. In fact, a common problem in the accessibility industry is that clients do not resolve all accessibility issues in their audit.
Combine this with the fact that WCAG 2.1 AA already provides for excellent accessibility and will meet most compliance mandates for technical accessibility and 2.1 is an easy choice.
Plus, if clients wish to have a second audit after a specified time period – say 6 months to 1 year later – this second audit provides the perfect opportunity to find and address issues that went unresolved, newly introduced issues, and also include WCAG 2.2 AA the a second time around.
Additionally, some digital assets (e.g., desktop apps) may not significant content or functionality that invokes many of the success criteria in WCAG 2.2 AA.
In short, we always applaud clients who are zealous with accessibility, but there are advantages and options available for those who choose to progress over time.
Next Steps
Are you ready to get started with your accessibility audit?
We’d love to help. Just send us a message and we’ll get back to you ASAP.
