The WCAG edition of the VPAT is the right choice when your buyers, partners, or procurement teams care about WCAG conformance and nothing more specific. It maps your product against the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines at the level you target, typically 2.1 AA or 2.2 AA. If you are not selling into US federal government, not selling into the European public sector, and not selling globally with mixed regulatory expectations, the WCAG edition covers what most commercial buyers want to see.
This is the default edition for SaaS companies, web apps, and digital products sold to private sector clients.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Who should use it | SaaS companies and product teams selling to private sector buyers |
| What it covers | WCAG 2.1 AA or WCAG 2.2 AA success criteria |
| When to pick another edition | US federal contracts (Section 508), EU public sector (EN 301 549), global mixed buyers (INT) |
| Foundation required | A current accessibility audit identifies the issues that inform the ACR |
What the WCAG Edition of the VPAT Actually Is
The VPAT is a template published by ITI. The completed document is an ACR, an Accessibility Conformance Report. The WCAG edition of the template includes only the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, no Section 508 chapters, no EN 301 549 chapters.
When filled out, the ACR shows each WCAG success criterion at your target level and your product’s conformance against it: Supports, Partially Supports, Does Not Support, or Not Applicable. Buyers read this document to evaluate accessibility before purchase.
When Is the WCAG Edition the Right Pick?
The WCAG edition fits most commercial sales situations. It is the right edition when your buyer is a private company asking for an ACR during procurement, when your product is a SaaS application, ecommerce store, or marketing website sold to commercial clients, when the RFP or vendor questionnaire references WCAG 2.1 AA or WCAG 2.2 AA but not Section 508 or EN 301 549, or when you sell to healthcare, financial services, EdTech, HR tech, or any private sector vertical that has adopted WCAG as the benchmark.
If buyers are quoting success criteria numbers back at you, citing 1.4.3 for contrast or 2.4.7 for focus, they are speaking WCAG. The WCAG edition matches their language.
When Should You Pick a Different Edition?
There are three situations where another edition serves you better.
The Section 508 edition is the right pick when you sell to US federal agencies or to contractors fulfilling federal contracts. Section 508 incorporates WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA by reference and adds functional performance criteria specific to federal procurement.
The EN 301 549 edition fits when you sell into the European Union public sector or to organizations subject to the European Accessibility Act. EN 301 549 references WCAG and adds requirements for hardware, software, documentation, and support.
The INT edition combines all three. Pick INT when your buyer base spans US federal, EU, and global commercial clients and you want a single document that addresses every framework.
How Does the Audit Connect to the Edition Choice?
The ACR is only as accurate as the work behind it. An accessibility audit identifies the issues across your product and maps them to specific WCAG success criteria. Without that foundation, an ACR is guesswork.
For the WCAG edition specifically, the audit must evaluate against the version and level you plan to claim. A WCAG 2.2 AA claim requires evaluation against 2.2 AA. A 2.1 AA claim requires evaluation against 2.1 AA. The audit report feeds directly into the conformance language on each row of the ACR.
WCAG 2.1 AA or 2.2 AA on Your ACR?
Both are common. WCAG 2.1 AA remains the most widely referenced standard in commercial procurement. WCAG 2.2 AA is becoming the request from more sophisticated buyers and from procurement teams updating their requirements.
If your buyer specifies one, follow that. If the buyer is open or silent on version, 2.2 AA signals current practice. The WCAG edition of the VPAT supports either.
Common Mistakes With the WCAG Edition
Two patterns come up repeatedly.
The first is picking the WCAG edition when the buyer needs Section 508. A federal contracting officer reviewing your ACR will look for Section 508 chapters. If those chapters are missing, the document does not meet their requirement, no matter how thorough the WCAG content.
The second is producing a WCAG edition ACR without a current audit behind it. Self-attested conformance claims without evaluation evidence carry little weight in serious procurement reviews. Accessible.org always pairs the ACR with a current audit report.
Do small vendors need a WCAG edition VPAT?
If you sell to enterprise buyers, yes. Procurement teams at mid-market and enterprise companies routinely ask for an ACR before signing. Small vendors that produce one early in the sales cycle close deals faster than those who scramble to provide one after the request arrives.
Can the same ACR cover multiple products?
Each product needs its own ACR. A web app and a mobile app are separate digital assets with separate evaluation scopes. Combining them in one ACR creates confusion for buyers and weakens the document’s credibility.
How long is a WCAG edition ACR valid?
ACRs do not have a formal expiration. The accepted practice is to update the ACR after significant product changes or annually, whichever comes first. Buyers reviewing an ACR older than 12 months often ask for a refresh.
What goes into a WCAG edition ACR beyond the conformance table?
The document includes product identification, evaluation methods, scope of the evaluation, applicable standards, contact information, and the conformance table itself. Notes columns on each row carry the specific detail that makes the ACR useful: which issues exist, where they appear, and the path to remediation.
The WCAG edition is the workhorse of the VPAT family. For most commercial sellers, it is the document buyers actually want.
For a WCAG edition ACR backed by a current audit, Contact Accessible.org.
