ADA Website Compliance Checker: Find the Barriers Behind ADA Risk

Does the ADA apply to websites?

Yes. The US Department of Justice states that the ADA applies to the web content of state and local governments under Title II and of businesses open to the public under Title III. Both must make the programs, services and goods they offer online accessible to people with disabilities, including people who are blind, deaf, or who cannot use a mouse.

For state and local governments, a 2024 DOJ rule makes the requirement specific: web content and mobile apps generally must meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA, with limited exceptions such as archived content and some pre-existing documents. For businesses, the Title III regulations name no technical standard, so courts, settlements and DOJ guidance use WCAG as the practical benchmark.

What are the ADA Title II website deadlines?

The DOJ's Title II rule was published on 24 April 2024. On 20 April 2026 the Department published an interim final rule that moved the compliance dates back by one year:

• State and local governments serving a population of 50,000 or more: 26 April 2027.
• Those serving fewer than 50,000 people, and all special district governments: 26 April 2028.
• Third-party content and apps a government uses for its services, such as payment or booking tools, are covered too.

What does an ADA website checker look for?

There is no official ADA test, so an ADA checker tests against WCAG, the standard the DOJ references. AccessibilityScore.in runs axe-core and its own rules on the rendered page and reports barriers that commonly block people from completing tasks:

• Images and icon buttons without text alternatives, which screen reader users cannot identify
• Form fields without labels, which make checkout, booking and contact forms unusable non-visually
• Text with too little colour contrast for people with low vision
• Missing focus indicators and tiny tap targets that make keyboard and touch use difficult
• Invalid ARIA that misreports controls to assistive technology
• Missing page titles and language, which affect navigation and pronunciation

Can a scan make your website ADA compliant?

No. ADA compliance is about whether people with disabilities can actually use the site, which depends on meaning, behaviour and whole tasks that a tool cannot judge. A clean automated scan is evidence that common code-level barriers are absent, not proof that the site is accessible.

The same applies to overlay widgets that add a toolbar or claim to fix a site automatically. They do not change the underlying code that screen readers and keyboards rely on, and no tool, overlay or certificate can make a site ADA compliant on its own.

How should you reduce ADA website risk?

Treat accessibility as ongoing quality work, with evidence:

• Scan your key templates and fix critical and serious findings first.
• Manually test your most important tasks with a keyboard and a screen reader.
• Publish an accessibility statement with a working way to report problems, and respond to reports.
• Keep records of audits, fixes and re-tests; they show good-faith effort.
• Check third-party widgets, PDFs and video, which are common sources of barriers.
• Get a manual WCAG 2.2 AA audit, and legal advice, before making compliance claims.