Accessibility Testing for Inclusive Design Accessibility testing helps ensure your product can be used by people with diverse abilities. It is not a one-time task but a routine part of design and development. The WCAG guidelines provide a baseline, but practical testing with real interactions reveals gaps guidelines alone miss. By testing early and often, you save time and earn trust from users who rely on assistive technology.
What to test Keyboard accessibility: can you reach all interactive elements with Tab, and is the focus clearly visible? Screen reader flow: do headings, landmarks, and ARIA roles help a user navigate content smoothly? Color and contrast: is text readable on all backgrounds, and is color used with meaning beyond decoration? Form controls and errors: are labels present, and do error messages appear in a detectable way? Media accessibility: do videos have captions and transcripts? Responsive and orientation: does the layout adapt for different screen sizes and assistive devices? How to test Start with a quick manual check: use only the keyboard, then try a screen reader on your preferred platform. Run automated checks to spot obvious issues, but do not rely on them alone. Tools like Lighthouse, Axe, and the browser accessibility inspector can help, but human judgment matters most. Create user scenarios that reflect real tasks, such as signing up for an account or placing an order, and verify that each step remains perceivable, operable, and understandable. Finally, invite teammates or external users to test and share their findings so you can improve together.
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