WCAG 101: A Beginner's Guide to Web Accessibility

Introduction

Web accessibility isn't just a checkbox—it's about making the internet fair, inclusive, and easy to use for everyone. Whether someone has a disability or is juggling noisy surroundings, great accessibility benefits us all. That's where the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) come in—your roadmap to making inclusive web experiences.

What Is WCAG—and Why Does It Matter?

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are a set of internationally recognized standards developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) through its Web Accessibility Initiative. These guidelines ensure that web content is accessible to as many people as possible—including those with vision, hearing, motor, cognitive, or learning challenges.

Since WCAG 2.0's release in December 2008 and its adoption as an ISO standard (ISO/IEC 40500) in October 2012, WCAG has evolved. The most recent stable version, WCAG 2.2, became a W3C recommendation on October 5, 2023—but the key principles have stayed rock solid across versions.

Following WCAG isn't just good karma—it helps legally too. Many regions, including EU countries, require public sites to meet WCAG standards. Plus, accessible sites tend to rank higher in search engines and improve overall UX.

The Four Core Principles: POUR

WCAG is organized around four core, easy-to-remember principles—POUR. Let's break each one down:

1. Perceivable

Make sure content can be sensed by all users—vision, hearing, or otherwise.

• Alt text on images helps screen readers describe visuals
• Captions/transcripts make audio and video accessible to those who are deaf or hard of hearing
• High contrast and scalable text ensure readability for users with low vision

2. Operable

Everyone should be able to use and navigate your site—even without a mouse.

• Let users navigate via keyboard only
• Avoid or let users disable anything flashing (to prevent triggering seizures)
• Provide skip-to-content links, descriptive headings, and clear focus indicators

3. Understandable

Content and controls must be easy to comprehend.

• Use plain language, avoid confusing jargon or abbreviations without context
• Maintain predictable layouts and consistent navigation patterns across pages
• Label form inputs clearly and offer help or error suggestions when needed

4. Robust

Ensure your site works smoothly across browsers, devices, and assistive tools—now and in the future.

• Use clean, valid HTML and semantic markup, and test with screen readers
• Make interactive elements (like buttons and ARIA roles) identifiable to technologies like assistive scripts

How to Build This Into Your Workflow

Define POUR early in your design and dev planning—it's your accessibility foundation.

Use automated tools like Lighthouse or Axe for quick checks, but complement with manual testing (keyboard-only navigation, screen readers, etc.).

Aim for WCAG Level AA, which addresses most barriers and meets common regulatory requirements.

Document key checks in your Next.js / TypeScript setup—maybe as part of your CI pipeline or dev README.

SEO & Accessibility: Best Buddies

A side perk of accessibility? It boosts SEO:

Better semantic structure (headings, alt text, labels) helps both assistive tech and search engines.

More reachable users → lower bounce rates → higher ranking.

Complying with WCAG can prevent legal hiccups and signal quality to users and search engines alike.

Final Thoughts: Your Next Steps

Start with POUR as your compass:

**Perceivable**: alt text, captions, scalable text

**Operable**: keyboard navigation, skip links, simple UI

**Understandable**: plain content, consistent layout, helpful forms

**Robust**: semantic markup, clean code, assistive-friendly features

Test early, iterate often, and document your efforts—your users, your SEO score, and your conscience will all thank you.

Ready to put WCAG principles into practice? Use paletteIO's accessibility-first color tools to create inclusive palettes that meet WCAG standards from the start.