What Is Web Accessibility?

Article
Beginner
2 minutes read
Reviewed August 4, 2026

Web accessibility means that websites, tools and technologies are designed and developed so that people with disabilities can use them.

This includes being able to perceive information, navigate interfaces, understand content, complete tasks and interact through assistive technologies or alternative input methods.

Accessibility also improves resilience for people experiencing temporary, situational or environmental limitations.

Who Benefits?

Accessible websites can support people with:

Visual disabilities, including blindness and low vision.
Hearing disabilities.
Physical or motor disabilities.
Speech disabilities.
Cognitive, learning and neurological disabilities.
Multiple or changing disabilities.

The same practices can help someone using a broken mouse, watching a video in a noisy room, navigating on a small screen or recovering from an injury.

Assistive Technologies and Adaptations

People may use:

Screen readers.
Screen magnification.
Keyboard-only navigation.
Switch controls.
Voice input.
Alternative pointing devices.
Captions and transcripts.
High-contrast or forced-colour modes.
Browser zoom and custom styles.

The website should expose meaningful structure and predictable behavior to these tools.

Accessibility Is Not One Feature

Accessibility is affected by:

HTML structure.
Colour and typography.
Keyboard interaction.
Focus management.
Forms and errors.
Images and media.
Content clarity.
Responsive behavior.
Third-party widgets.
Performance and reliability.

A toolbar or overlay cannot reliably repair every layer.

Accessibility and Usability

Usability asks whether people can use a product effectively. Accessibility ensures that disability-related barriers are identified and removed.

The concepts overlap, but accessibility includes specific requirements such as text alternatives, keyboard operation and programmatically determinable labels.

Accessibility and Compliance

WCAG provides an international technical standard. Laws and procurement rules can reference WCAG or define additional duties.

A conformance claim requires evaluation against the relevant success criteria across the stated scope. Passing selected tests is not the same as proving full conformance.

Accessibility in WordPress

A WordPress website combines several sources:

WordPress core.
The active theme.
Plugins.
Blocks and patterns.
Custom code.
Published content.
Hosting and external services.

The final website is only as accessible as the combined result.

Frequently Asked Questions

No. It covers a wide range of disabilities, technologies and interaction methods.

Can a plugin make a website accessible?

A plugin can help with specific tasks, but it cannot automatically repair every content, design and code barrier.

Is accessibility completed at launch?

No. New content, software updates and design changes can introduce new barriers.

Continue Learning

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Next: [Accessibility Principles for WordPress Websites](/resources/wordpress-manual/accessibility/accessibility-principles-wordpress/)