--- title: "Accessibility" url: "https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/accessibility" language: "en" description: "What does accessibility mean on the web? A plain-language guide with an example, the legal basics and practical tips. Learn how to spot barriers on your site." published: "2026-10-14T09:50:31+02:00" updated: "2026-10-14T13:03:01+02:00" --- # Accessibility Accessibility means designing websites, apps and digital documents so that everyone can use them, including people with visual, hearing, motor or cognitive disabilities. - **Buchstabe:** A UX glossary # Accessibility Accessibility means designing websites, apps and digital documents so that everyone can use them, including people with visual, hearing, motor or cognitive disabilities. Imagine you want to book a train ticket late in the evening. The “Next” button is light gray on white, the date picker only works with a mouse, and an error shows up as a thin red border with no text. Annoying, but doable. Now imagine the same page for someone who is blind and uses a keyboard and speech output. For them, the booking ends right at those spots. Accessibility is what keeps that from happening. ## Explained simply Accessibility means designing digital products such as websites, apps or PDFs so that everyone can perceive, understand and operate them, including people with disabilities. You’ll often see it shortened to “a11y,” because there are eleven letters between the a and the y. Think of a ramp next to a staircase. It helps wheelchair users, but it also helps anyone with a stroller or a suitcase. Digital accessibility works the same way. The W3C’s Web Accessibility Initiative explicitly lists people without disabilities who benefit too: older adults, people with a broken arm, and anyone using their phone in bright sunlight or with the sound off. ## What kinds of barriers exist According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 1.3 billion people worldwide live with a significant disability, roughly one in six. Their obstacles online vary a lot: - **Vision:** Blind people use a [screen reader](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/screen-reader) that reads content aloud. People with low vision zoom in or need strong contrast. - **Hearing:** Videos without captions are silent for deaf people. - **Motor:** People who can barely move their hands use a keyboard, voice control or switch devices. Tiny click targets become a real obstacle. - **Cognition:** Convoluted sentences, unclear flows and tight time limits overwhelm people with learning disabilities or attention difficulties. ## Rules and laws The main benchmark is [WCAG](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/wcag), the W3C’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. They define testable criteria, for example a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for regular text. In the EU, the European Accessibility Act (Directive 2019/882) extends accessibility requirements to many private companies. Germany implements it through the BFSG (Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz, roughly “Accessibility Strengthening Act”), which has applied since June 28, 2025. Beyond public bodies, it covers online shops, banks and booking platforms that serve consumers. Microenterprises that provide services are exempt. For details, read [The BFSG in Practice: What Germany’s Accessibility Act Means for Websites and Apps](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/blog/bfsg-in-practice-german-accessibility-act-websites-apps). ## An example Here’s an example: a small delivery service has an order form whose fields are labeled only with placeholder text. As soon as someone starts typing, the hint disappears. The screen reader just announces something like “edit,” and the order button is an image with no alt text. After a redesign, every field has a visible label, error messages explain in words what’s missing, and the button is a real button with text. For screen reader users, ordering becomes possible in the first place. And everyone else gets through faster, because they no longer have to guess. ## Common misconceptions Accessibility isn’t a niche extra, and it isn’t a box a plugin can tick. Overlay tools that add an accessibility toolbar don’t fix missing labels or keyboard traps. Accessible doesn’t mean boring, either: it’s about structure, contrast and clear interaction, not about giving up on visual design. To see why the topic goes far beyond colors, read [Why Accessibility Is More Than Contrast and Font Size](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/blog/why-accessibility-is-more-than-contrast-and-font-size). ## In practice - **Put the mouse away.** Use your website with only Tab, Enter and the arrow keys. If you can’t see where the focus is or you get stuck somewhere, you’ve found a barrier. - **Check contrast while you design.** Test color combinations before the design is final. Recoloring later takes far more effort. - **Describe images meaningfully.** Informative images need alt text that conveys their message. Purely decorative images get an empty alt attribute so screen readers skip them. ## Related terms [WCAG](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/wcag), [Screen Reader](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/screen-reader), [Fitts’ Law](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/fitts-law) ## Sources - [W3C Web Accessibility Initiative: Introduction to Web Accessibility. W3C, 2026](https://www.w3.org/WAI/fundamentals/accessibility-intro/) - [World Health Organization: Disability. Fact Sheet, 2023](https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/disability-and-health) - [German Federal Ministry of Justice: Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz (BFSG). gesetze-im-internet.de, 2021 (in German)](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bfsg/) ## More terms [ ### A/B Testing An A/B test is an experiment that shows two versions of a page or element at the same time to randomly split groups of visitors. It lets you decide with real data which version works better. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/a-b-testing) [ ### ARIA ARIA is a W3C standard that adds roles, states and properties to HTML. It tells screen readers what an element is and how it currently behaves. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/aria) [ ### Affordance An affordance describes what action an object makes possible and whether people can recognize it: a button invites you to press it, a handle invites you to pull. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/affordance) [ ### Alt Text Alt text is a short text version of an image, stored in the HTML alt attribute. Screen readers read it aloud so people who can’t see the image get the same information. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/alt-text) [ ### Atomic Design Atomic Design is a method for building user interfaces from small, reusable building blocks, from single elements like buttons all the way up to complete pages. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/atomic-design) [ ### BFSG The BFSG, Germany’s Accessibility Strengthening Act, has required many companies since 28 June 2025 to make certain products and digital services, such as online shops, accessible. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/bfsg) [ ### Card Sorting Card sorting is a research method in which people sort terms written on cards into groups. It shows you how they mentally organize content, so you can plan navigation that makes sense to them. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/card-sorting) [ ### Cognitive Load Cognitive load is the mental effort it takes to understand and use an interface. The less unnecessary thinking a design demands, the easier the actual task becomes. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/cognitive-load) [ ### Color Vision Deficiency A color vision deficiency means someone has a harder time telling certain colors apart than most people. The most common type is red-green deficiency. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/color-vision-deficiency) [ ### Contextual Inquiry Contextual inquiry is a research method where you observe and interview people in their real work environment. It shows you how they actually get tasks done, not just how they describe it. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/contextual-inquiry) [ ### Contrast Ratio The contrast ratio describes how much two colors differ in brightness, such as text and background. WCAG requires at least 4.5:1 for normal text. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/contrast-ratio) [ ### Conversion A conversion is a desired action on a website or in an app, such as a purchase or a signup. The conversion rate shows what share of visits leads to one. ](https://insideuxdesign.com/en/glossar/conversion)