WCAG 2.2 Compliance Statistics: How Many Sites Pass?

WCAG 2.2 compliance statistics reveal a troubling landscape: 96.3% of the top 1 million homepages have detectable WCAG failures according to WebAIM's 2024 analysis. Only 3.7% pass automated testing—and automated testing catches just 70-80% of issues. The actual full-compliance rate is even lower. These statistics explain why ADA lawsuits continue at 8,800 annually and why <1% of TestParty customers have been sued: most sites are non-compliant, but TestParty customers achieve genuine accessibility.

Understanding these statistics helps you assess risk and prioritize action.

Key Statistics at a Glance

The numbers paint a clear picture of web accessibility.

• 96.3% of top 1 million homepages have WCAG failures
• 3.7% pass automated accessibility testing (homepages only)
• 56.8 average errors detected per homepage
• 8,800 ADA Title III lawsuits filed in 2024
• 26% of US adults have disabilities (CDC)
• 0 TestParty customers sued while using the platform

WebAIM Million Analysis: 2024 Data

The WebAIM Million provides the most comprehensive automated accessibility analysis.

Overall Compliance Rate

WebAIM's 2024 study analyzed the top 1 million website homepages. Results showed that 96.3% had detectable WCAG 2 failures—meaning automated tools found at least one violation.

This represents only homepage analysis. Full-site compliance rates would be lower since internal pages, checkout flows, and dynamic content often have additional issues.

Average Errors Per Page

The average homepage had 56.8 detectable errors. This represents multiple barriers preventing access for users with disabilities.

High-error sites may have hundreds of violations on a single page. Even "relatively accessible" sites often have dozens.

Trend Analysis

+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+
|    Year    |   Homepages with Errors   |   Average Errors   |
+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+
|    2019    |           97.8%           |        59.6        |
+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+
|    2020    |           98.1%           |        60.9        |
+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+
|    2021    |           97.4%           |        51.4        |
+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+
|    2022    |           96.8%           |        50.8        |
+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+
|    2023    |           96.3%           |        56.8        |
+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+
|    2024    |           96.3%           |        56.8        |
+------------+---------------------------+--------------------+

Improvement has stalled. After slight gains, the percentage has remained at 96.3% for two consecutive years.

Most Common WCAG Violations

Understanding violation patterns helps prioritize remediation.

Top Violations by Frequency

+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
|         Violation Type        |   Percentage of Sites   |
+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
|       Low contrast text       |          81.0%          |
+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
|        Missing alt text       |          54.5%          |
+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
|      Missing form labels      |          48.6%          |
+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
|          Empty links          |          44.6%          |
+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
|   Missing document language   |          17.1%          |
+-------------------------------+-------------------------+
|         Empty buttons         |          12.2%          |
+-------------------------------+-------------------------+

What These Violations Mean

Low contrast text (81.0%) — Text doesn't have sufficient contrast against backgrounds. WCAG requires 4.5:1 minimum for normal text. Users with low vision can't read low-contrast content.

Missing alt text (54.5%) — Images lack alternative text descriptions. Screen reader users hear nothing or meaningless filenames. Product images, navigation icons, and informational graphics become invisible.

Missing form labels (48.6%) — Form fields lack programmatic labels. Screen reader users don't know what information to enter. Checkout forms become unusable.

Empty links (44.6%) — Links contain no accessible text. Screen reader users hear "link" without knowing where it leads. Navigation becomes guesswork.

The Impact

These four violation types alone affect over 80% of websites. Together they create barriers that prevent screen reader users from navigating, purchasing, or consuming content.

Industry-Specific Statistics

Compliance varies significantly by industry.

E-Commerce Compliance

E-commerce faces particular challenges. Product catalogs, dynamic filtering, checkout processes, and user accounts create complexity.

+--------------------------------+------------------------------------+
|             Factor             |         E-Commerce Impact          |
+--------------------------------+------------------------------------+
|    Sites with WCAG failures    |                96%+                |
+--------------------------------+------------------------------------+
|   Percentage of web lawsuits   |                77%                 |
+--------------------------------+------------------------------------+
|     Common violation areas     |   Product images, forms, filters   |
+--------------------------------+------------------------------------+
|   Average remediation volume   |        1,000-10,000+ issues        |
+--------------------------------+------------------------------------+

E-commerce's 77% share of web accessibility lawsuits reflects both prevalence and targeting patterns.

Government and Education

Government websites face explicit requirements. The DOJ's 2024 Title II rule requires WCAG 2.1 AA for state and local government.

Education faces similar requirements under Section 504 and ADA. Universities and schools must provide accessible digital experiences.

Healthcare and Financial Services

These regulated industries face heightened scrutiny. HIPAA, financial regulations, and consumer protection laws create additional compliance pressure beyond general ADA requirements.

ADA Lawsuit Statistics

Legal enforcement reflects compliance gaps.

Annual Lawsuit Volume

According to Seyfarth Shaw, ADA Title III federal lawsuits totaled 8,800 in 2024—a 7% increase from 2023.

+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    Year    |   ADA Title III Lawsuits   |   Web-Specific (Federal)   |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    2018    |           10,163           |           2,258            |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    2019    |           11,053           |           2,256            |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    2020    |           10,982           |           3,503            |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    2021    |           11,452           |           2,895            |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    2022    |           8,694            |           2,387            |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    2023    |           8,227            |           2,281            |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+
|    2024    |           8,800            |           2,452            |
+------------+----------------------------+----------------------------+

Web accessibility lawsuits represent approximately 25-30% of total ADA Title III litigation.

Plaintiff Concentration

Serial plaintiff firms file high volumes of lawsuits. A small number of law firms generate the majority of cases, targeting sites with obvious violations.

Target Selection

Plaintiff attorneys use automated scanning to identify non-compliant sites. With 96.3% of sites having violations, targets are plentiful. Selection often focuses on revenue size, industry (e-commerce heavily targeted), and violation severity.

Overlay Usage Statistics

Overlay adoption and outcomes provide cautionary data.

Market Presence

Overlay platforms claim millions of installations. AccessiBe, UserWay, and similar vendors have achieved significant market penetration.

Lawsuit Outcomes

Despite market presence, overlay users face lawsuits at alarming rates. Over 800 businesses using overlay platforms were sued in 2023-2024.

The FTC fined AccessiBe $1 million for claims "not supported by competent and reliable evidence."

The Gap

Overlay adoption statistics and overlay lawsuit statistics reveal a gap. Many businesses installed overlays believing they achieved compliance. The lawsuits demonstrate they didn't.

Detection Coverage Statistics

Understanding what automated testing catches helps interpret compliance data.

Automated Detection Rate

Industry consensus places automated detection at 70-80% of WCAG violations.

+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|        Violation Type       |   Automated Detection   |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|       Missing alt text      |           95%+          |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|        Color contrast       |           95%+          |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|         Form labels         |           90%+          |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|      Heading structure      |           85%+          |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|       Alt text quality      |            0%           |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|    Content meaningfulness   |            0%           |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+
|   Cognitive accessibility   |            0%           |
+-----------------------------+-------------------------+

What This Means for WebAIM Data

WebAIM's 96.3% failure rate reflects only detectable issues. The remaining 20-30% requiring human judgment would push failure rates even higher.

A site passing automated testing may still have significant accessibility barriers in subjective criteria—alt text that's present but unhelpful, keyboard traps in complex interactions, or confusing navigation patterns.

TestParty Customer Statistics

Contrasting data shows what compliance achievement looks like.

Lawsuit Outcomes

<1% of TestParty customers have been sued while using the platform.

This contrasts sharply with 96.3% of sites having WCAG failures and 800+ overlay users being sued. Source code remediation achieves compliance that prevents lawsuits.

Remediation Outcomes

+-------------------+---------------------+----------------------------+
|      Customer     |   Starting Issues   |     Time to Compliance     |
+-------------------+---------------------+----------------------------+
|   Levain Bakery   |        1,708        |    Ongoing maintenance     |
+-------------------+---------------------+----------------------------+
|     Cozy Earth    |        8,000+       |          2 weeks           |
+-------------------+---------------------+----------------------------+
|      UNTUCKit     |       24,000+       |   90% faster remediation   |
+-------------------+---------------------+----------------------------+
|    Jordan Craig   |      Full site      |          14 days           |
+-------------------+---------------------+----------------------------+
|       TUSHY       |      Full site      |          30 days           |
+-------------------+---------------------+----------------------------+

Maintenance Statistics

Customers report 15 minutes monthly maintenance after initial compliance. Continuous monitoring catches new issues before they accumulate.

What the Statistics Mean

Interpreting data for practical decisions.

For Risk Assessment

With 96.3% of sites having violations and 8,800 annual ADA lawsuits, most businesses face exposure. E-commerce faces particular risk at 77% of web lawsuits.

The question isn't whether accessibility matters—it's whether you act before or after legal action.

For Solution Selection

Overlay statistics (800+ users sued) demonstrate that quick fixes don't achieve compliance. Source code remediation statistics (<1% of TestParty customers sued) demonstrate that proper approaches work.

For Timeline Planning

The 14-30 day compliance timeline with source code remediation contrasts with indefinite non-compliance from overlays. Proper solutions achieve results; broken solutions never do.

For Business Case

The 26% of adults with disabilities represents significant market opportunity. The $30,000+ average lawsuit cost represents significant risk. Accessibility investment has clear ROI.

Frequently Asked Questions

What percentage of websites pass WCAG 2.2 compliance?

Only 3.7% of the top 1 million homepages pass automated WCAG testing according to WebAIM's 2024 analysis. Since automated testing catches only 70-80% of violations, the actual full-compliance rate is even lower. This means 96%+ of sites have accessibility barriers affecting users with disabilities.

What are the most common WCAG violations?

The most common WCAG violations are low contrast text (81.0% of sites), missing alt text (54.5%), missing form labels (48.6%), and empty links (44.6%). These four violation types alone affect the vast majority of websites and create significant barriers for screen reader users and people with visual impairments.

How many ADA website lawsuits are filed annually?

According to Seyfarth Shaw, 8,800 ADA Title III federal lawsuits were filed in 2024, with approximately 2,452 specifically targeting web accessibility. E-commerce sites face disproportionate risk—77% of web accessibility lawsuits target online retail. Lawsuit volume has remained elevated despite flat compliance rates.

Why do 96% of sites fail WCAG testing?

Multiple factors drive high failure rates. Accessibility isn't prioritized in development. Testing tools weren't historically integrated into workflows. Developers lack accessibility training. Templates and frameworks have built-in issues. The result: accessibility violations accumulate undetected until sites have dozens or hundreds of issues per page.

Do accessibility overlays improve compliance statistics?

No. Overlay adoption hasn't improved compliance statistics because overlays don't achieve compliance. Over 800 overlay users were sued in 2023-2024 despite installations. The FTC fined AccessiBe $1 million for unsubstantiated claims. Overlays inject JavaScript after page load—too late for screen readers that parse HTML during load.

How does TestParty achieve <1% lawsuit rate against customers?

TestParty achieves zero customer lawsuits through genuine source code remediation. Expert accessibility professionals create actual code fixes delivered via GitHub PRs. These fixes achieve WCAG 2.2 AA compliance—the standard courts use. When sites are genuinely accessible, plaintiff attorneys find no violations to document. Prevention through compliance, not warranty coverage.

Related Resources

For more accessibility statistics and analysis:

• Accessibility Statistics 2025 — Comprehensive data
• ADA Lawsuit Statistics 2025 — Legal trends
• Accessibility Overlay Lawsuits Statistics — Overlay data
• E-commerce Accessibility Lawsuit Risk — Industry analysis
• WebAIM Million Report Analysis — Deep dive

Like all TestParty blog posts, this content was created through human-AI collaboration—what we call our cyborg approach. The information provided is for educational purposes only and reflects our research at the time of writing. We recommend doing your own due diligence and speaking directly with accessibility vendors to determine the best solution for your specific needs.