13 WCAG Compliance Statistics Every Business Should Know

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines have existed since 1999, with WCAG 2.0 published in 2008 and WCAG 2.1 in 2018. Despite decades of established standards, the web remains largely inaccessible. Understanding current compliance statistics helps organizations benchmark their own efforts and recognize the scale of the challenge ahead.

These 13 statistics reveal where we stand with WCAG compliance and what the data means for businesses working toward accessibility.

The Current State of Web Accessibility

1. 96.3% of Homepages Have Detectable WCAG Failures

The WebAIM Million study, which analyzes accessibility across the top one million websites, found that 96.3% of homepages had detectable WCAG failures in 2024. That's not 96.3% with potential issues—it's 96.3% with clear, automatically detectable violations of accessibility standards.

This statistic deserves emphasis: only about 4% of major websites pass basic automated accessibility checks. And automated testing catches only an estimated 30-40% of accessibility issues. The true rate of fully compliant websites is almost certainly lower than 4%.

The near-universal failure rate means that businesses achieving genuine WCAG compliance differentiate themselves from virtually all competitors. In a landscape of pervasive inaccessibility, accessibility becomes a competitive advantage.

2. Average of 56.8 Errors Per Homepage

The same WebAIM analysis found an average of 56.8 automatically detectable accessibility errors per homepage. Pages aren't failing on one or two technicalities—they're failing dozens of times over.

This density of errors reflects how deeply inaccessibility has been built into web development practices. Template problems multiply across every page. Component failures repeat throughout sites. Without deliberate attention to accessibility, standard development workflows produce systematically inaccessible results.

3. 83.6% of Sites Fail on Low Contrast Text

Low contrast text—text that doesn't have sufficient color differentiation from its background—appears on 83.6% of homepages studied. This is the most common WCAG failure, affecting more than four in five websites.

Contrast failures often stem from design decisions prioritizing aesthetics over readability. Light gray text on white backgrounds looks sophisticated to designers with perfect vision. To users with low vision, older users, or anyone reading on a screen with glare, it's illegible.

The prevalence of this issue suggests that many organizations haven't integrated accessibility into their design processes. Contrast requirements are well-documented and easily verified—failure indicates that accessibility simply wasn't considered.

4. 58.2% Have Missing Alternative Text on Images

Images without alternative text appear on 58.2% of homepages. When images lack alt text, screen reader users encounter either silence or meaningless file names where meaningful content should be.

Alt text is one of the oldest and most fundamental accessibility practices. It's been a requirement since WCAG 1.0 in 1999. Yet more than a quarter-century later, most websites still fail to implement it consistently.

This failure rate points to systematic gaps in content workflows. Writers and editors often don't know alt text is needed. Content management systems don't always prompt for it. Quality assurance doesn't catch the absence. The result is millions of images that exclude screen reader users.

5. 45.9% Have Missing Form Input Labels

Nearly half of websites have forms with inputs that lack proper labels. When a form field doesn't have an associated label, assistive technology users can't determine what information to enter. Is this field asking for an email address? A phone number? A search query? Without labels, there's no way to know.

Form accessibility affects critical user journeys: purchases, signups, contact submissions, searches. When forms are inaccessible, users can't complete the actions websites exist to enable.

Industry Comparisons

6. Government Sites Have 51% Fewer Errors Than Average

Public sector websites, subject to Section 508 requirements and often additional state mandates, show measurably better accessibility than commercial sites. Government websites have roughly 51% fewer automatically detectable errors than the overall average.

This improvement reflects the impact of legal requirements and sustained compliance efforts. While government sites still aren't fully accessible, they demonstrate that focused attention to accessibility produces results.

The gap between government and commercial sectors suggests that legal mandates work. Businesses facing clear accessibility requirements—whether from ADA enforcement trends or regulations like the European Accessibility Act—can expect similar pressure to improve.

7. Finance Sector Shows 34% Lower Error Rates

Financial services websites perform significantly better than average, with roughly 34% fewer accessibility errors. Banking and finance face heightened regulatory scrutiny, customer expectations, and litigation exposure—all of which drive accessibility investment.

Financial services also have strong business incentives for accessibility. Their customer base skews older, with higher rates of vision and mobility impairments. Inaccessible online banking simply loses customers who can't use it.

8. Retail Has Highest Lawsuit Rate But Only Average Compliance

Despite facing 77% of website accessibility lawsuits, retail websites show only average accessibility performance—no better than sites in less-litigated industries. This disconnect suggests that many retailers haven't yet translated litigation pressure into systematic accessibility improvement.

Retail's lawsuit concentration creates paradoxical dynamics. Being sued forces remediation of specific identified issues, but settlement-driven fixes often don't address underlying accessibility problems. Sites get incrementally better without becoming systematically accessible.

Adoption and Progress Trends

9. 1.5% Annual Improvement Rate

WebAIM's longitudinal data shows that the proportion of homepages with detectable errors decreased by approximately 1.5% from the previous year—modest progress, but progress nonetheless.

At this rate, achieving majority compliance would take decades. The pace of improvement isn't keeping up with the pace of new web development. As quickly as existing sites improve, new inaccessible sites launch.

This slow trajectory highlights the need for different approaches. Retroactive remediation alone won't solve web accessibility. Building accessibility into development from the start is essential to changing the overall picture.

10. WCAG 2.2 Adoption at 12% Among Major Sites

WCAG 2.2, released in October 2023, has achieved approximately 12% adoption among major websites within its first year. This represents faster adoption than previous WCAG versions, suggesting growing awareness of accessibility standards.

The 12% adopting WCAG 2.2 likely represents organizations with mature accessibility programs that actively track standards evolution. These early adopters tend to be larger enterprises with dedicated accessibility resources.

For most organizations, WCAG 2.1 Level AA remains the relevant compliance target. WCAG 2.2 adoption will likely accelerate as it becomes referenced in legal requirements and industry standards.

11. 67% Increase in Accessibility Job Postings Since 2020

The accessibility profession is growing rapidly. Job postings for accessibility-focused roles have increased 67% since 2020, reflecting organizational investment in dedicated accessibility expertise.

This growth indicates that businesses are recognizing accessibility as a specialized discipline requiring focused attention—not something to be handled incidentally by general developers or designers. Organizations with dedicated accessibility professionals consistently achieve better compliance outcomes.

Remediation Patterns

12. 78% of Accessibility Errors Are From Just 6 Issue Types

Despite WCAG containing 78 success criteria, the vast majority of actual failures concentrate in a small number of issue types. According to WebAIM analysis, six categories account for 78% of all detected errors:

• Low contrast text
• Missing alternative text
• Missing form input labels
• Empty links
• Missing document language
• Empty buttons

This concentration has practical implications. Organizations can address the majority of their accessibility issues by focusing on a handful of problem types. Comprehensive WCAG compliance requires attention to all 78 criteria, but the highest-impact improvements come from fixing these common failures.

13. 43% Improvement When Accessibility Integrated Into CI/CD

Organizations that integrate accessibility testing into continuous integration and deployment pipelines show approximately 43% better compliance than those relying on periodic manual testing. Automated testing catches common issues before they reach production, while continuous monitoring prevents regression.

The CI/CD integration advantage compounds over time. Each prevented deployment of inaccessible code is an issue that doesn't need future remediation. Teams build accessible patterns into their workflows rather than fixing problems retroactively.

What These Statistics Mean

The data reveals a web that remains overwhelmingly inaccessible despite decades of established standards. But within that discouraging overall picture, patterns emerge that guide effective action.

Focus on high-impact issues first. With six issue types causing 78% of failures, targeted remediation of common problems delivers disproportionate improvement. Perfect compliance is a worthy goal, but addressing contrast, alt text, form labels, and similar widespread issues moves the needle immediately.

Integrate accessibility into development processes. The correlation between CI/CD integration and better compliance demonstrates that when accessibility is part of the workflow, outcomes improve. Treating accessibility as a development practice rather than a post-launch fix changes results.

Legal pressure works, but isn't sufficient. Sectors facing regulation and litigation show better performance than unregulated ones, but even regulated industries remain far from full compliance. Legal requirements motivate investment but don't guarantee success.

Progress is possible but slow. Year-over-year improvements prove that the situation can get better. The pace is inadequate to the scale of the problem, but it demonstrates that accessibility efforts yield results.

Taking Action

Statistics describe the landscape; action changes it. Organizations wanting to outperform these benchmarks need to assess their current state, address the most common failure types, integrate accessibility into ongoing development, and monitor to prevent regression.

The 96% of websites with detectable failures includes your competitors. Every percentage point of accessibility improvement differentiates you from the norm and expands your potential audience.

TestParty provides continuous WCAG monitoring that helps organizations benchmark and improve their accessibility posture.

Schedule a TestParty demo and get a 14-day compliance implementation plan.

Related Resources

• WCAG 2.2 Level AA Checklist
• What is WCAG 2.2?
• How to Fix Accessibility Errors
• 15 Digital Accessibility Statistics That Prove ROI