🔖 Resources
The links worth bookmarking
A short, opinionated shortlist — the standards I check against, the free tools I actually use, the screen readers to test with, and the best places to keep learning. Everything here is free unless noted.
Why this matters
Accessibility is still the exception, not the rule
In WebAIM's 2026 survey of the top 1,000,000 website home pages, 95.9% had detectable WCAG failures — about 56 errors per page on average. The most common problem was low-contrast text, on roughly 84% of pages. Meanwhile the WHO estimates 1 in 6 of us live with a significant disability.
Those figures come from automated testing of home pages only, which catches just part of all barriers — so the real picture is likely worse, not better. That's exactly why manual and screen-reader testing matter.
01 Standards & guidelines
The source of truth. When in doubt, these — not a blog — are the last word.
WCAG 2.2 Quick Reference (opens in a new tab)
"How to Meet WCAG" — every success criterion with techniques and failures, filterable by level. The page you'll return to most.
WCAG 2.2 overview (W3C) (opens in a new tab)
The plain-language introduction to what WCAG is, its levels (A/AA/AAA), and how it's versioned.
ARIA Authoring Practices (APG) (opens in a new tab)
Battle-tested patterns for menus, dialogs, tabs and more — with keyboard behaviour and code. Reach for a pattern before inventing one.
W3C WAI: Introduction (opens in a new tab)
A friendly on-ramp to web accessibility — great to share with teammates and stakeholders who are new to it.
02 Testing tools
Automated tools catch only about a third of issues — brilliant for a first pass, no substitute for keyboard and screen-reader testing.
axe DevTools (opens in a new tab)
The most trusted automated scanner, as a browser extension. Low false positives, clear guidance. Free tier is plenty to start.
WAVE (opens in a new tab)
WebAIM's visual evaluator — overlays icons on your page showing errors, contrast issues and structure. Great for learning to see problems.
Accessibility Insights (opens in a new tab)
Microsoft's tool. Its guided "Assessment" walks you through the manual checks automation can't do.
Lighthouse (opens in a new tab)
Built into Chrome DevTools — a quick accessibility score and checklist alongside performance and SEO.
Contrast checkers
Paste two colours, get AA/AAA pass or fail.
WebAIM Contrast Checker (opens in a new tab) · Our contrast guide & checker
Colour Contrast Analyser (opens in a new tab)
A desktop app with an eyedropper — sample colours straight from images, PDFs and native apps.
03 Screen readers
The best way to understand accessibility is to close your eyes and listen. You already own at least one of these.
NVDA (Windows, free) (opens in a new tab)
The free, open-source screen reader most testers use on Windows. Download, press Ctrl+Alt+N, and start listening.
VoiceOver (Mac & iOS) (opens in a new tab)
Built into every Apple device. ⌘+F5 on a Mac; triple-click the side button on iPhone.
TalkBack (Android) (opens in a new tab)
Android's built-in screen reader — essential for testing how your content sounds on a phone.
Deque screen-reader shortcuts (opens in a new tab)
Printable command cheat-sheets for NVDA, JAWS and VoiceOver — keep one open while you test.
04 Keep learning
Deeper reading, references and communities to grow with.
WebAIM (opens in a new tab)
Clear, trustworthy articles on nearly every topic — from alt text to cognitive accessibility. A gold standard since 1999.
The A11Y Project (opens in a new tab)
A community-driven checklist, posts and a big directory of tools and patterns. Approachable and practical.
web.dev: Learn Accessibility (opens in a new tab)
Google's free, structured course covering the fundamentals module by module — a great start-to-finish path.
MDN Accessibility (opens in a new tab)
The developer reference for accessible HTML, ARIA and CSS — searchable, detailed and always up to date.
Deque University (opens in a new tab)
In-depth courses and reference guides from one of the industry's leading teams (some paid).
A11y Weekly (newsletter) (opens in a new tab)
A short, curated email every week — the easiest way to keep the topic on your radar.
Prefer to learn by doing? Start with the interactive lessons or the social media guide — or bring me in to train your team.
Work with me