Unlocking Web Accessibility: Tips for Developers
Tags: a11y, webdev, frontend
Published: 2023-03-22 17:39:52

As web developers, it's our responsibility to make sure that the websites we create are accessible to everyone, regardless of their abilities or disabilities. In this blog post, I'll go over some essential accessibility tips for web developers.

1. **Use Semantic HTML**
One of the easiest ways to improve accessibility is to use semantic HTML. Semantic HTML provides meaning to the content on your website, making it easier for people using screen readers to understand what's on the page. For example, using heading tags (h1, h2, h3, etc.) to structure your content can help screen reader users navigate your website more easily.

2. **Provide Alternative Text for Images**
Images can be an important part of a website, but they can also pose a challenge for people with visual impairments. By providing alternative text (alt text) for images, you can ensure that everyone can understand the content on your website. Alt text should describe the content of the image in a concise way.

3. **Use Color with Care**
While color can be an important part of the design of a website, it's important to remember that not everyone sees colors the same way. For example, people with color blindness may not be able to distinguish between certain colors. To ensure that your website is accessible, make sure that the color contrast between the text and the background is high enough to be readable, even for people with visual impairments.

4. **Provide Keyboard Navigation**
Some people with disabilities may not be able to use a mouse or touchpad to navigate a website. Providing keyboard navigation can make it easier for these users to navigate your website. For example, users should be able to navigate through links and form fields using the Tab key.

5. **Avoid Using Automatic Media Playback**
Automatic media playback (such as videos that start playing automatically when a page loads) can be a frustrating experience for people using screen readers or those with cognitive disabilities. To ensure that your website is accessible, avoid using automatic media playback.

6. **Provide Captions for Videos**
For people who are deaf or hard of hearing, captions can make a significant difference in their ability to understand videos. Providing captions for videos can make your website more accessible and ensure that everyone can access the content on your website.

7. **Test Your Website**
Finally, it's essential to test your website for accessibility. There are a number of tools available that can help you check for accessibility issues:

- [WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool](https://wave.webaim.org/)
The WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool is a popular online tool that allows you to test the accessibility of your website. The tool identifies errors, alerts, and features that may affect the accessibility of your website. The WAVE tool is free and provides detailed reports on the accessibility of your website.

- [Axe Accessibility](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/axe-devtools-web-accessib/lhdoppojpmngadmnindnejefpokejbdd)
Axe Accessibility is an open-source tool that can be used as a browser extension or integrated into your testing framework. Axe Accessibility scans your website for accessibility issues and provides recommendations for how to fix them. Axe Accessibility can be used for both manual and automated testing.

- [Siteimprove Accessibility Checker](https://www.siteimprove.com/toolkit/accessibility-checker/)
Siteimprove Accessibility Checker is an online tool that allows you to test the accessibility of your website. The tool scans your website for accessibility issues, including contrast errors, missing alt tags, and structural issues. Siteimprove Accessibility Checker is free to use and provides detailed reports on the accessibility of your website.

- [Accessibility Insights](https://accessibilityinsights.io/)
Accessibility Insights is a free, open-source tool from Microsoft that allows you to test the accessibility of your website. The tool can be used as a browser extension or integrated into your testing framework. Accessibility Insights provides automated testing and manual testing features to help you identify accessibility issues on your website.

In conclusion, making your website accessible to everyone is not only the right thing to do, but it's also good for business. By following these accessibility tips, you can ensure that your website is inclusive to everyone, regardless of their abilities or disabilities.