Skip to main content
SweepHound

Compliance

WCAG 2.2 Compliance Guide

WCAG 2.2 (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) is the current W3C standard for making websites accessible to people with disabilities. Published in October 2023, it contains 87 testable success criteria across three conformance levels. Most legal frameworks — including the ADA, the European Accessibility Act, and Section 508 — reference WCAG Level AA as the compliance target.

The Four POUR Principles

Every WCAG success criterion maps to one of four foundational principles. Understanding them makes the individual rules easier to reason about.

1. Perceivable

Information and interface elements must be presentable in ways users can perceive. This covers text alternatives for images, captions for video, sufficient color contrast, and the ability to resize text up to 200% without loss of functionality.

2. Operable

Users must be able to operate all interface components. That means full keyboard navigation, no time limits that can't be extended, no content that causes seizures, and clear navigation mechanisms.

3. Understandable

Content and controls must be understandable. Pages need a declared language, form inputs need visible labels, error messages must be descriptive, and navigation must be consistent across the site.

4. Robust

Content must be robust enough that it can be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies. This means valid HTML, correct ARIA usage, and proper status messages.

What's New in WCAG 2.2

WCAG 2.2 adds 9 new success criteria on top of the 78 carried over from 2.1. It also removes one criterion (4.1.1 Parsing) that is no longer relevant in modern browsers. Here are the additions:

  • 2.4.11 Focus Not Obscured (Minimum) (AA) — Focused elements must not be entirely hidden by author-created content.
  • 2.4.12 Focus Not Obscured (Enhanced) (AAA) — Focused elements must not be partially hidden either.
  • 2.4.13 Focus Appearance (AAA) — Focus indicators must meet minimum area and contrast requirements.
  • 2.5.7 Dragging Movements (AA) — Any action that requires dragging must have a single-pointer alternative.
  • 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum) (AA) — Interactive targets must be at least 24×24 CSS pixels, with some exceptions.
  • 3.2.6 Consistent Help (A) — Help mechanisms must appear in the same relative order across pages.
  • 3.3.7 Redundant Entry (A) — Information previously entered must be auto-populated or selectable.
  • 3.3.8 Accessible Authentication (Minimum) (AA) — No cognitive function test (like a CAPTCHA puzzle) is required for login.
  • 3.3.9 Accessible Authentication (Enhanced) (AAA) — Even stricter: no object or image recognition for login.

Conformance Levels

WCAG defines three conformance levels: A (minimum), AA (standard), and AAA (highest). Most organizations target Level AA because it balances real-world accessibility impact with implementation effort, and it is the level referenced by most accessibility laws. For a detailed breakdown, see our Conformance Levels: A vs AA vs AAA guide.

WCAG and the Law

WCAG is a technical standard, not a law. But accessibility laws around the world reference it as the benchmark:

  • ADA (United States) — Title II now explicitly requires WCAG 2.1 AA for state and local governments, with deadlines starting April 26, 2027. Title III courts consistently reference WCAG as the standard for private businesses. Full ADA guide →
  • EAA (European Union) — The European Accessibility Act references EN 301 549, which maps directly to WCAG 2.1 AA. Full EAA guide →
  • Section 508 (United States) — Requires WCAG 2.0 AA for federal agencies and their contractors.

What Automated Tools Can and Can't Test

Automated accessibility scanners can help identify many common WCAG issues. They excel at catching missing alt text, broken form labels, insufficient color contrast, missing page language, and invalid ARIA attributes. They struggle with criteria that need human judgment, like whether alt text is actually meaningful, whether keyboard focus order is logical, or whether content makes sense when linearized.

The right approach is to use automated scanning as your first line of defense — catching the mechanical issues quickly and consistently — then layer in manual testing with keyboards, screen readers, and real users. Read more in our accessibility testing guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is WCAG 2.2 backwards-compatible with 2.1?
Yes. Every success criterion from WCAG 2.1 is included in 2.2 (except 4.1.1 Parsing, which was removed). A site that conforms to WCAG 2.2 AA automatically conforms to WCAG 2.1 AA as well.
Do I need to comply with WCAG 2.2 or is 2.1 enough?
Most current laws reference WCAG 2.1, but WCAG 2.2 is the W3C recommendation and will be adopted by updated regulations. If you are starting compliance work now, target 2.2 AA to future-proof your effort.
How many WCAG 2.2 criteria are there per level?
Level A has 30 criteria, Level AA adds 20 more (50 total), and Level AAA adds another 28 (78 total). Most organizations target Level AA's 50 criteria.
Can I prove WCAG conformance with automated testing alone?
No. Automated tools only evaluate checks that can be determined programmatically. Manual review is still needed for keyboard operability, alt text quality, logical reading order, screen reader behavior, and key user flows.

Want to see how your site measures up against WCAG 2.2? Try SweepHound's free scan and get an automated WCAG scan with recommended manual follow-up in under a minute.