The European Accessibility Act (EAA) has been incorporated into EU Member States legislation since June 2025. Since then, many organisations have started to look for information on how to become compliant with it to avoid fines and improve their digital experience.
You’ve probably come across terms like accessibility audit, accessibility check, manual and automated scans, but a whole new set of questions may have appeared along the way. So, this is where we’re going to start before explaining how to conduct a website accessibility audit.
A website accessibility audit is a comprehensive analysis of a website’s pages, covering every aspect of digital accessibility according to global accessibility regulations, while considering different groups of disabilities.
Automatic or manual, the main objective is to analyse each page and detect accessibility issues. This way, organisations can understand where accessibility barriers exist and focus on what needs to be resolved to improve the user experience while reducing compliance risks.
When conducting a manual accessibility audit, as the name suggests, each page needs to be inspected individually using a combination of tools to determine if the content contains accessibility issues or not.
As this type of audit is normally carried out by accessibility experts, it can be expensive and involve a longer analysis process. After receiving the audit, it’s the company’s responsibility to implement the recommendations or work with specialists to remediate the issues identified.
The automated scan can be helpful, especially for teams that want to start identifying and resolving accessibility issues quickly.
Nexus Inclusion tool, for example, uses a combination of engines to scan a website in just a few minutes, analysing its content based on the success criteria of global accessibility regulations.
Nexus Inclusion has a complete website accessibility scanner that analyses pages, detecting issues related to EAA and other global accessibility regulations, and also delivers detailed guidance on how to resolve them, including code snippets and step by step content.
Both website accessibility audit methods have their merits. Using them together is probably the most powerful way to invest in digital accessibility.
The automated scanner can complete an audit in minutes, analysing website pages at scale, saving valuable time while offering a cost-effective approach. Many organisations choose to start with an automated scan to quickly detect accessibility issues across their website.
A manual audit can then be added for organisations that feel more comfortable having an accessibility expert review their website. Although more expensive and time-consuming, manual audits can provide a more detailed analysis of specific issues where human judgement may be necessary.
If you’re still not sure how to decide between them, talk to us, and we’ll be happy to help you based on your website size, budget, available resources, and more.
While the EAA sets the legal obligation for digital accessibility, it does not actually set out the technical details of how to go about meeting those obligations. Compliance is typically demonstrated through harmonised standards, particularly EN 301 549, which sets out accessibility requirements for ICT products and services and aligns closely with WCAG.
EN 301 549 is not a law in and of itself. However, it can be considered a “presumption of conformity” for the EAA - i.e. it serves as the means of demonstrating compliance with the EAA. EN 301 549 heavily leans on a set of globally accepted accessibility standards known as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines or “WCAG” which were developed by the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) for web and mobile content accessibility.
WCAG has three levels of conformance - A, AA, and AAA - which represent increasing levels of accessibility:
Level A represents the most basic level of accessibility. It addresses the most critical barriers for people with disabilities e.g. ensuring all images have alternative (alt) text.
Level AA is the legal and industry standard in most regions. It builds on the level A guidelines and strikes a balance between accessibility and design flexibility e.g. ensuring text has sufficient colour contrast and that content is keyboard-navigable.
Level AAA is the highest level of accessibility and offers the best UX for people with a wide range of disabilities e.g. providing sign language for video content.
As you may have guessed from the “legal and industry standard” clue above, WCAG Level AA is the de facto standard relied upon by the EN 301 549. As we outline in another post (Is WCAG Conformance Enough for EAA Compliance?) WCAG conformance does not necessarily guarantee EAA compliance for all products and services. However, when it comes to websites, conforming with WCAG 2.1 AA standards is a pretty watertight approach for EAA compliance.
Regular accessibility audits are essential to ensuring compliance, as both EN 301 549 and WCAG standards continue to evolve. With the release of WCAG 2.2 in October 2023, new criteria have been introduced that are likely to be integrated into future EAA requirements. By proactively aligning with WCAG 2.2 now, businesses can stay ahead of upcoming compliance changes and ensure a more inclusive digital experience.
So now you know that, when it comes to website accessibility, EAA compliance is closely linked to the WCAG 2.1 AA standards. But how do you actually check if your website is accessible?
A website accessibility audit is a process used to find barriers that may make it difficult for people with disabilities to access or use your website.
Depending on your organisation’s needs, an audit can be done using accessibility tools, manual testing, or a combination of both. Automated tools can help find many common accessibility issues quickly, while manual testing helps detect problems that require human review.
Before starting your accessibility audit, decide which parts of your website you want to review.
The best approach is to audit your entire website. However, if you are just starting your accessibility journey, you may want to begin with the pages and areas that are most important for your users, such as:
Homepage and main navigation
Product or service pages
Contact pages
Forms
Checkout or payment pages
Frequently used resources
Having a clear plan helps make sure the most important parts of your website are reviewed and that accessibility barriers are not missed.
An automated accessibility scan is often the easiest way to understand the current accessibility status of your website.
Accessibility tools scan your pages and check them against WCAG requirements to detect accessibility issues, such as:
Missing alternative text for images
Incorrect heading structures
Colour contrast problems
Issues with forms
Missing or incorrect ARIA labels
Possible problems with keyboard navigation
Automated scans help organisations quickly identify areas that need attention and create a plan for making improvements.
For example, Nexus Inclusion uses accessibility engines to scan websites based on global accessibility standards. It detects issues related to the EAA and other accessibility requirements, while also providing clear recommendations, code snippets, and step-by-step guidance on how to fix them.
While automated tools are helpful, and can quickly find accessibility issues, some problems may still need to be reviewed manually.
Manual testing involves checking how easy it is for people with disabilities to navigate and use your website.
During a manual review, accessibility experts look at areas such as:
Using the website with only a keyboard
How the website works with screen readers and other assistive technologies
Whether links and buttons are clear and easy to understand
If images have useful alternative text
If forms, instructions, and error messages are easy to use
How accessible menus and interactive features are
Manual audits usually require accessibility specialists because they need experience with accessibility standards and knowledge of how different users interact with websites.
The result is a detailed report showing the accessibility barriers found, who they may affect, and how they can be fixed.
If you’d like to receive a comprehensive report from an accessibility expert, talk to us and we can explain how our manual audit work.
After completing automated scans and manual testing, review the results against the WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines.
WCAG 2.1 AA provides the accessibility requirements that are used as the foundation for EN 301 549, the standard connected to the European Accessibility Act (EAA).
Nexus Inclusion lets you choose which WCAG version and conformance level to check against, depending on the accessibility regulation or standard you want to comply with.
Checking your findings against WCAG helps you understand:
What accessibility issues exist on your website
Which requirements are not being met
How these issues may affect users with disabilities
What changes need to be made
This helps your team create a clear plan for improving website accessibility.
Finding accessibility issues is only the first step. The next step is deciding which issues should be fixed first.
Some problems may have a bigger impact on users than others. For example, an issue that prevents someone from completing a form or buying a product should usually be prioritised over a smaller content issue.
When deciding what to fix first, consider:
How many users may be affected
How important the affected page or feature is
Whether the issue prevents people from accessing information or services
How easy it is to implement a solution
A good accessibility audit should help your team understand:
What barriers exist on your website
Why they matter
How they affect users
What steps can be taken to fix them
Which improvements should happen first
Tools like Nexus Inclusion can support this process by providing clear recommendations and practical guidance to help teams make improvements.
After making improvements, run another accessibility scan and repeat manual testing where needed. This helps confirm that issues have been fixed and that new problems have not been introduced.
Websites change regularly, and new accessibility issues can appear after updates or new content is added.
Keeping your website accessible requires ongoing attention.
Regular monitoring helps organisations find new issues early and maintain a better experience for all users.
This can include:
Regular accessibility scans
Periodic manual reviews
Accessibility checks during website updates
Improvements based on user feedback
With Nexus Inclusion’s monitoring tool, organisations can schedule regular scans and receive alerts when new accessibility issues are found, allowing teams to take action quickly.
The benefits of an accessible website outside of purely legislative compliance include:
Enhanced User Experience: Accessible websites don’t just benefit people with disabilities; they tend to offer a better user experience for everyone.
A Competitive Edge: Accessibility is a more powerful differentiator than many businesses realise. According to Gartner, accessible digital products may outperform competitors by as much as 50%.
Expanded Market Reach: Globally, 1.6 billion people live with some form of disability (Global Economics of Disability, 2024). Ignoring accessibility means overlooking a significant market.
Stronger Brand Reputation: Inaccessible websites don’t just result in lost revenue; they can also damage brand perception. A lack of digital accessibility can signal a lack of inclusion, influencing both buying behaviour and long-term loyalty.
Better SEO Performance: Accessible websites are often better optimised for search engines.
The EAA is applicable to a broad range of products and services, and you can read more about it in our European Accessibility Act Compliance Guide.
Conducting an accessibility audit doesn't have to be a complex or time-consuming process. With the right tools and expertise, you can quickly understand where your website stands, prioritise improvements, and build a clear path towards compliance.
At Nexus Inclusion, we've built our platform to make that process simpler. Our website accessibility scanner identifies issues related to the EAA, WCAG, and other global accessibility regulations, while providing detailed guidance to help your team resolve them.
Book a free demo to see how it works and discover how Nexus Inclusion can support your accessibility journey.
Access our comprehensive European Accessibility Act Compliance Guide to understand key requirements, deadlines, and actionable steps to ensure compliance for your organisation.
Jennifer Leite, Digital Marketing and Content Creator
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines are internationally recognised standards developed by the W3C to ensure that digital content is accessible to people with disabilities.
Shruti Sawant, Former Contributor, Accessibility Expert
Whilst EAA compliance will be based on EN 301 549, and EN 301 549 heavily leans on WCAG 2.1 AA standards, there are a couple of key considerations to bear in mind. Understand them.
Nexus Inclusion tools can help you conduct a successful website accessibility audit and support your journey towards compliance.