Does the ADA apply to websites?

The Department of Justice says it has consistently taken the position that the ADA’s requirements apply to the goods and services of businesses open to the public, including those offered on the web. Whether it applies to your specific site is a legal question for an attorney.

Is there an official technical standard for business websites?

DOJ says it has no regulation setting detailed web standards for businesses, and points to WCAG and the Section 508 Standards as helpful guidance.

Will an accessibility overlay plugin make my site compliant?

DOJ says automated checkers and overlays can be helpful but need to be used carefully, and a clean report doesn’t necessarily mean everything is accessible.

What are the most common problems?

DOJ lists poor color contrast, using color alone to convey information, missing alt text, videos without captions, inaccessible forms and mouse-only navigation.

Website Accessibility for Trade Businesses: What the Justice Department’s ADA Guidance Says

General information, not legal advice. Whether and how the ADA applies to a particular business’s website is a legal question. Talk to an attorney about your situation. This guide summarizes the Justice Department’s published guidance as checked on October 30, 2026.

What the Justice Department’s guidance says

The Department of Justice (DOJ) published “Guidance on Web Accessibility and the ADA” on ADA.gov (dated March 18, 2022). Key points:

The ADA applies to state and local governments (Title II) and businesses that are open to the public (Title III).
DOJ says it has consistently taken the position that the ADA’s requirements apply to all the goods, services, privileges or activities offered by public accommodations, including those offered on the web.
Businesses have flexibility in how they comply with the ADA’s general requirements of nondiscrimination and effective communication, but they must comply.
DOJ does not have a regulation setting out detailed web standards for businesses. It says existing technical standards, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and the Section 508 Standards used for federal websites, provide helpful guidance.
The page states that its guidance documents have no legally binding effect and may be changed.

The page also notes that it does not reflect the separate requirements for state and local governments published in April 2024. Those rules apply to governments, not to private trade businesses.

The barriers DOJ lists

DOJ gives examples of website features that keep people with disabilities from using a site. Here they are, with what they look like on a typical contractor website:

Barrier (DOJ)	Where it shows up on a trade site	Simple fix
Poor color contrast	Light gray text on white, or white text on a pale photo	Use dark text on light backgrounds (or the reverse) and check contrast with a free checker
Color alone to give information	Required form fields marked only in red	Add the word “required”, as DOJ’s own example suggests
No text alternatives (alt text) on images	Project photos and logo with no description	Add short alt text that says what the image shows or does
No captions on videos	“How we install” videos with no captions	Add accurate, synchronized captions that identify speakers
Inaccessible online forms	Quote request forms with placeholder text instead of labels, and vague errors	Visible labels, clear instructions and error messages that name the field
Mouse-only navigation	Menus or sliders you can’t reach with the Tab key	Make every link, button and menu usable with a keyboard

DOJ also lists text size and zoom (people may need to enlarge text with the browser’s zoom) and headings (real headings built into the page let screen reader users navigate).

A 15-minute self-check

Keyboard only. Put the mouse aside and press Tab through your home page and contact form. Can you see where you are on the page at every step? Can you open the menu, fill in the form and press Submit?
Zoom in. Use your browser’s zoom to enlarge the page several steps. Does text still fit, without words cut off or overlapping?
Images. Check that photos and your logo have alt text.
Phone number. Make sure your phone number is real text (ideally a tap-to-call link), not only part of an image.
Videos. Turn the sound off. Can you still follow the video from the captions?
Headings. Each page should have one main heading and sections with real headings, not just bold text.

Many of these fixes also help every visitor, such as someone reading your site on a phone in bright sunlight. See our trade business website basics and website speed guide for related checks.

Automated checkers and overlays

DOJ says automated accessibility checkers and overlays that identify or fix problems can be helpful tools, but like spelling or grammar checkers, they need to be used carefully. A “clean” report doesn’t necessarily mean everything is accessible, and a report with a few errors doesn’t necessarily mean there are barriers. In practice, use automated tools to find likely problems, then check the results by hand with the steps above.

If you hire a web designer

Ask which WCAG version and level they design to, and how they test (automated tools plus keyboard and screen reader checks).
Ask for alt text on images, captions on videos and labeled forms as part of the job, not as an add-on.
Be cautious with anyone who promises a single plugin or overlay will make your site “fully compliant.” DOJ’s own guidance warns that automated tools need careful use.

General information only, not professional, tax or legal advice. Platform policies, tax rules, licensing rules and software prices change and can vary by state: check the official source, and talk to a tax professional or attorney about your own situation.