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WCAG Fundamentals
What WCAG is#
W3C WCAG 2 Overview exists so teams can share a common, auditable bar for accessibility.
WCAG is
- A set of principles, guidelines, and success criteria
- Technology-agnostic at the requirement level
- Used for design, engineering, QA, and procurement
It is not a complete product checklist by itself. Meeting criteria still requires judgment, testing, and assistive-technology checks.
How WCAG is structured#
Select a layer.
Interactive demo
WCAG hierarchy
WCAG hierarchy
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines—the shared standard for web a11y.
Maintained by W3C WAI. Versions (e.g. 2.2) define what “accessible enough” means for many laws and policies.
Conceptual map of how WCAG is organized—not a substitute for reading the specification.
How to use it#
Start from the user task, then map failures to success criteria—not the other way around.
Test
| Action | Expect |
|---|---|
Identify task | You know what users must complete |
Find barrier | You can describe what blocks the task |
Map criterion | You can point to a relevant success criterion |
Continue with POUR Principles.