Important Accessibility Statistics to Know

Web accessibility statistics offer valuable facts concerning people with disabilities, disability inclusion, the rate of disability in a given population or user group, the most common disabilities, and how people with disabilities navigate the web. Indeed, a quick look at accessibility statistics will give you a much clearer idea of how people with disabilities can benefit from inclusion online. Here, we’ll share some impactful statistics that demonstrate the importance of web accessibility and digital equity. 

Disabilities impact a large portion of the population

Individuals with impairments or disabilities make up a considerable portion of the world’s population. The World Health Organization estimates that 1.3 billion people, or 16% of the world population, experience significant disability. According to the CDC, 27% of adults, or roughly one in four, have a disability. 

That means brands with inaccessible websites are failing to accommodate a sizable portion of the population – and the number of people living with disabilities is expected to increase over the coming decades. 

Many web properties are not compliant with accessibility laws

While there are various guidelines that govern the standards of web content accessibility, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) are generally considered the go-to standard and serve as the basis of most digital accessibility regulations around the world. 

When measured against WCAG guidelines, the majority of websites are not compliant. In a survey of the top 1 million websites, WebAIM found 95.9% had detectable WCAG conformance failures on their homepages, with an average of 56.8 errors per page. The most commonly detected accessibility issue was low contrast text, which plagued 81% of homepages.

Since the majority of websites still don’t comply with web content accessibility guidelines, it may come as no surprise that accessibility lawsuits have risen in recent years. Accessibility.com found that 2,281 website accessibility lawsuits were filed in 2023, and 26% of those lawsuits were filed against companies that had been sued previously. 

You can reduce your risk of lawsuits, and even give your business a competitive advantage, by implementing simple changes like adding alternative (alt) text to images and adjusting the color contrast on your website. You don’t need to become 100% compliant overnight, but you do need to show you’re making an effort.

Basic accessibility widgets are not enough to achieve full compliance

Many companies turn to widgets and overlays in an attempt to meet web accessibility standards. While these are an easy way to get started with accessibility, they do not provide the functionality needed to achieve full compliance. In fact, of the companies sued in 2023 for website accessibility issues, one in five had an accessibility overlay or widget on their site according to Accessibility.com.

Instead, you should consider investing in a dedicated web accessibility platform that allows you to easily monitor accessibility issues and manually address them to achieve compliance with all major accessibility guidelines and legislation such as WCAG, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title III of ADA, AODA and more.

Providing an accessible website can boost revenue

The benefits of web accessibility compliance extend far beyond lawsuit prevention. Because so many businesses have been slow to invest in accessibility, there’s a big opportunity to gain a competitive advantage, increase market share, and ultimately generate more sales revenue. Don’t discount the buying power of individuals with disabilities, who control $1.2 trillion worldwide in annual disposable income. So when companies do not offer an accessible experience for these individuals, they leave money on the table. A survey of U.K. consumers found 55% had abandoned a purchase due to accessibility issues, with those lost sales amounting to a potential £120 billion forfeited by retailers. 

Improving web accessibility creates a competitive advantage, opens your business up to a larger segment of the population, aligns with many SEO best practices to help online rankings, and increases customer satisfaction. Ultimately, maximizing website accessibility is the right thing to do from both a moral and a business standpoint.

What do these accessibility statistics mean for your website?

The internet has become so integral in every facet of our lives. Whether you want to shop, eat, travel, or entertain yourself, you can easily do so by visiting a website or app and clicking a few buttons.

But as impressive as today’s websites and mobile apps are, not everyone has the same experience when using them, as the statistics we shared illustrate. The next step is to take the underlying lessons presented by these disability and accessibility facts and use them to inform the way you design and maintain your website.

Leaving your website inaccessible means you could miss out on a large portion of your target audience that may become repeat customers. Now that you know the impact of not prioritizing digital accessibility, you can make the necessary changes to your digital properties to mitigate the risk of lawsuits and create a competitive advantage.

Are your digital properties accessible?

At Acquia, we know one size doesn’t fit all, especially when it comes to web accessibility compliance. Our Monsido web optimization platform will ensure your website complies with all major guidelines such as WCAG, ADA, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and AODA.

Get started on your journey toward a more accessible digital experience by requesting a free scan of your existing website.

Note: This article was originally published on Monsido.com.