How does an accessibility audit work, and how long does it take?
The short answer
An accessibility audit starts by choosing a sample of pages, validated with you. Each page is then evaluated criterion by criterion, with manual testing. Allow 7 to 15 calendar days depending on the website's complexity. You receive a report, an accessibility statement and, for the full audit, a debrief with a compliance roadmap.
What are the steps of an audit?
At GR AdLab, an audit always follows the same order:
- Sampling: I propose the list of pages to evaluate, including the mandatory ones.
- Validation: you review and approve the sample.
- Schedule: once the sample is approved, I set the final timeline.
- Evaluation: each page is evaluated criterion by criterion.
- Delivery: you receive the deliverables of your option.
How is the sample chosen?
This step determines the value of everything else: the result only holds for the pages evaluated. For an RGAA audit, DINUM, the French digital directorate, asks that the sample cover at least the following pages, where they exist:
- the home page, contact and legal notice;
- the "accessibility" page, sitemap, help and login;
- at least one page per type of service and main use, including search;
- at least one downloadable document per type of service;
- all the pages of a journey, like a multi-step form;
- pages with a different look or type of content: tables, videos, illustrations, forms.
On top of that come randomly chosen pages, making up at least 10% of the sample. They avoid evaluating only the most polished pages.
How long does an audit take?
Allow 7 to 15 calendar days once the schedule is set. The difference depends on the website's complexity: the number of different templates, long journeys, custom-built components or logged-in areas.
The delay most often underestimated is the one before: the time to approve the sample and provide access. The shorter it is, the sooner the audit starts.
What happens during the evaluation?
In an RGAA audit, each page in the sample goes through the 106 criteria, with an average of 2.5 tests per criterion. The evaluation is done by hand: automated tools help spot some defects, but they can't judge whether a text alternative is relevant or whether a keyboard journey is logical.
Each criterion gets a result. It's compliant, non-compliant, or not applicable if the content concerned doesn't exist on the page. That's what makes it possible to calculate the conformity rate.
What do you receive at the end?
It depends on the option:
| Flash Audit | Full audit | |
|---|---|---|
| Criterion-by-criterion report | Yes, observations only | Yes, observations and technical recommendations |
| Accessibility statement | Yes | Yes, ready to publish |
| Debrief with a roadmap | No | Yes |
The Flash Audit gives you a snapshot of the situation. The full audit also gives you the plan to move forward: the criteria to fix first, and the target rate at each stage.
What should you do after the audit?
Three things, in this order: publish the statement, fix what blocks key journeys first, then have the fixes checked. If another provider carried out the audit, or if your team made the fixes alone, a cross audit lets you verify the score before publishing it.
For the budget, see how much an accessibility audit costs. The options are on the Accessibility page.
Frequently asked questions
How many pages are in the sample?
The French RGAA texts set no fixed number: the sample must be representative. It includes the mandatory pages where they exist, one example per type of service, complete journeys and randomly chosen pages. I define it with you, based on your website.
Does my team need to be available during the audit?
Mainly at the start, to validate the sample and give access to protected pages, like a customer area or a checkout. Plan for a stable environment too: if the website changes during the evaluation, the results may no longer match what's live.
Does an audit make my website compliant?
No. It measures the state of the website and lists what needs fixing. Compliance comes from the fixes that follow, then a new check to confirm each non-conformity has really been resolved.