Playbook3 sections · 2 min readBy Dezső Mező · Published October 3, 2026.mdA11yWCAGFrontendUX
Most accessibility debt is not exotic: it is contrast that fails on the light theme, focus rings nobody sees, images with no alternative text and forms with labels that are decorative. An afternoon fixes the top of that list.
01Tab through the whole site once
Keyboard-only is the cheapest audit there is. If focus is invisible, trapped or illogical, a meaningful share of visitors hits the same wall. The fix is usually one :focus-visible rule and honest DOM order.
02Contrast is a number, not a taste
WCAG AA is 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large. The brand coral on this site needed a darker variant for paper backgrounds for exactly that reason; measure the pair, adjust the token, done.
03Alt text that describes, not narrates
A product photo needs what it sells; a decorative divider needs an empty alt so a screen reader skips it instead of announcing 'image'. The most common failure is not missing alt text but useless alt text.
What to take away
- Do one full keyboard pass — it is the cheapest audit.
- Measure contrast per theme, not per colour.
- Alt text describes function; decoration gets an empty alt.
- Labels are for inputs, not for looks — wire them properly.
More from the lab
Browse all entries
Where the checkout loses the sale
What custom software actually costs
Custom software or off the shelf — the honest test
The first ninety days of a retainer, as it actually goes
Want this looked at on your own system?Start a conversation
