reala11y
Account Free on WP.org See pricing

Guides WCAG 2.1

WCAG 2.1 — mobile, low vision, cognitive

Backward-compatible with 2.0; 17 new criteria for touch, low vision, and cognition.

Version
2.1
Year
2018
Status
W3C Recommendation
Criteria
78 criteria (+17)
reala11y WCAG · GUIDE 2.1 Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2018 · W3C Recommendation

What WCAG 2.1 is

WCAG 2.1 is the W3C’s internationally recognised standard for accessible web content. It builds directly on WCAG 2.0 — every 2.0 criterion carries forward unchanged — and adds 17 new criteria focused on mobile devices, low vision, and cognitive accessibility.

FactDetail
StatusW3C Recommendation
First published5 June 2018 (maintenance editions since correct errata only)
Success criteria78 total (61 from 2.0 + 17 new)
New guideline2.5 Input Modalities

Conformance is measured at three levels — A (minimum), AA (the common target), and AAA (highest) — so a site can describe how far it has progressed.

The four principles

WCAG rests on four principles (POUR): content must be Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust. WCAG 2.1 keeps 2.0’s structure and adds a new guideline, 2.5 Input Modalities, under Operable for touch, pointer, speech, and motion input.

Success criteria by guideline

Every Level A and AA criterion is below with a plain-language explanation; criteria new in 2.1 are marked. Level AAA criteria are listed by name for completeness.

Perceivable

  • 1.1.1 Non-text Content (A) — text alternatives for images, icons, and other non-text content; decorative items marked to ignore.
  • 1.2.1 Audio-only / Video-only (A) — transcript for audio-only; description or text for silent video.
  • 1.2.2 Captions (Prerecorded) (A) — synchronized captions for prerecorded video with sound.
  • 1.2.3 Audio Description or Media Alternative (A) — described track or full text alternative.
  • 1.2.4 Captions (Live) (AA) — real-time captions for live audio.
  • 1.2.5 Audio Description (Prerecorded) (AA) — narration of key visuals during pauses.
  • 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (A) — visual structure also available in markup.
  • 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence (A) — correct reading order is programmatic.
  • 1.3.3 Sensory Characteristics (A) — instructions not by shape/size/location alone.
  • 1.3.4 Orientation (AA) — new in 2.1 — content is not locked to portrait or landscape unless essential.
  • 1.3.5 Identify Input Purpose (AA) — new in 2.1 — common fields (name, email) declare their purpose so browsers can autofill.
  • 1.4.1 Use of Color (A) — color is not the only means of conveying information.
  • 1.4.2 Audio Control (A) — auto-playing audio can be paused or muted.
  • 1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum) (AA) — text contrast ≥ 4.5:1 (3:1 large).
  • 1.4.4 Resize Text (AA) — text resizes to 200% without breakage.
  • 1.4.5 Images of Text (AA) — prefer real text over images of text.
  • 1.4.10 Reflow (AA) — new in 2.1 — content reflows to a single column at 320px width / 400% zoom without horizontal scrolling.
  • 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast (AA) — new in 2.1 — UI components and meaningful graphics have ≥ 3:1 contrast.
  • 1.4.12 Text Spacing (AA) — new in 2.1 — no loss of content when users adjust line, paragraph, letter, and word spacing.
  • 1.4.13 Content on Hover or Focus (AA) — new in 2.1 — hover/focus content (tooltips) is dismissable, hoverable, and persistent.

AAA: 1.2.6–1.2.9, 1.3.6 Identify Purpose (new in 2.1), 1.4.6–1.4.9.

Operable

  • 2.1.1 Keyboard (A) — all functionality works from a keyboard.
  • 2.1.2 No Keyboard Trap (A) — focus can always move away by keyboard.
  • 2.1.4 Character Key Shortcuts (A) — new in 2.1 — single-key shortcuts can be turned off, remapped, or limited to focus.
  • 2.2.1 Timing Adjustable (A) — time limits can be turned off, adjusted, or extended.
  • 2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide (A) — moving/auto-updating content can be paused, stopped, or hidden.
  • 2.3.1 Three Flashes or Below Threshold (A) — no flashing above the threshold.
  • 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks (A) — a skip link or landmarks bypass repeated blocks.
  • 2.4.2 Page Titled (A) — descriptive page title.
  • 2.4.3 Focus Order (A) — focus order preserves meaning.
  • 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (A) — link purpose clear from text or context.
  • 2.4.5 Multiple Ways (AA) — more than one way to find a page.
  • 2.4.6 Headings and Labels (AA) — descriptive headings and labels.
  • 2.4.7 Focus Visible (AA) — visible keyboard focus indicator.
  • 2.5.1 Pointer Gestures (A) — new in 2.1 — multipoint or path gestures have a single-pointer alternative.
  • 2.5.2 Pointer Cancellation (A) — new in 2.1 — single-pointer actions can be aborted or undone.
  • 2.5.3 Label in Name (A) — new in 2.1 — a control’s accessible name includes its visible label.
  • 2.5.4 Motion Actuation (A) — new in 2.1 — motion-operated functions also have a UI control and can be disabled.

AAA: 2.1.3, 2.2.3–2.2.6 (2.2.6 Timeouts new in 2.1), 2.3.2, 2.3.3 Animation from Interactions (new in 2.1), 2.4.8–2.4.10, 2.5.5 Target Size & 2.5.6 (new in 2.1).

Understandable

  • 3.1.1 Language of Page (A) — page language set in markup.
  • 3.1.2 Language of Parts (AA) — foreign-language passages marked.
  • 3.2.1 On Focus (A) — focus does not cause unexpected context change.
  • 3.2.2 On Input (A) — input does not cause surprise context change.
  • 3.2.3 Consistent Navigation (AA) — repeated nav keeps order.
  • 3.2.4 Consistent Identification (AA) — same-function components labelled consistently.
  • 3.3.1 Error Identification (A) — errors identified in text.
  • 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions (A) — inputs have labels/instructions.
  • 3.3.3 Error Suggestion (AA) — known fixes are suggested.
  • 3.3.4 Error Prevention (Legal, Financial, Data) (AA) — important submissions reversible/checked/confirmed.

AAA: 3.1.3–3.1.6, 3.2.5, 3.3.5–3.3.6.

Robust

  • 4.1.1 Parsing (A) — well-formed markup. (Removed in WCAG 2.2.)
  • 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (A) — components expose name, role, state, value.
  • 4.1.3 Status Messages (AA) — new in 2.1 — status messages (“5 results found”) are exposed to assistive tech without moving focus.

What’s new in WCAG 2.1

WCAG 2.1 added 17 success criteria and removed none, so it is fully backward-compatible with 2.0. Highlights by level:

  • New Level A (5): 2.1.4 Character Key Shortcuts, 2.5.1 Pointer Gestures, 2.5.2 Pointer Cancellation, 2.5.3 Label in Name, 2.5.4 Motion Actuation.
  • New Level AA (7): 1.3.4 Orientation, 1.3.5 Identify Input Purpose, 1.4.10 Reflow, 1.4.11 Non-text Contrast, 1.4.12 Text Spacing, 1.4.13 Content on Hover or Focus, 4.1.3 Status Messages.
  • New Level AAA (5): 1.3.6 Identify Purpose, 2.2.6 Timeouts, 2.3.3 Animation from Interactions, 2.5.5 Target Size, 2.5.6 Concurrent Input Mechanisms.

It also introduced the new guideline 2.5 Input Modalities for touch, pointer, speech, and motion.

How reala11y maps to WCAG 2.1

Every criterion reala11y’s rules currently target was already in WCAG 2.0 and carries forward unchanged in 2.1. Two notes:

  • R016 (viewport blocks zoom) maps to 1.4.4 Resize Text and also relates to the new 1.4.10 Reflow — both protect people who rely on magnification.
  • reala11y’s R011 targets 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum), which is a WCAG 2.2 criterion. WCAG 2.1’s related criterion is the AAA-level 2.5.5 Target Size; the stricter AA-level 2.5.8 arrived in 2.2.

Automated tooling detects roughly 30–40% of WCAG issues by criteria; the rest needs manual review.

reala11y helps your site move toward WCAG 2.2 AA conformance. It does not certify compliance, guarantee freedom from lawsuits, or replace a professional audit.

Further reading