Glossary
WCAG
What is WCAG?
WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, W3C's international standard for making web content more accessible to people with disabilities.
The four principles
WCAG 2 organizes testable criteria around Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust—often shortened to POUR. The criteria have three levels: A, AA, and AAA.
- Perceivable: People must be able to perceive the information presented.
- Operable: They must be able to operate the interface and navigation.
- Understandable: Information and operation must be understandable.
- Robust: Content must be interpretable by a range of user agents, including assistive technologies.
Versions and conformance
WCAG 2.2 is the latest published WCAG 2 version. Earlier versions remain standards. A conformance statement needs a defined scope, version, and level, with the applicable requirements evaluated.
Criteria cover subjects such as text alternatives, contrast, keyboard operation, and captions. Each has conditions and exceptions; a short checklist is not a complete test.
Example
A team can evaluate a site against a named version and level, repair confirmed barriers, and repeat the evaluation. Fixing a selected issue list alone does not establish full conformance.
Why it matters
WCAG gives accessibility work testable requirements. Check the full applicable criteria, rather than equating repaired defects with a verified result.