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Accessibility Helper

How to write an accessibility statement

What to include in an accessibility statement, how to describe conformance honestly, a copy-and-edit template, and where to publish it on Shopify.

By Accessibility Helper teamPublished 7 min read

An accessibility statement is a public page that says how accessible your website is: the standard you aim for, how well you meet it, what you know doesn’t work yet, and how people can reach you if they hit a barrier. At a minimum, W3C recommends a commitment to accessibility, the standard you apply and contact information. Write it honestly: a statement isn’t a certificate, and naming what still needs fixing builds more trust than a claim of perfection.

This is general information, not legal advice.

What is an accessibility statement, and why publish one?

W3C’s guide to developing an accessibility statement gives three reasons to publish one: to “show your users that you care about accessibility and about them”, to give them information about the accessibility of your content, and to demonstrate your commitment to accessibility. It also notes that “accessibility statements are not technical assessments or declarations of conformity.” A statement is a promise and a status report, not a test result.

For shoppers, a good statement answers practical questions. Will this site work with my screen reader? Is there a known problem with the size chart? Who do I contact if I can’t finish checking out?

Some organizations have to publish one. W3C gives the example of public bodies in countries that implement the EU Web Accessibility Directive. Businesses covered by the European Accessibility Act have a related duty, which we cover below.

What should an accessibility statement include?

According to W3C, a statement should contain at least:

  • “A commitment to accessibility for people with disabilities”
  • “The accessibility standard applied, such as WCAG 2.2”
  • “Contact information in case users encounter problems”

W3C also advises including known limitations, the measures you’ve taken, technical prerequisites such as supported browsers, the environments you’ve tested in, and references to applicable laws. Its free accessibility statement generator walks you through every part. Here’s what each one means for a typical website or store.

Your commitment

One or two plain sentences. Say who you are and that you want everyone, including people with disabilities, to be able to use your site.

The standard you aim for

Name the standard and level, for example WCAG 2.2 Level AA. Use the version you actually test against. If your audit checks WCAG 2.1 Level AA, say WCAG 2.1 AA: many laws and standards were written around it, although the newest European standard, EN 301 549 V4.1.1, moves to WCAG 2.2. W3C designed WCAG 2.2 to be backward compatible, so content that conforms to 2.2 also conforms to 2.1. Our WCAG 2.2 explained guide covers the differences.

Conformance status

This is where honesty matters most. The W3C generator offers four options:

  • Fully conformant: “the content fully conforms to the accessibility standard without any exceptions”.
  • Partially conformant: “some parts of the content do not fully conform to the accessibility standard”.
  • Non conformant: the content does not conform to the standard.
  • Not assessed: “the content has not been evaluated or the evaluation results are not available”.

Most sites that have been tested and still have known issues are partially conformant. Saying so, alongside a list of what you’re fixing, is accurate and reassuring.

Known limitations and workarounds

List what you know doesn’t work, why, what you’re doing about it and what people can do in the meantime. The W3C generator has a field for each of those. For example:

Product videos: some older product videos don't have captions yet.
We are adding captions to every product video by the end of [month].
In the meantime, contact us and we'll send you a transcript.

Feedback and response time

Give at least one way to reach you, such as an email address, and ideally a second, such as a phone number, for people who find one method hard. Say how quickly you usually reply, for example “within 2 business days”, and only promise a time you can keep.

Technical specifications

Say which technologies your site relies on to work with browsers and assistive technology. For most websites, including Shopify stores, that’s HTML, WAI-ARIA, CSS and JavaScript.

How you assessed it, and when

Say how you evaluated the site, such as a self-evaluation, an external audit or both, and the date you last reviewed the statement. Update that date every time you review it.

Does the European Accessibility Act require an accessibility statement?

Not by that name. For services in its scope, including e-commerce, Annex V of Directive (EU) 2019/882 requires “the information assessing how the service meets the accessibility requirements” in your general terms and conditions, or an equivalent document. Where applicable, that includes a general description of the service in accessible formats, the explanations needed to understand how it works, and a description of how it meets the requirements in Annex I. Article 13(2) says the information must be available “in written and oral format, including in a manner which is accessible to persons with disabilities.”

A statement page linked from your terms and conditions and your footer is a practical way to publish this. For EU shoppers, add a short description of your store and how it works, and describe how it meets the requirements, not just the standard you aim for. Check the national law in the countries you sell to; our guide to the EAA for online stores explains the scope and the exemptions.

What should you avoid saying?

  • Absolute claims, such as “fully accessible to everyone”, or full conformance you haven’t tested.
  • Crediting a tool. A widget or app doesn’t make a site accessible, so describe what it does instead: “Our site has a widget that lets you adjust text size and contrast.”
  • Promises with no contact details or response time behind them.
  • Anything that sounds like a legal promise, or a shield against complaints.
Avoid:  Our website is fully accessible and meets all accessibility laws.
Better: We aim to meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA. Our store is partially
        conformant: some older product videos don't have captions yet,
        and we're adding them.

Accessibility statement template

Copy this, replace everything in square brackets and delete anything that doesn’t apply.

Accessibility statement for [Store name]

[Store name] wants everyone to be able to shop with us, including
people with disabilities. We are working to make [store address]
accessible and easy to use.

Standard we aim for
We aim to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) [2.2]
Level AA, published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

Conformance status
[Store name] is [partially conformant] with WCAG [2.2] Level AA.
Partially conformant means that some parts of the content do not
fully conform to the standard.

What we've done
- [We tested our home, collection, product and cart pages with a
  keyboard, a screen reader and an automated audit.]
- [We checked our theme colors for contrast.]
- [We added alt text to our product images.]

Known limitations
- [Page or feature]: [what the problem is]. [What we're doing about
  it, and by when.] [What you can do in the meantime.]

Checkout is provided by Shopify.

Technical specifications
This site relies on HTML, WAI-ARIA, CSS and JavaScript to work with
your web browser and any assistive technologies you use.

Feedback
If you have trouble using any part of our store, please tell us:
- Email: [email address]
- Phone: [phone number]
We aim to reply within [number] business days.

[If you sell to EU consumers: a short description of our service and
how it works, and how it meets the accessibility requirements.]

Assessment and date
We assessed our store by [self-evaluation / an external audit] on
[date]. We last reviewed this statement on [date].

Where should you publish it on Shopify?

  1. Go to Online Store › Pages › Add page. Title it “Accessibility statement”, paste your text, make sure it’s published in the Visibility section, and click Save.
  2. Go to Content › Menus › select your footer menu › Add menu item. Name it “Accessibility”, link it to your new page, click Add, then Save.
  3. If you sell to EU consumers, link to the statement from your terms of service too.

If you use CodeInspire Accessibility Tool, the Shopify app made by CodeInspire, which publishes this site, it includes a statement editor with a ready-made statement that references WCAG 2.1 AA, and shoppers can open it from the widget. Edit it so it describes your store: your real conformance status, your known limitations and your contact details. Keep the footer link as well, so shoppers who never open the widget can still find it.

For Shopify stores

Find and fix accessibility issues on your store

CodeInspire Accessibility Tool adds an accessibility widget for your shoppers, audits your pages against WCAG, and gives you step-by-step fixes for your Shopify admin, theme editor or theme code.

Get it on the Shopify App StoreWhat the app does

How often should you update it?

Review it whenever something changes: a new theme, a redesign, a new app that adds features to your storefront, or a fix to something on your known-limitations list. Update the review date each time. A statement with an old date and an out-of-date limitations list tells visitors less than one you keep current.

What won’t a statement do?

It doesn’t fix anything. A statement describes your site; it doesn’t make it easier to use, and it isn’t a legal shield. Pair it with real fixes and testing. Our Shopify accessibility checklist is a good place to start.

Frequently asked questions

Is an accessibility statement required by law?

It depends on where you are and what you do. W3C notes that some organizations, such as public bodies in countries that implement the EU Web Accessibility Directive, may be required to publish one. The European Accessibility Act requires businesses in its scope to publish information on how their service meets the accessibility requirements, and a statement is a practical way to do that. Elsewhere it is usually voluntary, but still worth doing.

What does partially conformant mean?

In W3C's accessibility statement generator, partially conformant means that some parts of the content do not fully conform to the accessibility standard. It is the honest status for most sites that have been tested and still have known issues.

Can I say my website is fully conformant?

Only if you have evaluated it against the standard and found no exceptions. W3C defines fully conformant as the content fully conforming to the accessibility standard without any exceptions. If you haven't done a full evaluation, say partially conformant or not assessed, and explain what you have tested.

Where do I add an accessibility statement on Shopify?

Create a page under Online Store, then Pages, then Add page, and publish it. Then add a link to it in your footer menu under Content, then Menus.

Is there a free accessibility statement generator?

Yes. The W3C Web Accessibility Initiative offers a free accessibility statement generator that walks you through each part and produces a statement you can download and customize.

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