accessibility-audit

Accessibility Audit Skill

Fast, high-signal accessibility triage for pages, components, or PRs. This is a lightweight check, not a full compliance audit.

When to Use This Skill

• Quick accessibility triage before releases
• Component-level a11y verification
• PR review for accessibility regressions
• Smoke checks for WCAG compliance
• Validating keyboard navigation on new features

Quick Audit Checklist

1. Automated Snapshot (Recommended)

Run one of these automated tools first:

• npx @axe-core/cli <url> - Quick axe-core scan
• npx pa11y <url> --standard WCAG2AA - Pa11y audit
• Lighthouse Accessibility score (Chrome DevTools > Lighthouse > Accessibility)

2. Keyboard Basics

Check	Expected
All interactive elements reachable via Tab	Yes
Focus indicator always visible	Yes
No keyboard traps	Yes
Logical tab order	Yes
Skip link works for long pages	Yes

3. Semantics and Labels

Check	Expected
Single, descriptive H1	Yes
Logical heading order (no large jumps)	Yes
Form inputs have visible labels or aria-label	Yes
Buttons and links have clear names	Yes
Images have meaningful alt text (or empty for decorative)	Yes

4. Visual Contrast

Element	Minimum Ratio
Normal text	4.5:1
Large text (18pt+ or 14pt bold+)	3:1
UI components (inputs, buttons, focus rings)	3:1

5. Motion and Updates

Check	Expected
Respects prefers-reduced-motion	Yes
Dynamic updates announced (aria-live)	Yes

Output Format

After running the audit, report findings as:

## Accessibility Audit: [Component/Page Name]

### Result: [Pass | Needs Fixes | Escalate to Full Audit]

### Findings

| Severity | Issue | Location | Fix Guidance |
|----------|-------|----------|--------------|
| Critical | [Description] | [Selector/Line] | [How to fix] |
| Major | [Description] | [Selector/Line] | [How to fix] |
| Minor | [Description] | [Selector/Line] | [How to fix] |

### Escalation Recommendation
[If applicable, explain why a full audit is needed]

Escalate to Full Audit When

• New or changed navigation structure
• Complex forms or authentication flows
• Custom widgets or advanced interactions (modals, accordions, tabs)
• Public releases or compliance requirements
• Significant page structure changes
• Failed automated scans with multiple critical issues

Notes

• This smoke check targets WCAG 2.2 AA by default
• If a different compliance level is required, state it explicitly
• Automated tools catch ~30-40% of issues; manual testing is essential
• Test with actual screen readers (VoiceOver, NVDA) for comprehensive coverage