If you're asking "how much does a WCAG accessibility audit cost?" you're probably facing one of three situations: a client just demanded an accessibility report, your legal team flagged ADA exposure, or you're trying to budget for compliance before a lawsuit finds you first.
The short answer: an automated WCAG audit costs $249–$499 for a single site, while a full manual audit by a certified expert runs $2,500–$10,000+. Which one you need depends on your risk profile, timeline, and budget.
This guide breaks down the real costs, what you actually get at each price point, and how to make the right call for your situation.
The Three Tiers of Accessibility Audit Pricing
| Tier | Price Range | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Automated Scan | $249–$499 | Quick compliance check, dev teams, solo founders |
| Hybrid (Automated + Expert Review) | $1,500–$5,000 | Mid-market, pre-launch due diligence |
| Full Manual Audit | $5,000–$15,000+ | Enterprise, government contracts, high-risk industries |
Tier 1: Automated WCAG Audit ($249–$499)
An automated audit runs a software tool against your website's pages and checks them against WCAG 2.2 AA success criteria. No human reviews the results — the tool scans, scores, and generates a report automatically.
What You Get
- Full WCAG 2.2 A/AA scan across 16+ checkpoints: color contrast, ARIA labels, heading hierarchy, link purpose, image alt text, form labels, touch target sizing, focus indicators, and more
- Per-element issue mapping — every finding linked to the exact CSS selector on your page
- Severity ratings — Critical, High, Medium, Low so you know what to fix first
- WCAG SC references for compliance documentation
- Styled PDF report you can hand to a dev team, lawyer, or compliance officer
Pros
- Fast — results in hours, not weeks
- Cheap — fraction of manual audit cost
- Repeatable — run monthly to track progress
- No setup — submit a URL, get a report
Cons
- Can't test everything — automated tools miss ~30% of WCAG issues that require human judgment (keyboard navigation flows, screen reader UX, logical reading order)
- False positives — some flagged issues may not be actual problems in context
- No customization — you get the standard report, not a tailored engagement
Need a Fast, Affordable Audit?
Our automated WCAG 2.2 AA audit scans your site against 16 checkpoints and delivers a styled PDF report within 24 hours. One-time payment, no subscription.
Get Basic Audit — $249 →Tier 2: Hybrid Audit ($1,500–$5,000)
A hybrid audit combines automated scanning with a manual expert review of the most critical pages. The automation catches what it can, and a human verifies the edge cases: keyboard navigation, screen reader compatibility, and logical content flow.
When to Choose Hybrid
- You're preparing for a known client audit or RFQ
- Your website handles sensitive data (finance, healthcare, legal)
- You need a VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) for government sales
- You've already run an automated scan and fixed the obvious issues
The main downside: turnaround time is 1–3 weeks, and pricing varies significantly by vendor. Many agencies charge by the page or by the hour, making it hard to budget upfront.
Tier 3: Full Manual Audit ($5,000–$15,000+)
A full manual audit is conducted by a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC) or similar credential. They manually test every page and user flow using assistive technologies: screen readers (JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver), speech recognition, and keyboard-only navigation.
What's Tested That Automation Can't
- Keyboard trap detection — can a user tab through every interactive element?
- Screen reader announcement order — does the DOM order match visual order?
- Focus management — where does focus land when a modal opens or closes?
- Error announcement patterns — does a screen reader user know a form submission failed?
- Color-dependent instructions — is any instruction conveyed through color alone?
Manual audits are the gold standard — they catch issues that no automated tool can find. But they cost thousands of dollars and take weeks to schedule. For most small to mid-size businesses, this is overkill until a specific requirement demands it.
Do You Actually Need a $5,000 Audit?
Here's a simple decision framework:
- You're a solo founder or small business: Start with an automated audit ($249). Fix the critical issues, then decide if you need more.
- You're a dev team shipping a new product: Run an automated scan before launch. Most WCAG issues are simple CSS/HTML fixes. Catch them early.
- You're responding to a demand letter or lawsuit: Get a manual audit — you'll need expert testimony and a documented remediation plan. But start by fixing what automation finds — it shows good faith.
- You're selling to government or enterprise: Budget for a full VPAT and manual audit. It's a cost of doing business in those markets.
"We scanned 50 random SaaS landing pages during development. 47 had critical contrast failures. Most were fixable in an afternoon. An automated audit at $249 would have caught every single one."
What About Free Tools?
Free tools like WAVE, axe DevTools, and Lighthouse are excellent for development-time checking. They're great for catching issues as you code. But they don't produce a deliverable report you can hand to a stakeholder, lawyer, or compliance officer. A paid audit gives you a formatted PDF with severity ratings, WCAG references, and fix recommendations — the artifact you need to show due diligence.
Our free scanner lets you check any URL immediately — no account, no email — and see exactly what the full report covers. It's the same 16 checks that run on the paid audit.
How to Budget for Accessibility in 2026
Three numbers every business should know:
- $0: The cost of running our free scanner to check your homepage right now
- $249: One-time cost to get a full PDF accessibility report for your site
- $15,000+: Average out-of-court settlement for an ADA Title III website accessibility lawsuit (source: 2023-2024 ADA litigation data)
Most businesses opt for the middle option — and do it before the third one becomes relevant.
Get Your WCAG Audit Report — $249
Submit your URL. We scan 16 WCAG 2.2 AA checkpoints. You get a styled PDF report within 24 hours. No subscription. No software to install.
Start Your Audit →Frequently Asked Questions
How many pages does an automated audit cover?
A Basic audit covers 1 URL. The Full Site audit ($499) covers up to 50 URLs. For most small business sites that's the entire public surface. For larger sites, we recommend scanning the top 5-10 most trafficked pages and the complete user funnel (signup, checkout, account).
How long does it take to get the report?
Basic audit reports are delivered within 24 hours of purchase. Full Site reports within 48 hours. Most are actually delivered much faster — a single-page scan takes about 60 seconds.
Can I use the report for legal compliance?
Yes — every finding includes the WCAG Success Criterion reference, severity rating, and fix recommendation. The PDF is formatted for sharing with legal teams, compliance officers, and development teams. However, only a manual audit with expert testimony can fully satisfy "reasonable accommodation" requirements in active litigation.
What's the refund policy?
100% refund if the scan fails or the report doesn't satisfy you. No questions asked.
Do you offer discounts for multiple sites?
The Full Site audit ($499) covers up to 50 URLs from a single domain. For multi-domain audits, contact us at support@ericjoye.com.