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Patricio Morales
Educational Guide

UX Accessibility
Best Practices

An inclusive digital experience is more than just a checkbox. It's about ensuring every user, regardless of their situational, temporary, or permanent disability, can perceive, understand, and navigate your interface.

palette

1. Color Contrast

Text and interactive elements must have sufficient contrast against their background. WCAG 2.1 requires a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.

check_circle Correct (DO)

This text is high contrast

Ratio: 12.6:1 (Pass AAA)

Use dark text on light backgrounds or vice-versa. Ensure button labels are distinct and readable.

cancel Incorrect (DON'T)

Low contrast is hard to read

Ratio: 1.8:1 (Fail)

Avoid light gray text on white backgrounds or thin fonts that wash out against bright colors.

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2. ARIA & Semantic HTML

Screen readers rely on semantic HTML and ARIA labels to describe content to visually impaired users. A deep dive into semantic structure ensures the document outline is logical and every interactive element has a clear role.

Semantic Structure & ARIA Labels 
<!-- Use aria-label for clarity when text isn't present -->
<button aria-label="Close Modal">
  <svg>...</svg>
</button>

<!-- Use landmarks to define page regions -->
<main role="main">
  <article>
    <h1>Semantic Heading</h1>
  </article>
</main>
task_alt

Descriptive Alt-Text

Describe the function or the content of the image. "User avatar" is better than "image 1".

warning

Redundant Phrases

Avoid starting alt-text with "Photo of..." or "Image of...". Screen readers already announce it's an image.

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3. Focus States

A clear visual focus indicator is essential for keyboard users to know where they are on a page. Focus rings should have high contrast and not be obscured by other elements.

Try Tabbing Through This!

Press the 'Tab' key on your keyboard to see how the focus state moves through these interactive elements.

Skip to Content Documentation Try it Now
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4. Touch Targets

For mobile accessibility, interactive elements must be large enough to be easily tapped. The recommended minimum size for touch targets is 44 x 44 pixels.

touch_app
44px PASS

Generous padding ensures even users with limited dexterity can trigger actions reliably.

close
24px FAIL

Tiny targets lead to frustration and "fat-finger" errors, especially on small screens.

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5. Color Blindness & Redundancy

Never use color alone to convey meaning. Users with color vision deficiencies may not distinguish between red (error) and green (success) without additional cues like icons or patterns.

Error Message Examples

Accessible (Color + Icon)
error Invalid email address. Please try again.
Inaccessible (Color Only)
Invalid email address. Please try again.

Using Patterns in Charts

Incorrect (Color Only)
Success
Failure
Correct (Color + Pattern)
Success
Failure

Redundant coding—using both color and patterns or icons—ensures that critical information is accessible to users with various types of color blindness who might otherwise struggle to distinguish between similar color values.

Quick UX Audit Checklist

Use this to evaluate your designs during the prototyping phase.