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From local-seo-audit
Runs a web accessibility audit with SEO focus, checking WCAG compliance, color contrast, ARIA labels, keyboard navigation, and screen reader compatibility. Outputs findings as a structured report.
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/local-seo-audit:accessibility-auditThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
Accessibility and SEO are converging in 2025. Semantic HTML — the foundation of accessibility compliance — is also Googlebot's preferred signal architecture. Lighthouse accessibility score directly correlates with Core Web Vitals performance, particularly INP (Interaction to Next Paint, replaced FID March 2024) and CLS. Google's Quality Rater Guidelines (2024 update) explicitly flag accessibili...
Accessibility and SEO are converging in 2025. Semantic HTML — the foundation of accessibility compliance — is also Googlebot's preferred signal architecture. Lighthouse accessibility score directly correlates with Core Web Vitals performance, particularly INP (Interaction to Next Paint, replaced FID March 2024) and CLS. Google's Quality Rater Guidelines (2024 update) explicitly flag accessibility as an E-E-A-T trust indicator. Legal exposure from accessibility failures is escalating: ADA Title III lawsuits reached 4,605 in 2023 (Seyfarth Shaw), and negative SERP results from lawsuit coverage directly harm brand SERP. AI search systems (Google AIO, ChatGPT, Perplexity) preferentially extract content from semantically correct, accessible HTML structures — inaccessible pages are de facto AI-invisible.
2025 accessibility benchmarks:
Read {AUDIT_DIR}/intake-data.md for business name, URL, and project paths.
Check {AUDIT_DIR}/technical-findings.md for previously noted accessibility issues.
Check {AUDIT_DIR}/speed-findings.md for INP/CLS data relevant to accessibility.
Tools for this phase:
| Tool | Purpose | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| WAVE (wave.webaim.org) | Visual accessibility report — shows errors directly on page | Free |
| Axe DevTools (browser extension) | WCAG 2.1/2.2 automated testing — 0 false positives | Free/Paid |
| Google Lighthouse | Accessibility score (0–100), automated WCAG checks | Free |
| Siteimprove | Continuous accessibility monitoring + WCAG conformance reporting | Paid |
| Color Contrast Analyzer (TPGi) | Pixel-level contrast ratio verification | Free |
| NVDA (Windows) / VoiceOver (Mac/iOS) | Screen reader testing — manual verification | Free |
| Screaming Frog | Crawl for missing alt text at scale | Paid/Free (≤500 URLs) |
| site_crawler.py | python3 scripts/site_crawler.py --url [URL] --max-pages 50 → images_no_alt column | Free |
WCAG Conformance Levels (2025 target):
Run Lighthouse → Accessibility score → document all flagged issues:
# Via Chrome DevTools: F12 → Lighthouse → Accessibility → Generate Report
# Or via CLI:
npx lighthouse [URL] --only-categories=accessibility --output json --output-path audit.json
Run WAVE on homepage + top 3 service pages + contact page.
Automated scan results:
| Page | Lighthouse Score | WAVE Errors | WAVE Alerts | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homepage | /100 | |||
| [Service 1] | /100 | |||
| Contact | /100 |
Automated tools catch ~30–40% of WCAG issues. Manual testing required for the rest.
Run: Axe DevTools → filter "Heading" issues.
SEO impact: Correct heading hierarchy correlates with 41% higher featured snippet acquisition (SEMrush 2024 study).
Test (manual): Disable CSS in browser (devtools → styles → uncheck user agent stylesheet) — does the page still make structural sense?
Run: python3 scripts/site_crawler.py --url [URL] --max-pages 50 --output {DATA_DIR}/crawl/ --csv
→ Check images_no_alt column for count and URLs.
| Check | Count | Pages Affected | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Images missing alt attribute entirely | Critical | ||
| Images with alt="" that aren't decorative | High | ||
| Images with alt="image" or filename as alt | High | ||
| Complex images (infographics) with no extended description | Medium | ||
| Logo: alt = business name? | High |
Alt text standards (2025):
alt="" (empty string, not missing)Use Color Contrast Analyzer or Axe DevTools → filter "Color Contrast" issues.
| Element | Current Ratio | WCAG AA Minimum | Pass/Fail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Body text (normal, <18pt) | :1 | 4.5:1 | |
| Large text (18pt+ or 14pt bold) | :1 | 3:1 | |
| UI components (buttons, input borders) | :1 | 3:1 | |
| Placeholder text in forms | :1 | 4.5:1 | |
| Links (if distinguishable by color alone) | :1 | 4.5:1 |
Common failures:
#767676 on white = exactly 4.5:1)Manual test (no mouse): Navigate entire page using only Tab, Shift+Tab, Enter, Space, Arrow keys.
| Check | Pass/Fail | Pages Affected |
|---|---|---|
| All interactive elements reachable via Tab | ||
| Logical tab order (follows visual layout L→R, T→B) | ||
| No keyboard traps (can Tab out of modals, menus, date pickers) | ||
| Skip navigation link present at top ("Skip to main content") | ||
| Custom dropdowns, accordions, sliders keyboard-accessible | ||
Focus indicator visible on all elements (not outline: none) |
WCAG 2.2 new criteria (Focus):
Test all forms: contact, quote, booking, search, newsletter.
| Form | Location | Fields | Labeled? | Error Msgs? | Mobile OK? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contact | [page] | [count] | ✅/❌ | ✅/❌ | ✅/❌ |
| Quote | [page] | [count] | ✅/❌ | ✅/❌ | ✅/❌ |
Form accessibility checklist:
<label> (not placeholder only — placeholders disappear on focus)for attribute matching input id (or wrap input in label)autocomplete attributes on name, email, phone fields (WCAG 1.3.5)Run: Axe DevTools → filter "ARIA" issues.
<button> not <div onclick>)Critical ARIA checks:
| Pattern | Correct? | Issue if Wrong |
|---|---|---|
aria-label on icon-only buttons (hamburger menu, social icons) | ✅/❌ | Button has no accessible name |
aria-expanded on accordions/dropdowns | ✅/❌ | Screen reader can't detect open/closed state |
aria-describedby linking error messages to fields | ✅/❌ | Errors not associated with field |
role="main", role="navigation", role="banner" landmarks | ✅/❌ | Screen reader can't navigate landmarks |
aria-live="polite" for dynamic content (chat, alerts) | ✅/❌ | Updates not announced to screen readers |
No aria-hidden="true" on focusable elements | ✅/❌ | Hidden but keyboard-accessible = confusion |
Touch target requirements (2025):
| Check | Pass/Fail |
|---|---|
| All tap targets ≥24×24px (WCAG 2.2) | |
| Buttons/links ≥44×44px (recommended) | |
| 8px+ spacing between adjacent tap targets | |
| No hover-only interactions (touch has no hover) | |
Pinch-to-zoom NOT disabled (user-scalable=no = WCAG failure) | |
| Content readable at 320px width without horizontal scroll |
| Check | Pass/Fail | Fix Required |
|---|---|---|
<html lang="en"> (correct language code) | ||
| Page title unique and descriptive per page | ||
Language changes within page use lang attribute | ||
| Body font size ≥16px | ||
| Line height ≥1.5 for body text | ||
| Text resizable to 200% without horizontal scroll | ||
Tables: <th> with scope on all data tables | ||
| No layout tables (use CSS grid/flex instead) | ||
| Logical reading order without CSS |
| Fix | SEO Benefit | Accessibility Benefit | Effort | Priority Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Add alt text to all images | Image SEO, crawler context | Screen reader users | 2–4 hrs | 20 (4×5) |
| Fix heading hierarchy (H1→H2→H3) | Featured snippet eligibility | Screen reader navigation | 1–2 hrs | 20 (4×5) |
| "Click here" → descriptive link text | Anchor text quality signal | Screen reader context | 1–3 hrs | 20 (4×5) |
Add <html lang> attribute | Language targeting | Screen reader pronunciation | 5 min | 25 (5×5) |
| Add skip-to-main link | Mobile UX signal | Keyboard user efficiency | 30 min | 20 (4×5) |
| Captions on all videos | Video indexing, transcript indexing | Deaf users | 2–6 hrs | 16 (4×4) |
Remove user-scalable=no from viewport | Mobile UX signals | Low vision zoom ability | 5 min | 25 (5×5) |
| Fix form labels (labels not placeholders) | Form completion rate → lower bounce | Screen reader + cognitive | 1–2 hrs | 20 (4×5) |
Run Lighthouse on competitor homepages and compare:
| Site | Lighthouse Accessibility | WAVE Errors | WAVE Alerts | Heading H1 | Alt Text % | Mobile Tap Targets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Client | /100 | Single? | ✅/❌ | |||
| Comp 1 | /100 | |||||
| Comp 2 | /100 | |||||
| Comp 3 | /100 |
Competitive opportunities:
AI Visibility Connection: AI search systems prefer semantically structured content. Run these checks:
| Check | AI Benefit | Pass/Fail |
|---|---|---|
| Semantic heading hierarchy (H1→H2→H3) | AIO extract section headings as answer structure | |
| FAQPage schema on FAQ content | 3.2× AIO citation rate (Amsive 2025) | |
<article>, <section>, <aside> landmarks | AI parsers map content zones | |
| Descriptive alt text (not empty or filename) | AI image understanding + image search | |
| No JS-only content without fallback | Googlebot renders JS inconsistently |
<html lang="en"> if missing — WCAG 1.3.4 compliance + screen reader pronunciation fix. Effort: 5 min. Priority: 25 (5×5).user-scalable=no from viewport meta tag — WCAG failure, blocks pinch-zoom for low-vision users; Google penalizes this. Effort: 5 min. Priority: 25.<a href="#main" class="skip-link">Skip to main content</a> at top of every page. Effort: 30 min. Priority: 20.alt="" images that aren't decorative — Run site_crawler.py → check images_no_alt column → write descriptive alt text (max 125 chars) for all informative images. Effort: 2–4 hrs.aria-label to all icon-only buttons — hamburger menu, social icons, close buttons — each needs accessible name. Effort: 1–2 hrs.<label for> elements; add autocomplete attributes. Effort: 1–2 hrs.aria-expanded to accordions/dropdowns — required for screen reader state awareness. Effort: 1–2 hrs.scope attributes to all data tables — <th scope="col"> and <th scope="row"> — required for screen reader table navigation. Effort: 30 min.| Category | Weight | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Heading structure (single H1, logical, descriptive) | 15% | /15 |
| Image alt text (all images, correct type) | 20% | /20 |
| Keyboard navigation (all elements, no traps, visible focus) | 20% | /20 |
| Color contrast (WCAG AA: 4.5:1 body, 3:1 large/UI) | 15% | /15 |
| Form accessibility (labels, errors, autocomplete) | 15% | /15 |
| ARIA & semantic HTML (correct use, no invalid patterns) | 15% | /15 |
Priority Matrix:
| Issue | Impact (1–5) | Feasibility (1–5) | Priority | Effort |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missing alt text on images | 4 | 5 | 20 | 2–4 hrs |
user-scalable=no in viewport | 5 | 5 | 25 | 5 min |
<html lang> missing | 5 | 5 | 25 | 5 min |
| Keyboard traps (can't Tab out) | 5 | 4 | 20 | 2–4 hrs |
| Missing form labels | 4 | 5 | 20 | 1–2 hrs |
| Color contrast failures | 4 | 4 | 16 | 2–6 hrs |
| No skip navigation link | 4 | 5 | 20 | 30 min |
| Video without captions | 4 | 4 | 16 | 2–6 hrs |
Write to {AUDIT_DIR}/accessibility-findings.md with YAML frontmatter:
---
skill: audit/accessibility-audit
phase: 19
date: [YYYY-MM-DD]
business: [Business Name]
url: [URL]
score: [X/100]
wcag_level: [below-a|a|partial-aa|aa|aaa]
lighthouse_score: [X/100]
critical_issues: [X]
---
AUDIT PHASE: Accessibility | ID: ACCESS-001 | Phase: 19
BUSINESS: [Name] | URL: [URL] | DATE: [Date]
SCORE: X/100 | WCAG Level: WCAG 2.2 AA / 2.1 AA / Partial AA / Below AA
Lighthouse Accessibility Score: X/100 | WAVE Errors: X | WAVE Alerts: X
CRITICAL (Fix Immediately — Legal & SEO Risk):
- [issue | pages affected | WCAG criterion | fix steps | effort]
HIGH PRIORITY:
- [issue | pages affected | fix steps | effort | priority score]
MEDIUM PRIORITY:
- [issue | fix steps | effort]
QUICK WINS (Fix Today — <30 min each):
- [fix | pages affected | expected improvement]
SEO-ACCESSIBILITY OVERLAP OPPORTUNITIES:
- [issue | SEO benefit | accessibility benefit | priority score]
Write HTML report to {REPORTS_DIR}/phase-19-accessibility.html and convert to PDF via python3 scripts/generate_pdf.py.
Key consumers:
audit/technical-seo — semantic HTML and schema overlapaudit/speed-optimization — INP/CLS issues often have accessibility root causescross-cutting/serp-trust-auditor — User Experience (U) dimension includes accessibilityoutput/report-generation — accessibility score in master report section 19npx claudepluginhub mshahiddigital/agentic-local-seo-auditRuns a WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility audit covering perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust principles, producing a detailed remediation plan. Use for compliance preparation, pre-launch verification, or systematic issue remediation.
Audits web pages for WCAG 2.1 accessibility issues including heading structure, image alt text, form labels, ARIA attributes, landmarks, and keyboard navigation using browser automation.
Conducts interactive WCAG accessibility audits on entire solutions, directories, or live URLs, checking compliance levels A/AA/AAA with optional Playwright visual scans.