How many WCAG 2.1 success criteria are there?

WCAG 2.1 has 78 success criteria in total: 30 at Level A, 20 at Level AA and 28 at Level AAA. Level AA conformance means meeting all 50 A and AA criteria.

Is a WCAG checklist enough to be compliant?

A checklist helps you find and fix issues, but conformance is judged page by page against every applicable criterion. Legal compliance is a separate question for an attorney.

Should I use WCAG 2.2 instead?

For new work, yes. WCAG 2.2 adds criteria such as Target Size (Minimum) and Focus Not Obscured (Minimum). WCAG 2.2 AA covers nearly all of 2.1 AA. The one gap is 4.1.1 Parsing, which 2.2 removed as obsolete.

WCAG 2.1 AA checklist for small business websites

By WCAGCLEAR Nerds. Published October 22, 2026, updated October 28, 2026.

Short answer: WCAG 2.1 AA has 50 success criteria at levels A and AA. You do not need to memorize them. Check contrast, alt text, labels, keyboard use, focus, headings, captions and zoom first, then have a person test your most important tasks.

What can an automated scanner check?

Scanners reliably catch problems like low text contrast, missing alt attributes, unlabeled form fields, empty links and buttons, missing page language and some ARIA errors. They cannot judge whether alt text is meaningful, whether focus order makes sense, or whether a task can be completed, so a clean scan is only a starting point.

Text contrast of at least 4.5:1, or 3:1 for large text (1.4.3).
Images have alt attributes (1.1.1).
Form fields have labels (1.3.1, 4.1.2).
Links and buttons have names (2.4.4, 4.1.2).
The page declares its language (3.1.1).

What should I check by hand?

Use the site with only a keyboard. Every link, button and form field should be reachable with Tab, usable with Enter or Space, and show a visible focus outline. Zoom the browser to 200% and to a narrow width and confirm nothing is cut off. Read your alt text and link text out of context.

Keyboard access with no traps (2.1.1, 2.1.2).
Visible focus (2.4.7).
Logical headings and focus order (1.3.1, 2.4.3).
Text resizes to 200% (1.4.4) and content reflows at 320 CSS pixels wide (1.4.10).
Error messages say what went wrong and how to fix it (3.3.1, 3.3.3).

What needs testing by a person with assistive technology?

Checkout, booking, sign-up and contact flows need a person using a screen reader such as NVDA, JAWS or VoiceOver. They confirm that labels, instructions, errors and dynamic updates are announced and that the task can be finished. Video needs captions, and audio needs transcripts.

If you cannot do this in-house, hire a tester for your two or three most important tasks. That covers the highest-risk areas without a full audit.

Frequently asked questions

How many WCAG 2.1 success criteria are there?: WCAG 2.1 has 78 success criteria in total: 30 at Level A, 20 at Level AA and 28 at Level AAA. Level AA conformance means meeting all 50 A and AA criteria.
Is a WCAG checklist enough to be compliant?: A checklist helps you find and fix issues, but conformance is judged page by page against every applicable criterion. Legal compliance is a separate question for an attorney.
Should I use WCAG 2.2 instead?: For new work, yes. WCAG 2.2 adds criteria such as Target Size (Minimum) and Focus Not Obscured (Minimum). WCAG 2.2 AA covers nearly all of 2.1 AA. The one gap is 4.1.1 Parsing, which 2.2 removed as obsolete.

Check your own page

Run a free scan to see which of these issues appear on your site.

Check a site

Sources

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, W3C
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2, W3C
What's New in WCAG 2.2, W3C WAI
The WebAIM Million: 2026 report, WebAIM

This guide is educational and is not legal advice. Talk to an attorney about your legal obligations.