To choose the right accessibility audit firm, look for human-led evaluation across screen reader testing, keyboard testing, visual inspection, and code inspection. The firm should produce a written report that identifies issues with specific locations, severity, and remediation guidance tied to WCAG 2.1 AA or 2.2 AA success criteria. Pricing should be transparent, and the methodology should be documented. Firms that rely on automated scans alone cover roughly 25% of accessibility issues and miss the rest.
| Criterion | What to Look For |
|---|---|
| Methodology | Human-led evaluation with screen reader testing, keyboard testing, visual inspection, and code inspection. |
| Standard | Conformance evaluated against WCAG 2.1 AA or 2.2 AA, stated explicitly. |
| Report quality | Specific issues, page locations, severity ratings, and remediation guidance. |
| Pricing | Transparent per-page or project pricing, typically 1,000 dollars to 3,000 dollars and up. |
| Post-audit support | Validation of fixes, technical support, and willingness to answer developer questions. |
Start With Methodology, Not Marketing
The first question to ask any audit firm is how they conduct the evaluation. A real audit involves people using assistive technology to interact with the site, not a scan report dressed up as an audit.
Ask which assistive technologies are used. Common answers include NVDA, JAWS, and VoiceOver across Chrome and Safari. Ask whether the evaluator checks the site at 200% and 400% browser zoom. Ask whether code is inspected directly for ARIA usage, semantic structure, and focus management.
If the firm describes its work primarily in terms of a dashboard score or an automated checker, that work covers only a portion of WCAG. Scans flag approximately 25% of accessibility issues. The other 75% requires human evaluation.
What the Report Should Contain
A quality audit report identifies each issue with the page or screen where it appears, the WCAG success criterion it relates to, the conformance level affected, a severity rating, and clear remediation guidance. The report should be specific enough that a developer can read an issue and know what to fix.
Vague reports that group dozens of issues under broad headings without specific locations are difficult to act on. Ask to see a sample report before signing a contract. Reputable firms make samples available.
Pricing Signals Quality
Most accessibility audits start at 1,000 dollars and range to 3,000 dollars for small projects, with larger projects scaling from there. Per-page pricing typically falls between 100 dollars and 250 dollars per page or screen, depending on complexity.
Quotes well below that range usually indicate a scan-based deliverable rather than a true audit. Quotes far above that range, sometimes 20,000 dollars or more from enterprise providers, often reflect overhead rather than better evaluation quality. Ask what is included, how scope is defined, and whether validation of fixes is part of the engagement.
Questions Worth Asking
- WCAG version: Are you evaluating against 2.1 AA, 2.2 AA, or both?
- Scope definition: How do you count pages, screens, or user flows?
- Turnaround: What is the timeline from kickoff to report delivery?
- Validation: Do you re-evaluate after remediation, and is that included?
- Support: Can our developers ask follow-up questions during remediation?
- Mobile coverage: Are mobile environments evaluated separately or as part of the same engagement?
Watch for Red Flags
Certain claims should prompt closer scrutiny. A firm that promises full WCAG conformance from an automated scan is overstating what the technology can do. A firm that refuses to share methodology details or a sample report is hiding something.
Look for firms that describe their work in terms of human evaluators, written reports, and validation. That is what an audit is.
Match the Firm to Your Risk Profile
The right firm depends on what you need the audit for. A SaaS company preparing an Accessibility Conformance Report for procurement has different needs than a public entity preparing for the April 2026 ADA Title II deadline. A retailer responding to a demand letter has different urgency than a startup building accessibility into a roadmap.
Define the goal first. Then ask each firm how their process fits that goal. A firm that asks good questions about your situation before quoting is more likely to deliver work that fits.
Choosing an audit firm gets much easier when you understand what a quality audit actually involves and what WCAG conformance requires. The WCAG Course at adacompliance.net covers the standard, how audits are conducted, and how to evaluate the work you receive, so you can hire with confidence and act on the report you get. Enroll in the WCAG Course.