When it comes to creating an app that's accessible to everyone, where do you start? With so much information out there on digital accessibility, it can be overwhelming. But don't worry – we've got you covered. Below are the six most important steps to make your app usable for a wide range of people, including those with disabilities.
Step 1: Test Your App with a Screen Reader
To ensure your app is accessible, start by learning how to use a screen reader. While primarily used by visually impaired individuals, optimizing your app for this feature will automatically account for a significant number of WCAG success criteria and benefit users with voice, keyboard, and switch controls. The ScreenReader app is an excellent tool to test for accessibility, but it may take some getting used to.
Step 2: Offer Textual Alternatives
Make sure all buttons have clear labels, and icons, images, and graphics have textual alternatives. This includes alternative text for content without text. People who are blind will have this description read aloud through their screen reader, while anyone unsure about the content's meaning can also benefit from these descriptions.
Step 3: Clearly Define Purpose and Function
Ensure that it's clear what action can be performed on each element in your app. Set a name for identification, role for tool users to understand possible actions, and value to pass textually to tools. This will make it easy for assistive technologies to perform targeted actions.
Step 4: Support Text Resizing
Allow text to be displayed in larger font sizes and ensure it remains readable with increased font sizes. Users can specify their preferred font size in system settings, so your app should resize according to this preference. This is crucial for visually impaired users, as they may struggle to read small text.
Step 5: Provide Sufficient Contrast
Ensure that the content on your screen has a contrast ratio of at least 3:1 with the surrounding color and 4.5:1 between text color and background color. This will make it easy for visually impaired and colorblind users to read the text, as well as improve overall usability.
Step 6: Show Focus and Logical Order
Make sure that assistive technologies clearly indicate focused elements and follow a logical order when navigating your app's screens. Ensure that the focus indicator is visible, and assistive technologies use an equivalent focus order when navigating. This will provide a seamless experience for users with disabilities.
Testing Your App's Accessibility
To test these steps, you can use the Accessibility Scanner app or Xcode's Accessibility Inspector. You can also automatically detect contrast issues using these tools. For more advanced testing, take a screenshot of your app and calculate the contrast ratio using WebAIM's Contrast Checker. Finally, check that it works properly by using a screen reader.
By following these six steps, you'll be well on your way to creating an app that's accessible to a wide range of people. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to ask!