Accessibility

· 24 checks — Landmarks, headings, alt text, forms, and link quality rolled into one auditable list.

SCORE

GRADE

FIX

REVIEW

PASS

INFO

Checks

16 PASS 3 REVIEW 5 FIX

Heading Hierarchy

Action

34 headings

FIX

34 headings

Single H1 present

12 empty heading(s)

Empty headings appear in the document outline but provide no information.

H1 Welcome to VA.gov
H2 Let us help you get started
H2 Create an account to manage your VA benefits and care in one place — any time, from anywhere.
H2 Search
H3 Other search tools
H2 Top pages
H2 VA NEWS
H3 Download the VA Health and Benefits App
H2 Explore VA benefits and health care
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H3 (empty)
H2 Veteran programs and services
H2 More VA resources
H2 Get VA updates
H2 In crisis? Talk to someone now
H2 Get answers
H2 Call us
H2 Visit a medical center or regional office
H2 Get answers
H2 Call us
H2 Visit a medical center or regional office
H2 Language assistance
H2 Language assistance
H3 We’re here anytime, day or night – 24/7

Empty headings appear in the document outline but provide no information.

Why this matters

Empty <hN> tags break the document outline — screen-reader users navigating by heading hit dead silence.

Source: WCAG 2.4.6

Web Manifest

Action

Not found

FIX

Not found

No web manifest found

No manifest at standard paths (/manifest.json, /site.webmanifest). A manifest is optional but enables PWA features like home screen installation and standalone display.

No web manifest found.

Dark Mode Support

Action

No dark mode signals

FIX

No dark mode signals

No dark mode signals detected

Consider adding CSS with @media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) and <meta name='color-scheme' content='light dark'>.

Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles

External CSS files may contain prefers-color-scheme rules not visible to this scan.

Dark ModeNo Dark Mode Detected

color-scheme meta Not set ✗Dark theme-color Not set ✗CSS indicators Not detected ✗

Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles.

Print Stylesheet

Action

No print styles

FIX

No print styles

No print-specific styles detected

When users print this page, they get the screen layout including navigation and non-essential elements. Add @media print rules to hide navigation and optimize layout for paper.

Print Stylesheet No Print Styles

Print stylesheet Not found ✗Inline @media print Not detected ✗

404 Error Page

HTTP 404, custom page

REVIEW

HTTP 404, custom page

Correct 404 status code returned

Got: HTTP 404

Custom styled 404 page

Navigation links present on 404 page

Homepage link present on 404 page

404 Page Quality ✓ Custom 404 Page

Status Code HTTP 404 ✓Page Title VA.gov | Veterans Affairs ✓Custom Styling ✓Navigation ✓Homepage Link ✓Search Form ✗

Favicon & Branding

Action

5 icon(s) detected

REVIEW

5 icon(s) detected

No favicon.ico at site root

Some older browsers, bookmark tools, and RSS readers look for /favicon.ico. Add one as a fallback.

HTML icon links detected

Apple touch icon present

Multiple icon sizes detected

✗ favicon.ico Missing

✓ PNG Icons Present

✓ Apple Touch Present

✗ SVG Favicon Missing

✗ Manifest Icons Missing

✓ Multiple Sizes Present

Color Contrast (Screenshot)

20 text elements analyzed, 0 fail WCAG AA

REVIEW

Analyzes text contrast against the actual rendered page, including background images, gradients, and overlays that CSS-based tools cannot detect.

20 pass 20 pass AA only

Show all checked elements (20)

Element	Ratio	Required	FG	BG	Result
h1 Welcome to VA.gov	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Let us help you get …	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Create an account to…	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Search	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Top pages	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 VA NEWS	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Explore VA benefits …	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Veteran programs and…	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 More VA resources	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Get VA updates	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 In crisis? Talk to s…	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Get answers	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Call us	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Visit a medical cent…	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Get answers	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Call us	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Visit a medical cent…	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h2 Language assistance	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h3 Other search tools	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass
h3 Download the VA Heal…	3.12:1	3.0:1	#000000	#005EA2	Pass

Methodology: The top 20 text elements by font size were checked. Background color was sampled from the desktop screenshot using a 5-point pattern. WCAG 2.1 AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.

A+

Landmark Structure

4 landmarks

PASS

4 landmarks

<main> landmark present

1 <nav> landmark(s) found

Skip navigation link present

Page Structure — as a screen reader sees it

A+

Heading Text Quality

1 heading-text-quality issue(s) detected

PASS

1 heading-text-quality issue(s) detected

1 heading(s) are all-uppercase (excluding short acronyms)

Headings rendered in all-uppercase are a styling choice that should be done via CSS (`text-transform: uppercase`), not by typing the text in caps. Capitalized text is read letter-by-letter by some screen readers (e.g., "H-E-L-L-O W-O-R-L-D" instead of "hello world"). It's also a soft signal of CMS-migration artifacts where the original lowercase intent was lost.

Got: 1 all-caps heading(s)

A+

Alt Text Quality

All 8 images OK

PASS

All 8 images OK

2 decorative image(s) correctly marked

6 image(s) with good alt text

8 images 6 good alt text 2 decorative

All images have appropriate alt text.

A+

Form Accessibility

All 1 controls labeled

PASS

All 1 controls labeled

1 control(s) properly labeled

1 controls

1 labeled

0 placeholder only

0 unlabeled

Control	Type	Label	Method
#search-header-dropdown-input-field	text	Search	aria-label

A+

Link & Button Quality

93 links, 15 buttons — all OK

PASS

93 links, 15 buttons — all OK

93 link(s) with descriptive text

93 links

0 empty

0 generic text

0 new tab

0 empty buttons

All links and buttons have descriptive accessible text.

108 links and buttons have descriptive text

A+

Form Input Types

1 input(s) using type=text where a specific type would help

PASS

1 input(s) using type=text where a specific type would help

Input "search-header-dropdown-input-field" should use type="search" (currently type="text")

Field name "search-header-dropdown-input-field" suggests type="search". Wrong type loses mobile keyboard hints, browser autofill, and free format validation. Change to <input type="search">.

A+

Form Input Quality

1 form control(s) checked, no input-semantic issues

PASS

1 form control(s) checked, no input-semantic issues

All form input semantics look correct

A+

Mobile Keyboard & Autofill

No autofill-eligible form controls

PASS

No autofill-eligible form controls

No autofill-eligible form controls (no name/email/tel/address fields)

A+

Document Language

Lang attribute set to "en"

PASS

Lang attribute set to "en"

<html lang="en"> is set and valid

Got: en

A+

Tabindex Anti-Patterns

2 explicit tabindex attribute(s) checked, no anti-patterns

PASS

2 explicit tabindex attribute(s) checked, no anti-patterns

No tabindex anti-patterns detected

A+

Iframe Accessibility

No iframes on this page

PASS

No iframes on this page

A+

Tap Target Adequacy

All tap targets meet WCAG 2.5.5/2.5.8 sizing

PASS

All tap targets meet WCAG 2.5.5/2.5.8 sizing

All tap targets meet WCAG 2.5.5 (44x44px) sizing

A+

Mobile-Readable Font Sizes

All 91 visible text node(s) render at >= 12 CSS pixels

PASS

All 91 visible text node(s) render at >= 12 CSS pixels

All text uses legible mobile font sizes (>= 12 CSS px)

A+

PWA Depth

No PWA depth issues detected

PASS

No PWA depth issues detected

A+

Mobile UX Depth

1 mobile-depth signal(s) detected

PASS

1 mobile-depth signal(s) detected

No `<meta name="theme-color">` -- browser chrome falls back to default

Without `theme-color`, Android Chrome's status bar and iOS Safari's toolbar fall back to a generic gray. Adding a single hex color in `<meta name="theme-color" content="#0066cc">` tints them to your brand color across all mobile browsers.

A+

Lighthouse Accessibility Audits

Score 100/100 — 0 failing, 29 passed

PASS

100

Accessibility

These checks highlight opportunities to improve the accessibility of your web app. Automatic detection can only detect a subset of issues and does not guarantee the accessibility of your web app, so manual testing is also encouraged.

○Interactive controls are keyboard focusable

○Interactive elements indicate their purpose and state

○The page has a logical tab order

○Visual order on the page follows DOM order

○User focus is not accidentally trapped in a region

○The user's focus is directed to new content added to the page

○HTML5 landmark elements are used to improve navigation

○Offscreen content is hidden from assistive technology

○Custom controls have associated labels

○Custom controls have ARIA roles

●`[aria-*]` attributes match their roles

●`[aria-hidden="true"]` is not present on the document `<body>`

●`[role]`s have all required `[aria-*]` attributes

●Elements with an ARIA `[role]` that require children to contain a specific `[role]` have all required children.

●`[role]` values are valid

●`[aria-*]` attributes have valid values

●`[aria-*]` attributes are valid and not misspelled

●Buttons have an accessible name

●Image elements have `[alt]` attributes

●Form elements have associated labels

●`[user-scalable="no"]` is not used in the `<meta name="viewport">` element and the `[maximum-scale]` attribute is not less than 5.

●ARIA attributes are used as specified for the element's role

●`[aria-hidden="true"]` elements do not contain focusable descendents

●Elements use only permitted ARIA attributes

●Background and foreground colors have a sufficient contrast ratio

●Document has a `<title>` element

●`<html>` element has a `[lang]` attribute

●`<html>` element has a valid value for its `[lang]` attribute

●Links are distinguishable without relying on color.

●Links have a discernible name

●Lists contain only `<li>` elements and script supporting elements (`<script>` and `<template>`).

●List items (`<li>`) are contained within `<ul>`, `<ol>` or `<menu>` parent elements

●Touch targets have sufficient size and spacing.

●`[lang]` attributes have a valid value

●Heading elements appear in a sequentially-descending order

●Skip links are focusable.

●Document has a main landmark.

●Deprecated ARIA roles were not used

●Elements with visible text labels have matching accessible names.

○`[accesskey]` values are unique

○`button`, `link`, and `menuitem` elements have accessible names

○Elements with `role="dialog"` or `role="alertdialog"` have accessible names.

○ARIA input fields have accessible names

○ARIA `meter` elements have accessible names

○ARIA `progressbar` elements have accessible names

○`[role]`s are contained by their required parent element

○Elements with the `role=text` attribute do not have focusable descendents.

○ARIA toggle fields have accessible names

○ARIA `tooltip` elements have accessible names

○ARIA `treeitem` elements have accessible names

○The page contains a heading, skip link, or landmark region

○`<dl>`'s contain only properly-ordered `<dt>` and `<dd>` groups, `<script>`, `<template>` or `<div>` elements.

○Definition list items are wrapped in `<dl>` elements

○ARIA IDs are unique

○No form fields have multiple labels

○`<frame>` or `<iframe>` elements have a title

○`<html>` element has an `[xml:lang]` attribute with the same base language as the `[lang]` attribute.

○Input buttons have discernible text.

○`<input type="image">` elements have `[alt]` text

○The document does not use `<meta http-equiv="refresh">`

○`<object>` elements have alternate text

○Select elements have associated label elements.

○No element has a `[tabindex]` value greater than 0

○Cells in a `<table>` element that use the `[headers]` attribute refer to table cells within the same table.

○`<th>` elements and elements with `[role="columnheader"/"rowheader"]` have data cells they describe.

○`<video>` elements contain a `<track>` element with `[kind="captions"]`

○Tables have different content in the summary attribute and `<caption>`.

○All heading elements contain content.

○Uses ARIA roles only on compatible elements

○Image elements do not have `[alt]` attributes that are redundant text.

○Identical links have the same purpose.

○Tables use `<caption>` instead of cells with the `[colspan]` attribute to indicate a caption.

○`<td>` elements in a large `<table>` have one or more table headers.

All checks on this page are automated. Results are estimates - run targeted manual reviews when the score affects a release decision.