Accessibility is no longer a nice-to-have; it is a legal and ethical imperative. With lawsuits targeting non-compliant sites on the rise, Webflow has invested heavily in tooling—like the Accessibility panel and semantic components—to help creators build inclusive experiences by default. This 1,100-word guide shows you how to leverage those tools, avoid common pitfalls, and meet WCAG 2.2 standards without touching raw code.
Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust (POUR) underpin every guideline. Keep them top of mind as you design colors, interactions, and content structure.
The May 2024 Accessibility panel update adds real-time contrast checking. Select any element and the panel shows pass/fail badges for AA (normal text) and AAA. If you’re using Variables, adjust the color swatch once and the entire site updates.
Screen readers rely on logical heading structure to build a page outline. Use H1 once per page, followed by H2–H6. Webflow’s Rich Text element now warns you if you jump levels (e.g., H2 to H4). Fix these before publishing.
Every Image field in the CMS has an Alt attribute. Make it mandatory by toggling Required in the field settings. Use descriptive phrases, not filenames. For decorative images, leave alt text blank and mark the image as role="presentation" using the Attribute panel.
All interactive elements—links, buttons, form inputs—must be reachable via Tab. Avoid tabindex="-1" unless you have a compelling reason. Custom sliders or accordions should mirror native ARIA patterns (role="tablist", aria-selected, etc.).
Never remove outlines without replacing them. Use a 2px solid outline with brand colors for focused states. Webflow’s States panel lets you style Focused separately.
Add a CSS override: @media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) { * { animation: none !important; } }. Then wrap heavy Interactions inside a class that disables them for users with reduced-motion set.
Run Lighthouse and axe-core audits. But remember: automated tests catch only ~30% of issues. Use NVDA (Windows) or VoiceOver (macOS) to navigate your site weekly.
Inclusive design enhances UX for everyone and protects your brand from legal risk. By following these best practices and leveraging Webflow’s built-in accessibility features, you can ship beautiful, compliant sites without sacrificing creativity.
