Guide
Understanding WCAG and accessibility levels
What WCAG 2.1 and 2.2 mean, how the conformance levels work, and which checks Destiny QA automates.
5 min read
What WCAG is
WCAG stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. It is an international standard published by the W3C that defines how to make web content accessible to people with disabilities, including those using screen readers, keyboard-only navigation, voice control, and other assistive technology.
How conformance levels work
WCAG organises success criteria into three levels: A is the baseline and covers the most critical barriers, AA is the widely accepted legal and commercial standard, and AAA is aspirational and not required in most contexts. Destiny QA checks all Level A and AA criteria it can automate, covering WCAG 2.1 and the additions in WCAG 2.2.
What Destiny QA automates
Automated tools can reliably catch around 30–40% of WCAG failures: things like missing alt text, contrast ratios below 4.5:1, absent form labels, duplicate IDs, broken focus order, and elements that clip text at 200% zoom. The Accessibility coverage page lists every criterion we check and how we check it.
What still needs manual testing
Some criteria require a human reviewer. Caption accuracy, keyboard trap detection, language of text segments, and logical reading order in complex layouts cannot be fully verified by any tool. Treat the automated report as the starting point, not the finish line.