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Is Your Website ADA Compliant? What You Need to Know in 2025

By September 11, 2025September 19th, 2025No Comments

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Is your website ADA-compliant in 2025? Businesses that overlook digital accessibility risk lawsuits, fines, and lost customers. Compliance is not only about meeting regulations; it is about creating an inclusive, user-friendly experience that allows everyone, including people with disabilities, to access your website with ease.

Texas Web Design helps businesses meet accessibility standards, reduce legal risks, and connect with a broader audience. Learn what ADA compliance means, why it is important, and how to prepare your website for 2025.

If you are unsure whether your site meets ADA and WCAG standards, our team at Texas Web Design can help. Contact us today to schedule an accessibility audit and secure your website for 2025.

Key Takeaways

  • ADA compliance is important for digital experiences. Websites and mobile apps must meet accessibility standards to avoid legal risks and reach a wider audience.
  • Legal obligations are clear. ADA compliance extends to digital spaces, with courts applying accessibility rules to websites and apps, as shown in the Domino’s Pizza case.
  • WCAG 2.1 AA is the widely accepted benchmark. Websites should aim for WCAG 2.1 AA standards to ensure accessibility and avoid lawsuits.
  • Proactive monitoring is vital. Ongoing audits, testing, and training are necessary to maintain compliance and reduce exposure to legal and reputational risks.
  • Ignoring ADA compliance can result in lawsuits and settlements. Businesses must act now to ensure their digital presence is accessible to everyone.

Why Does ADA Compliance Matter for Websites?

Principles of Inclusive Web Design-Texas Web DesignThe Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. Courts and federal guidance make clear that the obligation extends to digital experiences such as websites and mobile apps for businesses open to the public.

Globally, about 1.3 billion people, or roughly 16% (1 in 6), live with a disability. That includes visual, hearing, mobility, and cognitive impairments. Features like screen reader compatibility, keyboard navigation, and captions help people access information and complete tasks online.

Accessibility benefits everyone. Captions assist users in noisy or quiet environments. Clear color contrast improves readability on mobile devices outdoors. Intuitive structure shortens the path to conversion for all visitors. These improvements support users with disabilities and enhance overall UX.

Legal exposure is real. ADA-related digital accessibility filings surpassed four thousand cases in 2024 across federal and key state courts, with state filings increasing even as federal counts fluctuated. Patterns indicate continued enforcement through litigation.

What Is the Legal Situation for ADA Compliance in 2025?

ADA compliance in 2025 goes beyond physical spaces. Courts and federal agencies now apply accessibility requirements directly to websites and mobile apps.

How Does the ADA Apply Online?

While the ADA was enacted in 1990 with a focus on physical spaces, courts have applied Title III obligations to websites and mobile apps for businesses open to the public. In Robles v. Domino’s Pizza (9th Cir. 2019), the court held that ADA obligations apply to a company’s website and app that connect customers to goods and services, and the Supreme Court declined review, leaving the ruling in place. 

What About WCAG Standards?

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) are the widely used benchmark for accessibility. Most organizations target WCAG 2.1 Level AA as a practical standard. For text, a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 is required at Level AA, with higher ratios for stricter levels.

Despite growing awareness, large-scale scans show persistent issues. Analyses of one million home pages consistently find that about 95–96% have detectable WCAG 2 failures, underscoring the scale of work still needed even before manual testing.

What About Government Sites and Mobile Apps?

For state and local governments (Title II entities), the U.S. Department of Justice issued a final rule in 2024 requiring conformance with WCAG 2.1 AA for web content and mobile apps, with compliance dates in April 2026 or April 2027, depending on the size of the entity.

For private businesses (Title III), DOJ’s 2022 guidance confirms websites must be accessible; while no single technical standard is codified for Title III, courts and settlements commonly reference WCAG 2.1 AA.

How Can You Make Your Website ADA Compliant?

Achieving ADA-aligned accessibility requires both technical updates and ongoing governance.

Here’s the process we recommend:

  1. Conduct an Accessibility Audit

    Inclusive Web Design-Texas Web DesignEvaluate your website with a mix of automated testing and manual checks. Review navigation, forms, multimedia, and mobile views. Document issues precisely (affected elements, success criteria, and user impact) so remediation work is organized and traceable.

  2. Remediate Issues

    Update code and design to meet WCAG 2.1 AA criteria. Make content operable via keyboard. Provide programmatic names, roles, and states for controls. Use a minimum 4.5:1 text contrast for normal text.

    Supply captions and transcripts for time-based media. Provide form error messages that identify the issue and describe how to fix it. Validate changes as you implement them.

  3. Train Your Team

    Align developers, designers, writers, and QA on accessibility techniques: semantic HTML, accessible components and patterns, descriptive link text, meaningful alt text, logical headings, and clear form instructions. Training prevents regressions and builds sustainable practices.

  4. Document Compliance

    Maintain records of audits, fixes, and policies, and publish an accessibility statement describing your commitment and a contact method for reporting barriers. Documentation demonstrates diligence and supports rapid responses if issues are raised.

  5. Maintain and Monitor

    Accessibility is ongoing. Standards, case law, and technology evolve. Re-test on a schedule, include accessibility checks in release cycles, and review feedback promptly. For public entities, timelines now apply; for private businesses, proactive maintenance reduces legal risk and improves user experience.

What Are the Risks of Ignoring ADA Compliance?

Non-compliance exposes organizations to lawsuits, settlements, and reputational harm. Litigation against businesses for inaccessible digital experiences has remained high in recent years, particularly in jurisdictions with active enforcement.

High-profile matters such as the Domino’s case have reinforced that accessibility duties extend to digital channels that connect customers to goods and services.

How Texas Web Design Can Help

At Texas Web Design, we guide businesses through every stage of accessibility:

  • Comprehensive accessibility audits with professional tools and manual testing.
  • Remediation guidance for code, design systems, content, and QA.
  • Governance and monitoring to keep your site aligned with WCAG and current legal expectations.

ADA-aligned accessibility is about equity and usability for everyone—and it’s smart risk management. Let’s create a website that works for all users while protecting your organization.

Call us today to schedule your ADA compliance audit and prepare your digital presence for 2025.