Accessibility testing interview questions
// 24 QUESTIONS · UPDATED MAY 2026
Accessibility testing interview questions covering WCAG 2.2 principles and levels, semantic HTML and ARIA, keyboard navigation and focus management, screen reader testing with NVDA, JAWS, and VoiceOver, colour contrast, accessible names, automated tools and their coverage limits, manual audit process, and integrating accessibility checks into CI.
Showing 24 of 24 questions
- What are the four POUR principles of WCAG and what does each mean for testing?Junior
POUR stands for Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust. Each addresses a different failure mode: content that can't be seen or…
- What is the difference between WCAG conformance levels A, AA, and AAA?Junior
Level A is the bare minimum — failures block users entirely. Level AA is the legal and practical target for most products, covering contr…
- What is semantic HTML and why does it matter for accessibility testing?Junior
Semantic HTML uses elements whose tag names convey meaning — button, nav, main, h1, label — rather than generic divs and spans. Browsers…
- What is the accessibility tree and how does assistive technology use it?Junior
The accessibility tree is a parallel representation of the DOM that browsers expose to assistive technology via platform accessibility AP…
- What colour contrast ratios does WCAG AA require and how do you verify them?Junior
WCAG AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text (18pt/24px or 14pt/18.5px bold). UI components and graphical objects (icons…
- Which automated accessibility testing tools exist and what kinds of issues do they catch?Junior
axe-core (the dominant engine), Lighthouse, Pa11y, and Deque's axe DevTools. They reliably catch missing alt text, insufficient contrast,…
- What is ARIA and when is it appropriate to use it in your markup?Mid
ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) is a set of HTML attributes that modify the accessibility tree — adding roles, states, and p…
- How do you test keyboard navigation and focus management in a web application?Mid
Disconnect the mouse, then use Tab (forward) and Shift+Tab (backward) to traverse all interactive elements, Enter/Space to activate them,…
- How do you test a page with a screen reader — what is your process?Mid
Choose the screen reader appropriate for the platform (NVDA or JAWS with Chrome/Firefox on Windows, VoiceOver with Safari on macOS/iOS, T…
- What is an accessible name and how is it computed for interactive elements?Mid
An accessible name is what assistive technology announces as the label for an element. The browser computes it via the accessible name co…
- How do you test form accessibility including labels, validation, and error messaging?Mid
Every input needs a programmatic label (not just a placeholder). Submit the form with invalid data and verify error messages are programm…
- How do you test dynamic content and ARIA live regions?Mid
ARIA live regions instruct screen readers to announce content changes without moving focus. Test by triggering the content change and lis…
- Why does automated accessibility testing only catch around 30-40% of real issues?Mid
Automation can verify structure — presence of alt text, label associations, contrast ratios, ARIA syntax — but it cannot evaluate meaning…
- How do you integrate axe-core into a Playwright or Cypress test suite?Mid
Install @axe-core/playwright or cypress-axe, navigate to a page, inject axe, and run an accessibility scan. Assert zero violations at the…
- How do you test focus trapping in modal dialogs and off-canvas menus?Mid
Open the modal, Tab repeatedly and verify focus cycles within it (not to background content). Press Escape and verify the dialog closes a…
- What is a skip navigation link, what problem does it solve, and how do you test it?Mid
A skip navigation link lets keyboard users jump past repetitive navigation to the main content landmark, avoiding the need to Tab through…
- How do you plan and execute a full manual accessibility audit of a web application?Senior
A structured audit covers page structure (headings, landmarks, reading order), keyboard access, screen reader walkthrough on the target p…
- How do you integrate accessibility testing into CI/CD at scale with meaningful failure thresholds?Senior
Run axe-core assertions in your E2E test suite on critical paths (gated — fail the build on violations). Add a Lighthouse CI step with a…
- What is the difference between ARIA roles, states, and properties, and how do you validate them in tests?Senior
Roles define what an element is (role='dialog', role='checkbox'). States describe its current condition and change dynamically (aria-expa…
- How do you test complex interactive components such as date pickers, carousels, and data tables for accessibility?Senior
Test against the ARIA Authoring Practices Guide (APG) for the widget pattern. Each widget type has a documented keyboard interaction mode…
- What legal and regulatory obligations govern web accessibility and how do they affect a test programme?Senior
In the US, the ADA applies to public accommodations (courts have ruled this includes websites); Section 508 mandates WCAG 2.0 AA for fede…
- How do you severity-rate and prioritise accessibility defects?Senior
Severity should reflect user impact: Critical blocks a user entirely (no keyboard access, no alternative). High is a significant barrier…
- How do you test that colour is not the only means of conveying information?Senior
WCAG 1.4.1 requires any information conveyed by colour to also be available through another channel. Test by converting the UI to greysca…
- How do you build and sustain an accessibility testing programme across an engineering organisation?Lead
Embed accessibility requirements in the Definition of Done and design review checklist. Provide centralised tooling (shared axe-core conf…
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