Common Accessibility Issues in Online Stores and How to Fix Them

You’ve invested thousands in your online store, perfecting your product pages, optimizing checkout flows, and fine-tuning your marketing funnel. Yet, you might unintentionally exclude 15% of potential customers due to accessibility barriers on your site.

E-commerce accessibility isn’t just a compliance checkbox; it’s a strategic business imperative that directly impacts your bottom line.

When users can navigate, understand, and interact with your online store, everyone wins. Your site becomes more usable for all shoppers, search engines reward your improved structure, and your business reaches a broader audience.

Foundational Framework

Before tackling specific issues, let’s understand the frameworks that govern e-commerce accessibility:

WCAG Implementation in E-Commerce 

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provide the international standard for digital accessibility. For e-commerce platforms, focus on these core principles:

• Perceivable: Can all users perceive your product information?
• Operable: Can shoppers navigate your catalog and complete purchases using their preferred input methods?
• Understandable: Are your product descriptions, pricing, and checkout processes clear to everyone?
• Robust: Does your site work with current and future assistive technologies?

Regulatory Landscape and Compliance Requirements

E-commerce businesses increasingly face legal requirements to maintain accessible sites:

• ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliance through legal precedents
• European Accessibility Act affecting all EU e-commerce
• AODA in Canada and similar laws in Australia, the UK, and other regions

Common E-Commerce Accessibility Challenges & Strategic Solutions

Accessibility barriers in your online store silently drive away customers and reduce sales every day. Each accessibility challenge represents both lost revenue and a strategic opportunity to outperform competitors. The following sections outline the most common barriers faced by e-commerce businesses and provide practical solutions that improve the shopping experience for all customers, regardless of ability.

Navigation Architecture & Information Hierarchy

Your complex navigation menus confuse screen reader users. Inconsistent heading structures create a maze for keyboard-only shoppers.

Product categories buried in hover-only dropdowns become invisible to many users. Missing document language settings cause screen readers to mispronounce your product names.

Solution:

Create logical navigation paths accessible through multiple interaction methods.

• Implement a consistent, sequential heading structure (H1 → H2 → H3)
• Develop keyboard-accessible navigation that doesn’t rely on mouse hovering
• Create landmark regions that help screen reader users jump to key sections
• Set proper document language attributes to ensure correct pronunciation

Product Visualization & Information Communication

Your product images lack meaningful alternative text, your sale indicators rely solely on red text, and your product specifications are buried in inaccessible image-based charts.

Solution:

Implement multi-modal approaches to communicate product information.

• Add clear alt descriptions to all product images
• Make sure important information isn’t conveyed by color alone
• Use high-contrast text that everyone can read easily

Transaction Processes & Form Interactions

Your checkout forms lack proper labels, error messages appear only in red text without explanations, and your multi-step checkout process resets when users need more time to complete it.

Solution:

Create inclusive form experiences that guide all users to successful transactions.

• Label all form fields clearly
• Provide helpful error messages that explain how to fix problems
• Design a process that works for all input methods

Interactive Components & Selection Interfaces

Your product filters update silently, your “Add to Cart” buttons work only with mouse clicks, and your color selection options are indistinguishable to colorblind users.

Solution:

Design interactive elements that work with multiple input methods and provide clear feedback.

• Make all interactive elements fully keyboard accessible
• Implement visible focus states that stand out
• Provide feedback when actions occur or content updates

Dynamic Content & Asynchronous Processes

Your site’s dynamic features create confusion for many shoppers. When product listings update silently or pop-up notifications disappear too quickly, customers miss important information.

This creates a frustrating experience that drives potential buyers away.

Solution: 

Ensure all shoppers stay informed about what’s happening on your site.

• Notify users when content changes on the page
• Give customers enough time to read important messages
• Provide clear feedback after customer actions

Mobile Accessibility & Responsive Design

Your mobile shopping experience frustrates customers on smaller screens. When buttons are too small, forms are difficult to complete, or content requires horizontal scrolling, mobile shoppers leave.

Solution:

Create a mobile shopping experience that works for everyone, including those with dexterity challenges.

• Make touch targets large enough for everyone to tap accurately
• Ensure all content fits properly on small screens
• Design forms that remain usable when the mobile keyboard appears

Multimedia & Rich Content Accessibility

Your product videos lack captions, your unboxing tutorials lack transcripts, and your interactive 3D product viewers are unusable with keyboard navigation. As a result, customers with hearing and visual impairments miss critical product information.

Solution:

Create accessible alternatives for all multimedia content to ensure all users can access your product information.

• Add synchronized captions to all product videos
• Provide transcripts for audio content like product descriptions
• Ensure interactive media players are keyboard accessible

Document & Supplemental Content Accessibility

Your size guides, return policies, and product manuals are provided as scanned, inaccessible PDFs that screen readers can’t interpret. Product specification sheets require users to interpret complex data tables with no headers or row identifiers.

Solution:

Create accessible versions of all supplemental content and ensure complex information is structured.

• Convert scanned PDFs to accessible, tagged documents
• Create HTML alternatives for critical policy information
• Structure data tables with proper headers and row/column associations

Website Accessibility Implementation Strategy

Start with this practical, phased approach:

Comprehensive E-Commerce Solutions for Website Accessibility

Navigating e-commerce accessibility challenges requires specialized expertise. 2Hats Website Accessibility Services offers end-to-end solutions specifically designed for online retailers.

Our experts implement practical solutions while transferring knowledge to your team:

• Technical fixes for critical accessibility barriers
• Template creation for ongoing content accessibility
• Developer training for sustainable implementation

Conclusion

By systematically addressing accessibility barriers in your online store, you’re not just complying with standards, you’re creating superior shopping experiences for everyone.

The most successful e-commerce businesses recognize that accessibility isn’t a technical burden but a strategic advantage that:

• Expands your addressable market by millions of potential customers
• Creates more intuitive shopping experiences for all users
• Strengthens your brand’s reputation for inclusion and service
• Provides natural SEO advantages through improved structure and content

Start with one section of your store, perhaps your bestselling product category or checkout process. Implement the solutions outlined in this guide, measure the results, and build momentum.