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Conducting Targeted Manual Tests

This section provides a structured guide for conducting manual accessibility tests. The goal is to present concrete test steps and sensible procedures that can identify common barriers – beyond the capabilities of automated tools.

Why targeted manual tests are necessary

Many barriers cannot be reliably detected by automated testing tools. These include:

  • Context-dependent content (e.g., meaning of an image or link)
  • Keyboard operability
  • Comprehensibility of content
  • Meaningful semantic structure
  • Focus control and interactions

A systematic manual testing process enables reliable assessment of these aspects and contributes to holistic quality assurance.

Typical test areas and procedures

  1. Keyboard operation
    • Check tab order (logical, complete, no tab traps)
    • Visible focus for every interactive element
    • Activation of buttons, menus, links, etc. with Enter/Space
    • Navigation in complex elements like dialogs, accordions, or tabs
  2. Contrast and visual design
    • Sufficient color contrast between text and background (WCAG 1.4.3 / 1.4.11)
    • Readability through adequate font size, line height, font type
    • Focus highlights for interactive elements
  3. Forms
    • Each field has a visible, correctly linked label
    • Error messages are understandable and accessible (e.g., for screen readers)
    • Required fields and validation rules are clearly communicated
  4. Semantic structure and orientation
    • Correct heading hierarchy (H1-H6)
    • Use of landmark roles (e.g., nav, main, footer)
    • Unique link texts and descriptive button labels
    • Use of breadcrumbs or other orientation aids
  5. Comprehensibility of content
    • Simple, clear language and understandable sentence structure
    • Consistent naming and terminology
    • Logical structure of content and instructions

Tools for support:

  • Browser developer tools for focus testing, semantics, and contrast
  • Extensions such as Axe DevTools, WAVE, or Accessibility Insights for preliminary testing
  • Contrast checkers (e.g., Color Contrast Analyzer)
  • Text analysis tools for checking readability and language
  • Combine tests with multiple roles (e.g., UX, QA, developers)
  • Work with checklists (e.g., WCAG Quickref, project-specific)
  • Document results to implement improvements systematically
  • Optionally involve user groups to test real usage scenarios
Screen reader testing For screen reader-specific tests, see – Testing with screen readers.