WCAG version and level guide
Which WCAG standard should a nonprofit website follow? Level AA is the common reference point; see how funding, contracts, and law affect the target.
What WCAG Standard Should Nonprofit Websites Follow?
For nonprofits covered by a rule or funding requirement that specifically names WCAG 2.1 Level AA, that standard should guide the technical target. Where no particular version is specified, WCAG 2.2 Level AA provides a more current benchmark and is the version W3C recommends using for new accessibility work.
Which standard is relevant to your organization can depend on funding, government relationships, contractual requirements, and the laws that apply. For the full picture of how these overlapping requirements affect a nonprofit's website, see our nonprofit website accessibility guide.
Key takeaways
- Most current U.S. accessibility rules that name a technical standard point to WCAG 2.1 Level AA.
- WCAG 2.2 Level AA is newer and adds criteria on focus visibility, dragging alternatives, and accessible authentication.
- Meeting WCAG doesn't automatically make a nonprofit ADA-compliant, since that also depends on legal context.
- HHS-funded nonprofits and government contractors often have a specific version; others don't.
- Nonprofits with limited resources should keep the applicable level as the target, but prioritize fixes by user impact.
Which WCAG version and level fits your nonprofit?
Start with whichever row below matches your situation. This is a practical starting point, not a legal determination.
Your situation | Recommended target | Why |
|---|---|---|
Receives financial assistance from HHS | WCAG 2.1 Level AA (required baseline) | Named directly in HHS's updated Section 504 regulations |
Provides web content or digital services for a state or local government | Check the contract and the public entity's Title II obligations; WCAG 2.1 AA may apply | DOJ's Title II rule requires covered state and local government web content and mobile apps to generally meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA |
Receives other federal grant funding | Check the funding agency's specific requirements; WCAG 2.1 AA is a reasonable default | Section 504 requirements can vary by the funding agency |
No specific legal trigger identified | WCAG 2.2 Level AA as a practical, forward-looking target | Newer version, not yet named in most current rules, but a more current technical benchmark |
Very limited time or budget | Keep Level AA as the target, but prioritize the highest-impact barriers first | Focus available resources on issues that prevent people from completing key tasks, then work through the remaining criteria |
he HHS and government-contract rows above reflect specific, named rules. HHS's Section 504 regulations require WCAG 2.1 Level AA for covered web content. For HHS funding recipients, the current deadlines are May 11, 2027, for organizations with 15 or more employees and May 10, 2028, for organizations with fewer than 15 employees, covered in more depth in our article on the HHS Section 504 final rule and its May 2026 deadline.
Government contract obligations flow from ADA Title II, which requires covered state and local government web content and mobile apps, including content made available through arrangements with other parties, to generally meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA.
What 'Level AA' actually means
WCAG defines three conformance levels: A, AA, and AAA, each adding stricter requirements on top of the last. Level AA is the middle tier and the one most U.S. accessibility rules reference, since it addresses a broad range of barriers without the most demanding Level AAA criteria, which are rarely required or fully practical for typical websites. For the full breakdown of what changes at each level, see our guide to WCAG levels A, AA, and AAA.
WCAG 2.1 or WCAG 2.2?
WCAG 2.1, published in 2018, is the version most current regulations reference, including HHS's Section 504 rule and DOJ's Title II rule. WCAG 2.2, released in 2023, adds newer criteria such as clearer keyboard focus indicators, alternatives to drag-based interactions, and more accessible authentication steps.
Where no specific law or funding condition names a version, targeting WCAG 2.2 Level AA gives a nonprofit a more current baseline while also covering the WCAG 2.1 AA criteria, subject to the technical differences W3C documents between versions.
If your nonprofit has limited accessibility resources
Meeting every WCAG success criterion at once is rarely realistic for a nonprofit with a small or volunteer-run web team. A more workable approach is to prioritize by impact.
- Fix barriers that block an entire task first, such as a donation form that cannot be submitted by keyboard, before refining issues that make a task harder but not impossible.
- Address the pages your visitors actually use, starting with donation, registration, and program-information pages, rather than working through the site alphabetically.
- Keep Level AA as your target where appropriate, but prioritize fixes by their impact on users rather than working through WCAG criteria strictly by conformance level.
- Revisit conformance after major changes, such as a new CMS, donation platform, or website redesign, rather than treating an initial fix as permanent.
Once you have scan results, deciding what counts as fixed, what needs manual review, and how often to re-test is covered in a dedicated supporting article on accessibility testing for nonprofit websites.
WCAG is a technical standard, not a legal outcome
Meeting WCAG 2.1 or 2.2 Level AA does not, by itself, determine whether your nonprofit meets its obligations under the ADA. WCAG is a technical benchmark published by the W3C, not a law, and no automated or manual conformance check can guarantee a legal outcome.
It's the most widely used reference point because regulators and courts frequently cite it, but legal analysis still depends on which law applies to your organization, as covered in a dedicated supporting article on ADA applicability for nonprofits.
Conclusion
No single WCAG version or level applies to every nonprofit. Where a specific rule, contract, or funding source names WCAG 2.1 Level AA, that standard should guide the technical target. Where none does, WCAG 2.2 Level AA is a reasonable, more current benchmark.
Once you've picked a target, the next step is finding out where your website actually stands. Use our nonprofit website accessibility checklist as a practical starting point.
Frequently asked questions
Level AA is the most commonly referenced target. U.S. rules that specify WCAG, including HHS's Section 504 regulations and DOJ's Title II web rule, use Level AA. The appropriate target for a nonprofit can depend on the laws, funding requirements, and contracts that apply to it.
It depends on whether a specific rule applies to you. HHS and DOJ Title II both currently reference WCAG 2.1 Level AA. When no rule names a version, WCAG 2.2 Level AA is a reasonable, more current target because it is backward compatible with 2.1.
Not automatically. WCAG is a technical standard, not a law, and no single technical standard is codified under ADA Title III the way WCAG 2.1 AA is under DOJ's Title II rule. Meeting WCAG reduces common barriers and is widely used as a benchmark, but it does not by itself resolve the separate legal question of ADA applicability.
Keep the applicable WCAG level as your target, but prioritize remediation based on user impact. Start with barriers that prevent people from completing important tasks such as donating, registering, or accessing program information, then work through the remaining issues.
No. WCAG is a set of technical guidelines published by the W3C. Section 508 is a U.S. law that requires federal agencies to make their own technology accessible, and it incorporates WCAG success criteria as its technical standard rather than being the same thing as WCAG itself.
At minimum, after any major website change, such as a new CMS, donation platform, template, or redesign. Content and third-party tools also change over time, so a periodic recheck, even for a site that previously conformed, helps catch new issues before they affect visitors.
Compliance Content Manager | CIPP/E (IAPP) | CPACC (IAAP)
Alex is a Compliance Content Manager at Clym, where he researches and writes about everything related to data privacy and web accessibility compliance for businesses, helping them stay informed on their compliance needs and spreading awareness about making the web safer and more inclusive. When he's not writing about compliance, Alex has his nose in a book or is hiking in the great outdoors.
