WCAG 2.1 AA means meeting all 50 Level A and Level AA success criteria in the 2.1 release of WCAG: 30 at Level A and 20 at Level AA. Rules that name it include EN 301 549, the ADA Title II rule, India's GIGW and SEBI's circular, which makes it the most common accessibility target in law.
This guide covers what the level means, the seven AA rules that version 2.1 introduced, who asks for it and how to plan the work without testing every page by hand.
Quick facts
Criteria to meet
50 (30 A plus 20 AA)New AA rules in 2.1
7Required by
EN 301 549, ADA Title II rule, GIGW 3.0, SEBICovered by
WCAG 2.2 AAProof
Audit report and accessibility statement, no official certificate
What WCAG 2.1 AA means
WCAG has three conformance levels. Level A removes the most severe barriers, Level AA adds the checks that make a site workable for most disabled people, and Level AAA is a stricter set that W3C does not recommend for entire sites. Level AA always includes Level A, so “2.1 AA” means 30 plus 20 criteria from version 2.1.
A conformance claim also needs five conditions, not just passing criteria. The whole page must pass, not a part of it. Every step of a process, such as a checkout, must pass. Only accessibility-supported technology may be relied on. And any content that does not meet the rules must not interfere with the rest of the page, for example by trapping the keyboard. The levels A, AA and AAA page explains these in more detail.
AA-level criteria added in WCAG 2.1
Version 2.1 added seven criteria at Level AA. These are the ones teams moving up from 2.0 tend to miss, because older templates were built before they existed.
| Criterion | Quick test | Usual fix |
|---|---|---|
1.3.4 Orientation | Rotate a phone or tablet on every key screen. | Remove CSS or script that forces one orientation. |
1.3.5 Identify input purpose | Inspect name, email, phone and address fields for an autocomplete attribute. | Add the matching token, such as autocomplete="email". |
1.4.10 Reflow | Set the window to 1280 px and zoom to 400 percent. | Use flexible layouts and media queries; let wide tables scroll on their own. |
1.4.11 Non-text contrast | Measure field borders, focus rings and icons against their background. | Darken borders and icons to reach 3:1. |
1.4.12 Text spacing | Apply the four spacing values with a user stylesheet or bookmarklet. | Avoid fixed heights on text boxes; let containers grow. |
1.4.13 Content on hover or focus | Hover and focus each tooltip, then press Escape and move the pointer onto it. | Keep it open while hovered and close it on Escape. |
4.1.3 Status messages | Run a search or add to cart with a screen reader on. | Put the message in a container with role="status". |
Five Level A criteria also arrived in 2.1 and count toward AA: 2.1.4 Character key shortcuts, 2.5.1 Pointer gestures, 2.5.2 Pointer cancellation, 2.5.3 Label in name and 2.5.4 Motion actuation. The WCAG 2.1 overview has the full list of all 17 additions.
The WCAG 2.1 AA checklist at a glance
Here is how the 50 criteria spread across the four principles. Use it to size the work, then run the detailed WCAG checklist with the version filter set to 2.0 and 2.1.
| Principle | Level A | Level AA | Where sites often fail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perceivable | 9 | 11 | Alt text, captions, contrast, reflow at 400 percent |
| Operable | 14 | 3 | Keyboard access to menus, visible focus, skip links |
| Understandable | 5 | 5 | Form labels, error messages, page language |
| Robust | 2 | 1 | Custom widgets without roles or states, silent status updates |
| Total | 30 | 20 | 50 criteria |
In the Robust row sits 4.1.1 Parsing, which W3C now counts as passed for HTML content, so in practice you test 49.
Who requires WCAG 2.1 AA compliance
Version 2.1 AA is the target written into more rules than any other at the moment:
- EN 301 549, the harmonised standard used across the EU for both the public sector directive and the EAA, maps its web chapter to 2.1 AA.
- Title II of the ADA: a Department of Justice rule requires state and local governments to meet 2.1 AA. Larger governments have an earlier date than smaller ones; current deadlines sit on the federal first steps page.
- GIGW 3.0, India's rulebook for government web portals, aligns with 2.1 AA. See the official GIGW site.
- SEBI, India's securities regulator, asks the firms it regulates (stock brokers, fund houses, depositories, exchanges) to meet 2.1 and GIGW, with audits and yearly reports. Its timelines have been pushed out repeatedly; the dates are in the newest circular on sebi.gov.in.
Private businesses under Title III have no technical standard in the regulation itself; in settlements, the usual benchmark is version 2.1 at AA. Federal agencies under Section 508 still use 2.0 AA, which 2.1 AA already covers.
Nothing here is legal advice. For your own situation, read the official source and speak to a lawyer. More on the US side: ADA website compliance.
What a WCAG 2.1 AA compliance claim needs
No law office or standards body hands out a WCAG 2.1 AA certificate. Organisations show conformance with evidence:
- An audit report from a qualified tester that lists each criterion as passed, failed or not applicable. See what an audit includes.
- An accessibility statement on the site that names the standard, lists known gaps and gives a contact for problems.
- For software sold to public bodies, a filled VPAT, also called an ACR, that reports each criterion.
A green score from an automated tool is not a claim. Scanners detect a minority of the issues, which is why the WCAG checker page lists what they miss.
Planning the work
Most sites reach 2.1 AA faster by fixing shared parts first rather than page by page:
- Inventory. List page templates, shared components, forms, documents and third-party embeds.
- Baseline. Run a scan and a short manual review on one page per template.
- Prioritise. Fix blockers in key journeys first: sign in, search, checkout, contact, payment.
- Fix at the source. Correct the component library and templates so every page using them improves at once.
- Retest. Confirm each fix with keyboard and screen reader, not only with the scanner.
- Keep it. Train editors and add checks to code review so new content does not reopen old issues.
What makes the work bigger: many unique templates, heavy custom widgets, large numbers of PDFs, video without captions, and content that changes daily.
Should you aim for 2.1 AA or go straight to 2.2 AA?
Go to 2.2 AA unless something stops you. It adds six A and AA checks (focus hidden by sticky elements, dragging, target size, consistent help, redundant entry and accessible login), and in exchange you satisfy every 2.1 AA requirement at the same time. If your next contract or regulator updates to 2.2, you are already there. Those six are explained on the WCAG 2.2 AA page.
When a contract says “WCAG 2.1 AA or later”, a 2.2 AA audit report meets it. When it says exactly 2.1 AA, a 2.2 AA report still shows every 2.1 criterion, so it serves both.
Questions people ask
What is WCAG 2.1 AA?
It is a conformance target: meeting all 30 Level A and 20 Level AA success criteria from version 2.1 of the guidelines. It is the level most laws and contracts ask for.
How many WCAG 2.1 Level AA criteria must a site meet?
Fifty: 30 at Level A and 20 at Level AA. One of them, Parsing, now counts as automatically satisfied for HTML, so audits usually test 49.
Is WCAG 2.1 AA required by law?
In many places it is the named standard: EN 301 549 in the EU, the ADA Title II rule for US state and local governments, and GIGW in India. Other rules point to it indirectly. A lawyer can tell you which rule covers your organisation.
Is there a WCAG 2.1 AA certification?
There is no official certificate from W3C or any government. You show conformance with an audit report, an accessibility statement and, for products, a VPAT or ACR. Badges that claim certification are marketing.
Does WCAG 2.2 AA cover WCAG 2.1 AA?
Yes. Version 2.2 keeps every 2.1 criterion except 4.1.1, which is treated as met anyway. Passing 2.2 AA therefore meets 2.1 AA.
How do WCAG 2.1 Level A and Level AA differ?
Level A is the minimum set of 30 criteria. AA adds 20 more, including text contrast, resize and reflow, visible focus and status messages. Most policies require AA, not just A.