Cost of a Website Accessibility Audit (And How to Avoid Overpaying)
                     WEBSITE ACCESSIBILITY AUDITS
How to Avoid Overpaying for a 
Website Accessibility Audit
5 hidden cost leaks, the green flags of a fair quote, 
and the questions to ask before you sign.
The Real Problem: No Shared 
Rules
After auditing 600+ sites, the issue isn't dishonest vendors 
— it's a market with no standard for what an “audit” 
includes, no consistent pricing logic, and no easy way to 
compare two quotes fairly.
What overpriced audits look like:
• 200+ issues dumped with no severity ranking
• Interactive components marked “passing” untested
• Findings correct on paper, impossible to fix in practice
• A premium price for what's really an automated scan
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5 Places You're 
OThev ceomrppleaxiyty ionf ag real site is legitimate. These 
leaks are about paying for the wrong things.
Billing by URL
instead of by representative page/template
Manual rates
charged for a mostly-automated scan
AAA-level pricing
when you only need Level AA
Re-testing fees
for the same fix, over and over
“Optics” line items
badges & summaries with no legal weight
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What to Ask — and What a Green Flag Looks Like
Leak Ask This Green Flag
Are you auditing every page or a Sampling logic explained before signing, 
Billing by URL representative sample? covering real breakpoints.
What % of this audit is manual, and Named, certified auditors testing with real 
Manual vs. automated
who runs it? assistive tech (NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver).
AAA vs. AA What WCAG version/level are you Version and level written into scope, 
calculating to — do I need it? matched to your obligations.
Is one round of retesting after fixes Retest built into the base engagement; 
Re-testing fees
included? clear fix guidance.
Does this badge carry legal weight, or A remediation roadmap included standard 
Optics vs. compliance
is it just appearance? — not sold as an add-on.
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What a Fair Audit Quote Includes
• Manual testing by people, on real assistive tech, across the 
screen sizes your users actually use
• A sampling method explained before any money changes 
hands
• Severity triage: critical, serious, moderate — not just a flat 
wall of WCAG references
• A remediation roadmap written for developers, with fixes 
they can act on
• At least one round of re-testing after changes are made
• The WCAG version and conformance level documented in 
plain language
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5 Questions to Ask Before You 
Hire
Not gotchas — this is how you test reliability 
before you commit.
• How many hours of manual testing are included, across 
how many testers — and how many real disabled users?
• Which assistive technology and browser combinations 
will you use?
• Is dynamic or authenticated (logged-in) content in scope 
or out?
• Can we see a single sample finding, so we know what 
your guidance reads like?
• Is a walkthrough with our development team part of the 
deliverable?
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The Bottom Line
This isn't about finding the cheapest audit — it's about knowing 
exactly what you're paying for.
• Scope honestly — sample by template, not by URL count
• Test properly — manual testing by certified auditors, not a scan 
with a logo
• Fix with people who know remediation, so retests stay a single 
round
• Treat accessibility as ongoing, not a yearly panic — sites change 
constantly
Let's work together to make your content 
accessible to everyone. Connect with 
documenta11y experts and know more about 
website accessibility audit cost.
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[email protected] www.documenta11y.com