The aim of accessible web design is to offer all user groups the easiest possible access to content and interactions on the web. This should happen regardless of any restrictions that often affect people with disabilities. Barriers that prevent uncomplicated use of the web often occur in the following three areas:

• Perception: blind, visually impaired or hearing-impaired people often find it difficult or impossible to grasp information due to their sensory impairments. This happens, for example, if visual elements are not provided with alternative texts, there is no option to adjust colour contrasts and font sizes or a video is not subtitled.
• Interpretability: If there are insufficient navigation aids on a page and texts contain excessively convoluted sentences, this can lead to people with cognitive disabilities having problems understanding the content.
• Access: People with motor impairments face problems, for example, if input is only possible within a narrow time window or the design of a website only allows operation with a mouse.

The design of an accessible website is not only voluntary, but also complies with legal requirements. The basis for this is EU Directive 2016/2102, which is intended to harmonize legislation at EU level. This was legally implemented in Germany with the Behindertengleichstellungsgesetz (BGG) and the Barrierefreie-Informationstechnik-Verordnung (BITV) 2.0. According to this regulation, websites, apps, intranets, extranets and electronic administrative processes of public bodies must be designed to be accessible.

The federal states are responsible for this at the state level. In Saxony, the Accessible Websites Act came into force for this purpose in 2019. This also specifies official implementation deadlines: All websites of public bodies must be designed to be accessible from 23 September 2020, and the law will apply to mobile applications from 23 June 2021.

The technical guideline for accessible website design is confirmation level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1

In addition to easier access for physically impaired people, the correct implementation of the guidelines also offers advantages for all other users. For example, page information can be accessed more easily regardless of the platform, i.e. via smartphone or printer in addition to screen readers used by blind users. Compliance with the guidelines also leads to a more standardised website design, which also supports the implementation of the corporate design. Search engines also benefit from this, making it easier for users to find websites online.