How much does an accessibility audit cost? Prices 2026 at a glance

Yes, websites get tested for accessibility, and prices range from 0 to about 8,000 euros. Free automated tools only find part of the barriers. Guided manual self-tests, including full audits, start at 49 euros per month. A short analysis by experts usually costs 490 to 1,200 euros, a full WCAG audit 1,500 to 8,000 euros.

Costs at a glance

The price ranges for external audits come from the cost guide by barrierefreie-agenturen.de (in German), a directory of accessibility agencies in Germany, Austria and Switzerland (as of September 2026).

TL;DR

• Since June 28, 2025, the German Accessibility Strengthening Act (BFSG) also applies to private companies, for example online shops. Offering a service that is not accessible can lead to a fine of up to 100,000 euros (Section 37 BFSG). Read more in our overview of penalties under the BFSG.

• With step-by-step guidance, you can run a full manual audit yourself. An expert audit is worth it if your team does not have the time or you need an outside review.

Who does the testing

There are two ways to get tested. Both are manual tests, the difference is who does the testing.

Expert audits. Agencies and testing providers test manually against EN 301 549 and WCAG: keyboard use, screen readers, contrast, forms. The result is a report with an action plan. At sitebrunch, an audit like this usually takes four weeks from kickoff to report. After that, the results stay in the platform and monitoring keeps running.

Guided manual self-tests. You or your team test on your own, manually and step by step, just like experts do. This is not an automated scan: guidance explains every test step, so you do not need to be an expert. In sitebrunch, from 49 euros per month, you can run not only a Kick-off audit but also a full audit with all 96 test steps against EN 301 549 and WCAG 2.2.

Whoever you hire, the responsibility stays with your company. Overlay plugins that claim to make a website accessible at the push of a button do not replace a test (Overlay Fact Sheet).

What drives the price

Number and type of pages. According to barrierefreie-agenturen.de, you can expect 100 to 200 euros per page. Interactive elements such as forms or filters take more work and cost 200 to 320 euros per element. So an online shop with a cart and checkout costs more than a simple company website.

Depth of the test. A short analysis shows the most important issues. A full audit goes through all requirements and costs more.

PDFs. Forms, brochures and reports must be accessible too, and they add to the testing effort. You can check part of this yourself beforehand, for example with a PDF check for WCAG and PDF/UA.

The retest. Many people forget this cost. After the first audit, your team fixes the barriers, and then the site is tested again. New content and updates can also bring new barriers. According to barrierefreie-agenturen.de, you should plan 700 to 2,500 euros per year for re-audits and fixes.

Self-test or expert audit: what your website needs

Decide based on your goal, not your budget.

First: do not rely on automated tests. The UK government's accessibility team built a test page with 143 known barriers and ran common testing tools on it (GOV.UK). The best tool found 41 percent of the barriers, a popular one only 17 percent. Only a person testing manually can find the rest. So the real choice is not automated or manual, but: do you test yourself or have someone test for you?

A guided manual self-test is the right fit if your team has the time to test on its own. A Kick-off audit shows you what to fix first in about one day. A full audit takes you through all requirements. The most common errors are well known. The WebAIM Million Report 2026 automatically checked the home pages of the top one million websites:

• 95.9 percent had detectable WCAG failures

• 83.9 percent had text with low contrast

• 53.1 percent had images without alternative text

• 51 percent had form fields without labels

You can find and fix these classic issues yourself. That also lowers the effort, and the cost, of an external audit later on. In our audits, you test manually right on your website, and every test step is explained with videos and examples.

An expert audit is worth it if

• your team does not have the time to test on its own,

• you want an outside review,

• a public body or a client asks for a reliable statement,

• you run an online shop covered by the BFSG and want to be sure the whole journey works: navigation, login, cookie banner, shopping cart, checkout and payment.

For agencies, both apply: test yourself during the project, and only order an external audit where the client really needs it.

FAQ

Does the BFSG require a specific test or certificate?

No. The BFSG does not require a specific testing procedure or seal. It requires your service to meet the accessibility requirements. You also have to provide information on how your service meets these requirements and publish that information in an accessible form (Section 14 BFSG). An audit helps you back up that statement.

Does the BFSG apply to small businesses and online shops?

The BFSG applies to companies that offer certain products and services to consumers. This includes e-commerce services such as online shops. Pure B2B offers are not covered.

There is an exemption for micro-enterprises that provide services (Section 3 (3) BFSG). Micro-enterprises are companies with fewer than ten employees and an annual turnover or balance sheet total of no more than 2 million euros. This exemption does not apply to products.

Is a one-time test enough, or do I need ongoing checks?

A one-time test shows the state of your website on a single day. Every update and every new piece of content can create new barriers, so ongoing checks make sense. Our WCAG Monitoring scans your website automatically every week and shows you where new issues appear. It does not replace a manual test, but it helps you keep track between two audits.