How Web Accessibility Elevates SEO: 7 Best Practices for Your Website

Last updated: October 9, 2026.

When you’re working to improve your website’s search engine optimization (SEO), accessibility might not be the first thing that comes to mind.

But it should be part of the conversation.

Web accessibility and SEO share many best practices. Both benefit from well-organized content, descriptive headings, meaningful links, and an easy-to-navigate website.

Accessibility alone won’t guarantee higher search rankings, but an accessible website can improve the visitor experience and support key SEO fundamentals.

Here’s how accessibility and SEO work together—and seven ways to improve both.

What Is Web Accessibility?

Web accessibility means designing and developing websites so people with disabilities can access, understand, navigate, and use digital content.

This includes people who use screen readers, navigate with keyboards, have low vision, experience cognitive disabilities, or rely on other assistive technologies.

The internationally recognized standards for web accessibility are the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

WCAG 2.2 is the latest published version of WCAG 2 and is recommended by W3C for new accessibility work.

Accessibility requirements also vary by organization and applicable laws.

For example, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act establishes accessibility requirements for federal agencies. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) also addresses accessibility obligations for state and local governments and certain businesses and organizations.

The ADA’s Title II web accessibility rule establishes WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the technical standard for covered state and local government websites and mobile applications.

Regardless of specific legal requirements, accessibility is an important part of designing inclusive, effective digital experiences.

How Does Web Accessibility Affect SEO?

Search engines and assistive technologies apply equivalent information to understand website content.

For example, properly structured headings help screen reader users browse a page and help search engines process how information is organized.

Descriptive alternative text helps communicate the meaning of images to people who cannot see them and provides useful context for image search.

Clear navigation, meaningful links, and well-organized content make websites easier for people to use and easier for search engines to interpret.

However, accessibility conformance itself is not a direct Google ranking factor.

Instead, many accessibility practices overlap with established SEO recommendations.

Boosting accessibility can strengthen your website’s technical foundation, make content easier to understand, and remove barriers that prevent people from engaging with your organization.

7 Ways to Improve Accessibility and SEO

1. Use Clear, Descriptive Page Titles and Headings

Page titles and headings help visitors understand what a page is about.

They also give search engines important context.

Every page should have a unique, descriptive title that accurately represents its content.

Within the page, use headings to organize information into logical sections.

A properly structured page typically includes a primary H1 heading, followed by H2 headings for major sections and H3 headings for subsections when needed.

Avoid choosing heading levels simply because you prefer their visual appearance. Heading tags communicate structure, not just style.

For example, a nonprofit donation page might use:

• H1: Support Our Mission
• H2: How Your Donation Makes a Difference
• H2: Ways to Give
• H2: Frequently Asked Questions

This structure helps visitors scan the page, supports screen reader navigation, and helps search engines understand the content.

2. Write Meaningful Alternative Image Text

Alternative text, commonly called alt text, describes the purpose or meaning of an image for people who cannot see it.

It also gives search engines useful information about the image content.

For example, instead of using generic alt text such as “volunteers,” a more helpful description might be:

“Three volunteers sorting donated food at a community food shelf.”

Good alt text needs to be concise, relevant, and appropriate to the image’s context.

Avoid stuffing keywords into descriptions simply for SEO purposes.

Not every image needs descriptive alt text. Decorative images that don’t communicate meaningful information should generally use empty alt attributes so screen readers can skip them.

For images that contain important text or deliver complex information, make sure the essential content is also available in an accessible format.

The goal is to communicate the image’s purpose, not simply describe everything visible.

3. Create Descriptive, Accessible Links

Links are important for both accessibility and SEO.

They help visitors navigate your website and help search engines discover related content.

However, vague link text such as “click here” or “learn more” can confuse users, especially screen reader users.

Instead, apply descriptive language that explains where the link leads.

For example:

Rather than “Click here to read our report,” use “Read our 2026 Annual Impact Report.”

Descriptive links provide context, improve navigation, and help communicate relationships between pages.

This is especially important for organizations with large websites, resource libraries, or complex navigation structures.

4. Make Your Website Easy to Navigate

A clear website structure benefits everyone.

Visitors should be able to find important information without navigating through confusing menus or unnecessary steps.

Accessible navigation also means ensuring people can use your website without a mouse.

Menus, buttons, links, and forms should work with keyboard navigation, and interactive items should have visible focus indicators.

From an SEO perspective, logical navigation and internal linking help search engines discover content and understand relationships between pages.

When planning a website redesign, consider both the visitor experience and the underlying content structure.

A well-organized website can make it easier for people to find what they need and take meaningful action.

5. Use Readable, Well-Organized Content

Accessibility isn’t just about code. Content plays an equally important role.

Long paragraphs, complicated language, and poorly organized information can make a website difficult to use.

Write clearly, apply descriptive headings, and break complex information into manageable sections.

Lists can help organize related information, while meaningful labels make forms easier to complete.

Readable content also supports SEO by helping visitors find answers quickly.

This matters more as people discover information through traditional search engines and AI-based search experiences.

Clear, accurate, and logically organized content is easier for both people and automated systems to interpret.

6. Optimize for Mobile Devices and Different Screen Sizes

Your website should provide a consistent, usable experience across desktop computers, tablets, and smartphones.

Responsive design helps content adapt to different screen sizes, but accessibility goes beyond making a page fit on a smaller screen.

Buttons and links should be easy to tap, text should remain readable when enlarged, and users should be able to navigate without excessive scrolling or complicated interactions.

Mobile usability is also important for SEO because Google primarily uses the mobile version of a website’s content for indexing.

A responsive, accessible website helps ensure visitors can interact with your content regardless of device or ability.

7. Improve Forms and Elements

Forms are often among a website’s most important features.

Whether someone is donating, registering for an event, requesting information, or completing an application, the experience should be easy and accessible.

Every form field should have a clear label. Identify required fields, and error messages should explain how to correct mistakes.

Forms should also work with keyboards and assistive technologies.

User-friendly forms don’t automatically improve search rankings, but they can reduce barriers that keep visitors from completing important actions.

For nonprofits, this could mean more completed donations, volunteer registrations, or program inquiries.

Ultimately, SEO helps bring people to your website. Accessibility helps ensure they can use it.

Accessibility and SEO Require Consistent Attention

Just like SEO, accessibility isn’t something you address once and forget.

Websites change. You publish new pages, upload images, update plugins, and evolve functionality.

Each change can introduce accessibility barriers or affect how search crawlers analyze your content.

That’s why accessibility and SEO should be part of your ongoing website management process.

Regular accessibility testing, content reviews, technical SEO audits, and website maintenance help keep your web experience beneficial over time.

Automated accessibility tools can identify many possible problems, but they can’t catch everything. One key point: Manual testing and human oversight are required.

Build a Website That’s Accessible and Discoverable

Accessibility and SEO aren’t competing priorities. In many ways, they complement each other.

Both encourage organizations to create organized, understandable, and easy-to-use websites.

By focusing on descriptive headings, meaningful alt text, accessible navigation, readable content, and usable forms, you can improve the visitor experience while strengthening your website’s SEO foundation.

At ArcStone, we believe accessibility should be part of the entire website lifecycle, from strategy and design through development and ongoing maintenance.

We help nonprofits and purpose-driven organizations create accessible websites that build connections with their audiences and support their goals.

If you want to improve your website’s accessibility, SEO, or overall digital performance, contact ArcStone. We’d love to help.