The work divides cleanly into three passes, and doing them in the right order roughly halves what it costs. Most programmes go wrong by starting with a raw audit export sorted by page, which puts a blog post's alt text ahead of a broken template. This page is the order, with the arithmetic behind it: 401 issues, 167 hours and $15,872 on the worked example, of which 126 issues live in nine templates that between them reach every page.
Pass one: the templates
Fix the header, navigation, footer, form and card components once. Landmarks, skip link, heading order, focus indicator, contrast, keyboard operation of the menu. On the worked example this is 126 of 401 issues, and each fix reaches 26 pages. Re-scan afterwards and the page-level list will already have shrunk substantially.
Pass two: the paths a customer uses
Search, the main product or service page, the enquiry form or checkout, contact. Keyboard-complete each one end to end. These are the failures a complaint names, the ones that cost revenue quietly, and the ones a keyboard test finds in minutes. Six forms at two issues each is the worked example's count and the highest-consequence group on the list.
Pass three: the content, at a sustainable rate
Alt text, link text, headings, captions and the document library. 180 missing alt attributes is the largest line and the cheapest per fix. Do it at a rate you can keep: on the statement sheet, four issues a month against 34 open leaves ten at the six-month review, which is a position you can publish honestly.
Questions people ask about how to make your website ada compliant
How long does this take?
On the worked example, 167 hours, which is about a month of one developer spread over a quarter.
Can we do it without a developer?
The content pass yes, through the CMS. The template and interaction passes need code.
What do we do first if we have a letter?
Templates and the customer paths, and give the letter to your lawyer the same day.