Accessibility at AhaSlides
At AhaSlides, we believe that accessibility is not an optional add-on - it is fundamental to our mission of making every voice heard in a live setting. Whether you’re participating in a poll, quiz, word cloud, or presentation, our goal is to make sure you can do so with ease, regardless of your device, abilities, or assistive needs.
A product for everyone means accessible for everyone.
This page outlines where we stand today, what we’ve committed to improving, and how we’re holding ourselves accountable.
Current Accessibility Status
While accessibility has always been part of our product thinking, our October 2026 review (the report below) shows that the participant experience does not yet fully meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA. We share this transparently because acknowledging limitations is the first step toward meaningful improvement.
- Screen reader support is incomplete: Buttons and text fields are labelled, but answer options, some sliders and some dynamic results are missing roles, names or readable structure.
- Keyboard navigation is incomplete: About half of our slide types can be answered with the keyboard alone; on the others, answer options cannot take focus or can only be moved by dragging. Focus indicators appear on some controls but not all.
- Visual content lacks alternative formats: Word clouds and spinners rely heavily on visual representation without accompanying text equivalents.
- Assistive technologies cannot fully interact with the interface: ARIA attributes are often missing, and some updates, such as the confirmation after submitting an answer, are not announced.
We are actively working to address these gaps - and doing so in a way that prevents future regressions.
What We’re Improving
Accessibility at AhaSlides is a work in progress. We’ve started by identifying key limitations through internal audits and usability testing, and we’re actively making changes across our product to improve the experience for everyone.
Here’s what we’ve already done - and what we continue to work on:
- Improving keyboard navigation across all interactive elements
- Enhancing screen reader support through better labels and structure
- Scanning every live participant slide type for accessibility every quarter
- Publishing and updating our VPAT® report (latest: October 2026)
- Providing internal training for design and engineering teams
These improvements are being rolled out gradually, with the goal of making accessibility a default part of how we build - not something added at the end.
Evaluation Methods
To evaluate accessibility, we use a combination of manual and automated tools, including:
- Automated checks of the live Audience Site with axe-core, one slide of each live slide type, on a phone-sized screen (October 2026)
- Scripted keyboard, zoom, reflow and motion checks, plus hand checks on production
- Manual testing with VoiceOver on macOS and iOS (August 2025)
- Real keyboard and mobile interactions
We test against WCAG 2.2 Level AA and use real user flows to identify friction, not just technical violations.
How We Support Different Access Methods
| Need | Current Status | Current quality |
| Screen reader users | Limited Support | Blind users face significant barriers accessing core presentation and interaction features. |
| Keyboard-only navigation | Limited Support | About half of slide types can be answered with the keyboard; the rest need a mouse or touch. |
| Low vision | Limited Support | Text contrast passes on almost every slide type, but pinch zoom is switched off on phones and some states rely on colour alone. |
| Hearing impairments | Partially Supported | Some audio-based features are present, but accommodation quality is unclear and under review. |
| Cognitive/processing disabilities | Partially Supported | Some support exists, but certain interactions may be difficult to follow without visual or timing adjustments. |
This assessment helps us prioritise improvements that go beyond compliance - towards better usability and inclusion for everyone.
VPAT (Accessibility Conformance Report)
Our Accessibility Conformance Report uses the VPAT® 2.5 International Edition and details how AhaSlides conforms to:
- WCAG 2.0, 2.1 & 2.2 (Level A and AA)
- Section 508 (U.S.)
- EN 301 549 (EU)
It covers the audience app (https://audience.ahaslides.com/) and every participant slide type live on production; Appendix A gives the result for each slide type.
Feedback & Contact
If you encounter any accessibility barrier or have ideas for how we can do better, please contact us: design-team@ahaslides.com
We take every message seriously and use your input to improve.
AhaSlides Accessibility Conformance Report
VPAT® Version 2.5 INT
Name of Product/Version: AhaSlides Audience Site
Product Description: The AhaSlides Audience Site lets participants join a live presentation from a phone or computer and take part in real time: answering questions, voting, sharing ideas and reacting to slides.
Date: October 2026
Contact Information: design-team@ahaslides.com
Notes: This report only applies to the audience experience of AhaSlides (accessed via https://audience.ahaslides.com/. It does not apply to the presenter dashboard or editor https://presenter.ahaslides.com).
Evaluation Methods Used: October 2026: automated checks of the live Audience Site on a phone-sized screen, one slide of each slide type (keyboard, zoom and reflow, motion, labels and roles). Criteria a machine cannot judge keep the result of the August 2025 manual test with VoiceOver on macOS and iOS. No screen reader was used in 2026.
Download PDF Report: AhaSlides Accessibility Conformance Report (VPAT® 2.5 INT, October 2026 - PDF)
