Create Accessible Online Forms: Requirements & Checklist

Online forms are now part of almost every website and, like the website itself, should be accessible so that people with disabilities can use them. Accessible online forms are required in many interactive parts of the web, from online shop orders and online application forms to simple website contact forms. LamaPoll makes it easy to create accessible online forms. We have summarised the most important aspects for you here.

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Requirements for accessible online forms

The same requirements that apply to accessible websites also apply to accessible online forms: the internationally recognised Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). The WCAG define four basic principles: content and functionality should be 1.) perceivable, 2.) operable, 3.) understandable and 4.) robust. The WCAG are an international standard intended to ensure that websites, non-web documents and software are accessible and usable for people with disabilities.

Accessible online forms are particularly important for people who use assistive technologies such as screen readers or alternative keyboards. Providers of online forms must therefore take these technologies into account so that people with disabilities can enter and access information in the form. Keyboard accessibility is another key requirement: an accessible online form should be fully usable with a keyboard, without requiring a mouse, and should be as straightforward to use as possible.

Compatibility with assistive technologies and keyboard accessibility are among the key requirements for accessible online forms. Both are supported by our online survey tool.

Create accessible online forms with LamaPoll

With LamaPoll, you can create online forms quickly and easily and, for example, embed them in your own website using an iframe. The same applies to accessible online forms, which are easy to create with our tool. We follow the requirements of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), so assistive technologies such as screen readers can be used and keyboard accessibility is supported. With online forms in particular, there is often a concern that creating them will involve a lengthy programming process. This is not the case with LamaPoll. Creating accessible online forms does not require any programming knowledge. Form creators can, and should, control a few straightforward aspects themselves. These include clear labels for form fields that tell users exactly what information is expected. You will find a detailed checklist further down this page.

Our Help Centre explains how to embed accessible online forms in your own website using an iframe: Embed a survey on your website.

Create accessible online forms

How to create accessible online forms

If you want to create accessible online forms with LamaPoll, there are several important aspects that you, as the form creator, can control yourself. No programming knowledge is required because the necessary functions are already available in the software. After creating a form, you should always test it for accessible use. Use our checklist as a guide when creating and testing your accessible forms.

Checklist for accessible online forms:

Give the form a clear name so that its content and purpose are immediately apparent.
Ask only for data that is genuinely necessary so that users are not burdened with entering information that is not needed.
Label all form fields clearly so that users know what information is required.
Add placeholder text to every input field that explains how to complete the field, for example, “Enter your name here”.
Clearly mark required fields and input fields with a predefined range of values.
Use clear options for selection elements and avoid misleading preselected choices.
Write clear and helpful error messages and, where necessary, rename the error message provided by the system.
Make sure that information conveyed through colour differences, for example in error messages, is also available in text.
Use a calm and consistent form design: similar elements should look and behave in the same way.
Give users the option to print or review their own information before submitting the form using the print link.
Carry out a user test before publishing the online form.

This checklist is not exhaustive. Do you have any further tips for creating accessible online forms that are missing here? Please contact us.

In addition to this checklist for accessible online forms, we recommend our general Help Centre checklist: Create accessible surveys. It also includes guidance on accessible survey design that should be applied to online forms.