Contrast too weakTheme
Custom colour and theme tweaks often fall below the required contrast of 4.5:1.
Specifically for Shopify · BFSG & EAA
Accessibility for your Shopify store.
Online shops must be accessible since 28 June 2025 — and the EAA also applies when you sell to EU customers from abroad. Shopify provides a solid base but only covers part of the requirements. You decide the crucial rest.
Your Shopify store falls under the law.
Every online shop counts as a “service in electronic commerce” and is therefore covered by the BFSG and the EAA. Importantly, the EAA works across borders — much like the GDPR. If you sell to consumers in the EU, the requirements apply regardless of where your business is based. Only microenterprises are exempt (fewer than 10 employees and no more than €2 million).
“Shopify is accessible already” — only partly.
Shopify has invested in its standard themes and checkout, and the default Dawn theme is a decent foundation. But this base meets only part of the WCAG criteria — and says nothing about how accessible your specific, customised store is.
Your theme, your apps, your content and your product data come from you — and that’s exactly where most barriers arise.
Who controls what?
Shopify is hosted — but the barriers are on your side. Unlike self-hosted shops you can’t change everything in the code. What matters is knowing what’s in your hands — because that’s where most problems arise.
What you control — where most barriers arise
- Your theme (Liquid) — contrast, structure, keyboard operation
- Your apps from the App Store — many bring their own, often inaccessible markup
- Your content & product images — you set alt text in the product editor
- Your variants & swatches — selection, labelling and the size of click targets
What Shopify controls — solid base, but you stay responsible
- The checkout core on standard plans — largely maintained by Shopify
- The technical infrastructure and base building blocks of the standard themes
Note: On Shopify Plus the checkout can be extended — then that part is your responsibility again.
Even the good standard theme covers only part of the WCAG criteria. You decide the rest — and that’s exactly what an honest scan checks.
In practice
Where barriers arise in Shopify stores.
Almost always in what you add: theme tweaks, apps, content. That’s exactly what the Welcoma scan finds — with a pointer to the spot.
Swatch & variant appsApps
Most selection apps aren’t accessible — often with click targets smaller than 24 px.
Product images without alt textProduct data
Text alternatives are often missing in the product editor — for screen readers the images stay empty.
Galleries & sliders without keyboardOperation
Image galleries and carousels often can’t be fully operated by keyboard.
Jumping headingsStructure
Theme sections often create an illogical heading hierarchy and hinder orientation.
Fields without clear labelsForms
Newsletter, contact and account forms from themes or apps aren’t always cleanly labelled.
How Welcoma helps
Find, fix, prove.
An honest path instead of a fake fix — suited to your Shopify store.
Free scanUsable today
Checks your store URL against the WCAG criteria and shows you, prioritised, what to do — for any Shopify store, no app needed.
On-screen menu & appPlanned
A Shopify app with the customisable on-screen menu is planned — as a complement, not a replacement for real fixing.
Statement generator
Creates your accessibility statement to BFSG specifications — including a feedback path for your customers.
Honestly: an overlay won’t protect your Shopify store legally.
Experts agree — and authorities confirm it: a widget laid over the store doesn’t fix the causes in theme, apps and product data. It only becomes sound once the real issues are solved. An on-screen menu can help on top, but it doesn’t replace that work.
FAQ
Shopify & accessibility
Am I affected even if my store isn’t based in the EU?
Yes, as long as you sell to consumers in the EU. The EAA applies extraterritorially — much like the GDPR: as soon as someone in Germany, France or another EU country can order from you, the requirements apply, regardless of your company’s location.
Doesn’t Shopify make my store accessible automatically?
Only partly. Shopify created a solid base and the default Dawn theme is decent — but this base covers only part of the WCAG criteria. The accessibility of your specific store depends on your theme, your apps and your content.
Is an accessible theme like Dawn enough?
It’s a good start, but no free pass. As soon as you adjust colours, install apps or add content and product images, new checkpoints arise. The scan shows where your actually delivered store stands.
Is there a Welcoma app for Shopify?
A Shopify app with the on-screen menu is planned. You can already use the free scan for any Shopify URL today — no app required.
Is an accessibility widget enough for my store?
No. For Shopify stores, experts and authorities alike confirm: an overlay offers no legal protection because it doesn’t fix the causes in theme, apps and product data. You only become compliant once those issues are solved.
Free scan
Check your Shopify store — honestly.
Enter your store’s URL and get an honest overview of your accessibility — free and with no obligation.