# Writing an accessibility statement for your Shopify store

Source: https://suitshieldhq.com/blog/2026-10-18-accessibility-statement-shopify-store-what-include.html

Reviewed October 18, 2026


An accessibility statement is a public commitment with specifics: your standard, your known gaps, and how to get help. What to include, and what never to promise.

## What the statement is for

An accessibility statement tells disabled shoppers three useful things: that you have thought about access at all, what standard you are working toward, and how to reach a human when something blocks them. It is also read, in disputes, as evidence of posture: a specific, dated, honest statement reads as good faith; a grandiose one contradicted by the site reads as decoration.

Write it for the blocked shopper first. That reader is not auditing your prose; they are looking for a way to complete a purchase today. Every section should shorten their path to help or to the information they came for.

## The sections that belong in it

Name the standard you target, such as the current recognized guidelines at a stated conformance level, and the date the statement was last reviewed. Describe how you evaluate the store: audits, assistive technology testing, and how often. List known limitations honestly, with the workaround for each where one exists, such as calling to place an order that a form currently blocks.

Include a dedicated contact route for accessibility problems with a promised response time, and make sure that inbox or number is actually monitored. A statement that routes complaints into a void is worse than a shorter statement with a working doorbell.

## What never to promise

Never claim full compliance or guaranteed accessibility unless an audit supports the words, and be wary of language supplied by overlay vendors suggesting their tool makes you compliant. It does not, and your statement repeating it becomes your claim, not theirs, when challenged.

Avoid undated, unowned statements copied from a template with another company's name still in it, which happens more often than anyone admits and signals that nobody is actually responsible for the contents. Assign an owner by role, inside the document or in your internal copy.

## Keep it alive or do not publish it

A statement is a maintenance commitment: review it after redesigns, checkout changes, and audits, update the date, and adjust the known limitations as fixes ship. Each resolved gap you strike from the list is a documented improvement, which is the statement quietly becoming your remediation record.

Publish it in the footer beside your other policies, in real text, reachable by keyboard, not as a PDF image. The statement about accessibility being inaccessible is a joke your store does not want to tell about itself.

## Related reading

If this topic is useful, these earlier guides go deeper on connected questions: [What a VPAT is, and when a Shopify store actually needs one](https://suitshieldhq.com/blog/2026-10-17-vpat-shopify-store-when-needed.md), [Accessibility clauses to put in your theme and app contracts](https://suitshieldhq.com/blog/2026-10-17-accessibility-clauses-theme-app-contracts.md), and [Accessibility overlay or manual fixes for a Shopify store: the honest tradeoffs](https://suitshieldhq.com/blog/2026-10-16-accessibility-overlay-vs-manual-fixes-shopify.md).

## Frequently asked questions

### Is an accessibility statement legally required for a Shopify store?

Requirements vary by jurisdiction and sector; some public sector and European rules mandate statements in specific formats. For most private stores it is not strictly required, but it is widely recommended as evidence of good faith effort, and it genuinely helps blocked shoppers reach you. Treat it as cheap, useful insurance.

### What standard should the statement name?

The recognized web accessibility guidelines at the AA level are the common reference for commerce, cited by version so the commitment is precise. Name what you target and where you know you fall short. Courts and advocates compare the statement against the site, so accuracy protects you more than ambition does.

### Should I list known accessibility problems publicly?

Yes, with workarounds. Naming a known barrier and offering an alternative route, like assisted ordering, demonstrates the good faith that matters in complaints and disputes. Hiding known problems that any tester can find in five minutes undermines everything else the statement says.

### How often should the statement be updated?

At every review milestone: after audits, redesigns, and at least annually even if nothing changed, with the review date updated. An old date on an accessibility statement suggests the program behind it is dormant. The update is thirty minutes of work that keeps the document credible.