Practitioner Views on Mobile App Accessibility: Practices and Challenges

TL;DR

This study explores mobile app developers' accessibility practices worldwide, revealing platform-specific challenges and highlighting the need for earlier, more consistent accessibility integration across development processes.

Contribution

It provides the first cross-platform, globally representative analysis of developer accessibility practices and identifies key barriers and differences based on platform and experience.

Findings

Developers rely on platform-specific guidelines for accessibility.

Accessibility testing is often performed late in development.

Platform-specific barriers hinder consistent accessibility implementation.

Abstract

As mobile applications (apps) become ubiquitous in everyday life, it is crucial for developers to prioritize accessibility for users with diverse abilities. While previous research has identified widespread accessibility issues and raised awareness of developer challenges, there remains a lack of cross-platform, globally representative insights into how practitioners approach accessibility in practice. This paper presents findings from a mixed-methods survey of 110 mobile app developers across 43 countries, examining how platform ecosystems (iOS vs. Android) and developer experience shape accessibility practices. Results show that while developers recognize the importance of accessibility, they often rely on platform-specific guidelines and typically perform compliance testing late in the development process. Developers primarily implement text-focused features while struggling with API limitations and organizational constraints. Through systematic cross-platform comparison, we identify novel platform-specific barriers and demonstrate how accessibility practices differ across developer experience levels. Our findings offer new insights into the challenges of achieving accessibility in practice and provide actionable steps for various stakeholders to promote more consistent and inclusive app development.