European Accessibility Act for marketplaces and multi-vendor platforms
The European Accessibility Act (EU Directive 2019/882) has been fully applicable since 28 June 2025 and covers marketplaces and multi-vendor platforms as well. Here's what it means in practice and how to check your site right away.
Why it concerns you too
Marketplaces are e-commerce services covered by the European Accessibility Act, and the platform is answerable for the overall experience: search, listings, cart and payment. Content uploaded by thousands of sellers makes accessibility a system-wide problem, not a single-page one.
The obligation comes from EU Directive 2019/882 (European Accessibility Act), fully applicable since 28 June 2025. Non-compliance risks administrative fines, consumer complaints and remediation orders. Only service microenterprises are exempt: fewer than 10 employees and less than €2 million turnover.
The issues we find most often in this sector
Inconsistent product pages
Every seller uploads images with no alt text and unstructured descriptions: accessibility quality is out of control.
Infinite scroll that traps navigation
Endless lists with no accessible pagination: by keyboard you never reach the footer (or the filters).
Internal messaging with no announcements
Buyer-seller chat that never announces new messages to assistive technologies.
These are recurring examples found in scans of sites in this sector: your site may have others (or none at all). The only way to know is to check.
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Analyse your site for freeFrequently asked questions
- Does the European Accessibility Act apply to marketplaces and multi-vendor platforms?
- Marketplaces are e-commerce services covered by the European Accessibility Act, and the platform is answerable for the overall experience: search, listings, cart and payment. Content uploaded by thousands of sellers makes accessibility a system-wide problem, not a single-page one.
- Which accessibility issues are typical for marketplaces and multi-vendor platforms?
- The three we find most often: Inconsistent product pages; Infinite scroll that traps navigation; Internal messaging with no announcements.
- How do I check whether my site is compliant?
- Start with the free EAA Sentinel scan: a real browser analyses up to 3 pages of your site and returns a 0-100 score with the most severe issues in about a minute. The full report (€49 one-time) extends the analysis to up to 50 pages, with every issue and fix instructions. Automated analysis detects 30-40% of WCAG issues — the machine-verifiable ones: full compliance also requires manual checks.
Prefer to start from the technical check? Accessibility check for marketplaces and multi-vendor platforms