Creating inclusive digital products is about understanding the full spectrum of human experience.
Inclusive user testing is how we bridge that gap between intention and impact, building experiences that truly work for everyone.
This how-to guide brings together practical advice, proven methodologies, and a human-centered mindset to help you plan, conduct, and reflect on inclusive user research that makes a difference.
What is inclusive user testing?
Inclusive user testing involves observing real people (especially those with different access needs) using your website, app, or service. It goes beyond generic usability to surface specific barriers faced by users who rely on assistive technologies or experience digital spaces differently.
Involving a diverse group of users ensures that:
- You discover issues both automated and expert manual testing will miss
- You uncover friction in real-world use cases
- You gather empathy-driven insights to improve your design
- You co-create better digital experiences for all
Step 1: Build inclusion into your research plan
Start by asking: who isn’t in the room?
Design your research to proactively include diverse participants:
- People with permanent, temporary, or situational disabilities
- Neurodivergent users
- Older people
- People from different cultures, languages, and age groups
- Users across socioeconomic and educational backgrounds
Create multiple ways for people to participate in your research, from user interviews conducted remotley or in person, to usability tests with assitive technology, and surveys. Use accessible platforms and clear, jargon-free language in all your communication and session content.
Step 2: Recruit diverse participants
Representation isn’t optional, it’s foundational. Reach out to disability advocacy organisations, inclusive recruitment agencies, or local community networks to source participants with a range of access needs. Aim to test with:
Assistive technology users:
- Blind screen reader users across devices and operating systems (e.g. VoiceOver on iOS, NVDA on Windows)
- People with low vision who rely on screen magnifiers or browser zoom
- Motor-impaired participants who use tools like switch devices, voice commands, or head tracking
Non-assistive technology users with access needs:
- A deaf or hard of hearing participant
- An older adult (e.g. over 75) who may have limited tech confidence
- Someone with dyslexia
- A participant with ADHD or a learning disability
Use inclusive screener questions to identify preferred tech setups, assistive tools, and accommodations. Make sure your sample includes a mix of experience levels with digital products and assistive technologies.
Rather than testing the same setup with every user, match assistive technologies to the platforms you’re launching on, and be ready to explain how each participant group contributes to your testing goals. A thoughtful approach ensures meaningful representation without inflating scope.
At Arc Inclusion, we’ve found that blending disabled and non-disabled participants in the same research rounds can reduce costs and accelerate learning.
Step 3: Prepare an accessible setup
Create a remote or in-person environment that supports inclusion:
- Confirm compatibility with assistive technology
- Offer alternative formats and languages
- Provide a clear agenda and test flow in advance
- Use accessible platforms (Zoom with captions, for example)
- Offer flexible scheduling across time zones
Bonus: Include a visual self-description in your introduction to create comfort and inclusion.
Step 4: Facilitate with empathy and precision
Moderating inclusive sessions means creating a safe, respectful environment:
- Be patient: allow time for navigation and response
- Stay neutral and curious
- Don’t assume. Ask users to show and describe their experience
- Use clear, simple instructions
- Let participants guide the pace
- Don’t be afraid to go back and repeat certain parts of the user journey
Listen deeply. Validate your participant’s input. And let silence work its magic, powerful insights often come after “the end.”
Step 5: Use multiple methods for deeper insights
Combine:
- Interviews to explore their lived experiences, motivations, and barriers in detail.
- Usability testing for observing users as they complete typical tasks on your digital product to identify usability issues and accessibility blockers.
- Session recordings for behavioral analysis of real user sessions to understand patterns, hesitations, intentions, and drop-offs without direct moderation.
- Focus groups for bringing together small groups of users to spark discussion, gather diverse perspectives, and explore shared challenges.
Each layer enriches your understanding of the user experience.
Step 6: Watch, listen, and learn from assistive tech users
Nothing replaces firsthand observation. During testing:
- Observe how screen readers read out content
- Track how a screen magnifier user scans the page
- Watch how speech recognition users navigate forms
- Note where frustration or delight emerges
- Track technically compliant elements that produce a poor accessibility UX
Step 7: Reflect and improve the process
At the end of each session:
- Ask what worked and what didn’t
- Invite feedback on the testing experience itself
- Capture follow-up questions and opportunities to go deeper
- Document accommodation requests and adjust your process
Inclusive research is iterative. Every session helps you do better next time.
Best practices to embed in your team
- Make inclusive testing a default, not a one-off
- Budget and plan for accessibility from the start
- Coach your team to design and moderate inclusively
- Prioritise user stories over compliance metrics
- Treat accessibility testing as ongoing maintenance, not a launch checklist
Why inclusive user testing pays off
Beyond ethics and compliance, the ROI of inclusive user testing is undeniable:
- Better design: Address usability for all, not just some
- Customer loyalty: Users feel valued when you listen and respond
- Wider reach: Better accessibility means your service is more usable for a greater number of people
- Fewer bugs: Real-world testing catches edge cases missed in QA
- Culture change: Empathy becomes embedded in how your team works
Final Thought
Inclusive user testing is one of the most powerful tools we have to create digital experiences that truly work for everyone. It takes effort, curiosity, and humility. But the result is more than just accessible interfaces.
Start where you are. Learn as you go. And let real users lead the way.