EAA compliance consultant rates typically range from $150 to $300 per hour, with full project engagements running $5,000 to $50,000 or more. Pricing depends on the consultant’s expertise, the products in scope, the depth of work requested, and whether the engagement covers strategy, evaluation, remediation guidance, or all three. Smaller advisory engagements may start near $2,500, while enterprise programs covering multiple digital products can exceed $75,000 across a year.
| Pricing Element | Typical Range |
|---|---|
| Hourly Rate | $150 to $300 per hour for most independent and boutique consultants |
| Advisory Retainer | $2,500 to $10,000 per month for ongoing program guidance |
| Project Engagement | $5,000 to $50,000+ depending on product scope and deliverables |
| Audit Component | $1,000 to $3,000 baseline, with per-page pricing of $100 to $250 |
| Enterprise Programs | $50,000 to $150,000+ annually across multi-product portfolios |
What EAA Compliance Consultants Do
The European Accessibility Act went into effect on June 28, 2025, and applies to a defined set of products and services placed on the EU market. Consultants help organizations interpret which obligations apply, map requirements to specific digital products, and structure a program that supports conformance with the referenced technical standard, EN 301 549, which incorporates WCAG 2.1 AA for web content.
Engagements vary widely. Some clients hire a consultant for a one-time gap assessment. Others retain a consultant to oversee a multi-quarter program covering evaluation, remediation guidance, documentation, and internal training. Rates reflect that range.
Hourly Rates
Most independent and boutique EAA consultants charge between $150 and $300 per hour. Senior practitioners with deep regulatory and technical experience often sit at the top of that range. Larger consulting firms with EU regulatory practices may charge $350 to $500 per hour or more, particularly when legal counsel is part of the engagement.
Hourly billing is common for advisory work: interpreting requirements, reviewing internal documentation, supporting procurement decisions, and answering technical questions during remediation.
Project-Based Pricing
For defined deliverables, consultants typically quote a fixed fee. Common project structures include:
- Gap assessment: $5,000 to $15,000 to evaluate current state against EAA and EN 301 549 requirements
- Program design: $7,500 to $20,000 to build a conformance roadmap, governance model, and documentation structure
- Audit-led engagement: $10,000 to $50,000+ when the consultant pairs strategy work with a manual audit of in-scope products
- Documentation package: $3,000 to $15,000 for accessibility statements, internal policies, and conformance evidence
Audit Costs Within a Consulting Engagement
EAA work almost always involves an evaluation of the digital product. Most accessibility audits start at $1,000 and range to $3,000, with per-page pricing of $100 to $250 per page or screen. A consultant either conducts the audit directly, brings in a partner firm, or coordinates the audit on the client’s behalf. Scans only flag approximately 25% of issues, so a credible EAA engagement always includes manual evaluation by a qualified auditor.
Retainers and Ongoing Advisory
Organizations with sustained EAA exposure often move to a monthly retainer after the initial assessment. Retainers commonly run $2,500 to $10,000 per month and cover a fixed block of advisory hours, periodic re-evaluation, documentation updates, and support during product changes. Retainers help organizations maintain conformance across release cycles rather than treating EAA as a one-time event.
What Influences Consultant Pricing
Several factors move pricing up or down within these ranges:
- Product complexity: A marketing site with 30 templates costs less to evaluate than a transactional web app with authenticated workflows
- Number of products: Portfolios covering websites, mobile apps, and customer-facing software multiply scope
- Regulatory depth: Engagements that include legal interpretation cost more than purely technical work
- Documentation requirements: Clients needing full conformance evidence and accessibility statements pay for the additional output
- Timeline pressure: Compressed schedules typically carry a premium
- Consultant experience: Practitioners with EU regulatory background and audit credentials command higher rates
How to Compare Quotes
EAA consultant quotes vary because the underlying work varies. When reviewing proposals, look at what is actually included: the scope of products covered, whether manual evaluation is part of the fee or billed separately, the documentation deliverables, and the level of post-engagement support. A $7,500 quote covering only a written gap assessment is not comparable to a $25,000 quote covering an audit, remediation guidance, and an accessibility statement.
EAA consulting pricing rewards specificity. Define the products in scope, the deliverables expected, and the timeline before requesting quotes, and the resulting numbers become far easier to evaluate side by side.