What tools help test accessibility?
Testing accessibility (a11y) is a mandatory part of modern web development. It helps make sure a site is understandable and usable for all users, including those who use a keyboard, screen readers, screen magnifiers, and so on.
There are several categories of tools: automated, manual, built into browsers, and specialized programs.
1. Automated accessibility analyzers
These tools quickly check HTML code and styles against WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) standards.
They find obvious errors: missing alt, low contrast, incorrect headings, unreachable elements, and so on.
| Tool | Format | Features |
|---|---|---|
| axe DevTools (Deque Systems) | Extension for Chrome, Firefox | One of the best tools; integrates with DevTools, shows errors and recommendations |
| WAVE (WebAIM) | Online service + plugin | Highlights problems directly on the page |
| Lighthouse (built into Chrome) | "Audits" / "Lighthouse" tab | Checks accessibility, SEO, and performance; built into Chrome DevTools |
| Accessibility Insights (Microsoft) | Chrome/Edge extension | Step-by-step checks and visual hints for developers |
| axe-core CLI | Command-line tool | For integration into CI/CD and automated tests |
| Pa11y | CLI | Checks pages for WCAG errors, convenient for test automation |
2. Browser developer tools
Almost all modern browsers have an "Accessibility" tab in DevTools.
- Chrome DevTools -> Elements -> Accessibility Shows: an element's role, name, state, aria attributes, focus, and readability.
- Firefox Accessibility Inspector Lets you visually view the accessibility tree.
Great for a manual audit of structure and roles.
3. Contrast and color checking
| Tool | Features |
|---|---|
| WebAIM Contrast Checker | Checks the contrast ratio between text color and background |
| Contrast Ratio (Lea Verou) | A fast online test with visualization |
| Color Oracle | Simulates various types of color blindness |
| Figma / Adobe XD / DevTools | Have built-in contrast-checking features |
4. Screen reader testing tools
To check how your site is perceived by users with visual impairments:
| Screen reader | Platform | Note |
|---|---|---|
| NVDA (free) | Windows | One of the most popular, ideal for testing |
| JAWS (commercial) | Windows | The standard in enterprise environments |
| VoiceOver | macOS / iOS | Built into all Apple devices |
| TalkBack | Android | Built into Google's mobile devices |
Good practice: test at least with NVDA and VoiceOver to cover the main scenarios.
5. Keyboard navigation testing
Simple but important manual testing:
- Move through the page using Tab, Shift+Tab, Enter, Space, Arrow keys.
- Check:
- whether focus is visible (
outline), - whether the order of transitions is logical,
- whether dropdown menus and modal windows are reachable.
- whether focus is visible (
This is something automated analyzers do not see, but a user notices immediately.
6. Integration into development and CI/CD
- axe-core, Pa11y, and Lighthouse CI can be integrated into a pipeline so accessibility is checked automatically with every commit.
- eslint-plugin-jsx-a11y: for React, it warns about problems directly in the code.
Conclusion:
For thorough accessibility testing, it is worth using a combination of tools:
| Goal | Tools |
|---|---|
| Find errors automatically | axe DevTools, WAVE, Lighthouse |
| Check structure and roles | Chrome DevTools, Firefox Accessibility |
| Check contrast | WebAIM Contrast Checker |
| Check screen reader behavior | NVDA, VoiceOver |
| Check keyboard navigation | Manual testing |
| Automate the process | axe-core CLI, Pa11y, ESLint a11y |
Accessibility cannot be "tested once": it needs to be designed, checked, and maintained at every stage of development.
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