Top 21 Accessibility Testing Tools- Features, Pros, Cons & Price

If you are in search of the best accessibility testing tools for your personal or commercial requirements, then you have landed on the right article. Let’s deep dive into accessibility testing & tools.

Web accessibility testing refers to making the Internet accessible to everyone, including those with disabilities, to perceive, comprehend, navigate, and interact with it.

These difficulties include auditory, physical, verbal, cognitive, and neurological impairments. However, most websites have some form of barrier to accessibility that makes it difficult for people with disabilities to use them.

Web accessibility aids in ensuring that people with all types of disabilities do not encounter these barriers when using the Internet.

The accessibility testing tool you should employ is determined by various criteria, including your website’s needs and budget.

Usability testing includes accessibility testing. It allows us to collect data on how people with specific disabilities use the program to make the Internet’s benefits accessible to individuals, businesses, and society.

Top 21 Accessibility Testing Tools for a Website

#01 WAVE (Website Accessibility Evaluation Tool):

• WAVE is a WebAIM tool for assessing the accessibility of web content.
• The WAVE tool is also available online, and the WAVE toolbar is a Firefox add-on.
• It is a web accessibility assessment tool that assesses the accessibility of web content by annotating the web page copy.
• It evaluates accessibility in the browser and does not save any information on the server. WAVE also provides recommendations for resolving accessibility concerns in the system.

Pros:

• The WAVE is a slang term for a You may check the accessibility of your site directly within the Chrome and Firefox browsers using Chrome and Firefox extensions.
• There is no data delivered to the WAVE server.
• WAVE will display the flaws that have been detected and offer suggestions for resolving them.

Cons:

• WAVE provides an overlay of icons to identify any potential accessibility concerns, but absolute positioning causes it to become confused and show no other information about the element.
• When you’re controlling an element that isn’t visible on the page, the overlay of icons becomes much more troublesome. Instead, it will require some dev tools to figure out which piece is causing the problem.

Price:

• Free and paid — both available.

#02 JAWS:

• JAWS (Job Access With Speech) is a blindness solution developed by Freedom Scientific.
• It is the most popular Screen Reader for clients who have lost their vision.
• Two multi-lingual Eloquence and Vocalizer Expressive synthesizers are among the good features of JAWS.
• Works with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Microsoft Office, and Windows via touch screen gestures.
• Skim reading allows you to get information quickly and save time.
• It supports IE’s MathML content, and its OCR capability gives you access to text and PDF files.
• Provides Braille input from a braille keyboard and braille display drivers.

Pros:

• It’s simple to use.
• It has a fantastic user interface.
• When compared to other testing tools, it has a more consistent performance.
• It also has multi-dimensional settings for the environment.

Cons:

• There’s a steep learning curve to using the program effectively.
• Pricing that is too high.

Price:

• Its basic plan costs $95/year. However, it also has some advanced plans with more features.

#03 Dynomapper:

• Dynomapper is a Visual Sitemap Generator with four different types of sitemaps: default, circle, tree, and folder.
• It analyses the website’s HTML content and can generate a sitemap from any URL. It also imports XML files to make sitemaps.
• It also has a content inventory and audit feature for filtering pages, files, and photos, among other things.
• Advanced Crawler Options allow you to organize links and follow subdomains.
• Colors can be used to update and customize sitemaps, and they can be set to their utmost level.

Pros:

• Suite of services
• PDF Analytics
• Transparent pricing
• Automated testing

Cons:

• Lacks support options
• Really expensive
• Some features are restricted to higher plans
• No option for a free trial

Price:

• It has pricing options for $99/month, $360/month, and $450/month.

#04 SortSite:

• SortSite for Mac, OS X, and Windows is a popular one-click user experience testing application.
• Accessibility standards such as WCAG 2.0 110 checkpoints, WCAG 1.0 85 checkpoints, and Section 508 15 US 47 checkpoints are used to evaluate the accessibility of a website.
• Compatible with Internet Explorer, the desktop browser, and the mobile browser.
• Checks for English and French spellings and a custom dictionary for terms that aren’t in the dictionary.
• Error codes from HTTP and script errors are checked.
• HTML, CSS, and XHTML are all validated.

#05 Accessibility Checker by CKSource:

• In CKEditor, a tool called Accessibility Checker inspects the level of accessibility.
• With an enhanced user interface, it assists in promptly resolving accessibility concerns.
• Content Validation, Report Issues, and Fix the Issue are the three procedures that are used to evaluate accessibility.
• Error, Warning, and Notice are the three types of issues.
• For added flexibility, the Accessibility Checking Engine is available.
• The Quick Fix feature saves time by instantly resolving common issues.
• You can also make manual changes according to your needs using the Listening Mode option.

#06 Accessibility Valet:

• Accessibility Valet has both a free and a paid subscription option, and it allows you to assess your website’s accessibility against W3C WCAG standards or Section 508 requirements.
• With a free subscription, you can access one URL at a time.
• You should pay for a paid subscription if you wish to examine several URLs.
• Supports HTML reporting in normalized form, with valid and bogus markup highlighted for easier distinction.
• Additionally, it aids in the detection of misplaced contents.
• Accessibility warnings are shown in reports.

#07 EvalAccess 2.0:

• EvalAccess 2.0 is a web accessibility evaluation tool for WCAG 1.0 and Section 508 compliance.
• The University of Basque Country in Spain devised and developed this technology.
• You have to pay for a paid subscription if you wish to examine several URLs.
• EvalAccess 2.0 is capable of evaluating both a single web page and a full website.
• It includes three ways for assessing web accessibility, including:
• Examine a single URL
• Examine the entire webpage
• Examine the HTML Markup
• It displays the final result in a simple report style and does not require any software installation.

#08 AChecker — Accessibility Checker:

• The Inclusive Design Research Center, formerly known as the Adaptive Technology Resource Center, created AChecker, an open-source web accessibility evaluation tool.
• You can check accessibility by providing a URL or uploading an HTML file.
• AChecker allows you to choose from a variety of accessibility rules, including the ones listed below.
• WCAG 2.0
• WCAG 1.0
• HTML Validator
• Section 508
• BITV 1.0
• Stanca Act
• You can also select the report format that best suits your needs.
• AChecker may be used both online and offline, and it can be downloaded and installed.

#09 Cynthia Says:

• Cynthia Says is a free online accessibility testing tool that checks for WCAG 1.0 and Section 508 compliance on the web.
• It’s simple to use as you only need to enter the website URL to start the accessibility test.
• The report includes a list of Section 508 criteria and whether or not your website passes or fails each one.
• Cynthia advises tracing the exact location of the part that failed the test.
• The website is presently being tested for WCAG 1.0 and has not yet been updated for WCAG 2.0.

#10 aDesigner:

• The ACTF aDesigner powered by Eclipse is often used as a Disability Simulator to test a website’s accessibility for visually impaired visitors.
• With the use of a Voice Browser and a Screen Reader, the text on a web page is read clearly.
• This utility determines whether Flash Contents and ODF documents are accessible (Open Document Format for Office Application). ODF is an XML-based file format for worksheets, charts, and other documents.
• However, when it comes to high-quality graphics, there are some limitations to its utilization.
• The Accessibility Information Inspection Function is included with aDesigner.
• This tool is designed for people who are blind or have low eyesight.

#11 aViewer (Accessibility Viewer):

• Paciellogroup created aviewer, a Windows accessibility inspection tool that shows the Accessibility API. HTML DOM, MSAA, ARIA, iAccessible2, and UI Automation are all part of the Information Accessibility API.
• Only IA2 properties are supported in Firefox and Chrome, but not in Internet Explorer. However, UI Automation properties are only for supporting browsers like Internet Explorer.
• GitHub provides a free download of aViewer.

#12 Colour Contrast Analyser:

• Paciellogroup also produced Colour Contrast Analyser for Windows, Mac OS, and OS X, just like a Designer.
• It determines the legibility of text and color contrast for graphical and visual elements on a web page.
• Only Windows users can use the Visual Simulation feature.
• This tool evaluates contrast elements in accordance with the WCAG 2.0 Color Contrast Success criterion.
• The application is designed for people who have limited vision or color blindness.
• This tool is available for free download on GitHub.

Pros:

The contrast ratio is used to determine whether or not people with color blindness or other visual impairments can read the contrast between two colors.
Colors can be adjusted in various ways, including raw text colors (in any acceptable CSS format), RGB sliders, and a color picker (Windows and macOS only).
Allows for the use of alpha transparency on foreground colors.
It contains a color blindness simulator, which helps determine how accessible the program will be for color-blind users.
There is no need to install anything; simply running the exe file will suffice.

Cons:

• Currently, it is available for desktops only.

#13 Functional Accessibility Evaluator (FAE) 2.0:

• FAE 2.0 rules are based on OpenAjax Evaluation Library and evaluate online accessibility of web pages for WCAG 2.0 Level A and AA conformance.
• FAE rules follow accessibility requirements.
• According to the W3C, the Accessible Rich Internet Application (ARIA) and HTML5 FAE are utilized in conjunction with the AInspector Sidebar for Firefox.
• This tool includes Accessibility Bookmarklets that help you grasp accessibility issues quickly.

#14 Tenon:

• Tenon checks for WCAG 2.0 and VPAT (Section 508) compliance on the web.
• Tenon makes use of APIs that are simple to integrate with the tool we use for Unit Testing, Acceptance Testing, System Testing, and Issue Tracking.
• Tenon APIs are currently accessible for tracking accessibility concerns.
• TEN-850 On the checkout screen, there is no label for the state/province field.
• TEN-1726 In contrast, the results chart appears unorganized and perplexing.
• TEN-1861 There is no viable option for dashboard charts.
• TEN-1862 Trying to shift+tab out of the Dashboard’s “Test Now” section causes a keyboard trap.
• TEN-1860 The “My Account Menu” has no visible emphasis.
• Finally, Tenon API gives the test result in JSON String format, including a ResultSet node containing an array of issues.

Pros:

• It does not need anything to be installed or downloaded on your computer or laptop.

Cons:

• Your site/UI must be publicly available because it works by passing the URL to the browser.
• It can be slower than the other tools covered in this article.

#15 Web Accessibility Toolbar (WAT) for IE:

• Paciellogroup created this web accessibility testing tool.
• It is used to identify the contents of a web page and the components of a web page.
• On Windows and Vista 7 or 8, the WAT toolbar is available, although it is just for Internet Explorer (IE)
• Some of the toolbar’s features rely on web resources like Javascript, CSS, and pictures.
• It offers various views of the current web page as well as the ability to use a third-party online application.
• This tool is accessible for free on GitHub; however, it is not currently in active development.

#16 aXe:

• Deque Systems’ aXe is a free-of-charge, open-source accessibility testing tool for Chrome and Firefox.
• To analyze web contents, install the aXe extension for Chrome or the aXe extension for Firefox.
• The test’s final output is a list of accessibility concerns with a link to get more information about each issue.
• aXe displays the exact line of code that caused the problem and the method for resolving it.
• It displays the severity of each issue discovered and analyses WCAG 2.0 and Section 508 accessibility breaches.
• For specific locations, the aXe tool provides manual accessibility testing with Screenreader.

Pros:

• The impact of accessibility concerns is rated differently by axe. Instead of assigning a severity level to all issues, it does not use the “alerts” category. When this system is used, more problems are found and rectified than if some faults are designated as alerts, signaling that they are not critical.
• Axe will display elements that are not necessarily accessibility problems but should be reviewed due to their context.

Cons:

• Axe will highlight some color contrast concerns that must be individually tested.
• While not explicitly a disadvantage of this technology, it does necessitate a bit more expertise on the user’s part to comprehend the testing procedure.

#17 Inspector Sidebar (Firefox Accessibility Extension)

• AInspector Sidebar is a Firefox toolbar that is used to examine the accessibility of web content.
• This is a web accessibility assessment tool for Firefox that assesses the accessibility of web content for WCAG 2.0 and ARIA compliance.
• It generates a list of images and links to check accessibility standards and displays the Text Equivalent menu.
• This extension can be used to start third-party applications such as the W3C HTML Validator and Link Checker.

#18 TAW

• TAW is an online accessibility testing tool developed by CTIC Centro Tecnólogico that analyses web accessibility using the WCAG 1.0 and 2.0 standards. Like other accessibility testing tools, you can simply enter the URL of your website to analyze its accessibility.
• TAW3 Analysis Engine comes in a variety of forms, including TAW3 Standalone for desktop, TAW3 Web Start for Java-based software, and TAW3 With a Click, an online service that works as a Firefox extension.
• TAW clearly identifies accessibility concerns and offers suggestions for resolving them.

#19 Web Accessibility Inspector:

• Fujitsu’s Web Accessibility Inspector is a desktop application accessibility testing tool.
• You can specify the site URL or the file’s location by specifying the file’s destination.
• You can see the web page with annotations on elements where an accessibility issue has occurred on the browser screen.
• It is designed for elderly or visually impaired users and runs on Windows and Mac OS X.

#20 Accessibility Developers Tools by Google:

• This is a Chrome Extension that extends Chrome Developer Tools to include an accessibility audit and a sidebar.
• You may find Accessibility Audit in the audit tab and run it.
• To use the sidebar pane, you must first analyze the web page’s elements.
• This extension has been upgraded to provide new audit rules, generalized ARIA attributes, and improved logical representations for clear link text, among other things.

#21 Siteimprove:

• Siteimprove is a top-rated tool, particularly in the government and higher education sectors.
• Siteimprove is a Chrome addon that helps you improve your site.
• It gives visual feedback on web content and visibly highlights non-compliance issues on the website.

Pros:

• Siteimprove evaluates password-protected or non-public pages, multi-step forms, and dynamic content directly within the Chrome browser.
• Within the scope of the WCAG, Siteimprove identifies accessibility non-compliance concerns and highlights situations where more than one rule is being broken.

Cons:

• For individuals unfamiliar with the WCAG guidelines for accessibility, the format in which the faults are reported can be perplexing.
• Manual testing is required in some regions. However, it necessitates a little more information on the user’s part to comprehend the testing procedure.

Get Automated Accessibility Testing With TestGrid

Don’t make accessibility testing an afterthought; it works best when part of your overall testing strategy. However, we understand that it is very overwhelming to learn and execute accessibility testing in one go.

And for that single reason, with TestGrid’s test reporting, you can align it with your test cycle and sync all your data in one location.

You’ll ensure that accessibility flaws are discovered sooner rather than later when they’re less expensive to address.

This is because it provides you with:

• Web and mobile app testing in one place.
• Advanced robotics.
• Integration of the entire toolchain.
• All of the results are in one location.
• Shift to the left to test.

Principles of Accessibility Testing Used to Organize the Success Criteria:

1. Perceivability:

Information and user interface elements must be presented so that people can understand. At least one of the users’ senses must be able to take in the information being provided.

User interface components and navigation must be able to be operated. Users must be able to interact with the interface. Thus it cannot ask them to do something they cannot do.

2. Understandability:

Information and the user interface’s functionality must be simple to grasp. Users must be able to comprehend both the information and the user interface’s operation.

Content must be robust enough to be interpreted consistently by various user agents, including assistive devices. As technology advances, users must be able to access the content. The material should stay available when technology and user agents change.

If any of these statements are untrue, users with disabilities will be unable to access the application or website.

However, what is required for accessibility is defined by international web standards.

Google and other major search engines push the SEO benefits of web accessibility approaches. For example, if web services and pages comply with WCAG criteria, they will be advertised more effectively. So what are WCAG criteria?

The following are some of the WCAG principles for system accessibility:

• Perceivable
• Operable
• Understandable
• Robust

Conclusion:

Accessibility is a critical component to evaluate in any software system since it allows everyone to access the product, including people with physical limitations.

Today, a considerable percentage of physically challenged people rely heavily on digital goods in their daily lives, and Accessibility Testing Tools are helping to make websites more accessible to them.

Source: This article was originally published at testgrid.io.