Resources for Checking the Accessibility of Web Content

This page provides you with a list of resources that you can use to check the accessibility of existing web content when looking for resources to add to your CCCOnline course. For more information on creating original, accessible content, visit the Resources for Creating Accessible Content Knowledgebase article.

Accessibility Evaluation Tools

Website Evaluation Tools

• Wave Website Accessibility Evaluation Tool
  
  • This website allows you to put in the URL of a web page and run a report of how accessible it is. There is also a toolbar version that can be added to Firefox, and an app version that can be added to Chrome for regular use.
• WCAG-EM Report Tool: Website Accessibility Evaluation Report Generator
  
  • This tool helps you generate a report according to the Website Accessibility Conformance Evaluation Methodology (WCAG-EM). It does not perform any accessibility checks. It helps you follow the steps of WCAG-EM, to generate a structured report from the input that you provide. It is designed for experienced evaluators who know Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 and are somewhat familiar with WCAG-EM. For an introduction to WCAG-EM, see the WCAG-EM Overview.
• 508 Checker
  • This website allows you to enter a URL to see if it meets 508 compliance and accessibility standards.
• Web Accessibility
  
  • This website allows you to put in the URL of a web page and run a report of how accessible it is.
• Bureau of Internet Accessibility
  • This website allows you to put in the URL of a web page and run a report of how accessible it is.
• Chrome Accessibility Developer Tools
  
  • This Chrome browser extension will add an Accessibility audit, and an Accessibility sidebar pane in the Elements tab of your Chrome Developer Tools.

Software Evaluation Tools

• Microsoft office Accessibility Checker
  • This tool is built into Microsoft Office and Works with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. It provides errors, warnings, and tips about the accessibility of your documents.
  • For more information on this tool, visit the Resources for Creating Accessible Content Knowledgebase article.
• Adobe Acrobat Accessibility Checker
  • This tool is built into Adobe Acrobat and checks the accessibility of PDF documents.
  • For more information on this tool, visit the Resources for Creating Accessible Content Knowledgebase article.

Color Evaluation Tools

• WebAIM Contrast Checker
  • Checks RGB colors for WCAG AA and AAA compliance
• Colorzilla
  
  • ColorZilla is an add-on for Chrome or Firefox that allows you to select colors and see their RGB code in order to check them in contrast checkers such as the WebAIM Contrast Checker.

Checklists

• W3C Easy Checks
  • This page helps you assess the accessibility of a web page. With these simple steps, you can get an idea whether or not accessibility is addressed in even the most basic way.
  • These checks cover just a few accessibility issues and are designed to be quick and easy, rather than definitive.

Screen Readers

• ChromeVox
  • ChromeVox is a screen reader for Chrome. “Unlike most accessibility software, it is built using only web technologies like HTML5, CSS and Javascript. ChromeVox was designed from the start to enable unprecedented access to modern web apps, including those that utilize W3C ARIA (Access to Rich Internet Applications) to provide a rich, desktop-like experience. This enables visually impaired users to experience the power of web applications while also giving developers a way to verify the accessibility of their web applications.”
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
  • In this PDF viewing software you can click on the View menu and select Read Out Loud.
• VoiceOver
  • VoiceOver is the advanced screen-reading technology integrated into the Mac OS X operating system. VoiceOver enables users with visual disabilities to control their computer using a rich set of keyboard commands and gestures. It is a built-in screen reader that describes aloud what appears on your computer screen: it speaks the text that’s in documents and windows. To turn on VoiceOver, press Command-F5
• NVDA
  • NonVisual Desktop Access (NVDA) is a free and open source screen reader for the Microsoft Windows operating system. It supports over 20 languages and can run on any computer entirely from a USB drive with no installation.

Readability Tools

• Evernote Clearly
  • Evernote Clearly is a browser extension that strips out everything but the text content on a web page and changes the color themes to increase readability.
• Mercury Reader
  • Mercury Reader is a browser extension that removes ads and distractions, leaving only text and images for a beautiful reading view on any site.
• High Contrast
  • High Contrast is a Chrome extension that inverts/changes the color scheme of webpages to make them easier to read.