We breakdown the best accessibility tools in the Chrome Web Store based on real user reviews. Think of these tools as specialized software that can help practitioners, developers, and designers during manual testing or formal audits.
| Extension Name | Best Use for Auditors | Best Use for Developers |
|---|---|---|
| IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker | Formal compliance assessments with clear WCAG mapping for detailed audit reports | Seamless DevTools integration with CI/CD pipeline support for shift-left testing |
| Accessibility Insights for Web | Comprehensive WCAG 2.2 AA assessment workflow with step-by-step guided evaluation | FastPass for rapid five-minute validation of critical accessibility issues |
| DigitalA11Y Tublets | Visual validation of semantic structure and navigation order without code inspection | Focus highlights for keyboard testing and tabindex attribute identification |
| HalfAccessible – Accessibility Toolkit | Automated scanning for missing aria-labels, alt text, and heading hierarchy issues with HTML code copying for documentation | Real-time feedback on target sizes, text spacing, and color contrast during development workflow |
| A11y Quick Check | Initial triage and preliminary assessment for efficient audit time allocation | Accessible entry point for teams with limited accessibility expertise |
Table of Contents
IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker
IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker is an open-source extension that integrates into DevTools and uses IBM’s accessibility rule engine to detect issues in websites and applications. The tool offers both automated checking capabilities and integrated experience that streamlines the process of identifying and addressing accessibility issues. It can also integrate into automated pipelines for continuous testing with its NodeJS module that works with parsing engines like Selenium, Puppeteer, and Playwright.
Best Use Case: Accessibility Auditors
For accessibility auditors, this tool excels in formal compliance assessments. Auditors and test professionals can more easily associate issues with WCAG requirements, to document in an Accessibility Conformance Report or to pass on to a developer as individual issues for a particular requirement. The structured, rule-based findings directly map to WCAG success criteria, making it invaluable for creating detailed audit reports. The extension is easy to use for quick audits, and it catches a similar amount of issues compared to other best-in-class tools, even surfacing some content issues that we wouldn’t expect an automated tool to detect.
Auditors particularly benefit from the tool’s comprehensive documentation and clear issue categorization, which enables them to provide clients with actionable recommendations tied to specific accessibility standards.
Best Use Case: Developers
For developers, the IBM tool provides seamless integration into existing workflows. Developers can work within their usual browser environment without the need for additional software or platforms, reducing the learning curve and allowing for a more intuitive workflow. The “Keyboard Checker Mode” is great for visualizing the tab order of a page, although manual keyboard testing is still required.
The tool’s integration with CI/CD pipelines makes it particularly valuable for development teams practicing shift-left accessibility testing, allowing them to catch issues before they reach production.
Chrome Web Store Reviews
“Very nice tool, Previously I have used for WCAG 2.1 AA it works very sooth and perfect result for me.
but facing problem this time, for WCAG 2.2 AA showing rendering error when scanning, if any workaround for the same please let me know…”
– Nitin Shinde
“Love this tool. It’s the first thing I use when evaluating a web application to see how accessible it is. It will not only identify the violations & highlight them in the DOM, but will also provide fix suggestions as well as links on where to learn more..”
– Filipe Barraso
Accessibility Insights for Web
Accessibility Insights for Web is a free extension from Microsoft that offers two primary workflows: FastPass provides a quick scan with automated checks and tab-stop analysis, while Assessment walks through WCAG 2.1 AA criteria step by step. The tool now includes support for WCAG 2.2 AA conformance and features a mixture of assisted and manual test steps to cover the newest criteria.
Best Use Case: Accessibility Auditors
The Assessment workflow is specifically designed for comprehensive audits. An assessment is a comprehensive process that measures compliance with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 Level AA success criteria, currently including 24 tests that cover one or more accessibility requirements. The assessment includes automated, assisted, and manual test types, with automated tools identifying instances automatically, assisted tools actively helping identify or evaluate instances, and manual tools providing instructions for identifying and evaluating instances.
Professional auditors value the structured approach that ensures consistent, methodical evaluation across all WCAG success criteria. The tool provides links to relevant WCAG success criteria, sufficient techniques, and common failures, along with detailed guidance about requirements from a user’s perspective.
Best Use Case: Developers
FastPass is a lightweight, two-step process that helps developers identify common, high-impact accessibility issues in less than five minutes. For developers working under tight deadlines, this rapid validation workflow is invaluable for catching the most critical issues before code reviews or deployments.
The improved Automated Checks experience can be utilized from FastPass, Quick Assess as well as Assessment, making it flexible for different development scenarios. The tool’s integration with developer workflows supports the concept of shifting accessibility left in the development cycle.
Chrome Web Store Reviews
“Not trusting any one particular tool I choose to use lots of accessibility checkers and compare their reports. I am finding Accessibility Insights for Web’s features, polished interface and accuracy refreshing. With Section 508 Refresh deadline looming and a mountain of content to review/remediate, accuracy is paramount. I can’t afford to waste time on false reports or bad reporting tools.”
– Warren Diprose
“I’ve tried a variety of accessibility tools and this one has beat them all.
It offers the most insights as well as the best interface.”
– Kyle Charlton
DigitalA11Y Tublets
DigitalA11Y Tublets is a Chrome extension that helps developers and accessibility experts identify accessibility defects with ease by highlighting semantic structures, form fields, images with/without alt text, and various accessibility-related elements visually on the page. It features highlighting semantic structures, form defects, images missing alt text, CSS background images, and more, making it ideal for developers, testers, and designers.
Best Use Case: Accessibility Auditors
For auditors conducting manual reviews, Tublets provides immediate visual feedback about page structure and semantic elements. Auditors can use the DigitalA11Y Tublets Chrome Extension to check headings, images with alt text, and form labels visually. The extension illuminates semantic structures like tables, landmarks, headings, and lists, helping auditors quickly assess whether page structure follows accessibility best practices.
The visual overlay approach allows auditors to quickly validate semantic structure and navigation order without having to inspect underlying code, making the audit process more efficient and comprehensive.
Best Use Case: Developers and Testers
The extension assists in conducting keyboard testing with focus highlights and helps identify elements utilizing the tabindex attribute. For developers, this visual feedback is invaluable during code reviews and testing phases. It saves time in manual accessibility audits and is ideal for novices and non-screen reader accessibility testers as a starting point.
It facilitates testing for WCAG 2.1 SC 1.3.5 Autocomplete, WCAG 2.2 SC 2.5.8 Target Size (Minimum), and WCAG 2.1 SC 1.4.12: Text Spacing, making it a comprehensive tool for developers testing against current accessibility standards.
Chrome Web Store Reviews
“The DigitalA11Y Tublets is a game-changer for web accessibility audits, effortlessly identifying key elements like headings, lists, forms, images and other essential elements on web pages. What sets Tublets apart is its user-friendly interface. It’s incredibly clear and straightforward to use, even for those who might not be accessibility experts.”
– Meghna Kundu
“I highly recommend for Accessibility testing. It is a nice collection of wonderful bookmarklets. Before this extension, my bookmark toolbar was crammed with bookmarklets, but now this single extension does the magic of many good bookmarklets”
– Prem Nawaz
HalfAccessible – Accessibility Toolkit
HalfAccessible is a comprehensive Chrome extension that streamlines web accessibility testing through automated scanning and visual validation tools. The toolkit combines target size checking, text spacing analysis, accessibility issue detection, color contrast recommendations, and HTML code copying functionality to help identify potential accessibility barriers during development and testing phases.
Best Use Case: Accessibility Auditors
For auditors conducting accessibility evaluations, HalfAccessible provides automated scanning capabilities that highlight potential issues like missing aria-labels, alt text, and heading hierarchy problems. The extension’s HTML inspector allows auditors to quickly copy code snippets for documentation purposes, while the target size checker helps validate interactive elements against WCAG guidelines. The text spacing analysis feature assists in evaluating readability factors that may affect users with cognitive disabilities.
The toolkit’s automated approach helps auditors efficiently identify areas that may require further manual testing, though the results serve as starting points rather than definitive assessments.
Best Use Case: Designers and Developers
Designers and developers benefit from the extension’s real-time feedback during the design and development process. The target size checker provides immediate visual feedback on interactive elements, while the color contrast recommendations help adjust design choices that may present readability challenges. The text spacing validator allows developers to test different spacing configurations to improve readability.
The hover-to-copy HTML functionality enables quick code inspection and debugging, making it easier to understand how accessibility features are implemented. The automated scanning helps catch common oversights during development, allowing teams to address potential issues early in the workflow.
Chrome Web Store Reviews
“This extension has become an essential part of my web development toolkit. It’s incredibly accurate in checking target sizes, and the upcoming reporting feature is a game-changer. Highly recommended!”
– Irfan Rehman
“As a designer, I’ve been struggling with accessibility audits for target size. This extension made it so much easier to ensure our websites are inclusive.”
– Mahak Choudary
A11y Quick Check
A11y Quick Check is a streamlined accessibility testing extension that focuses on rapid identification of common accessibility issues. A11y Quick Check is designed for quick and easy accessibility checks, providing a simple way to identify common accessibility issues without requiring deep technical knowledge. The extension offers a straightforward interface that highlights issues and provides brief explanations.
Best Use Case: Accessibility Auditors
For auditors performing initial triage or preliminary assessments, A11y Quick Check serves as an efficient first-pass tool. The extension scans for basic accessibility problems like missing alt text and insufficient color contrast, highlighting issues directly on the webpage and providing brief explanations and suggestions for fixing them. This makes it valuable for auditors who need to quickly assess the overall accessibility health of a site before conducting more detailed manual evaluations.
The tool’s simplicity allows auditors to rapidly identify which areas of a website require more intensive testing, helping them allocate their time more effectively during comprehensive audits.
Best Use Case: Developers and Testers
A11y Quick Check is simple to use and helps find basic accessibility problems with clear feedback. It’s great for people without technical skills but might miss more complex issues. For developers who are new to accessibility or working on projects with limited accessibility expertise, this tool provides an accessible entry point.
Chrome Web Store Reviews
“This is the most comprehensive set of A11y tools I have used for testing web UI, I use it on a daily basis when testing websites.”
– Corey Collins
“Incredibly easy to use accessibility scanner! Useful information for accessibility specialists, designers, developers and SEO experts.”
– Jordan Morris
Insights
We’ve covered some excellent accessibility tools for practitioners. If your organization needs a complete tracking solution, or if you’re an auditor who wants to efficiently manage issue validation and feedback, our Accessibility Tracker platform brings it all together. Plus, built-in AI helps teams and developers tackle fixes more effectively.
