The Ultimate Guide to Accessibility Testing Tools: Ensuring an Inclusive Web Experience

In today’s digital-first world, creating inclusive experiences is no longer optional – it’s essential. Accessibility testing ensures that websites and applications can be used by everyone, including people with disabilities.

It helps identify accessibility problems in websites and applications that may prevent people with visual, auditory, motor, or cognitive impairments from accessing content or completing tasks. It’s not just about better design – it’s about building experiences that are legally compliant, and most importantly, inclusive and equitable.

From screen reader compatibility to keyboard navigation and colour contrast, this testing helps developers identify and remove barriers that prevent equal access to content and functionality. Accessibility compliance with the WCAG guidelines is critical not just for legal protection, but for building user trust.

There are two core approaches to accessibility testing: manual and automated. While automated tools can quickly flag common issues, manual testing is necessary to catch more nuanced problems that require human judgment, such as meaningful alt text or logical content flow. Together, they form a more complete and effective strategy.

Integrating accessibility testing into the development lifecycle brings clear benefits: it reduces costly remediation, helps meet legal requirements, improves overall user experience, and broadens your reach to a more diverse audience.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the tools, techniques, and best workflow practices that can help you ensure your digital products are usable by all – right from the start.

Top Automated Accessibility Testing Tools

Automated accessibility tools are a great starting point for making sure your website or digital product works well for everyone – including people with disabilities.

These web accessibility evaluation tools scan your content to catch common accessibility issues, like poor colour contrast, missing alt text, non-semantic HTML, missing image descriptions, or buttons that don’t work with a keyboard.

While they don’t catch everything, they help teams spot problems early and fix them faster. They also help generate accessibility reports that can guide your team’s remediation efforts. Below are some of the top tools that can help make your website more inclusive, along with how they fit into different workflows.

Many tools also offer integration through an API (application programming interface), enabling continuous testing and results aggregation into a shared accessibility dashboard. Here are some of the top automated accessibility tools we recommend:

Pa11y

What it is: Pa11y is a free and open-source tool that checks websites for accessibility issues based on the WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) – the global standards used to make digital content accessible to people with disabilities. It runs tests and gives you a list of things that need fixing against WCAG 2.0 and WCAG 2.1, like missing labels or colour contrast problems.

Why it’s useful: You can add Pa11y to your normal development process, so it automatically checks your site while you’re building it. Pa11y can be run from the command line, making it ideal for developers integrating tests into continuous delivery pipelines. It’s also great for teams who want to build accessibility from the start without a lot of extra steps.

Level Access

What it is: Level Access is a full-featured accessibility platform used by large companies. It helps you test your websites, web applications, and even documents to make sure they’re usable by everyone.

Why it’s useful: It uses smart, AI-powered scanning to detect issues and tell you which ones matter most. This helps your team focus on fixing the biggest problems first and makes sure nothing important slips through the cracks.

Siteimprove

What it is: Siteimprove is a tool that helps you keep your website accessible, up-to-date, and easy to use. It checks for accessibility errors and shows you how to fix them, step by step. Helpfully, Siteimprove offers a browser extension plugin for Chrome that allows users to test live web pages directly from the browser.

Why it’s useful: It runs scans automatically and gives you clear reports. You can also connect it to your content management system (like WordPress or Drupal), so you can fix things without leaving your normal editing tools.

BrowserStack Accessibility Testing

What it is: BrowserStack is best known for letting developers test websites on different browsers and devices. Now it also includes accessibility testing, so you can catch issues no matter how someone is visiting your site.

Why it’s useful: It scans your site in real-time and lets you test how it works with screen readers – tools used by people who are blind or visually impaired. This helps you better understand how your site feels for different users.

LambdaTest

What it is: LambdaTest is a cloud-based platform that helps you test websites on lots of browsers and devices. It now includes accessibility testing features built into its tools.

Why it’s useful: You can run accessibility checks during both manual reviews and automated test runs. It also works with popular testing tools and fits right into fast-moving development teams that want to stay on top of accessibility.

Manual Accessibility Testing Tools

Automated tools can catch a lot of accessibility issues, but there are some things only a real person can spot. That’s where manual testing comes in.

These hands-on methods let testers check how a website actually feels to use, especially for those with disabilities. The tools below are part of any good accessibility testing toolkit, helping improve usability across different devices and platforms.

Screen Readers

Why they matter: Screen readers are essential tools used by people who are blind or have low vision. These programmes read out the content of a website – including headings, links, and image descriptions – so users can navigate using audio cues instead of visuals. Crucially, they make website accessibility possible for users who rely on sound rather than visuals.

Popular readers include:

• JAWS (Job Access With Speech): Common in corporate environments, especially on Microsoft systems.
• NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access): A free, open-source reader for Windows – great for new testers.
• VoiceOver: Built into iOS devices and Mac computers, making it easy to test how your site works across different systems.

Use a web browser like Firefox, Chrome, or Safari with a reader enabled to hear how your site performs. Does the flow make sense? Are all images and buttons described clearly? This kind of feedback is vital.

Be sure to test on both desktop and mobile platforms – including Android – to assess usability across operating systems.

Colour Contrast Checkers

Why it matters: Not everyone experiences colour in the same way. For users with visual impairments like colour blindness, low contrast between text and background can make your content unreadable.

Contrast checkers serve as visual validators to confirm that colour choices meet WCAG conformance levels. Contrast ratio is the key metric here – it measures the difference between text and background colours. The higher the ratio, the easier it is to read.

Tools to try:

• WCAG Colour Contrast Checker: A simple tool to test if your colour choices meet web accessibility standards.
• Contrast Ratio by Lea Verou: Easy to use and helpful for designers and developers alike.
• Accessible brand colour palette checker: Studio Noel’s colour checkers help you ensure that your brand colour palette is used in an accessible way, complying with WCAG guidance.

If you’re building with JavaScript or CSS, use these tools to check the colour combinations in your UI components. And don’t forget to test across different web browsers, since colour rendering can vary slightly.

Keyboard Accessibility Testing

Why it matters: Many users navigate websites using only a keyboard, no mouse or touchscreen. This includes users with physical disabilities, visual impairments, or even those using assistive technology like voice control.

How to test:
Use just your keyboard (especially the Tab, Enter, and arrow keys) to move through your site. Pay attention to:

• Whether interactive elements like links and buttons are reachable.
• Whether the order makes sense.
• If the focus is clearly visible (usually a highlight or border).

Tools that help:

• Built-in developer tools in Firefox, Chrome, and Microsoft Edge offer accessibility inspection features.
• The Accessibility Insights and axe DevTools Chrome extensions also include keyboard navigation testing tools.

By including keyboard testing in your toolkit, you’re helping ensure your site is usable for everyone, not just those using a mouse or touchscreen.

Integrating Accessibility Testing into Development

Accessibility shouldn’t be an afterthought – it should be part of your process from day one. Integrating accessibility testing into your development workflow helps ensure that your digital experiences are inclusive, functional, and aligned with modern standards.

Just like mood boards bring visual clarity to design, accessibility tools bring clarity to how users will experience your product, regardless of ability. Here’s how to build it into your team’s way of working.

Follow the Best Practices for Incorporating Testing Tools

When accessibility tools are thoughtfully introduced into the creative process, they empower teams to build better, more inclusive products – right from the start.

1. Begin at the design phase

Accessibility begins long before a single line of code is written. Make inclusive thinking part of wireframes, colour palettes, and content strategy. Designing with accessibility in mind helps avoid costly retrofits later and ensures every user is considered from the outset.

2. Use tools as creative guides, not just checklists

Tools like axe, WAVE, or Lighthouse are excellent for spotting issues, but they also serve as learning opportunities. Instead of relying solely on automated checks, use their feedback to understand the “why” behind each flag. It’s about continuous improvement, not just passing a test.

3. Blend automation with human insight

Automated tools can catch things like colour contrast and missing alt text, but not nuance. Combine their speed with thoughtful manual reviews, including screen reader tests and keyboard navigation walkthroughs. This hybrid approach helps surface usability issues that machines might miss.

4. Document and share standards internally

Create internal accessibility guides and make them part of your onboarding and development rituals. Whether it’s a shared checklist, a design system, or coding standards, these resources help keep teams aligned and consistent.

5. Make accessibility a shared responsibility

It’s not just the developer’s job. Designers, writers, marketers, and strategists each have a role to play in ensuring content is usable by everyone. When accessibility becomes a team mindset, it shows up naturally in your work.

Automate Testing Through Continuous Integration

Making accessibility part of your build pipeline isn’t just smart – it’s sustainable. Automation ensures that inclusive thinking scales as your project grows.

1. Integrate automated scans into your pipeline

Tools like Axe-core, Lighthouse, and Pa11y can run accessibility checks on every pull request or deploy. This turns testing into a habit, not a hassle.

2. Block critical issues before they go live

Treat accessibility like performance or security – non-negotiable. Set minimum standards for releases so serious issues never slip through unnoticed.

3. Catch issues early with pre-commit checks

Add accessibility linting or small tools to your local dev setup. The earlier you spot problems, the easier (and cheaper) they are to fix.

4. Keep your pipeline collaborative, not restrictive

Automated tests are only one piece of the puzzle. Use them to inform and guide, not frustrate. If something fails, ask why, and evolve your approach as needed.

5. Track improvements over time

Accessibility is never “done.” Use reports and audits to monitor progress, celebrate wins, and keep pushing your standards higher with each release.

Equip Your Team with Training and Resources

Empowered teams build better products. When your people feel confident in their accessibility knowledge, inclusive thinking becomes part of the craft, not a separate checklist.

1. Host hands-on learning sessions

Interactive workshops help demystify accessibility. Seeing how a screen reader works – or trying to navigate your product without a mouse – brings theory to life in a way documentation alone can’t.

2. Create a central resource hub

Give your team access to curated tools, tips, and references they can turn to in their day-to-day. A well-organised Notion page, internal wiki, or Figma file can go a long way.

3. Invest in ongoing education

Support your team in taking industry-recognised courses or certifications. Whether it’s through Deque, W3C, or specialised UX training, the return is always worth it.

4. Make it part of onboarding

Don’t wait until a new team member is mid-project. Introduce your accessibility values and tools from day one so it’s baked into how they think and work.

5. Keep the conversation going

Accessibility is an evolving space. Host regular team discussions to share insights, tools, and challenges. These small moments of learning help maintain momentum and grow confidence across your team.

Accessibility in Action: BookTrust’s Case Study

BookTrust’s brand refresh is a clear example of how accessibility can enhance both impact and identity. As a charity dedicated to reaching children and families, it was essential that their brand could connect with everyone.

Our accessibility audit revealed opportunities to strengthen this connection, guiding updates across typography, colour use, and layout, ensuring WCAG AA compliance without compromising creativity.

The result is a system that’s not only visually engaging but meaningfully inclusive. From campaign materials to digital templates and annual reports, every element was reimagined with accessibility in mind, allowing BookTrust to communicate more clearly, consistently, and confidently across audiences.

Building a Truly Inclusive Web, Together

Accessibility testing is essential to building digital experiences that everyone can use, no exception. By combining automated web accessibility evaluation tools with thoughtful manual testing, teams can catch a wide range of issues early and ensure accessibility compliance with WCAG guidelines.

This hybrid approach not only reduces costly remediation but also creates more meaningful, inclusive interactions that resonate with diverse audiences.

Remember, accessibility is a shared responsibility that spans design, development, and content creation. Making it part of your everyday workflow empowers your team to build products that truly work for all users.

Ready to take your accessibility efforts further? Studio Noel offers expert guidance and tailored tools to help you craft digital experiences that are accessible, engaging, and compliant, right from the start. Let’s build a web that’s welcoming to everyone.