Free WCAG 2.1 Checker: Scan Your Website for Accessibility Issues (2026)
With the European Accessibility Act now enforced, thousands of businesses are urgently checking whether their websites meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA. The good news: you can run a free WCAG check in minutes. The important truth: free tools only catch 40–60% of issues. Here's what to use, what each tool actually finds, and what to do with the results.
⚠️ Important honesty: No free tool — or any tool — can tell you that your website is "100% WCAG compliant." Automated checkers detect technical violations; they cannot assess whether content is actually usable by someone with a disability. Use them as your first step, not your last.
What Does a WCAG Checker Actually Test?
WCAG 2.1 Level AA has 50 success criteria across four principles: Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust. Automated checkers can reliably test a subset of these — the ones with clear, objective pass/fail rules:
- Missing or empty
alttext on images - Colour contrast ratios below 4.5:1
- Missing
langattribute on the<html>element - Form inputs without associated
<label>elements - Missing page
<title>or non-descriptive titles - Invalid or duplicate HTML
idattributes - Incorrect ARIA attribute usage
- Empty links and buttons (no accessible name)
💡 What they cannot test: Whether alt text is meaningful, whether the keyboard navigation makes sense, whether the reading order is logical, or whether custom UI components actually work with a screen reader. These require manual testing.
The Best Free WCAG 2.1 Checkers (2026)
Here are the most widely used free tools, with an honest look at what each one does and doesn't do.
AccessPatch runs a full axe-core-powered WCAG 2.1 scan on your live website, auto-fixes the most common violations with one script tag, and generates your EAA-required Accessibility Statement. Scans every page visit automatically — not just a one-time snapshot.
- Continuous scanning (every page load)
- Auto-fixes common violations
- Generates EAA Accessibility Statement
- Weekly email compliance reports
- Fix suggestions with before/after code
- Free 14-day trial, no credit card
- Detects ~40–60% of WCAG issues (same as all automated tools)
- Manual audit needed for full compliance
Developed by WebAIM, WAVE is a browser extension that overlays visual indicators directly on your webpage. It's excellent for understanding where specific issues appear on the page.
- Visual overlay — see issues in context
- Free browser extension (Chrome, Firefox)
- No account needed
- Shows structure (headings, landmarks)
- One page at a time, manual only
- No automated monitoring
- No fix suggestions or code examples
- No compliance reporting
The axe-core engine powers most accessibility testing tools (including AccessPatch). The free browser extension gives you direct access to the same engine — without the dashboard, automation, or reporting.
- Industry-standard engine (zero false positives)
- Shows WCAG success criteria per issue
- Great for developer debugging
- Browser DevTools only — technical users
- No monitoring, no reporting
- Advanced features require paid plan ($)
Built into Chrome DevTools, Lighthouse provides a general performance and accessibility score. It uses a subset of axe-core rules and gives an "Accessibility Score" out of 100.
- Already in Chrome — zero setup
- Combines performance + accessibility
- Easy to run, good for quick checks
- Score is misleading — 100/100 ≠ WCAG compliant
- Fewer rules than axe or WAVE
- No continuous monitoring
A browser extension with a clean interface that highlights issues on your page. The free version gives a good overview; more detailed reports require a paid subscription.
- Clean, non-technical UI
- Issue prioritisation by severity
- Good for non-developers
- Full reports locked behind paid plans
- No fix suggestions in free version
- No auto-fix capability
Tool Comparison at a Glance
| Tool | Cost | Continuous Monitoring | Auto-Fix | Accessibility Statement | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AccessPatch | Free trial → $19/mo | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | EU businesses needing EAA compliance |
| WAVE | Free | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No | Visual debugging, one page at a time |
| axe DevTools | Free (basic) | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No | Developer issue identification |
| Lighthouse | Free | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No | Quick sanity check in Chrome |
| Siteimprove | Freemium | Paid only | ❌ No | ❌ No | Non-technical users |
How to Run a Free WCAG Check Right Now
Here is the fastest way to get a WCAG scan on your website in the next 5 minutes:
Option A — Browser Extension (WAVE or axe)
- Install the WAVE extension from the Chrome Web Store (free)
- Navigate to your homepage (or any key page — checkout, contact form, etc.)
- Click the WAVE icon in your browser toolbar
- A panel appears showing errors (red), alerts (yellow), and structural info (blue)
- Click any icon on the page to see the specific WCAG criterion it violates
- Repeat for each important page
Option B — AccessPatch (Continuous Monitoring)
- Register for a free 14-day trial at accesspatch.com
- Add your website URL in the dashboard
- Copy your unique script tag and paste it into your website's
<head> - Visit any page on your website — the scan runs automatically
- View your compliance score, violations list, and fix suggestions in the dashboard
- Generate your EAA Accessibility Statement in one click
Scan Your Website Free — No Setup Required
AccessPatch scans your site automatically and shows you exactly what to fix. Try it free for 14 days — no credit card, no technical knowledge needed.
Start Free WCAG Scan →Understanding Your WCAG Scan Results
Most tools categorise issues by severity. Here's how to interpret them:
| Severity | Meaning | Example | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🔴 Critical / Error | Definite WCAG failure — fix immediately | Image with no alt attribute | Fix first |
| 🟠 Serious / Warning | Likely failure — needs review | Low contrast text | Fix next |
| 🟡 Moderate / Alert | Potential issue — may need manual check | Redundant link text | Review manually |
| 🔵 Notice / Info | Informational — may or may not be a problem | Linked image with alt text | Manual review |
What to Do After Your Scan
Getting the scan results is step one. Here's how to act on them:
Step 1: Fix Critical errors first
Start with anything flagged as an Error or Critical. These are definite WCAG failures — they have a clear fix and are most likely to trigger enforcement complaints. Common quick wins:
- Missing alt text — add descriptive alt attributes to all images
- Missing form labels — associate every input with a
<label>element - Missing page title — ensure every page has a descriptive
<title>tag - Missing lang attribute — add
lang="en"(or appropriate language) to your<html>tag
Step 2: Address colour contrast failures
Low contrast is one of the most common WCAG failures and one of the most impactful for users. Use a contrast ratio checker (WebAIM has a free one) to verify that your text meets the 4.5:1 minimum ratio against its background.
Step 3: Publish your Accessibility Statement
Even before you've fixed every issue, publish an Accessibility Statement. This is an EAA legal requirement — and demonstrating good faith by acknowledging known issues significantly reduces your enforcement risk.
Step 4: Address warnings and alerts
After critical issues are resolved, work through warnings. Many require manual judgment — for example, a tool may flag an image alt text as "possibly insufficient," but only a human can judge whether the description is meaningful.
Step 5: Test with keyboard and screen reader
The final step automated tools cannot do for you. Navigate your website using only the Tab key. Then test with a screen reader (NVDA on Windows is free; VoiceOver is built into Mac and iPhone). This reveals issues no automated scanner can detect.
✅ Progress over perfection: Regulators are not looking for immediate 100% compliance. They are looking for evidence of genuine effort — a published Accessibility Statement, active scanning, and documented remediation progress. An automated fix tool + statement puts you ahead of the vast majority of businesses.
WCAG 2.1 vs WCAG 2.2 — Which Should You Check Against?
WCAG 2.2 was published in October 2023 and adds 9 new success criteria (and removes 1 from 2.1). However, the European Accessibility Act references WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the primary standard, so that remains the legal benchmark for EAA compliance.
That said, meeting WCAG 2.2 is increasingly recommended as best practice. Most modern accessibility checkers (including AccessPatch) test against both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a free WCAG checker enough for EAA compliance? ▼
No automated checker — free or paid — is sufficient on its own for EAA compliance. Automated tools catch 40–60% of WCAG issues. You also need a published Accessibility Statement, a feedback mechanism, and ideally a manual audit for complex UI components. Free tools are a great starting point.
What is a good WCAG accessibility score? ▼
Different tools use different scoring systems. Lighthouse gives a 0–100 score, but a score of 100 does not mean WCAG compliance — it only means there are no detectable automated errors. AccessPatch shows a compliance score based on the ratio of violations to total elements scanned. Any score should be treated as a relative benchmark, not a compliance certificate.
How often should I run a WCAG scan? ▼
At minimum, after every significant website update (new pages, design changes, new features). Ideally, continuously — tools like AccessPatch scan every page on every visit, so you get ongoing visibility without manual effort. A static "one-off" scan quickly becomes out of date.
Can I use WAVE or axe to prove compliance to a regulator? ▼
A scan report from any tool can support your compliance documentation, but it cannot prove compliance. Regulators assess actual accessibility — including manual testing aspects that automated tools cannot evaluate. The strongest evidence of compliance is a professional accessibility audit report combined with a current, honest Accessibility Statement.
What's the difference between WCAG 2.1 AA and AAA? ▼
WCAG has three conformance levels: A (minimum), AA (standard), and AAA (enhanced). The EAA requires Level AA as the legal minimum. Level AAA includes additional requirements that are not always feasible for all content — it is not required by the EAA, though some organisations aim for it as best practice.
Stop Scanning One Page at a Time
AccessPatch scans every page automatically, auto-fixes common violations, and generates your EAA Accessibility Statement — all for $19/month. Try free for 14 days.
Start Free 14-Day Trial — No Credit Card →