How the Free Scan Works
The free scan runs your page through axe-core, the open-source accessibility testing engine also used inside Chrome DevTools and by many enterprise accessibility teams. In under a minute, it loads the page, inspects the rendered DOM, and checks it against dozens of automated rules covering missing alt text, insufficient color contrast, missing form labels, invalid ARIA usage, keyboard traps, and more.
Every finding is mapped to the specific WCAG success criterion it affects, from 1.1.1 Non-text Content to 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value. That mapping is what powers your compliance score and the prioritized violation list in your results, so instead of a vague pass or fail, you get a clear picture of which WCAG 2.1 AA criteria your page currently fails and why.
Automated testing is fast and consistent, but it is not the whole picture. Tools like axe-core reliably catch structural and programmatic issues, but some WCAG criteria depend on human judgment: whether alt text is genuinely meaningful, whether a heading hierarchy makes logical sense, or whether a keyboard-only path through a multi-step form is actually usable. The free scan identifies WCAG 2.1 AA issues and gives you a real starting point — it is not a substitute for a full manual review of every page and workflow on your site.
What WCAG 2.1 AA Covers
WCAG 2.1 AA is the technical standard most often cited in accessibility complaints and litigation, and the benchmark referenced by ADA Title III guidance. It is organized around four principles, sometimes shortened to POUR:
Perceivable
Information and interface elements must be presentable in ways users can perceive — alt text for images, captions for video, and sufficient color contrast for low-vision users.
Operable
Interface components and navigation must be operable by keyboard alone, give users enough time to read and act, and avoid content that can trigger seizures.
Understandable
Text must be readable, pages must appear and behave in predictable ways, and forms must help users avoid and correct input mistakes.
Robust
Content must be built so it works reliably with current and future assistive technologies, including screen readers and browser accessibility APIs.
The free scan checks your page against automated rules mapped across all four principles, weighted by how frequently each type of violation shows up in real ADA demand letters and lawsuits.
Free Scan FAQ
Is the free scan really free?
Yes. Scanning a single page and viewing your compliance score, grade, and top violations costs nothing and does not require a credit card. Paid plans exist for scanning more pages, generating shareable PDF reports, and ongoing monitoring.
How accurate is an automated accessibility scan?
Automated tools like axe-core are highly reliable for the categories of issues they're built to detect, such as missing alt attributes, insufficient color contrast, and invalid ARIA markup — these rarely produce false positives. That said, automated testing covers a meaningful subset of WCAG 2.1 AA, not all of it. Criteria that depend on context, like whether alt text is actually descriptive or whether a multi-step form is logically ordered, require manual review to verify fully.
Does a clean scan mean my website is ADA compliant?
A clean automated scan means the page you tested passed the automated checks we ran at the time you ran them. It identifies WCAG 2.1 AA issues on that page and URL — it is not a legal compliance certification and does not cover every page, template, or user flow on your site. For broader coverage and a documented remediation roadmap, see our multi-page audit plans.
What's the difference between the free scan and a paid audit?
The free scan checks a single page and returns an instant score. A paid audit crawls up to 500 pages, aggregates violations across every template and page type, and produces a prioritized fix roadmap along with a downloadable PDF report you can share with your team.
How often should I re-scan my site?
Re-scan any time you launch a new page, redesign a template, or add a third-party widget such as a chat tool, review carousel, or booking form — these are common sources of new violations. Subscribers on monitoring plans have their site re-scanned automatically on a weekly or daily schedule so new issues are caught between manual reviews.