How to Test Website Accessibility Without Expensive Tools

You Don't Need an Expensive Audit to Find Most Issues

Enterprise accessibility audits from specialized firms can cost $5,000 to $30,000 depending on site complexity. For many small businesses, startups, and independent developers, that is not a realistic option. The good news: a systematic approach using free tools will surface the majority of WCAG 2.1 AA failures before you ever need to engage an auditor.

Automated tools catch roughly 30–40% of WCAG issues. The rest require human judgment — but a non-expert can still find many of them by following structured test procedures.

Layer 1: Automated Scanning (15 Minutes)

Start with automated tools to clear the obvious, high-volume violations before spending time on manual testing.

ADA Compliance Checker (Chrome Extension)

The fastest option. Install the extension, open any page, and the scan runs automatically. It checks 12 categories including images, forms, headings, links, color contrast, keyboard, ARIA, tables, language, media, page title, and interactive elements. Violating elements are highlighted with color-coded outlines directly on the page. Clicking any highlighted element opens a side panel with the specific WCAG failure and criterion reference.

axe DevTools Browser Extension

A well-respected free extension that integrates with Chrome and Firefox DevTools. Open DevTools, go to the axe tab, run the scan. It produces a categorized list of violations with impact ratings and suggested fixes.

Lighthouse (Built into Chrome)

Open Chrome DevTools, go to the Lighthouse tab, check "Accessibility," and generate a report. Lighthouse uses the axe engine under the hood. A score of 100 does not mean full WCAG conformance — it means all automated tests passed, which is a subset of what WCAG requires.

Layer 2: Keyboard Testing (30 Minutes)

Keyboard testing catches a category of issues that automated tools frequently miss: focus management, keyboard traps, and missing keyboard event handlers on custom interactive elements.

Put your mouse aside and navigate your entire site using only the keyboard. Use these keys:

• Tab — Move forward through focusable elements
• Shift+Tab — Move backward
• Enter/Space — Activate buttons and links
• Arrow keys — Navigate within components (menus, tabs, radio groups)
• Escape — Close modals and dropdowns

At each interactive element, ask: Can I see where I am? Can I activate this? Can I get out of it? Does the focus order make sense? Any "no" answer is a failure.

Layer 3: Color Contrast Manual Spot Checks

Automated tools check contrast on static elements. But some interfaces have contrast issues in states that are not tested: placeholder text in form inputs, hover states on navigation links, text inside highlighted table rows, and error states.

The free Colour Contrast Analyser desktop app (available from TPGi) lets you use an eyedropper to pick any two colors from your screen and get an instant contrast ratio.

Layer 4: Basic Screen Reader Testing (1–2 Hours)

You do not need to become an expert screen reader user. A basic pass with a screen reader will reveal whether your major structural issues are resolved.

• Windows: NVDA (free, from NVAccess) + Firefox is the most common real-world pairing.
• macOS: VoiceOver is built into the OS. Enable it with Command+F5. Use Safari with VoiceOver.
• Chrome (any OS): ChromeVox extension is available from the Chrome Web Store.

Listen for: images described meaningfully, form labels announced before input fields, buttons described accurately, headings used as navigation landmarks, and error messages announced when forms are submitted.

Layer 5: Zoom and Text Scaling

WCAG 1.4.4 requires text to be resizable up to 200% without losing content or functionality. WCAG 1.4.10 requires content to reflow without horizontal scrolling when the viewport is simulated at 320px wide. Test both: zoom your browser to 200% and check for content overlap, then zoom to 400% and check for horizontal scroll.

Building a Repeatable Process

Accessibility regression is easy to introduce. The most sustainable approach is to integrate one automated scan tool into your CI/CD pipeline, establish a manual testing checklist for QA on each release, and designate a developer to own accessibility as a product responsibility rather than a periodic compliance exercise.