What an accessibility checker actually does
A checker examines a page or site and reports possible accessibility barriers. It may point to a missing image alternative, a low contrast color pair, or an unnamed control. That report is a starting list. A separate fixer may change selected markup or behavior; some products combine both jobs.
Disclosure and method (September 28, 2026): AmazingPlugins publishes WooCommerce Accessibility Fixer. This article uses W3C evaluation guidance, public vendor documentation, and our released 1.5.1 package. We did not benchmark competing products on a shared store. Examples describe possible tool behavior, not a test result from a particular vendor.
What happens during a scan
A browser-based checker inspects the page it can access. It applies rules to the rendered markup, styles, and accessible names, then reports findings. A crawler may repeat that work across URLs. Coverage depends on whether it can log in, open a mini-cart, select a variation, trigger a validation error, or reach a payment step.
Automated findings can be wrong or incomplete. A tool can detect that an image lacks an alt attribute. It cannot reliably decide what a product photo should say. The W3C explains that evaluation tools cannot determine accessibility by themselves.
What a fixer may change
These are examples of targeted changes. Check the exact product and release before assuming they are included:
- Add a product-image alt fallback when text is missing. Review the wording; a product title may not describe each image.
- Add an accessible name to a particular unlabeled input. A generic label is not a substitute for clear instructions.
- Add a working skip link and visible focus styling. Test the destination and every theme state.
- Adjust selected error messages and their announcement. Trigger real checkout errors to verify the result.
- Add or correct landmarks in a known template. Check for duplicate or misplaced landmarks.
- Change selected CSS for focus or error states. That does not measure the contrast of all text on the site.
A fix may be saved in content or theme code, produced by a server hook, or applied by CSS or JavaScript at runtime. All can change what a visitor gets. Ask what remains when the tool is switched off, and retest after a theme or extension update.
What the tool cannot decide for you
Someone still has to review the meaning of product-image alternatives, labels, link text, heading structure, and instructions. A person also needs to use the store: navigate a variable product with a keyboard, update the cart, handle a failed checkout, and finish payment with a screen reader. No clean scan proves those interactions work. WCAG 2.2 evaluates full pages and interactive states.
Documents, video captions, third-party payment fields, and custom components may fall outside a tool’s scope. Ask the vendor to list exclusions. For example, accessiBe documents limitations for some custom components and non-HTML content. That is useful purchasing information, not a reason to assume every competing tool has the same limits.
Checker, fixer, widget, or audit?
| Type | Typical job | Question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Checker | Reports potential failures | Which pages and states can it inspect? |
| Automated fixer | Changes selected markup or behavior | Which changes are saved and which run at page load? |
| Visitor widget | Offers controls; some also automate remediation | What changes on my product and checkout pages? |
| Human audit | Tests meaning and interaction | What flows and assistive technologies are included? |
The labels can overlap. UserWay describes automated widget remediation, and AudioEye offers automated fixes and expert services. Read the scope of the particular plan.
Where our plugin fits
WooCommerce Accessibility Fixer 1.5.1 has nine free, targeted fixers. They include product-image alt fallbacks, focus indicators, selected error messaging and form names, heading adjustments, landmarks, skip links, and selected modal keyboard behavior. Several use inline JavaScript or CSS. It is not a catalog scanner, contrast measurement tool, comprehensive checkout-label repair, or compliance-report generator. There is no released Pro tier.
Treat each enabled fixer as a change to inspect on your theme. It cannot write meaningful image descriptions or perform a human checkout test for you.
A short trial plan
- Save a baseline scan of a product, cart, and checkout page.
- List the dynamic states the scanner did not reach.
- Enable the candidate fix on staging and compare the page and behavior.
- Run a keyboard and screen-reader purchase, including an error and recovery.
- Log what improved, what failed, and who will repair the remainder.
Questions buyers ask
Does a checker make a store compliant?
A report alone cannot establish WCAG conformance. Use it with manual evaluation and remediation. The W3C report template shows how to record scope, methods, and findings.
Should I pay for an automated fixer?
Compare the current quote with the issues it actually resolves on your store. Ask about support, updates, and exclusions. Old generic price ranges are not reliable buying evidence.
Will it affect performance?
Measure before and after on your own theme. Impact depends on the exact plugin or script and how it loads; a category label does not provide a performance number.
Sources
- W3C: Selecting Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools
- W3C: WCAG 2.2
- W3C: Evaluation report template
- accessiBe: Technological limitations
- UserWay Accessibility Widget
- AudioEye product features