As you design, develop, or create digital content, use one more of the following methods to verify accessibility.
Checklists
Checklists are a quick and easy method to evaluate digital content for accessibility.
- Word and PowerPoint Accessibility Evaluation Checklist
- Easy Checks – A First Review of Web Accessibility
- WebAIM’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2 Checklist
- Web Content for Accessibility Quick Reference
- Checklist for Web Developers
Automated Checkers
Automated accessibility checkers review some accessibility guidelines and provide useful information.
Electronic Document Checkers
- Microsoft Accessibility Checker
- Acrobat Pro DC Accessibility Checker
- Create and verify PDF accessibility with Acrobat Pro
- PDF Accessibility Checker (PAC 3)
Web Accessibility Checkers
- Accessibility Insights
- aXe (the Accessibility Engine)
- Photosensitive Epilepsy Analysis Tool
- WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool
Visit Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools for a complete list of checkers. For info on how to check electronic documents, visit How to Make Your Content Accessible.
Color Checkers
To determine text legibility and visual contrast, use a color checker.
Assistive Technologies
Automated checkers are useful, but they cannot verify all issues. Testing with assistive technology such as screen readers can help identify accessibility problems and usability issues.
Try screen reader keyboard commands and gestures used to read and navigate content with the following screen readers on the Windows and Mac operating systems:
- Job Access With Speech (JAWS) – a popular screen reader for Windows.
- NonVisual Desktop Access (NVDA) – an open-source screen reader for Windows.
- VoiceOver – Apple’s built-in screen reader with macOS and iOS.
For website evaluations using screen readers, try WebAIM’s in-depth tutorials:
- Evaluate Web Accessibility using JAWS
- Evaluate Web Accessibility using NVDA
- Evaluate Web Accessibility using VoiceOver
Mobile Screen Readers
VoiceOver (iOS)
TalkBack (Android)