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WordPress accessibility plugins and themes, without the toolbar

The best-known lists of WordPress accessibility plugins are full of toolbar widgets. This one holds only plugins that check your content or repair your markup, read on wordpress.org, on each maker's site and in the plugin code itself, plus the theme route that fixes the most at once.

Line drawing of a laptop page with its top skip bar ringed in orange and three small tiles beside it
Fig. 1The skip link bar at the top of a page is the first stop a theme should give the Tab key

The verdict by use case

  • Best checker for a site you run yourself

    Accessibility Checker (Equalize Digital)

    It checks every save against WCAG 2.2, keeps its results on your server, and adds nothing for visitors to switch on.

  • Best when several people write for the site

    Editoria11y

    Authors see plain-language tips as they type, and the editor-in-chief sees every open issue in one report.

  • Best stopgap for an old theme you cannot replace yet

    WP Accessibility (Joe Dolson)

    It patches the skip link, field labels and page language for free while you plan the theme change that fixes them for good.

Side by side

Scroll sideways to see all vendors.

How the WordPress plugins compare on checking, fixing and what visitors get
RequirementAccessibility Checker (Equalize Digital)Editoria11ySa11yWP Accessibility (Joe Dolson)
Flags problems while you edit or previewYesYesYesCheck with the vendor
Lists issues across the site, not one page at a timeYesYesNot statedNot stated
Says it tests against WCAG 2.2YesNot statedNot statedNot stated
Applies fixes for common theme faults (skip link, labels, page language)YesNoNot statedYes
Has no visitor toolbar, not even as an optionYesYesYesNo
Results stay on your own server or in your browserYesYesYesNot stated

The vendors

Accessibility Checker (Equalize Digital)

What it is
A checker that scans each post when you save it, shows the problems in the editor, and can switch on 12 fixes in its free version.
Who it fits
A WordPress site run by one or two people; the whole-site scan and report come with the paid plans.
  • Flags problems while you edit or previewYes
  • Lists issues across the site, not one page at a timeYes
  • Says it tests against WCAG 2.2Yes
  • Applies fixes for common theme faults (skip link, labels, page language)Yes
  • Has no visitor toolbar, not even as an optionYes
  • Results stay on your own server or in your browserYes

Accessibility Checker (Equalize Digital) website

Editoria11y

What it is
A content checker from Princeton's web team that marks problems as authors type and collects them in a site-wide report.
Who it fits
A site with several writers; it checks what they write and leaves contrast and code faults to other tools.
  • Flags problems while you edit or previewYes
  • Lists issues across the site, not one page at a timeYes
  • Says it tests against WCAG 2.2Not stated
  • Applies fixes for common theme faults (skip link, labels, page language)No
  • Has no visitor toolbar, not even as an optionYes
  • Results stay on your own server or in your browserYes

Editoria11y website

Sa11y

What it is
A free, open-source checker, first built at Toronto Metropolitan University, that highlights issues with a short tooltip when you preview a page.
Who it fits
A quick look at one page in preview before you publish it, at no cost and with nothing sent elsewhere.
  • Flags problems while you edit or previewYes
  • Lists issues across the site, not one page at a timeNot stated
  • Says it tests against WCAG 2.2Not stated
  • Applies fixes for common theme faults (skip link, labels, page language)Not stated
  • Has no visitor toolbar, not even as an optionYes
  • Results stay on your own server or in your browserYes

Sa11y website

WP Accessibility (Joe Dolson)

What it is
A free plugin that patches common theme faults, such as a missing skip link, unlabelled search and comment fields, and a missing page language.
Who it fits
An older theme you cannot replace yet. Its maker says it is not meant to make a site meet any guideline; leave its optional toolbar off.
  • Flags problems while you edit or previewCheck with the vendor
  • Lists issues across the site, not one page at a timeNot stated
  • Says it tests against WCAG 2.2Not stated
  • Applies fixes for common theme faults (skip link, labels, page language)Yes
  • Has no visitor toolbar, not even as an optionNo
  • Results stay on your own server or in your browserNot stated

WP Accessibility (Joe Dolson) website

Three kinds of accessibility plugin, and the one we left out

Search the WordPress plugin directory for “accessibility” and three different products come back under one word. Telling them apart is most of the choice.

  • Checkers read your posts and pages and tell you what to fix: Accessibility Checker, Editoria11y and Sa11y. You make the fix, in the content or the theme, so it stays fixed.
  • Patchers repair a short list of faults that many themes share, such as a missing skip link or an unlabelled search box: WP Accessibility, and the fixes built into Accessibility Checker.
  • Toolbars and overlay widgets put a button on every page that opens contrast, text size and similar settings for the visitor, often sold as a way to make the site compliant. None is listed as a toolbar. WP Accessibility, listed for its patches, also ships an optional display toolbar that is off when installed; leave it off.

Why toolbar plugins are left out

The FTC alleged that accessiBe claimed its accessWidget plug-in could make any website WCAG-compliant when it did not, and in April 2025 it approved a final order. The order bars accessiBe from claiming its automated products can make any website WCAG-compliant, or keep it compliant over time, without competent and reliable evidence. Read the FTC's analysis in the Federal Register and its announcement of the final order.

We left out one checker for the same reason: WP ADA Compliance Check says its paid version “includes a web accessibility widget”. A toolbar is sold as the fix while your site's own code stays as it was, which our guide to accessibility overlays explains in full. If you are replacing one, start with what to use instead of an overlay.

Where the fix happens decides how long it lasts

Two plugins on this page apply fixes, and we read their code to see how. Accessibility Checker writes some into the HTML that WordPress sends, through WordPress's own hooks: the skip link, the comment and search labels, the page language and the focus outline. Others, such as link underlines and the new-window fix, run as a script in the browser. WP Accessibility adds its skip links, field labels and page language with a script that runs in the visitor's browser once the page has loaded.

A fix made by script is not what we call an overlay. An overlay is a third-party widget or toolbar script sold as making a site conform without changing its source; WP Accessibility's maker says plainly that it is not meant to make a site meet any guideline, and it patches a short list of named faults.

Scroll sideways to see every column.

Where a WordPress accessibility fix is made, and what that means for it
Where the change is madeExampleStill there if the plugin is switched offIn the HTML a crawler or code checker reads
Your theme's own templatesThe theme prints its skip link and labels its search field itselfYesYes
A plugin hook in the HTML WordPress sendsAccessibility Checker's skip link and comment and search labelsNoYes
A script in the visitor's browser after the page loadsWP Accessibility's page language, skip links and field labelsNoNo
A toolbar or overlay widgetButtons for contrast and text size, plus changes a script makes for the visitorNoNo

Both are better than nothing, and neither adds a toolbar. The difference shows up in testing: WP Accessibility's own FAQ warns that “not all accessibility testing tools will be aware of the fixes” (its wordpress.org FAQ). And every patch ends the day the plugin is switched off, so a fix the theme makes itself is the one to aim for.

Turn each fix on in one plugin only

Accessibility Checker and WP Accessibility both offer a skip link, field labels and a page language fix. If you run both, switch each fix on in one of them, then press Tab on your home page to check there is one skip link, not two. Our skip links guide shows what a working one looks like.

The theme matters more than any plugin

A plugin can patch a theme; it cannot rebuild one. The menu, the focus style, the colours and the page structure all come from the theme, which is why WordPress runs its own review for themes that want the accessibility-ready tag. A member of the WordPress accessibility team checks the theme by hand against a published list of requirements, from a skip link and keyboard navigation to underlined links in text, colour contrast, an accessibility statement and a rule that the theme must not recommend or require inaccessible plugins.

What the tag does not mean

“Accessibility Ready” does not mean that the theme meets the WCAG guidelines AA-level. It means that the theme reaches the minimum standards that the theme review team has set.

From the WordPress Themes Team handbook, read 22 October 2026.

It is still the best starting point there is. When we read the tag's page on wordpress.org it listed 103 themes, among them WordPress's own default themes from Twenty Twenty-One to Twenty Twenty-Five. A theme sold outside the directory has not been through this review, so ask its maker for a conformance statement or test the demo yourself.

The plugins know the difference too. On an accessibility-ready theme, WP Accessibility switches off its own page language, “continue reading” and form label fixes, because the theme already provides them.

Before you buy or switch, give the demo ten minutes with the keyboard. Measure colours in the contrast check, and use the focus indicator guide to judge what you see when you press Tab.

Walk the theme demo

Open the theme's demo in a new tab, put the mouse aside, and mark each test as you go.

  • Press Tab once on a fresh page: a “Skip to content” link appears and works

    2.4.1 Bypass Blocks

  • Open every menu, drop-downs included, and follow a link with the keyboard alone

    2.1.1 Keyboard

  • On every Tab press you can see where you are

    2.4.7 Focus Visible

  • Focus never gets stuck, in the menu, a pop-up or a slider

    2.1.2 No Keyboard Trap

  • Links inside paragraphs are underlined, not told apart by colour alone

    1.4.1 Use of Color

  • The search and comment fields have labels you can see

    3.3.2 Labels or Instructions

  • Body text and button text measure at least 4.5:1 in the contrast check

    1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum)

  • The demo post uses headings in order, one main heading at the top

    1.3.1 Info and Relationships

None of the 8 tests tried yet.

A plan for a small WordPress site

In this order, because each step makes the next one smaller:

  1. Walk your theme with the keyboard, using the eight tests above or the focus order checklist. A failing theme is the biggest single fix you can make.
  2. Install one checker and clear what it finds in your posts and pages, starting with the busiest.
  3. Fix image descriptions as you go; the alt text check tests one image's alt text against the job the image does.
  4. Switch on a patch only for a fault the theme cannot fix yet, and note it as one to remove later.
  5. Test by hand: the keyboard, then a screen reader, with our screen reader testing guide.
  6. Publish an honest accessibility statement with a way to report a problem.

If the site takes bookings or payments, or you have had a demand letter, a manual audit is worth the money: see WCAG audit services. For a scanner that watches a site on any platform, not only WordPress, see website accessibility software.

How we compared

Vendor pages read on

We started from the wordpress.org plugin directory and kept plugins that check content or repair markup, were updated in the last three months and have no visitor toolbar as their product. For each, we read its wordpress.org listing and its maker's own page, and for the two that apply fixes, the code they ship in the wordpress.org plugin repository.

Each cell says Yes only where the listing, the maker's page or the code showed it. “Not stated” means we did not find it there, not that the plugin lacks it. We show no star ratings or install counts. For checking a whole site on any platform, see website accessibility software.

Verdicts are editorial: no vendor can buy a verdict position or displace another vendor.

No overlay widget is listed. By an overlay we mean a third-party widget or toolbar script sold as making a site conform without changing its source. In April 2025 the FTC approved a final order that bars one overlay vendor from claiming, without evidence to support it, that its automated products can make any website WCAG-compliant. Read the FTC's announcement of the order.

Nothing here is legal advice. For a specific case, ask a lawyer.

Questions

Will a plugin make my WordPress site ADA compliant?

No, and the honest makers say so. Equalize Digital's FAQ says Accessibility Checker “will not make your website 100% accessible on its own”, and Joe Dolson writes that WP Accessibility “is not intended to make your site compatible with any accessibility guidelines”.

DOJ has no regulation setting detailed web standards for businesses open to the public; its position is that the ADA's general rules still apply to websites (ada.gov). What a plugin helps you show is progress towards WCAG 2.2 Level AA. This is general information, not legal advice; for your own case, ask a lawyer.

Is an accessibility-ready theme the same as WCAG AA?

No. The WordPress Themes Team says the tag means the theme meets the minimum standards its reviewers set, not WCAG Level AA. It is a strong start, and your own content still has to be checked.

Why does no plugin on this page show a ratings score or install count?

Because neither measures accessibility. Stars and installs show how popular a plugin is; they say nothing about whether it checks the right things or whether its fixes reach your pages. We compared what each maker states and what the code does.

Do I still need a manual test if a checker shows no issues?

Yes. The Justice Department's guidance says a “clean” report does not necessarily mean everything is accessible, and pairs automated checkers with a manual check. Start with the WCAG 2.2 AA checklist, which sets out every Level A and AA criterion as a plain test.

Can I use a checker and a patch plugin together?

Yes, and many sites do. Let the checker find problems, use the patch plugin only for the theme faults you cannot fix yet, and switch each fix on in one plugin only so you do not end up with two skip links or two labels on one field.

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