Platform
WordPress accessibility checker
WordPress accessibility depends on your theme, your blocks, and your plugins, not on WordPress itself. Scan your site below to see what actually fails and how to fix it.
Where WordPress accessibility usually breaks
- Theme colour contrast: link colours, buttons and muted text below 4.5:1.
- Images without alt text: added through the media library or page builders without descriptions.
- Heading order: page builders that drop an
h3before anh2. - Ambiguous links: multiple "Read more" links with no context for screen-reader users.
- Plugin and embed widgets: sliders, pop-ups and forms that ship inaccessible markup.
How to check WordPress accessibility
Run the free scan above on any page. It renders the page in a real browser (so it tests what your blocks and plugins actually output, not just the raw HTML) and runs axe-core against WCAG 2.2 A and AA. You get every failing element outlined, by severity, with the success criterion, and an honest note on what automation can't judge.
Fixing the common issues
- Contrast: adjust theme colours in the Customizer or Global Styles, or override in Additional CSS.
- Alt text: fill the "Alternative Text" field for every meaningful image in the block/media editor.
- Headings: use the document outline to keep levels sequential.
- Link text: make link text descriptive, or add screen-reader-only context.
A note on accessibility plugins and overlays
Plugins that find issues are useful. Overlay plugins that claim to fix accessibility with one line of JavaScript are not, they don't correct your markup and are increasingly named in lawsuits. Use a scan to locate issues, fix them in your theme and content, then re-scan.
Frequently asked questions
Is WordPress accessible by default?
WordPress core aims to be accessible, but your theme, page builder, content and plugins decide the outcome. Most sites have fixable issues regardless of the platform.
What is the best way to test WordPress accessibility?
Scan your live pages with an axe-core-based tool (like the free scan above) to catch the machine-testable issues, then do a manual keyboard and screen-reader pass for the rest.
Do accessibility overlay plugins make WordPress WCAG compliant?
No. They don't fix the underlying code and can increase legal risk. Fix issues at the source instead.
How do I add alt text in the WordPress block editor?
Select an image block and fill the "Alternative Text" field in the block settings sidebar with a short description of what the image conveys.
Related guides
See what's actually broken on your site
Real axe-core results, every element outlined. No email wall, no fake “compliant” badge.
Run a free scanLast updated 2026-06-20.