Accessibility Tools

As state agencies, we are required to provide accessible content. We have a wide audience with a range of abilities and, in the end, content that is accessible is better for everyone.

Create Accessible Content

WebAIM Contrast Checker
People with low vision or color blindness need text (and other important foreground elements) to stand out sufficiently from the background. Make sure to check your color contrast anytime you create content — text graphics, videos, PDF documents, etc. — that doesn't use GovHub's built-in text styling.

Create Accessible PDFs (Revised 508 Standards)
Guidance and video help on how to create accessible PDFs, from the US General Services Administration (GSA). Section 508 is federal law that applies the WCAG 2.0 Level AA success criteria and conformance requirements,

Check Your Site's Accessibility

WAVE
WAVE is free web tool that will evaluate your site's accessibility.

WebAIM Browser Extension
This browser extension lets you check the accessibility of content when using Chrome and Firefox browsers, and it's 100% private and secure for accessibility reporting.

Siteimprove
Siteimprove is a paid service that enhances your digital presence by providing reports on spelling, readability, accessibility, and broken links. Using Siteimprove can transform your site's performance and overall usability.

Lighthouse
This browser extension for Google Chrome checks for: performance, accessibility, best practices, and SEO. The report generated by the extension will tell you how well the page did and the areas that need improvement.

Additional Resources

WCAG in Plain English
An easy-to-read guide created by AAArdvark to make the specifications of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) simpler to understand. Shared, unchanged, in accordance with the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.

Usability.gov - Improving User Experience
Creating an accessible website also helps to increase the usability of your site. This site provides tools for content strategy to visual design to improve the overall user experience.

W3C Accessibility Tools
This is a complete list put together by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) for web accessibility tools. This host of tools can help you test the accessibility of your web content.

Digital.gov - Accessibility
This is a federal site that provides many resources and tools for creating the best digital experiences for citizens.