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IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker

ibm.com

Free plan Open source WebAPISelf-hostedBrowser extension
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Spec score 9.0 #7 of 169 in Accessibility Testing Software

What it is

IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker automates accessibility checks for web content and applications, with tools aimed at web developers and accessibility auditors. Its rule engine connects checks to accessibility standards, including WCAG 2.2, and scans at page level. Results can identify the issue type, applicable WCAG success criteria, affected element, XPath, progression level, and a help link. Browser extensions are available for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge. They work in browser DevTools and include a visualization mode for keyboard checking. For CI/CD workflows, packages are available for Node, Cypress, and Java; the project Wiki also lists a Karma plugin and names Selenium, Puppeteer, Playwright, and Zombie as testing or parsing engines. The extension can combine up to 50 stored scans into a Microsoft Excel report. The Wiki says web data, rules, and the engine stay local rather than sending web data to servers or third parties. The tool is free at free. IBM cautions that automated checks cover only part of its accessibility requirements, so manual and screen reader testing should follow.

Spec sheet

What it does
IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker automates accessibility checks in browsers and continuous-development environments.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Purpose
The checker automates accessibility checking of web content and applications for web developers and accessibility auditors.Read 11 Oct 2026 · github.com
Audience
IBM describes the tools as intended for web developers and accessibility auditors.Read 11 Oct 2026 · github.com
Free plan
YesRead 21 Sep 2026 · ibm.com
Privacy
The project wiki says web data remains local, with rules and engine downloaded and run locally rather than sent to servers.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Support
The project Wiki directs users to submit bugs, questions, and suggestions through GitHub issues.Read 11 Oct 2026 · github.com
API access
YesRead 21 Sep 2026 · ibm.com
Baseline testing
Results can be compared with baseline files and tests can fail according to configured violation levels.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Browser extension
The Chrome extension runs inside Developer Tools and helps locate accessibility problems and possible fixes.Read 19 Oct 2026 · chromewebstore.google.com
Browser tools
Browser extensions are listed for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.Read 11 Oct 2026 · ibm.com
Build requirement
Building the repository requires Node version 22.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Chrome usage
The Chrome listing reports 40,000 users and version 4.0.33.9999 updated September 3, 2026.Read 19 Oct 2026 · chromewebstore.google.com
CI/CD integration
YesRead 21 Sep 2026 · ibm.com
CI/CD integrations
Packages are available for Node, Cypress, and Java, and the Wiki also lists a Karma plugin.Read 11 Oct 2026 · ibm.com
Command line
The command-line utility scans files, directories and URL lists supplied through a text file.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Company headquarters and size
LinkedIn lists IBM headquarters in Armonk, New York, and company size above 10,001 employees.Read 19 Oct 2026 · linkedin.com
Cypress integration
A separate Cypress wrapper package is provided.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Developer tools
The extension integrates into browser DevTools and provides scanning and keyboard checker mode visualization.Read 11 Oct 2026 · github.com
Firefox users
The Firefox listing reports 2,140 users and Apache License 2.0.Read 19 Oct 2026 · addons.mozilla.org
Installation
The Node module installs with npm install --save-dev accessibility-checker and can also be installed globally for the achecker command.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Issue details
Scan results can include issue type, WCAG success criteria, element, XPath, progression level, and a help link.Read 11 Oct 2026 · github.com
Keyboard visualization
The extension includes a keyboard-checker visualization mode.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Licence
The source repository is published under Apache-2.0; separate Toolkit copyright content is generally CC BY unless marked otherwise.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Limit: speed
The same study reported WAVE scanned pages faster than IBM Checker.Read 19 Oct 2026 · researchportal.tuni.fi
Limit: stability
ExtWise reports occasional rendering errors, Chrome breakage after updates and questions about exported-report calculations.Read 19 Oct 2026 · extwise.com
Limit: technical difficulty
A Texas accessibility-audit guide classifies IBM Checker as free, focused on technical standards and high difficulty, aimed at developers, QA and auditors.Read 19 Oct 2026 · dir.texas.gov
Limits
IBM says automated checks cover only a subset of its accessibility requirements and should be followed by manual and screen reader testing.Read 11 Oct 2026 · ibm.com
Maker company
IBM’s legal name is International Business Machines Corporation, incorporated in New York in 1911 as Computing-Tabulating-Recording Co.Read 19 Oct 2026 · ibm.com
Manual-testing limit
IBM states automated checks cover only part of its requirements and must be followed by manual and screen-reader testing.Read 19 Oct 2026 · ibm.com
Node integration
The Node package supports automated testing in CI pipelines and works with Selenium, Puppeteer and Playwright.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Notable release activity
The repository shows a latest listed commit dated October 16, 2026 and dependency-security updates dated October 15, 2026.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Praise: accuracy and guidance
ExtWise’s review synthesis reports praise for precise WCAG detection, DOM highlighting, fix suggestions and batch reporting.Read 19 Oct 2026 · extwise.com
Praise: coverage
A 2024 comparative study found IBM Checker covered the most WCAG success criteria among the three tested tools.Read 19 Oct 2026 · researchportal.tuni.fi
Praise: detection
That study found IBM Checker identified the most issues on five of six tested pages.Read 19 Oct 2026 · researchportal.tuni.fi
Public API
The package exposes getCompliance, assertCompliance, baseline and diff APIs for programmatic scans.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Rating on Chrome Web Store
4.9 out of 5 from 16 ratingsRead 19 Oct 2026 · chromewebstore.google.com
Rating on Firefox Add-ons
5 out of 5 from 11 reviewsRead 19 Oct 2026 · addons.mozilla.org
Reports
XLSX output is included automatically, and JSON and other report formats can be configured.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Rule engine
Its engine maps rules to accessibility standards and tests web content and applications.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Rulesets
Published rulesets cover WCAG 2.2, WCAG 2.1 and WCAG 2.0 at A and AA levels, plus IBM Accessibility rules.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Scan scope
pageRead 21 Sep 2026 · ibm.com
Scanning inputs
The Node API accepts HTML strings, elements, documents, URLs, local files, Selenium drivers, Puppeteer pages and Playwright pages.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Screen-reader simulation
An experimental API generates a representation of screen-reader announcements for page elements.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Self-hosting
The repository documents local builds of browser and Node engine bundles and includes a rule-server component.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Standards alignment
IBM says its requirements incorporate WCAG 2.2, US Revised Section 508 and EN 301 549 V3.2.1.Read 19 Oct 2026 · ibm.com
Telemetry
The Node package documents collection of de-identified telemetry and provides an opt-out route.Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com
Testing frameworks
The Wiki names Selenium, Puppeteer, Playwright, and Zombie as testing or parsing engines for CI/CD packages.Read 11 Oct 2026 · github.com
WCAG version
wcag 2.2Read 21 Sep 2026 · ibm.com

Plans and prices

Free and open source Free Browser extensions · CI/CD and automated testing packages Read 11 Oct 2026 · github.com
Free/open-source toolkit Free browser extensions · Node/Cypress automation · accessibility rules engine Read 19 Oct 2026 · github.com

Every IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Checks map to WCAG 2.2
  • Extensions support Chrome, Firefox, and Edge
  • CI/CD packages cover Node, Cypress, and Java
  • Stored scans can be combined into Excel reports
  • Web data stays local, according to the Wiki

Limits

  • Automated checks cover only part of requirements
  • Manual and screen reader testing should follow

Who it suits

It suits web developers and accessibility auditors who want page level checks in browser tools or automated workflows. Teams should plan to follow automated scans with manual and screen reader testing.

Verdict

The checker offers free browser and CI/CD tools with detailed issue results. Its automated findings are only one part of accessibility evaluation and need follow-up testing.

Where Specifiction places it

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