Drupal Accessibility Checker

Accessibility on Drupal

Drupal is a flexible CMS used by universities, governments and large organizations, and its core and default themes (Olivero for visitors, Claro for administrators) are built with accessibility in mind. Most Drupal sites, though, run a custom Twig theme and a stack of contributed modules, and that is where the output changes.

Drupal gives site builders powerful tools, such as content types, Views, Layout Builder and Paragraphs. Each lets someone assemble pages without writing code, and each can produce a page that skips a heading level, hides a label or builds a table without header cells if no one checks the result.

The Drupal project says Drupal core aims to meet WCAG 2.1 AA and that accessibility is part of its release process. That makes custom themes, contributed modules and editor-entered content the most likely sources of issues on a Drupal site. (opens in a new tab, source: Drupal.org: Accessibility)

Common Accessibility Issues on Drupal Sites

• Custom theme markup

  Twig overrides that replace core templates can drop landmarks, heading levels, skip links or ARIA attributes that core would have added.

• Views output

  Views tables, grids and exposed filters are generated from configuration, so a table can lack header cells and a filter form can lack labels without any code being wrong.

• Layout Builder and Paragraphs

  Flexible page assembly makes it easy to put headings out of order, repeat identical link text such as "Read more" and use images with no alt text.

• Webform fields

  Complex forms with conditional fields, multi-page steps and custom error messages often hide labels visually, or change fields without telling assistive technology.

• Rich text and media content

  Editors using CKEditor can bold text instead of making a heading, paste inline styles that reduce contrast, or embed media without alt text.

How AccessBell Scans Your Drupal Site

1. Enter any public page. Paste the address of a page on your Drupal site into the scanner above. There is nothing to install: no plugin, no code snippet and no login.
2. We load it in a real browser. AccessBell opens the page in headless Chrome and runs its scripts, so it tests what your visitors actually see, including content added by your theme, apps or plugins.
3. We run the WCAG rules. The open-source axe-core engine checks the page against the standard you choose, and every result is mapped to the WCAG success criteria it affects.
4. You see what is wrong in seconds. The free scan lists every issue it finds, ranked by severity, with the WCAG criteria each one fails. Start a free trial to get the failing code and the fix for each one. Our methodology explains exactly what runs and what still needs a person.

What You Get From the Free Scan and the Free Trial

Free, with no account

• 63 automated rules for WCAG 2.2 Level AA, or presets for WCAG 2.1 AA, the ADA, Section 508 and EN 301 549
• Every issue found on the page, ranked by severity from critical to minor
• The WCAG success criteria each issue fails, which you can look up in our WCAG library

With a 3-day free trial

• The failing HTML, so you can find the element in your Drupal editor or code
• How to fix each issue, with a corrected example
• Every page scanned, up to 500 per domain, with daily monitoring and an email when something breaks
• A list of checks that need a person to review, so nothing is missed
• A dated record of your scans and fixes

Start 3-day free trial

How to Fix What the Scan Finds

1. Set image fields to require alt text and give editors a short style guide, so the problem is prevented at the moment of publishing.
2. Fix theme problems in the Twig templates or a base theme once. Drupal’s theme layer lets one change correct every page that uses it.
3. Scan after each module update and core release. Drupal’s update cycle is frequent, and a contributed module change can alter rendered markup.
4. Run a free scan above on your homepage and a few key pages, fix issues starting with critical and serious, then rescan to confirm.
5. For ongoing protection, AccessBell Pro monitors up to 500 URLs per domain every day and alerts you when a theme, app or plugin update introduces a new issue.

Related Guides

• WCAG 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence Explained in Plain EnglishWCAG 1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence explained simply: why reading order matters, how CSS and layout tables break it, how to fix it and how to test your pages.
• WCAG 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions Explained in Plain EnglishWCAG 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions explained simply: visible labels, format hints, grouped fields and required markers, with code examples and a test routine.
• ADA Website Accessibility – How to Use AccessBell to Help Avoid LawsuitsADA website accessibility explained: who the ADA covers, whether websites count, the WCAG standard, and how AccessBell helps you find and fix issues behind lawsuits.
• WCAG Success Criteria LibraryLook up any success criterion the scan flags, in plain language.
• Drupal ADA Compliance CheckerThe same scan with the ADA preset, plus the ADA risks specific to Drupal sites.
• Free Accessibility Statement GeneratorPublish a statement once your Drupal site's known issues are fixed.

Drupal Accessibility — Frequently Asked Questions