Shopify accessibility checker
Enter the address of any page of your Shopify store: we test it against WCAG 2.2 A and AA in a real browser and explain every problem with a fix for Shopify themes and apps. Free, no signup, about a minute. An automated check, not a full audit.
- No signup
- WCAG 2.2 A and AA
- Fixes for Shopify themes
Updated October 14, 2026
What the Shopify accessibility checker tests
The scan opens your page in Chromium, runs axe-core — the open-source rules engine also used by Lighthouse — and maps every finding to a WCAG 2.2 success criterion and to EN 301 549, the European standard behind the EAA. Each finding is explained by a card from our rule library, and every card has a separate note for Shopify.
You can test any public page: the home page, a collection, a product page with variants, the cart, a blog post or a policy page. Pages behind a password (for example a store that is not launched yet) can be checked with our free browser extension, which runs in your own browser.
Typical problems in Shopify themes
These come from the Shopify notes of our rule cards, which describe where the problem usually sits and how to fix it:
| Problem | Where it usually comes from in Shopify | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| Buttons without a name (critical) | Icon buttons in the theme: menu, search, quantity, close; buttons injected by apps | Add a label in the theme's Liquid snippets; ask app developers to fix buttons their apps add |
| Dropdowns without a label (critical) | Variant pickers, sorting, currency and language selectors | Add labels in the theme's Liquid snippets |
| Form fields without a label (critical) | Search, newsletter, contact and quantity fields, forms added by apps | Add labels in the Liquid templates or the app's settings |
| Low text contrast (serious) | The theme's colour scheme | Change colours in the theme editor's colour settings first, then in the theme CSS if they are hard-coded |
| Images without alt text (serious) | Product media and images in theme sections | Fill in alt text in the Shopify admin; if it is not output, the image tag in the Liquid template lacks the alt attribute |
| Links that do not say where they go (serious) | Icon links in the header and footer | Add visually hidden text or an aria-label in the theme's sections and snippets |
| Hidden elements reachable by keyboard (serious) | Off-canvas menus, drawers, pop-ups, carousels | Fix the hiding logic in the theme's JavaScript or Liquid; report app widgets to their developer |
| Heading levels that skip a step (moderate) | Levels hard-coded in sections, such as product cards or footer titles | Change the tags in the Liquid files; the heading size setting usually changes only the look |
| Targets too small to tap (moderate) | Variant swatches, quantity buttons, icons | Increase size or padding in the theme CSS |
The cart button has no name
What this means for your visitors
A shopper using a screen reader only hears “button” and cannot tell that it adds the product to the cart.
How to fix it in Shopify
In the product template, give the icon button the text “Add to cart”, visible or as an aria-label.
Element: .product-form > button.cart-icon
Rule: button-name · WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (A) · EN 301 549 9.4.1.2
Theme, apps or content: who fixes what
- The theme decides most of the markup: headings, buttons, menus, forms and colours. A theme update can fix problems — or bring them back, which is why a weekly re-check matters.
- Apps inject their own markup: reviews, wishlists, pop-ups, chat and cookie banners. If a problem sits inside an app's widget, report it to the app developer with the finding from the report.
- Content is yours: alt text for product images, link texts, headings inside product descriptions and pages.
- The checkout is run by Shopify. Merchants cannot change most of its markup, so a scan of your store focuses on the theme and apps.
What the checker does not do
It does not change your store, install an app or add an overlay widget. It finds the part of WCAG problems a machine can detect; whether alt text is meaningful, whether the order flow works with a keyboard and a screen reader, and whether error messages are clear needs a person. Our WCAG 2.2 checklist lists what to test by hand.
From one page to the whole store
On a paid plan we check every page of the store every week, show what is new since the last check, and write a report for the owner in English, Ukrainian, German, Polish, Czech, Romanian or Russian. Agencies get the same reports under their own brand. One line of code in theme.liquid adds an accessibility information page and a "Report a barrier" form: see the embed code.
Selling to consumers in the EU? The European Accessibility Act may apply to your store, unless it is a micro-enterprise. Take the three-question EAA filter first. For a WooCommerce store, use the WooCommerce accessibility checker; for how our approach compares with overlay apps, see Pandus compared.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free Shopify accessibility checker?
Yes. Enter the address of a product, collection or home page above. We test that one page against WCAG 2.2 A and AA for free, without an account, and show each problem with a Shopify fix.
Can a checker test the Shopify checkout?
Only the pages a visitor can open without logging in or paying. The checkout itself is run by Shopify, so problems we find usually sit in the theme and in apps: search, newsletter and contact forms, variant pickers, carts and pop-ups.
Do I need a Shopify app to check accessibility?
No. Our checker works from the outside, like a visitor, so nothing is installed in your store. For weekly checks and an accessibility information page you add one line of code to the theme; there is no Pandus app in the Shopify App Store yet.
Does a Shopify accessibility app make my store accessible?
An app that only adds a widget or toolbar does not change your theme code, so the barriers stay. Fixes belong in the theme, in product content and in the apps that inject markup.
Does the result show that my store meets the EAA or the ADA?
No tool can show that. An automated check finds a part of WCAG problems; keyboard, screen reader and content checks by a person are still needed. It is not legal advice.