MS Accessibility Insights
Accessibility Insights for Web
Section titled “Accessibility Insights for Web”Accessibility Insights for Web is a free browser extension from Microsoft for Chrome and Edge. It was developed to detect barriers on websites early and document them in a structured way. The tool is suitable for use in the development process as well as for training and manual audits.
Features and Test Modes
Section titled “Features and Test Modes”Accessibility Insights offers two main modes that cover different needs:
FastPass
Section titled “FastPass”A quick automated test that identifies typical barriers, including:
- Missing alternative texts
- Insufficient color contrast
- Faulty ARIA attributes
- Non-focusable or unlabeled controls
- Results are visually highlighted and summarized in a brief report
Assessment Mode
Section titled “Assessment Mode”A structured, manual testing process along the WCAG
Divided into thematic areas such as:
- Keyboard accessibility
- Focus management
- Semantics & structure
- Visual information
- Input aids and forms
Each section contains concrete instructions, examples, and evaluation aids
Advantages
Section titled “Advantages”- Combination of automated initial testing and manual guidance
- Intuitive user interface and clear language
- Ideal for UX designers, developers, and test teams
- Export function for results (HTML or JSON)
- No registration required, fully usable locally
Limitations
Section titled “Limitations”- Not designed for large-scale team projects with many pages
- No integrated project management or role control
Usage Recommendation
Section titled “Usage Recommendation”Accessibility Insights is ideal for integration into development and design processes. It is well-suited for reviews of components, pages, or features in an early development stage. The tool is also helpful for training purposes as it guides step by step through typical accessibility requirements.
Example Use Case
Section titled “Example Use Case”A development team uses FastPass for weekly UI checks. Critical issues such as focus loss or missing labels are specifically documented in Assessment Mode and forwarded to the frontend team for bug fixing.
Category: Hybrid tool (automated + manual)
Further Information & Download
Section titled “Further Information & Download”- Accessibility Insights for Web – official site
- Direct download in the Chrome Web Store
- Microsoft Accessibility Insights GitHub repo
Accessibility Insights is part of a tool family that also offers suitable variants for Android (mobile) and Windows (desktop applications).