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axe-core alternatives

axe-core is in the CheckOps directory. The tools below cover similar ground, based on shared categories and practice tags already recorded on CheckOps. Links go only to CheckOps pages. This is not a paid list and not an official alternatives program.

axe-core on CheckOps · axe-core is Deque's open-source accessibility rules engine. It checks rendered HTML and reports WCAG violations as JSON.

How we picked

CheckOps is a genuine and free directory. There are no paid sponsors, featured listings, or paid placement on these pages. The shortlist is built from tools already in the directory whose tags match the topic, with a preference for entries that have a fuller CheckOps page so the facts in the table can be checked against the source essay. This is not a claim that one tool is objectively better than another, and it is not a paid ranking.

Alternatives start with any manual list on the axe-core page, then add tools that share first-class categories and practice tags, preferring fuller essays. The list is capped at 15 tools for this page.

Alternatives

  1. A

    1. Accessibility Insights

    Accessibility Insights is Microsoft's free, open-source (MIT) accessibility testing suite: a Chrome and Edge extension with FastPass and a WCAG 2.1 AA Assessment, plus a Windows app for UI Automation inspection.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  2. W

    2. WAVE

    WAVE from WebAIM is a suite of web accessibility evaluation tools: a free online checker and Chrome, Firefox and Edge extensions, plus a paid credit-based API and a licensable stand-alone API and testing engine for CI.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Commercial

  3. I

    3. IBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker

    IBM's Equal Access Accessibility Checker is an Apache-2.0 toolkit of browser extensions and Node packages (accessibility-checker, cypress-accessibility-checker) for automated accessibility testing with baselines and configurable policies.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  4. A

    4. axe DevTools

    axe DevTools from Deque is a commercial accessibility testing suite for web and mobile, built on axe-core, with a free and Pro browser extension, intelligent guided tests, a linter, CI/CD integrations and an Axe MCP Server.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Commercial, with a free or trial tier tagged

  5. L

    5. Lighthouse CI

    Lighthouse CI is Google Chrome's Apache-2.0 toolkit for running Lighthouse on every commit, asserting budgets, storing results and blocking performance, accessibility and SEO regressions.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  6. P

    6. Pa11y

    Pa11y is a free, open-source command-line accessibility checker. It opens a URL in a headless browser and reports rule failures.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  7. U

    7. Unlighthouse

    Unlighthouse is an MIT-licensed tool that runs Google Lighthouse across your entire site, crawling pages and showing scores in a local UI, via CLI or CI integrations.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  8. E

    8. Evinced

    Evinced is a commercial AI-powered accessibility testing platform for websites and mobile apps that finds, clusters, tracks and prevents accessibility bugs, integrating with Selenium, Cypress, WebdriverIO, XCUITest, Espresso and Appium.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Commercial

  9. P

    9. Pa11y CI

    Pa11y CI is an LGPL-3.0 accessibility test runner built on Pa11y for continuous integration, testing lists of URLs or entire sitemaps against WCAG and failing builds on issues.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  10. G

    10. Guidepup

    Guidepup is an MIT-licensed screen reader automation library that drives NVDA on Windows, Orca on Linux and VoiceOver on macOS through one JavaScript API, so you can assert on what screen reader users actually hear.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  11. S

    11. Sa11y

    Sa11y is a GPL-2.0, framework-agnostic JavaScript accessibility quality assurance assistant that visually highlights 80+ common content accessibility and usability issues for content authors, with tooltips explaining how to fix them.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  12. A

    12. Alfa

    Alfa is Siteimprove's MIT-licensed open accessibility conformance testing engine that tests HTML, CSS and JavaScript sites against WCAG using ACT rules, distilled from Siteimprove's proprietary engine.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  13. W

    13. webhint

    webhint is an Apache-2.0 customisable linting tool for websites that checks accessibility, speed, cross-browser compatibility, security headers and PWA best practices.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  14. J

    14. jest-axe

    jest-axe is an MIT-licensed custom Jest matcher that runs axe-core against rendered HTML or components and asserts toHaveNoViolations, with colour contrast checks disabled because JSDOM cannot compute them.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Open source

  15. S

    15. Stark

    Stark is an accessibility platform spanning design and code, with plugins for Figma and Sketch, browser extensions, GitHub integration, automated scanning and AI-powered suggestions; free sign-up with paid team plans.

    Read the CheckOps page · Compare with axe-core · Commercial, with a free or trial tier tagged

Comparison

License, pricing model, and languages or platforms are taken from tags on each CheckOps page. Pricing notes are a short excerpt from that page's Pricing section when one exists. A blank or "not stated" cell means the CheckOps page does not record it.

axe-core and alternatives
ToolLicensePricing modelLanguages / platformsPricing notes
axe-coreOpen sourceFree, Open sourceNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageFree: axe-core is MPL-2.0. The npm package and the GitHub repo have no license fee. axe DevTools and Monitor are paid: Deque sells a browser extension, CI integrations with extra workflow, and a monitoring product.
Accessibility InsightsOpen sourceFree, Open sourceNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageAccessibility Insights is free and open source under the MIT licence.
WAVECommercialFree, Paid, SaaSNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageThe WAVE online tool and browser extensions are free. The subscription API uses credits: 100 free credits for new accounts, then $0.04 per credit (250–999, $10 minimum), $0.03 (1,000–9,999) or $0.025 (10,000+); a basic…
IBM Equal Access Accessibility CheckerOpen sourceFree, Open sourceJavascript, NodeIBM Equal Access Accessibility Checker is free and open source under the Apache-2.0 licence.
axe DevToolsCommercial, with a free or trial tier taggedFree tier, Paid, SaaS, TrialNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageThe axe DevTools Extension (Free) costs nothing. The axe DevTools Extension (Pro) offers a free trial, and axe DevTools for Web (Bundle) is sold through a demo and sales process; prices are not published, so see site.
Lighthouse CIOpen sourceFree, Open sourceNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageLighthouse CI is free and open source under Apache-2.0. Hosting the optional server is your own infrastructure cost.
Pa11yOpen sourceFree, Open sourceNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageFree: Pa11y, pa11y-ci, and the dashboard project are open source. Pa11y itself is LGPL-3.0-only. There is no paid Pa11y tier. You supply Chromium: Puppeteer downloads a browser, or you point at one already installed.
UnlighthouseOpen sourceFree, Open sourceNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageUnlighthouse is free and open source under the MIT licence.
EvincedCommercialPaid, SaaSNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageCommercial; pricing is not published. Book a demo via the website (see site).
Pa11y CIOpen sourceFree, Open sourceNodePa11y CI is free and open source under the LGPL-3.0 licence.
GuidepupOpen sourceFree, Open sourceJavascript, NodeGuidepup is free and open source under the MIT licence.
Sa11yOpen sourceFree, Open sourceJavascriptSa11y is free and open source under the GPL-2.0 licence.
AlfaOpen sourceFree, Open sourceTypescriptAlfa is free and open source under the MIT licence.
webhintOpen sourceFree, Open sourceNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pagewebhint is free and open source under the Apache-2.0 licence.
jest-axeOpen sourceFree, Open sourceJavascript, Reactjest-axe is free and open source under the MIT licence.
StarkCommercial, with a free or trial tier taggedFree tier, Paid, SaaSNot stated in the tags on the CheckOps pageFree sign-up. Paid plans start at $198 per user per year (minimum 3 seats); higher tiers at $2,500, $8,000 and $21,000 per year. See site for current details.

FAQ

Are these official axe-core alternatives?
No. These are other tools on CheckOps that cover similar ground to axe-core, based on shared category and practice tags. They are not an official list and not a paid placement.
How are the alternatives chosen?
The same method as the Alternatives block on each tool page: manual slugs from the CheckOps entry when they exist, then automatic ranking by shared categories and practice tags, with a preference for fuller essays. This page shows a longer list than the tool page.
Do the links go to vendor sites?
The alternatives themselves link only to CheckOps tool pages. Each of those pages may also list the vendor website.
Can I compare them side by side?
Yes. Use the compare links on this page, or the compare tool at /tools/compare, which reads the same directory facts.