Perceivly vs accessiBe: an alternative without an overlay
Facts checked , with sources below.
accessiBe’s best-known product is accessWidget, which it describes as an AI-powered solution that uses AI to remediate your website. It is a script installed on your site, often through a WordPress or Shopify plugin, that changes pages in the visitor’s browser. accessiBe also sells accessFlow, a platform for software engineers, a free scan called accessScan, and services such as expert audits and VPATs.
Perceivly works the other way around. It adds nothing to your site. It checks your pages on a schedule, tracks each issue until it is fixed in your code or content, and keeps a record of the work.
At a glance
| Feature | accessiBe | Perceivly |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | accessWidget: an AI overlay. accessFlow: an accessibility platform for developers. | An accessibility monitor: it crawls your site on a schedule, tests each page in a real browser with axe-core against WCAG 2.0, 2.1 and 2.2 (A and AA), and tracks every issue. |
| Script added to your site | Yes for accessWidget, installed with a snippet or a plugin (WordPress, Shopify and others). | None. Perceivly never changes your site. |
| Pricing | accessWidget is priced by monthly visits: $59 a month (up to 5,000 visits), $179 (up to 30,000), $479 (up to 100,000), custom above that. Yearly: $490 to $3,990. accessFlow: no published prices, demo only. | Published: Starter $29 a month (1 site, 500 pages per check, weekly), Growth $59 (3 sites, 2,000 pages, daily), agency plans $99 to $349. Annual billing is 10 times the monthly price. |
| Free option | A free trial of accessWidget and a free accessScan. | A free single-page scan without sign-up, a Free plan (1 site, 50 pages, monthly) and a 14-day trial with no card. |
| How issues get fixed | accessWidget changes the page in the browser. accessFlow Professional adds a Code Agent that proposes fixes as pull requests. | Your team fixes the source code or CMS content. Each issue shows the failing elements, a screenshot and how to fix it. |
| Scanning and monitoring | accessFlow plans start at 1,000 pages and 2 domains (Essential). | Daily, weekly or monthly crawls. Issues are open, in progress, fixed or won't fix (with a reason), and close on their own when a check no longer finds them. |
| Manual audits and services | Expert audits, VPATs, user testing, litigation support, and file and PDF accessibility. | None. Every report lists what still needs a manual review by a person. |
Perceivly prices are in US dollars, from the pricing page.
When to choose which
accessiBe may suit you better if
- You want a vendor that also does expert audits, VPATs, user testing or PDF remediation.
- Your developers want code fixes proposed as pull requests (accessFlow Professional).
Perceivly may suit you better if
- You want issues fixed in your source code and content, not patched in the browser.
- You want prices based on sites and pages, published up front, with no sales call.
- You run an agency and need white-label reports, a client portal and an evidence log.
- You want a dated history of what was found and fixed, for clients or auditors.
The FTC order against accessiBe
In January 2025 the US Federal Trade Commission announced a proposed order requiring accessiBe to pay $1 million. The FTC alleged that accessiBe claimed its AI product could make any website WCAG-compliant when the claim was false, misleading or unsubstantiated, and that it presented paid articles and reviews as independent opinions (FTC, January 3, 2025).
The FTC approved the final order on April 22, 2025. It bars accessiBe from claiming that its automated products can make a website WCAG-compliant, or keep it compliant over time, unless it has evidence for the claim (FTC, April 22, 2025).
What accessibility practitioners say about overlays
The Overlay Fact Sheet, signed by more than 1,000 accessibility practitioners, states that no overlay product can make a website fully compliant with any existing accessibility standard, and advises against using an overlay as a long-term solution. The same is true of any automated tool, Perceivly included: automated tests find only part of WCAG issues. Read what our checker can and can’t test.
Check your own site
Run a free single-page scan to see what Perceivly reports on your site: a score, the main issues with screenshots and how to fix each one. No sign-up.
Questions
- Is Perceivly a replacement for accessWidget?
- Perceivly does a different job. accessWidget changes your pages in the browser; Perceivly adds nothing to your site and instead finds issues on a schedule so your team can fix them in the source and track the work.
- Will Perceivly make my site compliant?
- No tool can do that on its own. Perceivly helps you find and track the accessibility issues automated tests can detect, which is only part of WCAG. Every report lists what needs a manual review.
- What did the FTC order say?
- The final order, approved on April 22, 2025, required accessiBe to pay $1 million and bars it from claiming its automated products can make websites WCAG-compliant unless it has evidence for the claim.
- How do the prices compare?
- accessWidget is priced by monthly visits, from $59 a month for up to 5,000 visits. Perceivly is priced by sites and pages, from $29 a month for one site with 500 pages per check, and has a free plan.
Sources
Checked . Products and prices change; check each source for the current details.
Other comparisons
Perceivly is not affiliated with accessiBe. Product names are trademarks of their owners and are used only to identify the products compared.