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EnglishWhat Is Accessibility Insights?
Updated
Accessibility Insights is a free set of tools from Microsoft for finding and fixing accessibility issues before they reach your customers. It comes in two main forms: a browser extension for Chrome and the new Microsoft Edge that tests webpages and web applications, and a Windows desktop tool that tests Windows applications. If you are a developer, tester, or designer who needs to catch common accessibility errors quickly, this is the toolset to look at first.
What the tools actually do
The site organizes the offering around two platforms:
| Platform | What it is | What it tests |
|---|---|---|
| For Web | Browser extension for Chrome and the new Microsoft Edge | Webpages and web applications |
| For Windows | Windows desktop tool | Windows applications |
Both share the same goal: ship accessible products to your customers. The Windows tool also brings together trusted Windows experiences such as Inspect and Color Contrast Analyzer in a single tool, so you are not juggling separate utilities.
Key capabilities
Visual Helper
Visual Helper helps you quickly spot accessibility errors through visualizations, and it pairs each issue with simple guidance on how to fix it. This matters when you are scanning a page or app and need to know not just that something is wrong, but where and why.
Dedicated Tests
Dedicated Tests cover the deeper, more specific checks:
- FastPass — runs a quick pass to catch the most common accessibility issues in under five minutes.
- Live Inspect — verifies UI Automation properties.
- Color Contrast Analyzer — investigates contrast ratios.
FastPass is the natural starting point: find common, high-impact issues first, then move to the more targeted tests.
Who it is for
The site frames the value around developers specifically: it is "easy for developers to address most common accessibility errors in under 5 minutes." That speed claim is the core pitch. If your team needs to fold accessibility checks into an agile workflow without a long ramp-up, FastPass is designed for exactly that.
It is also positioned as up-to-date: you can assess your websites for WCAG 2.1 AA coverage.
Open source and community
Accessibility Insights is open source on GitHub, and the project describes collaboration with the broader accessibility community as part of its approach. If you opt into telemetry, the site says you help the community develop inclusive software. That means you can inspect the code, file issues, and contribute rather than treating the tool as a black box.
How to get started
- Choose your platform — Web or Windows — from the downloads page.
- Install the browser extension or the Windows desktop tool.
- Run FastPass to surface common, high-impact issues.
- Use Visual Helper to locate and understand each issue.
- Move to Dedicated Tests (Live Inspect, Color Contrast Analyzer) for deeper verification.
The site also provides Docs, Updates, and an FAQ, so you can check current guidance and release notes as you go.
When this is the right choice
Reach for Accessibility Insights when you want a fast, guided first pass at accessibility on web or Windows targets, and when you value an open-source tool backed by Microsoft's Windows accessibility experience. If your target is neither web nor Windows, or you need a fully automated CI-only pipeline with no manual testing step, check the documentation before committing — the site's own framing centers on interactive testing with FastPass and Visual Helper.