Why Siteimprove customers switch to AccessProof
Siteimprove is a heavy enterprise platform that bundles SEO, analytics, governance, and accessibility behind a sales-led contract. AccessProof does one thing — real WCAG audits with axe-core — and lets you self-serve from $0/mo.
AccessProof vs Siteimprove
| Criterion | AccessProof | Siteimprove | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audit engine | Vendored axe-core 4.9.1 (same engine as Deque, GOV.UK) | Proprietary engine + axe-derived rule set | Tie |
| Pricing model | Self-serve, $0 free → $199/mo Business, no annual lock-in | Annual contracts, sales-led, list price not published | AccessProof |
| Scope | Accessibility only — focused, fast to learn | Bundled platform (SEO + analytics + a11y + governance) | AccessProof |
| Setup time | Add URL, get report in ~42s | Onboarding weeks: site indexing, role config, training | AccessProof |
| ADA evidence | Timestamped PDF, WCAG criterion citations, court-ready | Dashboard exports — designed for ongoing governance teams | Tie |
| CI/CD gate | REST API + JSON in seconds — block deploys | API available on enterprise tiers, often through services | AccessProof |
| Indie / agency friendly | Yes — $29/mo Starter covers 5 client sites | Enterprise positioning, minimum contract size | AccessProof |
Claims about Siteimprove reflect public marketing as of 2026-05-19. Inaccurate? Email [email protected] — we correct factual errors.
You don't need a 6-figure suite to prove WCAG conformance.
Siteimprove is a credible accessibility platform — they actually crawl your site, run axe-based rules, and produce reports. The catch is the price tag and the procurement friction: list pricing isn't public, contracts are annual + sales-led, and you typically pay $10k-$50k+ per year for a bundle that mixes accessibility with SEO, analytics, governance, and content moderation modules you may not need.
For most teams the accessibility module is the only one that maps to a concrete legal obligation. Paying enterprise rates for a platform-wide license to access a single feature is a procurement choice many teams cannot justify — especially indie SaaS, agencies, and e-commerce operators under $10M revenue.
AccessProof takes the opposite stance: a single-purpose tool that runs real axe-core 4.9.1 audits, ships court-ready PDFs, and charges $0-$199/mo with no annual lock-in. You get the evidence you need for ADA defensibility without the bundle you don't.
Sources: siteimprove.com (pricing tier descriptions, public marketing as of 2026-05) · industry contract benchmarks (UsableNet, Forrester procurement guides).
Audits, not band-aids.
Vendored axe-core 4.9.1
We ship the audit engine ourselves. Same rule set used by Deque, GOV.UK, and the W3C — 90+ rules across WCAG 2.2 A/AA/AAA, Section 508, EN 301 549.
Court-ready timestamped PDFs
Each scan produces a signed PDF with site URL, scan time (UTC), exact element selectors, WCAG criterion citations, and remediation steps. Designed to be admissible.
Scheduled scans, regression alerts
Daily, weekly, or hourly cadence. Email + Slack + webhook alerts when a regression introduces a new critical or serious issue.
Multi-site, multi-tenant
One dashboard for a portfolio. Agencies manage 25+ clients on a single Pro account; enterprises run unlimited sites on Business.
REST API + CI/CD gate
Block deploys with an accessibility threshold in your pipeline. POST a URL, get JSON back with violations, score, and a fail/pass gate.
No JavaScript on your site
AccessProof does not inject anything into your pages. We render them in Chromium and inspect — your DOM stays exactly as your team built it.
Pay for an audit, not a widget.
1 site · monthly · HTML report
5 sites · weekly · PDF reports · email alerts
25 sites · daily · API + CI/CD · branded PDF
Siteimprove does not publish list prices. Public procurement records and reseller quotes commonly cite annual contracts in the $10,000 – $50,000+ range depending on site count, modules selected, and seat counts.
Source: siteimprove.com (sales-led, request a quote) · public RFP records · industry benchmarks 2024-2025.
Business plan ($199/mo) covers unlimited sites and hourly scans — see /pricing.
Questions we hear from Siteimprove customers.
Is AccessProof as accurate as Siteimprove for WCAG audits?
AccessProof runs axe-core 4.9.1 — the open-source engine built by Deque, used by GOV.UK, the W3C, and (in derived form) by Siteimprove themselves. The rule coverage on automatable WCAG criteria is comparable. Where the platforms differ is governance workflows (Siteimprove ships role-based dashboards, content moderation, multi-team approval flows) — features that matter at enterprise scale but are overhead for teams that just need a defensible audit.
Why switch from Siteimprove to AccessProof?
Three reasons typically cited by switchers: (1) cost — moving from $20k/yr enterprise contracts to $29-$199/mo self-serve; (2) speed — getting a first audit in 42 seconds vs. weeks of onboarding; (3) focus — paying for the accessibility tool you actually use, not a 5-module platform where you log in once a quarter. Teams under $10M revenue and agencies managing client portfolios are the biggest segment.
Can I run AccessProof alongside Siteimprove?
Yes — AccessProof is read-only on your site (no DOM injection, no JS payload). Many teams keep Siteimprove for governance and use AccessProof for fast per-deploy audits in their CI/CD pipeline. The two coexist cleanly.
Does AccessProof cover Section 508 and EN 301 549 like Siteimprove?
Yes. axe-core ships rule sets for WCAG 2.2 A/AA/AAA, Section 508 (US federal), and EN 301 549 (EU public sector). Each AccessProof scan flags violations against all three standards with cross-referenced criteria in the PDF.
Run a free WCAG audit on your site.
No widget on your DOM. No long demo call. A timestamped report in ~42s.