Can ChatGPT or an AI chatbot check if my website is accessible? What it can and can't do

Asking ChatGPT or another AI chatbot whether your website is ADA compliant or accessible? What a chatbot can't test, where it helps, a copyable prompt, before-and-after code, a console check, honest statement wording and a 5-minute check, with WCAG 2.2 references.

More small-business owners now paste their web address into an AI chatbot and ask "Is my website ADA compliant?" or "Is my site accessible?". A chatbot can be a useful helper, but its answer is not a test of your site. Depending on the tool and its settings, it may not load your live page at all, may read only the raw HTML without running scripts, and can't press Tab, zoom in or listen with a screen reader on your pages. It can also state things confidently that aren't true. And whether a site meets the ADA is a legal question that no chatbot, scanner or report can settle. Here is how to use an AI assistant for what it is good at, and how to check its work, with WCAG 2.2 references.

1. What a chatbot can't tell you from a web address

These need a real browser, a person, or both:

Whether text has enough contrast against the colours actually shown (1.4.3 Contrast (Minimum)). Try our free contrast checker.
Whether everything works with a keyboard, in a sensible order, with a visible focus outline (2.1.1 Keyboard, 2.4.3 Focus Order, 2.4.7 Focus Visible). See our keyboard test.
What a screen reader announces for buttons, menus and messages (4.1.2 Name, Role, Value, 4.1.3 Status Messages). See our screen reader test.
Whether the page still works zoomed to 400% or on a narrow phone (1.4.10 Reflow).
Whether your alt text actually describes the photo (1.1.1 Non-text Content). Only someone who knows the image can judge that.

2. Where an AI assistant does help

Used on a specific piece of code or text, a chatbot can explain a WCAG success criterion in plain words, suggest a fix for a snippet you paste, draft alt text for you to check, or tidy the wording of an accessibility statement you then edit. Ask it to name the success criterion for each change and to say when it isn't sure. A prompt you can copy:

You are helping me fix accessibility problems in my website code.
Standard: WCAG 2.2 Level AA.
For the HTML below:
1. List each problem, the WCAG 2.2 success criterion number it relates to,
   and why it is a problem for real users.
2. Give the corrected HTML, changing as little as possible.
3. Say clearly if you are unsure or if something needs a manual test
   (keyboard, screen reader, zoom, colour contrast).
Do not say the code is "compliant" or "fully accessible".

[paste one component's HTML here]

3. Give it real code, not just a web address

You'll get far better answers if you paste the HTML of one part of the page, such as the menu button or the contact form. In Chrome, Edge or Firefox, right-click the element, choose Inspect, then right-click the highlighted line and choose Copy > Copy outerHTML (Firefox: Copy > Outer HTML). Here is the kind of before-and-after you should expect, for an icon-only button and a placeholder-only field (4.1.2, 1.3.1 Info and Relationships, 3.3.2 Labels or Instructions):

<!-- Before -->
<div class="menu-icon" onclick="openMenu()"><svg>...</svg></div>
<input type="email" placeholder="Email">

<!-- After -->
<button type="button" aria-expanded="false" aria-controls="site-menu"
        onclick="openMenu()">
  <svg aria-hidden="true" focusable="false">...</svg>
  <span class="visually-hidden">Menu</span>
</button>
<label for="email">Email</label>
<input id="email" name="email" type="email" autocomplete="email">

The fixed button still needs your script to set aria-expanded="true" when the menu opens, and the visually-hidden class needs CSS on your site; check our menu guide for the full pattern.

4. Check every AI fix before you publish it

Paste suggested code into a test page or a draft first, then check it: press Tab through it, zoom to 200%, and run an automated checker. For a rough first look on your own page, paste this into the browser console (press F12, open Console). It lists images with no alt attribute, links and buttons with no name, and form fields with no label. It's a rough check only: it misses many problems and can flag a few false ones.

// Rough check only. Paste into the browser console on your own page.
(() => {
  const out = [];
  document.querySelectorAll('img:not([alt])').forEach(el =>
    out.push(['Image with no alt attribute', el]));
  document.querySelectorAll('a[href], button').forEach(el => {
    const text = (el.innerText || el.getAttribute('aria-label') || el.title || '').trim();
    const named = text || el.getAttribute('aria-labelledby') ||
      el.querySelector('img[alt]:not([alt=""]), svg[aria-label]');
    if (!named) out.push(['Link or button with no name', el]);
  });
  document.querySelectorAll('input:not([type=hidden]):not([type=submit]):not([type=button]), select, textarea')
    .forEach(el => {
      const labelled = (el.id && document.querySelector('label[for="' + CSS.escape(el.id) + '"]')) ||
        el.closest('label') || el.getAttribute('aria-label') || el.getAttribute('aria-labelledby');
      if (!labelled) out.push(['Form field with no label', el]);
    });
  console.table(out.map(([issue, el]) => ({ issue, html: el.outerHTML.slice(0, 120) })));
  return out.length + ' possible issues found (rough check only)';
})();

The W3C keeps a list of web accessibility evaluation tools, and its Easy Checks walk through simple manual tests. See also our free checkers compared.

5. Don't let a chatbot write your claims

If an AI drafts your accessibility statement or marketing copy, take out words like "fully accessible", "ADA compliant" or "guaranteed". Describe what you did and how people can reach you if something doesn't work. In 2025 the US Federal Trade Commission ordered an accessibility software company to pay $1 million over claims about what its product did (FTC press release). If a chatbot suggests adding an overlay widget as the fix, read overlays vs real fixes first. Our statement generator produces a plain, honest starting draft.

<h2>Accessibility</h2>
<p>We aim to meet WCAG 2.2 Level AA. On [date] we checked our main
pages with an automated scan and a keyboard test and fixed the
problems we found. If anything on this site is hard to use,
email [your email] or call [your phone] and we'll help.</p>

The bracketed parts are placeholders; fill in your real date, checks and contact details, and only list checks you actually did.

6. Keep private data out of the chat

Before pasting code, remove customer names, emails, order details, API keys and anything typed into form fields. Copy the empty form, not a filled-in one. Check your business's own rules on what staff may paste into AI tools.

Platform notes

WordPress: you can paste a chatbot's fix into a Custom HTML block or the code editor for a single block; theme and plugin output usually needs a setting, a child theme or a developer. See WordPress fixes.
Squarespace, Wix and GoDaddy: much of the code isn't editable, so ask the chatbot which editor setting controls the problem (for example image alt text or heading level), then confirm the setting name in the platform's own help pages. See the Squarespace, Wix and GoDaddy guides.
Shopify: paste the relevant theme section or snippet file rather than the whole page, and test changes on a duplicate theme first. See Shopify fixes.
Webflow: most fixes belong in element settings (labels, alt text, link text) rather than custom code embeds. See Webflow fixes.
AI-built sites: if an AI coding tool built the site, the same tool can apply fixes, but test the result; see our AI-built website check.

Settings and AI tools change often, so check each product's own help pages for current options.

Common mistakes

Taking "Yes, your site looks accessible" from a chatbot as a test result.
Asking about a URL instead of pasting the actual code.
Publishing AI-suggested code without pressing Tab through it once.
Adding aria attributes everywhere because a chatbot suggested them; a wrong aria attribute can be worse than none.
Letting an AI write "fully accessible" or "ADA compliant" into your statement or ads.
Pasting customer data or form submissions into a chat.

A 5-minute check you can do today

Run the free snapshot at the top of this page on your homepage.
Pick the top problem, copy that element's outerHTML and use the prompt above.
Apply the fix on a draft or test page, then press Tab through it: can you see focus and use it with Enter or Space?
Run the console check above and the snapshot again.
Read your accessibility statement and remove any "compliant" or "fully accessible" wording.

What a scan can and can't check here

An automated scan finds only part of the barriers on the pages it visits. It can flag missing alt attributes, unnamed buttons and links, unlabelled fields, some contrast problems, missing page titles and language. It can't tell whether alt text is accurate, whether a chatbot's suggested fix behaves correctly with a keyboard or screen reader, or whether your site meets any law. Our Fix-Pack reports include copy-paste fixes for what the scan finds on up to 10 pages, which you can check with the steps above.

Building sites for several clients? The agency 5-pack gives you five white-label reports to use within 12 months.

This is general technical guidance, not legal advice, and it doesn't certify compliance with the ADA or any law, or protect against claims.

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This is general technical guidance, not legal advice, and it does not certify compliance with the ADA or any law.

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This guide is general technical information, not legal advice. Following it does not certify ADA or any legal compliance. Automated checks find only part of accessibility barriers.

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14-day refund promise. See a sample report first. A technical report, not legal advice; automated checks find only part of accessibility barriers.