Marketa CizmarAre you ready to elevate your skills and create websites that everyone can enjoy?
Making your websites and apps accessible means opening the door for everyone to enjoy what you’ve created, no matter their abilities.
This means creating experiences that are easy to navigate and understand for all users.
By focusing on accessibility, you’re not just enhancing user experience; you’re also opening your app to a wider audience and inviting new users to join your community. An inclusive design helps everyone feel welcome and can lead to more engagement and success.
In this list, we’ll introduce you to 8 open-source tools that will help you build user-friendly applications.
Let’s discover how you can make your projects shine! ✨
Localization Tools 🌍
Tolgee
Tolgee helps you manage translations in your web applications effortlessly. It streamlines the localization process, making it easier to offer your content in multiple languages.
Key Features: In-Context translation, team collaboration platform, automatic machine translation, native support for popular frameworks like React, Angular, and Vue
Why Do You Need It: By using Tolgee, you can ensure that users who speak different languages can understand and navigate your app. This inclusivity enhances the user experience and allows you to reach a wider audience.
Color and Contrast Tools 🎨
Chroma.js
Chroma.js is a JavaScript library for color manipulation. It includes tools for working with color contrast, color blending, and color scales, making it a powerful tool for developers who need fine-grained control over color contrast in their applications.
Key Features: built-in WCAG contrast checking, create color scales and manipulate colors programmatically, supports various color models
Why Do You Need It: Chroma.js is perfect for developers who want more control over how colors are used in their applications. The built-in contrast checking ensures your colors meet accessibility standards, making it a valuable tool for accessible design.
Star the Chroma.js repository ⭐
Accessibility Testing Tools ✅
axe-core
Axe-core is a tool designed to identify accessibility issues in your web applications. It provides automated testing, helping you ensure that your app meets accessibility standards.
Key Features: Support of automated testing, integration with frameworks, detailed reporting, and cross-platform testing
Why Do You Need It: By using axe-core, you can catch potential accessibility problems early in the development process. This proactive approach helps create a better experience for all users, particularly those with disabilities.
Star the axe-core repository ⭐
Nightwatch.js
Nightwatch.js is an easy-to-use Node.js-based testing framework for automating browser testing. It uses Selenium under the hood, making it a great choice for developers looking to write tests in JavaScript.
Key Features: Simple syntax for writing tests, built-in assertions, support for various browser drivers, and easy integration with CI/CD tools.
Why Do You Need It: Nightwatch.js simplifies the process of writing and running automated tests for your web applications. By ensuring that accessibility standards are met, you can deliver a better experience for all users, reducing the risk of issues going unnoticed.
Star the Nightwatch.js repository ⭐

Speech-to-Text Tools 🗣️
Vosk
Vosk is an offline speech recognition toolkit that supports a wide variety of languages. It can be integrated into apps and used on mobile devices, servers, or embedded systems.
Key Features: Supports multiple languages, works offline, provides real-time transcription, and is lightweight with easy integration.
Why Do You Need It: Vosk allows you to add speech recognition to your web app without relying on internet connectivity. By providing speech-to-text capabilities, you’re making your app accessible to users who prefer voice interaction or those with mobility challenges.
Visualization and Reporting Tools 📊
Pa11y
Pa11y is your automated accessibility testing pal. It helps you check the compliance of your web apps against WCAG standards. It also offers automated reporting with detailed insights into issues that affect accessibility.
Key Features: Command-line interface, detailed reports, integration with CI/CD, and compatibility with popular browsers.
Why Do You Need It: Pa11y allows you to regularly audit your website for accessibility issues and ensure you’re meeting best practices. By addressing these issues early, you enhance the usability of your app for all users.
Usability Testing Tools 🔍
Playwright
Playwright, developed by Microsoft, is an open-source framework that enables end-to-end testing of web applications across all modern browsers. It’s ideal for simulating real user interactions and performing usability tests across different environments.
Key Features: Cross-browser automation, mobile device emulation, integration with CI/CD pipelines, and screenshot/video capture.
Why Do You Need It: Playwright’s cross-browser support helps you ensure that your app is usable and performs consistently across various browsers and devices. You can script user flows to test and refine your app’s usability.
Extra ressources 📖
A11y Project
The A11y Project is a community-driven initiative aimed at making web accessibility easier for developers. It serves as a comprehensive resource hub, providing valuable information, tools, and guidance on creating accessible websites.
Key Features: accessibility articles, checklists, links to helpful tools, guides for implementing web accessibility best practices
Why Do You Need It: The A11y Project is essential for developers who want to ensure their web applications meet accessibility standards. By using its resources, you can learn how to create more inclusive experiences, helping all users to engage with your content effectively.
Star the A11y project repository ⭐
You’re ready to make your web applications more inclusive! Focusing on accessibility opens your projects to more users and creates a welcoming space. Every small step you take helps everyone enjoy your work.
So go ahead, get creative, and make the web a better place for everyone!
Happy coding! 🚀
