Skip to content
Accessibility overlays

Do Accessibility Overlays Work?

Short answer: they don't change your code, so they don't remove the risk. See what an overlay is leaving unfixed on your site, in about a minute.

Free, and it takes about a minute. No credit card, no sales call.

WCAG 2.1 AA

The standard courts reference

Fixed price

One-time, not a subscription

~60-second scan

No login, no sales call

What an overlay is

Hand-drawn illustration of a cracked, broken shield

An accessibility overlay is a toolbar or widget you add to your site with one line of code, usually for a monthly fee, that promises to handle accessibility for you. accessiBe, UserWay, and AudioEye are the best-known. It typically drops a floating button that offers font-size, contrast, and spacing controls, plus some automated adjustments to the page.

The visible widget creates the impression the site has been handled, while the code underneath is unchanged.

Why they don't remove the risk

The structure, navigation, forms, and design underneath are what assistive technology has to work with, and an overlay never touches any of it. A visitor who couldn't use your contact form before still can't.

They don't touch your code

An overlay layers on top of your site without changing the source. Whatever a screen reader couldn't do before, it still can't.

Regulators have acted

In April 2025 the FTC ordered accessiBe to pay $1 million and barred it from claiming its automated product can make any website WCAG-compliant.

The suits still come

In 2025, 983 of the 3,948 accessibility suits tracked across federal and state courts targeted sites that already had an overlay installed.

What regulators have done

In April 2025 the FTC finalized a $1 million order against accessiBe and barred it from claiming its automated product can make any website WCAG-compliant. It's the only government action of its kind, and it names the exact claim overlays are sold on.

The DOJ has separately cautioned against relying on them. The FTC order is the stronger signal anyway.

Looking for an accessiBe or UserWay alternative?

If you're shopping for an alternative to an overlay subscription, the real alternative is fixing the code, which is what remediation means. We change the structure, navigation, forms, and media so the site works with a screen reader and a keyboard, not just a mouse.

You pay once, at a fixed price you see before you commit, instead of a monthly fee that never ends and leaves your code untouched. You also get a report documenting every fix, to share with a lawyer, an insurer, or anyone who asks.

See what your overlay is leaving unfixed.

Scan my site

An overlay, a large firm, and real remediation

What you get
Overlay widgets JavaScript toolbar on top of your existing site
Large firms Consulting engagement with a large scope
Guava Code-level remediation, scoped to your site
Fixes your code?
Overlay widgets No
Large firms Eventually
Guava Yes
Typical timeline
Overlay widgets Instant (but ineffective)
Large firms Months
Guava Weeks
Pricing
Overlay widgets Monthly fee that never ends, and your code is unchanged
Large firms Enterprise engagement
Guava Fixed price, scoped and itemized up front
Requires your own developer?
Overlay widgets No
Large firms Usually
Guava No

Accessibility overlays, answered

Do accessibility overlays make a website ADA compliant?
No. An overlay adds a layer on top of your existing code without changing it, so the barriers a screen reader hits are still there. "ADA compliant" is a legal conclusion no widget can deliver. In April 2025 the FTC barred the largest overlay vendor, accessiBe, from claiming its automated product can make any website WCAG-compliant.
Do overlays protect me from a lawsuit?
There's no evidence they do. In 2025, 983 of the 3,948 website accessibility suits tracked across federal and state courts targeted sites that already had an overlay installed, close to a quarter of them. Installing one does not appear to keep the demand letters away.
Have courts ruled that overlays don't work?
No court holding to that effect has been found. What exists is regulatory: the FTC's 2025 order against accessiBe, and DOJ guidance that warns against overlays. Neither is a court ruling, but the FTC action is a strong public signal.
What's the alternative to an overlay like accessiBe or UserWay?
Fixing the code. Real remediation changes the structure, navigation, forms, and media underneath so the site works with assistive technology. It's a one-time, fixed-price project instead of a monthly fee, and it addresses the thing the overlay left untouched.
I already installed an overlay. What now?
You're not on the hook for installing it. The law moved and most developers didn't know. Start with a scan to see what the overlay isn't handling, then remediate the code. You can keep or drop the widget afterward; either way the fixes live in your site, not on top of it.
Is an overlay ever useful?
A couple of its features, like a contrast toggle, can be a small convenience for some visitors. What it can't do is make an inaccessible site accessible, which is the thing it tends to be sold as.

The fine print

The FTC matter is a consent order (File No. 222-3156, final order April 2025), not a court adjudication or a finding of liability. It bars accessiBe from claiming its automated product can make any website WCAG-compliant or ensure ongoing compliance absent evidence.

The 983-of-3,948 figure counts 2025 suits across federal and state courts against sites with a widget present, from EcomBack, a remediation vendor that counts suits involving rival widget vendors; it's corroborated in direction by the FTC action. It's a federal-plus-state basis and shouldn't be compared against federal-only counts.

No court holding rejecting overlays was found. The DOJ has published guidance discouraging reliance on them; guidance is not a ruling.

An automated scan detects a subset of issues and establishes a floor, never conformance. This page is not legal advice.

Find out what your overlay is leaving unfixed.

A free report in about a minute: the code-level issues a widget can't touch, and what it costs to fix them.

Get your free compliance report

No credit card, no commitment, and no sales call unless you ask for one.