Siteimprove and TrustScans both scan instead of patch. Here is how they differ.
This is the fair fight: two products that test your site and hand the findings to your team, with no widget on the page. Siteimprove is a broad platform for large content teams. TrustScans is focused on accessibility reports that the people fixing the site can act on.
- Category
- Scanner and content platform
- Facts checked
- Sources cited
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What Siteimprove is, in its own words
Siteimprove’s accessibility platform is built so that “Everyone who publishes can monitor, prioritize, and remediate continuously” Source: Siteimprove. It offers a free browser extension that can “check any multi-step form, dynamic content, or non-public page” Source: Siteimprove, browser extension, and agents that work in tools such as VS Code and Claude Code through its MCP server Source: Siteimprove.
Siteimprove takes the same view of overlays that we do: “An overlay masks issues in the browser without fixing the code underneath, so your site still fails WCAG” Source: Siteimprove. We could not find published pricing on its site on the date we checked; it sells through demos.
Where we overlap
Nearly all of the fundamentals. Both products scan sites against WCAG, report issues for your team to fix in the source, monitor continuously, and connect to AI coding tools over MCP Source: Siteimprove. Neither puts a widget on your site.
Siteimprove’s browser extension tests non-public pages and multi-step forms Source: Siteimprove, browser extension. TrustScans scans public pages only today, so if logged-in flows are central to your site, weigh that.
Our position
Where TrustScans is different
Pricing you can see before you talk to anyone
TrustScans has a free plan, and published prices for Basic and Team. You can scan your first site today without a demo.
A score built from confirmed failures only
Our score counts confirmed WCAG failures only, with the method explained in the app and the PDF report. Needs-review items and best-practice recommendations sit in their own lists and never move the number.
Reports written for the people who act on them
Each finding carries the WCAG criterion, pages affected, selector, HTML, a highlighted screenshot for the first occurrences, a likely-shared-component flag, and plain-language guidance on how to fix it. Report views are organised by audience: executive, manager and developer.
An agent loop that ends in a verification scan
Our MCP server gives a coding agent a prioritised work queue with screenshots and code context. The agent fixes the code, marks issues resolved with a note, and can start a new scan. Marking an issue resolved never changes the score; only that scan does.
Two scanners, two jobs
Both companies agree that fixes belong in the code, not in a browser layer Source: Siteimprove. Where scanners differ is in how honest they are about their own limits. Automated testing finds only part of what WCAG asks: Deque, which makes the axe engine, reports that its automated tests covered 57% of issues by volume in its own audit data Source: Deque, 2021, and the UK Government Digital Service found the best tool it tested caught 40% of deliberately introduced barriers Source: GDS tool audit, 2018.
That is why TrustScans keeps confirmed failures, items needing a person, and recommendations apart, and why no TrustScans report claims a site conforms to WCAG.
TrustScans and Siteimprove, side by side
| Capability | Siteimprove | TrustScans |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Platform that monitors sites for teams who publish, plus a browser extension Source: Siteimprove Source: Siteimprove, browser extension. | Loads your public pages in a real browser from the outside, the way a visitor would. Nothing is installed on your site. |
| Changes what visitors receive | No. Siteimprove says overlays mask issues without fixing the code Source: Siteimprove. | No. Nothing is added to your site, and visitors get exactly what you publish. |
| Non-public pages | Free browser extension checks forms, dynamic content and non-public pages Source: Siteimprove, browser extension. | Public pages only today. |
| Developer and AI tooling | Agents in tools such as VS Code and Claude Code through an MCP server Source: Siteimprove. | REST API and MCP server on Team and Enterprise. A coding agent can pull the work queue with screenshots and code context, mark issues resolved and start a verification scan. |
| Published pricing | We did not find published pricing on the date we checked. | Free plan; Basic $19/mo; Team $49/mo; Enterprise custom. |
The TrustScans column describes our own product. Plan availability is listed on the pricing page.
Questions
TrustScans vs Siteimprove: common questions
01Is Siteimprove an overlay?
No. Siteimprove is a scanning and monitoring platform, and it argues against overlays itself: “An overlay masks issues in the browser without fixing the code underneath” Source: Siteimprove.
02Why pick TrustScans over Siteimprove?
Our position: if you want published pricing, a free plan, a score built only from confirmed failures, and reports that give each finding its full context and fix guidance, TrustScans is built for that. If you need a broad content-quality platform or testing of logged-in pages, Siteimprove may fit better.
03How much of WCAG can any scanner test?
Only part of it. The W3C says “no tool alone can determine if a site meets accessibility standards” Source: W3C WAI, evaluation overview. Deque reports 57% of issues by volume in its own audit data Source: Deque, 2021; the UK Government Digital Service found the best tool it tested caught 40% of the barriers it planted Source: GDS tool audit, 2018.
Sources
Where every claim on this page comes from
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Deque, 2021
Deque Systems: Deque Study Shows Its Automated Testing Identifies 57 Percent of Digital Accessibility Issues, Surpassing Accepted Industry Benchmarks10 March 2021. Checked 26 September 2026.
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GDS tool audit, 2018
UK Government Digital Service: Accessibility tools audit resultsLast updated 13 April 2018. Checked 26 September 2026.
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W3C WAI, evaluation overview
W3C Web Accessibility Initiative: Evaluating Web Accessibility OverviewUpdated 12 August 2026. Checked 26 September 2026.
Siteimprove and other product names are trademarks of their respective owners, used here only to identify their products. TrustScans is not affiliated with or endorsed by them. Competitor details come from each vendor’s own public website and the third-party sources listed above, and were checked on 26 September 2026. Products and pricing change; check the vendor’s site for their current offer. Statements about what TrustScans does and why are our own position. TrustScans is not a law firm, and nothing here is legal advice.