The accessiBe Alternative: Compliapoint vs accessiBe
accessiBe sells an AI-powered overlay widget. Compliapoint fixes your actual code. One of these approaches was ordered by the FTC to pay $1 million. The other produces a dated compliance record of every change made.
⚠️ FTC Enforcement Action — 2025
In 2025 the Federal Trade Commission ordered accessiBe to pay $1 million for deceptive business practices related to its accessibility overlay product. The FTC found that accessiBe's claims about automated WCAG compliance were misleading. This enforcement action followed years of criticism from the disability community and accessibility professionals who documented that overlay widgets do not deliver the compliance they promise.
Side-by-Side Comparison
How accessiBe's overlay widget approach compares to Compliapoint's source-code remediation on every metric that matters.
| Feature | accessiBe | Compliapoint |
|---|---|---|
| Approach | ✗ JavaScript overlay injected at render time | ✓ Direct fixes in HTML, CSS, and template source |
| WCAG 2.2 AA Compliance | ✗ Claims automated AI compliance — FTC found these claims deceptive | ✓ Full manual audit and remediation to WCAG 2.2 AA |
| FTC / Legal Standing | ✗ FTC order (2025): $1 million over its accessibility claims | ✓ No regulatory actions. Accessibility test record suitable for legal defense |
| Screen Reader Compatibility | ✗ Screen readers interact with the DOM before overlays execute | ✓ Fixes applied at the source — works with every assistive technology |
| Pricing Model | ⚠ Subscription from $59/month or $490/year, priced by monthly traffic — ongoing indefinitely | ✓ One-time project cost. No forced recurring subscription |
| What Happens If You Cancel | ✗ All "fixes" disappear immediately. Site returns to non-compliant state | ✓ Fixes are permanent. They exist in your code regardless of relationship |
| Legal Defense Documentation | ✗ No accessibility test record. No legal defense package | ✓ Full audit report, accessibility test record, and legal defense documentation |
| Delivery Timeline | ⚠ Widget installs in minutes — but doesn't fix underlying violations | ✓ 7–10 business days standard. Rush available in 1–3 days |
| Where the fix lives | ✗ Overlay conflicts with theme and plugin updates | ✓ In a child theme, a site-specific plugin or your Liquid source — never in files an update overwrites |
| Industry Reputation | ✗ accessibility professionals signed the Overlay Fact Sheet opposing this approach | ✓ Source remediation is the method endorsed by accessibility professionals |
| VPAT / ACR Available | ✗ Not available | ✓ Full VPAT generation for government and enterprise procurement |
| PDF Remediation | ✗ Not included — overlays only affect HTML rendering | ✓ Full PDF tagging and remediation available |
The Fundamental Problem With Overlays
Understanding why the overlay approach fails requires knowing how assistive technology actually interacts with your website.
How accessiBe Works
- A single line of JavaScript is added to your site header
- When a page loads, the script injects modifications into the rendered DOM
- An AI engine attempts to identify and auto-fix violations at render time
- A visible widget icon appears on-screen for users to toggle settings
- Screen readers often process the DOM before the overlay script executes
- The underlying HTML, CSS, and source code remain broken
- If the subscription is cancelled, every modification disappears instantly
- The FTC determined that accessiBe's compliance claims were deceptive
How Compliapoint Works
- We conduct a full manual audit of every page against WCAG 2.2 AA
- Violations are fixed directly in your HTML, CSS, and template source files
- Every fix works natively with screen readers, keyboards, and switches
- PDFs, videos, and downloadable documents are remediated as well
- You receive a detailed audit report documenting every violation and fix
- A dated accessibility test record is issued for legal defense and procurement
- Fixes are permanent — they belong to you and remain in your source code
- Standard delivery in 7–10 business days. Rush in 1–3 days
The 5-Year Cost Comparison
accessiBe's subscription model costs more over time — and the moment you stop paying, you're back to square one.
| Cost Factor | accessiBe | Compliapoint |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $490+ (subscription) | One-time project fee (varies by site scope) |
| Year 2 | $490+ (renewal required to maintain "fixes") | $0 — fixes are permanent in your code |
| Year 3 | $490+ | $0 |
| Year 4 | $490+ | $0 |
| Year 5 | $490+ | $0 |
| 5-Year Minimum Total | $2,450+ and still not actually compliant | One-time project fee with permanent results |
| If You Stop Paying | ✗ Site immediately returns to non-compliant state | ✓ Nothing changes. The code is yours |
| Tax Credit Eligible | ⚠ May qualify — check with your CPA | ✓ IRS Form 8826 — some small businesses may qualify; ask your tax professional |
Common Questions When Evaluating
Why did the FTC order accessiBe to pay $1 million?
In 2025, the Federal Trade Commission ordered accessiBe to pay $1 million for making deceptive claims about its overlay product's ability to make websites compliant with WCAG standards. The FTC found that accessiBe's marketing misrepresented what its automated tool could actually accomplish. Overlay technology cannot fix structural HTML issues, missing alternative text for complex images, broken form labels, or keyboard navigation problems that exist in the source code.
What is the Overlay Fact Sheet?
The Overlay Fact Sheet is a statement signed by accessibility professionals, researchers, and advocates documenting the limitations and harms of accessibility overlay products. The document outlines why overlays cannot achieve conformance with accessibility standards, and why they frequently make websites harder — not easier — for people with disabilities to use. The fact sheet specifically names products like accessiBe, UserWay, and AudioEye.
Can plaintiffs' attorneys tell if I'm using an overlay?
Yes. Overlay scripts are visible in the page source code and are trivially detectable by automated scanning tools. Plaintiffs' law firms specializing in ADA website lawsuits have begun specifically targeting websites using overlays, because the presence of an overlay indicates the site owner knew they had accessibility issues but chose a cosmetic fix rather than actual remediation. In 2024, 1,023 companies sued over web accessibility had an overlay widget live on their site (UsableNet).
What happens to my site if I cancel accessiBe?
If you cancel your accessiBe subscription, every modification the overlay applied to your website disappears immediately. Your site reverts to its original non-compliant state. This is because the overlay never changed your source code — it only injected temporary modifications at render time via JavaScript. With Compliapoint, fixes are made directly in your HTML, CSS, and template files. They exist in your codebase regardless of your relationship with us.
I already have accessiBe installed. What should I do?
Start with our free Site Accessibility Assessment. We'll evaluate your actual compliance level beneath the overlay and provide a clear scope of what needs to be fixed at the source. Many of our clients come to us after discovering their overlay didn't protect them from a demand letter. The transition is straightforward: we remediate the source, deliver your compliance documentation, and you remove the overlay script.
Does Compliapoint offer ongoing monitoring?
Yes. After initial remediation, we offer optional monthly monitoring to catch new violations introduced by content updates, plugin changes, or new pages. The difference is that monitoring is an option — not a requirement to stay compliant. Your source-code fixes remain in place whether or not you continue monitoring.
When the one-time fee costs less than the subscription
| accessiBe plan | Per year | Five years | Our $4,995 is ahead from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Micro (up to 5,000 visits/mo) | $490 | $2,450 | The subscription stays cheaper |
| Growth (up to 30,000 visits/mo) | $1,490 | $7,450 | Year 4 |
| Scale (up to 100,000 visits/mo) | $3,990 | $19,950 | Year 2 |
accessiBe prices by monthly traffic, so a small site with real visitor numbers pays a large-site rate. On the entry Micro plan a subscription is genuinely cheaper in cash for about a decade — what it buys is the product the FTC ordered its maker to pay $1 million over, and no change to your source code. Rates from accessiBe’s published pricing, September 2026; ours from our pricing page.
What accessWidget Leaves You to Do
On the entry plan the subscription is cheaper than a one-time engagement. The question worth asking is what it actually takes off your desk — and accessiBe’s own product pages are fairly direct about the answer.
| What accessWidget covers | What that leaves you doing |
|---|---|
| Fixes are applied in the browser at runtime and are session-based. Your source code is not modified. | Your HTML is exactly as broken as it was. Remove the widget and every fix leaves with it. |
| Video captioning is outside what the widget does — accessiBe says it must be handled separately | Captioning every video yourself, or buying it from someone else |
| PDF remediation is outside what the widget does — accessiBe says it must be handled separately | Tagging and reading-ordering every downloadable document yourself |
| Expert audit is a separate service | No human being checks the automated result unless you pay extra for it |
| VPAT documentation is a separate service | Producing your own procurement paperwork, or buying it on top |
| User testing is a separate service | No disabled user ever tests your site under the plan you bought |
| Expert testing of core user flows, and custom remediations, are add-on services | Anything the AI cannot do is either a separate purchase or your own job |
Quotations and inclusions above are from accessiBe’s own accessWidget product pages, checked September 2026. This is the honest shape of the trade: a widget subscription is cheaper per year, and it leaves the documents, the video, the audit, the paperwork and the source code with you. A Compliapoint engagement costs more once and leaves you with none of it. See what that costs.
The Two Questions That Decide This
Most of the detail on this page comes down to two things: whether your actual code gets fixed, and what it costs you over time.
| accessiBe | Compliapoint | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Does it change your source code? | No. accessWidget applies changes in the browser at runtime. Your source is untouched | Yes — fixes are written into your HTML, CSS and templates |
| If you stop paying | Every accommodation disappears and the site reverts to its original state | Nothing changes. The code is yours, the test record is yours |
| 2. What does it cost, and does it stop? | $490–$3,990 a year, priced by monthly traffic, indefinitely | $4,995–$19,995 once, published in full |
| Over five years | $2,450–$19,950 — and the code is still unfixed | The same figure. There is no year two |
When the product is an overlay this is not a close call. Nothing the widget does reaches your source code — which is what a plaintiff’s expert examines, and what a screen reader reads from before any script has run. In 2025 the FTC ordered accessiBe to pay $1 million over how its product was marketed, and in the first half of 2025, 22.6% of ADA website lawsuits were filed against sites that already had a widget installed. The entry subscription is genuinely cheaper per year. It is buying something different. See our published pricing.
Find Out Where Your Site Actually Stands
Our Site Accessibility Assessment takes about 3 minutes. We review your answers and respond with a clear written proposal — no obligation, no automatic charges, no pressure.
Some eligible small businesses may qualify for the federal Disabled Access Credit for qualifying accessibility expenditures. Ask your tax professional whether your project qualifies.