There are two layers to your results, and knowing which one you are looking at saves a lot of confusion.
Layer one: automated results
Every scan produces these, straight away, at no extra cost. As soon as the scan finishes you can see:
- every issue found, on every page, with the exact element and code involved
- how serious each issue is
- which WCAG success criteria are affected
- which groups of people are affected
- every image on your pages and its alternative text
- a downloadable PDF report of the findings
This is enough to start fixing things, and for many teams it is what they use day to day.
Layer two: an Expert Manual Review
A certified accessibility specialist works through every one of the 49 WCAG 2.1 AA success criteria for that scan. They confirm what the automated test found and check everything automation cannot judge, recording a pass, a fail or not applicable for each criterion, with notes.
Your compliance score and risk band come from this review. Automated results on their own do not have a score, because a score built only from automated tests would claim far more than those tests can show.
How you get one
You request it from the scan's results page. We send you a quote, you can ask for changes to it, and once it is approved and paid we carry out the review. When it is complete, the score, the risk band and the full expert audit appear on that scan and in its report. The details are in Requesting an Expert Manual Review.
Telling them apart on screen
| Automated results only | After an Expert Manual Review | |
|---|---|---|
| Status | Automated Scan Complete | Expert Review Complete |
| Score and risk band | Not shown | Shown |
| Score in scan history | Pending Review | A number out of 100, with a certified seal |
| PDF report title | Automated Accessibility Scan Report | Expert-Verified Accessibility Report |
| Share link, QR code and badge | Not available | Available |
A review belongs to one scan
The review is carried out on a particular scan, and the score belongs to that scan. If you scan the site again later, the new scan starts with automated results only. That is deliberate: a score describes the site as it was when a specialist looked at it, not as it is after changes nobody has checked.
Next
Read How we find your pages.