1. Paste the live URL
The input is the page you care about, as a visitor would hit it. A product page, a contact form, a homepage. Optional email if you want the result sent. No account is required for the free scan.
Plainscan then requests that URL and reads the markup the server actually returns. That matters. Overlays and client-only widgets never rewrite the HTML sitting in your theme. If the product photo has no alt, the form field has no label, or the headings skip from h1 to h4, that is in the source. That is what we look at.
2. Free counts, then 1 to 2 samples
The free result is meant to be readable in one sitting.
- Severity totals in plain English (not a dump of codes).
- One or two sample findings so you can see the shape of the report.
- Fixes on those samples are redacted until you unlock.
You should be able to answer: does this page have a real problem, and is it the kind of problem I can paste a fix for? If yes, the next step is the paid unlock. If you only needed a pulse check, you can stop. There is no monthly plan waiting for you.
3. Unlock $14 for the full list and PDF
$14 once, for that scan. Not a subscription.
You get:
- The full fix list for the scan you already ran.
- Copy-paste alt text, labels, and contrast notes you can drop into Shopify or WordPress.
- A PDF of the report you can keep or share with whoever edits the theme.
The unlock is tied to the scan you ran. It does not become a monthly checker, a sitewide crawler, or a certificate. Pricing is the same story with the free vs paid split in one table-like list.
What we look at
Plainscan looks at the markup the server sends, with a bias toward issues a small site owner can actually paste.
- Images and alt text. Missing or empty alt on content images. Product photos are a common miss on Shopify.
- Form labels. Inputs without a label a person or a screen reader can use. Contact forms and checkout-adjacent fields show up here.
- Contrast. Text and background combinations that fail typical contrast checks.
- Heading structure. Skipped levels, missing headings, pages that are a wall of unlabelled sections.
The report speaks English. You should not need to decode a WCAG citation to know what to change. The home scanner is built around that sentence, not around a dashboard of codes.
What we do not do
- We do not install an overlay. No toolbar, no widget on your storefront, no script that claims to "fix" the live page for visitors.
- We do not rewrite the live site. You (or your developer) paste the fixes into the theme, the product, or the page. The site does not change because you ran a scan.
- We do not certify you. No ADA badge, no WCAG certificate, no "you are compliant" stamp. A scan is a checker. It is not a legal opinion.
- We do not catch everything. Keyboard-only paths, real screen reader UX, and a large share of WCAG AA need a human. What a scan does not catch exists so that is not a surprise.
If the product you wanted was a visual overlay of icons on the rendered page, that is closer to WAVE (WebAIM). Plainscan is a pasted URL and a written report. How that differs from WAVE. If the product you wanted was a third-party toolbar on the live site, that is an overlay, and it is not this.
FAQ
Do I have to change my live site for the scan to run?
No. You paste a URL. Plainscan reads what the server sends. Your live HTML does not change until you paste a fix yourself.
Why are the sample fixes redacted on the free scan?
The free scan proves the page has issues you can act on. The copy-paste sentences and the PDF are what $14 unlocks for that scan.
Is this an overlay or a checker?
A checker. Scan a URL, get plain-English findings, paste fixes. Nothing is injected onto the page your customers see.