Getting started with EqualSites

1. Run your first check

Create a free account, type your website address into the box at the top of the dashboard, and click Add my website. Then start a check. EqualSites reads your sitemap, picks a representative sample of pages, and tests each one against 100+ accessibility rules — the same engine professional auditors use. A first check typically takes two to four minutes.

You don't need to install anything for this step. Checks run entirely from our side, reading your site the way any visitor's browser would.

2. Understand your results

Your site gets a score and a plain-English problem list, ranked by real-world legal risk rather than alphabetical order. Each finding says what's wrong ("your menu links are too light to read"), who it affects, and what will fix it. Every site follows the same four-step journey shown on its card: Check → Review fixes → Connect & apply → Prove it.

Fixes are generated automatically after each check — there's no separate button to hunt for.

3. Connect the WordPress plugin

To actually apply fixes, install the EqualSites plugin on your WordPress site:

• Open your site's Connect & apply panel in the dashboard. It shows your Site ID and site key, each with a copy button.
• Install and activate the EqualSites plugin on your WordPress site.
• In WordPress, open the EqualSites menu, paste the Site ID and key, and save. The connection status card confirms when the link is live.

The plugin is deliberately thin: it receives your approved fixes, applies them server-side as pages are generated, and adds zero JavaScript to what your visitors download. It syncs twice daily on its own, or immediately when you press sync.

4. Review and apply fixes

Each proposed fix comes with a plain-English explanation and a confidence grade. Approve the ones you want; the plugin applies them in your site's real HTML. After applying, EqualSites re-checks the live page and shows you the before and after — a fix only counts when it's verified on the page your visitors actually see.

Two kinds of fixes behave differently, on purpose:

• Render-time fixes (colors, labels, landmarks) are applied as pages are served, and stop if you deactivate the plugin.
• Content fixes — like approved AI alt text — are written into your WordPress media library permanently. They survive plugin removal, because they're part of your site now.

5. Publish your accessibility statement

Create a page on your WordPress site (most owners use /accessibility-statement/) and add the shortcode:

[equalsites_statement]

The statement renders from your actual scan data and manual-review progress — conformance status, known limitations, measures taken, and dates. It updates as your results change, so it never drifts into claims you can't back up. See what a statement must say for the reasoning.

6. Evidence packs and the guided checklist

The guided checklist walks you through the 16 checks automation can't do — keyboard navigation, captions, form flows — in owner language, with Works / Broken / Not-on-my-site tracking. The evidence pack (paid plans) exports a dated, printable record of every check, fix, verification, and review — the file you want to have if a complaint ever arrives.

Troubleshooting

• Need to see your site without fixes? Add ?equalsites_off=1 to any URL while logged in as an admin — instant before/after comparison.
• Worried about the plugin failing? It fails open: if anything goes wrong applying a fix, your page serves unmodified. Your site never breaks because of EqualSites.
• Connection shows as broken? Re-copy the Site ID and key from the Connect panel — keys can be rotated from the dashboard if one leaks.
• Staging or local site with a self-signed certificate? Supported — checks tolerate self-signed certs on local and staging hosts.