Skip to main content

Find and fix while you write Free

Live checks in the block editor

An Accessibility sidebar that re-checks your post a moment after you stop typing, and shows each problem next to the block that caused it.

Download Lumtera free Read the docs
The block editor with the Lumtera Accessibility sidebar open, listing issues with explanations and quick-fix buttons.

Overview

Lumtera adds an Accessibility sidebar to the block editor for every content type you choose under Accessibility → Settings. Posts and pages are on by default, and products when WooCommerce is active. Open it from the Lumtera icon in the editor's top bar, or from the Options menu under "Accessibility checker". The sidebar shows an automated score out of 100, a headline such as "2 errors to fix", and every issue, errors first.

The checks run on your own server. About a second and a half after you stop typing, the editor sends the current blocks to Lumtera, and the sidebar refreshes with "Up to date" and the number of checks that ran. If a block keeps changing its settings on its own, a check still runs within three seconds. Changes in the result are announced to screen reader users, so the sidebar is useful without looking at it.

Each issue card has a title and a short message. Expand it to see How to fix, the markup that caused the problem and a link to the WCAG success criterion. Select block moves the selection to that block, and Go to next issue steps through errors and review items in order. Filter buttons for All, Errors, Review and Tips narrow the list, and dismissed items sit in their own list with a Restore button.

Why it matters

Most accessibility problems are added one post at a time, by people who never open an audit report. When the check runs weeks later, the author has moved on and fixing it means reopening old work. Checking while the post is still being written is the cheapest moment to fix anything.

What you get

  • Issues appear in a sidebar while you write, grouped by severity: Error, Needs review and Tip.
  • Select block and Go to next issue take you straight to the problem.
  • Subtle outlines mark blocks with issues — each author can turn them off.
  • Every issue says why it matters and how to fix it in WordPress terms, with a link to the WCAG success criterion.
  • A "Decorative image" switch on the Image block, so empty alt text is a decision, not an accident.

How it works

  1. Write as usual

    Open any post, page or product. Lumtera checks the content in the background — nothing changes about how you write.

  2. Open the Accessibility sidebar

    The toolbar icon shows a dot when something needs attention. The sidebar shows the score, the counts and each issue with its explanation.

  3. Fix and watch it clear

    Jump to the block, fix it (often in one click), and the issue disappears on the next check.

Who it helps

  • Content editors

    Writers see problems in the post they are working on, while fixing them is still a small edit, without leaving the editor or learning a separate tool.

  • Teams with mixed experience

    Each fix is explained in WordPress terms, such as which panel or setting to use, so an author who has never read WCAG can still act on it.

  • Authors who use assistive technology

    Check results are announced after each run, and Select block announces the block it moved to, so screen reader users get the same feedback as everyone else.

Good to know

How it behaves, what it needs, and where its limits are.

Content, not the theme
The sidebar checks the post's own content: blocks rendered the way the front end renders them, plus shortcodes. Your theme's header, menus and footer are checked separately, in the Whole page tab of Review mode.
Tips stay quiet
Tips appear in the list, but they get no outline and Go to next issue skips them. Outlines are kept for errors and items that need review.
Outlines are each author's choice
An administrator sets the default with "Outline blocks and widgets with issues" under Accessibility → Settings → General. Each author can switch outlines off with the toggle at the foot of the sidebar, and that choice is saved to their own WordPress preferences.
No outside requests while checking
While content is rendered for a check, outgoing HTTP requests are blocked, so embeds and RSS blocks are not fetched on every pause in typing. Each user can run up to 120 checks a minute; normal writing stays far below that.
Limits
Content over 512 KB of markup is not checked live; developers can raise the limit with the lumtera_max_check_bytes filter. A clean result means no automated issues were found, and the sidebar says so, with a suggestion to try the post with a keyboard.

Questions

Something else on your mind? Contact support

Does it slow down the editor?

No. Checks run a moment after you stop typing, on your own server, and only while the editor is open. Nothing runs for site visitors.

Does my content leave my site?

No. Lumtera has no account, no API key and no external service, and every check runs inside your WordPress installation. The only exception is optional AI suggestions, which send the image or text in question to the AI provider you connected when someone clicks for a suggestion.

Does it work in the classic editor?

Yes, in a simpler form. The classic editor gets an "Accessibility check" box below the content with a Check saved version button. It checks the last saved version, so save first. Live re-checking and quick fixes are block editor features.

Which content types get the sidebar?

The ones ticked under Accessibility → Settings → General → Content to check. Any public content type can be added there, including custom post types.

What happens on a page built with Elementor?

The sidebar says the page is built with Elementor and that its results are for the saved layout, with an Edit with Elementor button. Live checks for that page run in the Lumtera panel inside Elementor.

More in “Find and fix while you write”

  • Free

    One-click quick fixes

    Skipped heading levels, fake lists, bold "headings", new-tab links, table headers and spacing — fixed in one click, and every fix can be undone.

  • Free

    Live checks in Elementor

    A Lumtera panel inside the Elementor editor that checks unsaved changes and selects each widget with a problem.

  • Free

    Review mode on the live page

    Open Review mode from the admin bar to see each content issue outlined on the published page, then switch to the Whole page tab to check the theme, menus and footer too.

Start with the free plugin today

All 64 checks, the editor sidebar, Elementor panel and site report — free, with no account and no page limits.

Download freeSee Pro plans