SiteRemora vs accessiBe for Shopify (2026)
accessiBe adds a script that adjusts your pages in the visitor's browser; the theme underneath stays as it was. SiteRemora changes the theme and the catalog, records every change, and re-checks the store as it changes. If you want the storefront itself fixed, that difference decides it.
What accessiBe is
accessiBe is the largest accessibility overlay vendor. Its product is a JavaScript widget: once the script loads, it rewrites parts of the rendered page in the visitor's browser, adds a toolbar for font size, contrast and reading aids, and generates image descriptions on the fly. The company says more than 200,000 sites run it, and its plans run from roughly $490 to $3,990 a year, with a litigation-support pledge attached to the higher tiers. It has a Shopify App Store listing.
In January 2025 the U.S. Federal Trade Commission ordered accessiBe to pay $1 million over claims that its widget could make any website compliant with accessibility guidelines, and over reviews that were paid for without disclosure; the order, finalized in April 2025, bars it from claiming automated WCAG compliance without evidence. The National Federation of the Blind withdrew its sponsorship in 2021. Among 2025 lawsuit defendants that ran a widget, EcomBack counted accessiBe on 43% of them.
Side by side
| Aspect | accessiBe | SiteRemora |
|---|---|---|
| Approach | A script injected at page load rewrites the DOM in the browser. The theme files are untouched. | Edits the theme's Liquid, CSS and HTML and writes alt text into the product record, after a scan of the rendered storefront. The page itself is accessible, with or without JavaScript. |
| Where the fix lives | In the widget's script. If it is slow, blocked or fails to load, the adjustments are gone. | In your theme and your products. It persists whether or not any script runs. |
| After a theme update | The widget keeps running over whatever the new markup is. | The store is re-scanned, regressions are fixed again, and each change is recorded. |
| Alt text | Generated at runtime in the browser, invisible in your admin. | Drafted from the photo, approved by you, written to the product so every channel gets it. |
| Color contrast | The toolbar lets a visitor change colors for themselves. | Each failing pair comes with the nearest passing shade of your color. You choose, and that color is written into the theme for every visitor. |
| Undo | Remove the script. | Every change has a diff and a one-click revert. |
| Legal posture | Under a 2025 FTC order over compliance claims; sites running it still get sued. | Continuous scanning, real fixes and a dated record. No guarantee, from us or anyone. |
| Price | About $490 to $3,990 a year. | Free plan sees every issue; paid plans from $79 a month, billed through Shopify. |
| Built for | Any website, one script for all of them. | Shopify themes and the Shopify admin specifically. |
Where accessiBe is the better choice
- You want a visitor-facing toolbar with font, spacing and contrast controls. That is what the widget provides, and it is the part some visitors genuinely use.
- You run hundreds of sites on many platforms and want one script everywhere, accepting that it changes presentation rather than code.
Where SiteRemora is the better choice
- You want the store fixed rather than adjusted at runtime, which is what the lawsuits, the regulators and screen-reader users look at.
- You want a record: what was found, what changed, when, and how to undo it.
- You are on Shopify and want something built for its themes and admin rather than a generic script.
- You would rather pay $79 a month than four figures a year.
If you are on accessiBe today
Keep the widget running if you like while the code gets fixed; the two do not conflict. Run a scan first to see what the widget has been covering, fix the theme and the catalog, then decide whether the toolbar still earns its place.
The litigation pledge does not change the code on your store, and the FTC order limits what accessiBe can promise. Treat it as a service contract, not as compliance.
Questions people ask
Does accessiBe make a Shopify store ADA compliant?
No vendor can promise that, and the FTC's 2025 order specifically bars accessiBe from claiming automated compliance without evidence. In the first half of 2025, 22.6% of ADA website suits hit sites that already ran an overlay.
Is SiteRemora an overlay?
SiteRemora edits your theme's Liquid and your product alt text through the Shopify admin. Nothing runs on your storefront for visitors.
Can I run both?
Yes. The fixes live in different places. Most merchants drop the widget once the code is fixed, because the page no longer needs adjusting.
The facts come from the vendors’ own pages, their Shopify App Store listings, the FTC’s published order and EcomBack’s reports, and are re-checked periodically. If something here is out of date, write to hello@siteremora.com and we will correct it.
Attach a remora to your shop
Install from the App Store. The first scan is free, takes about a minute, and tells you exactly where you stand.