Building Accessible Developer Tools: Lessons Learned

Accessibility in developer tools is often overlooked. Here is how we approached it across 54 tools.

Keyboard Navigation

Every tool can be operated entirely with a keyboard. Tab moves between input fields, Ctrl+Enter executes the operation, Ctrl+Shift+C copies the output. We added a keyboard shortcuts modal (press ?) that lists all available shortcuts per tool.

Focus Management

When a tool produces output, focus moves to the output panel. When an error occurs, focus moves to the error message. This ensures screen reader users are always informed of what happened.

Color Contrast

All four themes (Dark Zinc, Clean Light, Warm Editorial, Midnight Neon) meet WCAG AA contrast ratios. We tested every color combination using the WebAIM contrast checker. The hardest part was the syntax highlighting in code editors — we chose colors that are both visually distinct and meet 4.5:1 contrast ratios.

ARIA Labels

Every interactive element has a descriptive label. Input textareas have aria-label describing what to paste. Output panels have aria-live="polite" so screen readers announce new results. Buttons have descriptive names beyond just icons.

Screen Reader Testing

We tested with VoiceOver (macOS), NVDA (Windows), and Orca (Linux). The most common issue was unlabeled icon buttons — we added aria-label to every icon-only button in the tool action bars.

The Result

Accessibility is not a feature — it is a requirement. Making our tools accessible did not slow us down or compromise the design. It made the tools better for everyone, including power users who prefer keyboard-driven workflows.