Directus is a powerful open-source headless CMS and data platform, but as a REST & GraphQL API layer it has no built-in WCAG accessibility audit, no Core Web Vitals scoring, and no front-end health monitoring. PageGuard audits the live front-end of any Directus-powered site externally — free, no API tokens required, results in 30 seconds.
ADA Title II Deadline: April 24, 2026
State and local government websites must meet WCAG 2.1 AA by April 24, 2026. Many government agencies and nonprofits are building modern web platforms on Directus as their data layer paired with frameworks like Next.js or Nuxt. Directus excels at managing structured content and user permissions — but accessibility of the final rendered HTML depends entirely on your front-end implementation. ARIA usage in interactive components, color contrast, keyboard navigation, and alt text entered via the Directus admin panel all need to be verified in the live deployed output. PageGuard audits your published front-end and alerts you to WCAG violations before the deadline.
| Feature | PageGuard | Directus |
|---|---|---|
| What is it? | External website health monitor — scans any URL for performance, accessibility, SEO, and best practices | Open-source headless CMS and data platform — a flexible REST & GraphQL API layer over any SQL database (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite), used by developers who want full data ownership with 27K+ GitHub stars |
| Free tier | Yes — unlimited one-off scans, no signup required | Yes — Directus is open-source and self-hostable for free; Directus Cloud starts at $15/mo |
| Accessibility audit (WCAG / ADA) | ✓ Yes — WCAG 2.1 AA scored 0–100 with specific issue list | No — Directus is a data API and admin app for managing content; accessibility of the public-facing front-end site depends entirely on the front-end application consuming the Directus API |
| Technical SEO audit | ✓ Yes — meta tags, headings, canonical, structured data | No — Directus delivers structured data via REST and GraphQL APIs; SEO quality of public pages is determined by the front-end framework that renders the data, not by Directus itself |
| Performance audit (Core Web Vitals) | ✓ Yes — LCP, CLS, FCP scored 0–100 per scan | No — Directus serves data via API; Core Web Vitals of the rendered front-end depend on the hosting environment and how the consuming application uses the API |
| Headless CMS / data platform | No — PageGuard is a monitoring tool, not a data or content management platform | ✓ Yes — database-agnostic headless CMS with a no-code admin panel, REST API, GraphQL, real-time subscriptions, and role-based access control over any SQL database |
| Self-hostable / data ownership | No — PageGuard is a SaaS monitoring service | ✓ Yes — fully open-source (BSL license), self-host on any infrastructure with full data ownership; Docker, cloud, or bare metal |
| Automated website monitoring | ✓ Yes — weekly or daily scans with email alerts on score drop | No — Directus has no built-in health monitoring or accessibility regression alerts for deployed front-end sites consuming its API |
| AI-generated plain-English report | ✓ Yes — explains issues in non-technical language | No — no AI health report for rendered front-end quality |
| ADA Title II compliance monitoring | ✓ Yes — WCAG audit + alert on accessibility regression | No — Directus manages content data but does not audit the accessibility of the rendered HTML output produced by the front-end application |
| Works on any platform | ✓ Yes — scans any URL on any front-end or platform | No — Directus is a backend data platform; it does not scan or audit front-end sites |
| Independent external audit | ✓ Yes — third-party scan, shareable URL for clients/stakeholders | No — no built-in tool to generate a shareable external health report for the live front-end site consuming Directus data |
| Instant on-demand scan | ✓ Yes — results in 30 seconds, no code changes needed | No — no on-demand health scan; external front-end auditing requires third-party tools |
| Multi-site dashboard | ✓ Yes — 1–50 sites depending on plan | Directus manages data collections and projects, not a front-end health monitoring dashboard |
| Pricing for health monitoring | ✓ Free + from $9/mo for automated monitoring | Health monitoring not available — Directus is a data API platform, not a front-end monitoring tool |
Get the WCAG accessibility score and Core Web Vitals that Directus doesn’t provide for rendered front-end pages. Results in 30 seconds. No Directus admin credentials, API tokens, or database access required.
Results in ~30 seconds. 4 scores: Performance, Accessibility, SEO, Best Practices.
Yes — PageGuard scans the live front-end of any site powered by Directus. Enter the public URL of your deployed application (Next.js, Nuxt, SvelteKit, Astro, or any framework consuming the Directus REST or GraphQL API) and receive a full health report in ~30 seconds covering Core Web Vitals, WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility, technical SEO, and best practices. No Directus API tokens, admin credentials, or database access are required.
No — Directus is an open-source data platform and headless CMS that manages structured content and exposes it through APIs. It has no built-in WCAG or ADA compliance auditing because it does not render the public-facing front-end HTML. Accessibility quality depends on the front-end application that consumes Directus data, including ARIA implementation in components, color contrast in your design system, and alt text entered by editors. PageGuard audits your deployed front-end and gives you a concrete WCAG 2.1 AA score with specific issues to address.
Directus manages the data layer: structured collections, file assets, user management, and API delivery. PageGuard audits the presentation layer: (1) WCAG/ADA accessibility of the rendered HTML your front-end produces from Directus data, (2) Core Web Vitals performance of the deployed application, (3) technical SEO quality including meta tags and structured data on live pages, and (4) automated monitoring with email alerts when content updates or code changes introduce regressions — from $9/mo.
No — they serve completely different purposes. Directus is your backend data layer: an open-source, self-hostable headless CMS and API platform. PageGuard is an external quality monitoring tool for your deployed front-end. Teams using Directus with Next.js, Nuxt, or SvelteKit should use both: Directus to manage and serve structured data with full ownership, PageGuard to verify the published site meets accessibility compliance and performance standards.