PageGuard vs Gatsby

Gatsby builds blazing-fast React sites, but it has no WCAG accessibility audit, no on-demand Core Web Vitals scoring, and no continuous health monitoring. PageGuard audits any Gatsby site externally — free, no config changes, results in 30 seconds.

ADA Title II Deadline: April 24, 2026

State and local government websites must meet WCAG 2.1 AA. Gatsby generates static HTML from React components, but accessibility quality depends entirely on how those components are coded. Missing alt text, keyboard traps, and color contrast failures are common issues on Gatsby sites that Gatsby itself does not detect. PageGuard audits your live Gatsby site and alerts you to WCAG violations before they become legal liabilities.

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PageGuard
Best for: external health monitoring & ADA compliance auditing for any Gatsby site
  • Free tier — scan any Gatsby site instantly, no build changes needed
  • Works on Gatsby Cloud, Netlify, Vercel — any publicly accessible URL
  • WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility audit & ADA compliance monitoring
  • On-demand Core Web Vitals scoring (LCP, CLS, FCP)
  • Shareable health report URL for clients & stakeholders
  • Monitor 1–50 websites from $9/month
Gatsby
Best for: building fast, SEO-friendly React sites with a rich plugin ecosystem and GraphQL data layer
  • Static site generation for fast, secure, CDN-delivered pages
  • GraphQL data layer unifying CMS, APIs, and files
  • Rich plugin ecosystem (3,000+ plugins) for SEO, images, analytics
  • No WCAG/ADA accessibility audit
  • No on-demand Core Web Vitals scoring for live sites
  • No automated health monitoring or regression alerts

Feature Comparison

Feature PageGuard Gatsby
What is it? External website health monitor — scans any URL for performance, accessibility, SEO, and best practices React-based static site generator and web framework — builds fast, SEO-friendly sites from data sources with GraphQL
Free tier Yes — unlimited one-off scans, no signup required Yes — Gatsby framework is open source (free); Gatsby Cloud hosting from $0 for personal projects
Works on non-Gatsby sites Yes — scans any URL on any platform or framework No — Gatsby is a site framework, not a monitoring tool for other sites
Accessibility audit (WCAG / ADA) Yes — WCAG 2.1 AA scored 0–100 with specific issue list No — Gatsby has no built-in WCAG/ADA accessibility audit; accessibility depends on developer implementation
Technical SEO audit Yes — meta tags, headings, canonical, structured data Partial — Gatsby has gatsby-plugin-react-helmet and gatsby-plugin-sitemap for SEO, but no live audit of rendered output
Performance audit (Core Web Vitals) Yes — LCP, CLS, FCP scored 0–100 per scan No — Gatsby has no built-in Core Web Vitals measurement; Gatsby Cloud has some build perf metrics but not lab CWV
Static site generation (SSG) No — PageGuard is a monitoring tool, not a site framework Yes — generates optimized static HTML, CSS, and JS at build time for fast delivery
GraphQL data layer No Yes — unified GraphQL data layer pulls from CMS, APIs, databases, and files
Automated website monitoring Yes — weekly or daily scans with email alerts on score drop No — Gatsby has no built-in health monitoring or regression alerts for live sites
AI-generated plain-English report Yes — explains issues in non-technical language No — no AI health report
ADA Title II compliance monitoring Yes — WCAG audit + alert on accessibility regression No — Gatsby has no accessibility auditing or ADA compliance reporting; React component patterns determine accessibility quality
Independent external audit Yes — third-party scan, shareable URL for clients/stakeholders No — no built-in tool to generate a shareable external health report
Instant on-demand scan Yes — results in 30 seconds, no login required No — no on-demand health scan for live Gatsby sites
Multi-site dashboard Yes — 1–50 sites depending on plan Gatsby Cloud can manage multiple projects but no cross-site health monitoring
Pricing for health monitoring Free + from $9/mo for automated monitoring Health monitoring not available — Gatsby is a site framework, not a monitoring platform

Use PageGuard alongside Gatsby if you…

  • Need WCAG / ADA accessibility auditing (Gatsby does not provide this)
  • Want to verify Core Web Vitals after new content, plugins, or component changes
  • Build Gatsby sites for clients and need a shareable health report
  • Want email alerts when a plugin update or content change breaks accessibility or SEO
  • Manage multiple Gatsby client sites and need a unified health dashboard

Gatsby’s built-in tools are sufficient if you…

  • Only need to build and deploy static React sites with fast performance
  • Want SEO meta tags and sitemaps managed through gatsby-plugin-react-helmet
  • Need a powerful GraphQL data layer for content-heavy sites
  • Ongoing accessibility compliance monitoring is not required

Check Your Gatsby Site Free — No Config Changes Needed

Get the accessibility and Core Web Vitals scores that Gatsby doesn’t show you. Results in 30 seconds. No build pipeline access required. Share with clients instantly.

Results in ~30 seconds. 4 scores: Performance, Accessibility, SEO, Best Practices.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can PageGuard audit a Gatsby website?

Yes — PageGuard scans any live website URL regardless of framework. Simply enter your Gatsby site URL and receive a full health report in ~30 seconds covering Core Web Vitals performance, WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility, technical SEO quality, and best practices. No Gatsby configuration changes, build access, or plugin installations required.

Does Gatsby audit website accessibility?

No. Gatsby generates static HTML from React components, but it has no WCAG/ADA accessibility audit. Accessibility depends entirely on how developers implement components — Gatsby does not check for missing alt text, color contrast ratios, ARIA attributes, or keyboard navigation issues. With the ADA Title II deadline on April 24, 2026, Gatsby developers and agencies need external tools like PageGuard for compliance monitoring.

Why should Gatsby developers add PageGuard?

Gatsby handles the build pipeline and static generation, but health monitoring is a separate concern. PageGuard adds (1) WCAG accessibility auditing that Gatsby does not provide, (2) on-demand Core Web Vitals scoring to verify performance after each deployment, (3) automated regression alerts when updates break accessibility or SEO, and (4) shareable health reports for client handoffs — all from $9/mo for up to 5 sites.

Are Gatsby sites typically accessible by default?

Not automatically. Gatsby generates static HTML which can be semantic and accessible if developers write accessible React components, but it does not enforce or audit this. Common accessibility issues on Gatsby sites include missing image alt text pulled from CMS without alt values, dynamically rendered content that is not announced to screen readers, and custom interactive components without proper ARIA roles. PageGuard audits your actual deployed site and surfaces the real accessibility score.

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