Kirby is a flat-file PHP CMS with 7K+ GitHub stars, no database required, blueprint-driven panel editor, and a REST Content API — beloved by independent designers and agencies — but as a CMS it has no built-in WCAG accessibility audit, no Core Web Vitals scoring, and no post-deployment health monitoring. PageGuard audits the live production URL of any Kirby site externally — free, no panel access 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. Kirby CMS is popular with design agencies, nonprofits, cultural institutions, and municipal websites that value its Git-friendly flat-file architecture and flexible panel editor. However, Kirby’s PHP templates, Blocks field, and snippet-based components produce front-end HTML whose accessibility is entirely determined by how developers and designers implement them — image alt text, ARIA landmarks, keyboard navigation for custom components, and focus management on Kirby’s panel-driven page transitions all require runtime verification that Kirby does not provide. PageGuard audits your live Kirby site after each deployment and alerts you to accessibility regressions before the April 24 deadline.
| Feature | PageGuard | Kirby CMS |
|---|---|---|
| What is it? | External website health monitor — scans any URL for performance, accessibility, SEO, and best practices | Flat-file PHP CMS — no database required, file-based content storage, flexible panel editor, Blueprint-driven data architecture, REST Content API; popular with independent designers, agencies, and content-driven projects; 7K+ GitHub stars |
| Free tier | Yes — unlimited one-off scans, no signup required | Free for non-commercial use; commercial license from €99/site (one-time); no recurring subscription |
| Accessibility audit (WCAG / ADA) | ✓ Yes — WCAG 2.1 AA scored 0–100 with specific issue list | No — Kirby has no built-in WCAG accessibility auditing of the deployed front-end; accessibility quality depends on how developers and designers implement PHP templates, Kirby blocks, and custom snippets |
| Technical SEO audit | ✓ Yes — meta tags, headings, canonical, structured data | No — Kirby provides page model fields for meta title and description via plugins (like Kirby SEO or Meta Knight), but there is no built-in audit of the live deployed page's SEO quality |
| Performance audit (Core Web Vitals) | ✓ Yes — LCP, CLS, FCP scored 0–100 per scan | No — Kirby does not score Core Web Vitals on deployed production pages; performance depends on your template implementation, image API configuration, and caching setup |
| Flat-file CMS (no database) | No — PageGuard is a monitoring tool, not a content management system | ✓ Yes — Kirby stores all content as files and folders; no MySQL or PostgreSQL setup required; easy to deploy, version-control with Git, and migrate between hosts |
| Flexible panel editor | No — PageGuard does not provide editorial content management | ✓ Yes — Blueprint-driven panel with custom field types (text, blocks, files, users, toggles, ranges, and more); live preview; user roles and permissions; all configurable via YAML blueprints |
| Automated website monitoring | ✓ Yes — weekly or daily scans with email alerts on score drop | No — Kirby is a content management system; it has no post-deployment health monitoring or accessibility regression alerts for the live site |
| AI-generated plain-English report | ✓ Yes — explains issues in non-technical language | No — no AI health report for the rendered production page |
| ADA Title II compliance monitoring | ✓ Yes — WCAG audit + alert on accessibility regression | No — Kirby does not audit or alert on WCAG compliance in the deployed production site; compliance depends on PHP template code, Kirby Blocks rendering, and custom snippet implementations |
| Works on any platform | ✓ Yes — scans any URL on any front-end or platform | No — Kirby manages your own site only; it does not audit sites built on other platforms |
| 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 a deployed Kirby site |
| Instant on-demand scan | ✓ Yes — results in 30 seconds, no code changes needed | No — no on-demand health scan; external auditing of deployed Kirby sites requires separate tools like Lighthouse or axe |
| Multi-site dashboard | ✓ Yes — 1–50 sites depending on plan | Kirby manages content for a single site per installation; it does not provide a health monitoring dashboard showing accessibility, SEO, and performance scores across multiple sites |
| Pricing for health monitoring | ✓ Free + from $9/mo for automated monitoring | Health monitoring not available — Kirby is a flat-file CMS, not a website health monitoring tool |
Get the WCAG accessibility score and Core Web Vitals that Kirby CMS doesn’t provide for your deployed production site. Results in 30 seconds. No panel credentials, server access, or plugin installation required.
Results in ~30 seconds. 4 scores: Performance, Accessibility, SEO, Best Practices.
Yes — PageGuard scans the live deployed URL of any Kirby CMS website. Enter the URL of your production Kirby site and receive a full health report in ~30 seconds covering Core Web Vitals, WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility, technical SEO, and best practices. No panel credentials, plugin installation, or server access is required.
No — Kirby CMS does not audit WCAG compliance of the deployed front-end. Accessibility depends on how PHP templates, Kirby Blocks, and custom snippets are implemented. Alt text on image files managed via the Kirby file API, ARIA labels in navigation snippets, color contrast in CSS, keyboard operability of interactive components, and focus management after dynamic content updates are all the developer’s responsibility. PageGuard audits your live Kirby site and provides a WCAG 2.1 AA score with specific issues to fix.
Kirby CMS manages the content layer: flat-file content storage, blueprint-driven panel fields, Kirby Blocks for flexible layouts, user management, and a REST Content API. PageGuard audits the production layer: (1) WCAG/ADA accessibility of the rendered HTML your Kirby PHP templates produce in production, (2) Core Web Vitals performance (LCP, CLS, FCP) including Kirby image API optimization and caching, (3) technical SEO quality including meta tags managed by Kirby SEO plugins, and (4) automated monitoring with email alerts when template changes or plugin updates introduce regressions — from $9/mo.
No — they serve completely different purposes. Kirby is a flat-file PHP CMS favored by independent designers and web studios for its no-database setup, Git-friendly content workflow, and flexible blueprint panel editor. PageGuard is an external quality monitoring tool for your deployed front-end. Designers and developers building Kirby sites should use both: Kirby to manage and deliver content, PageGuard to verify the production site meets accessibility compliance and performance standards after every deployment.