PDF accessibility
PDF accessibility checker for Mac
The standard free checker, PAC 2024, runs only on Windows. Ceereo runs in the browser — audit and fix PDFs from any Mac, no install.
Ask how to check a PDF's accessibility and the answer is usually PAC 2024 — free, respected, and Windows-only. On a Mac your options thin out fast: run Windows in a VM for one tool, buy Acrobat Pro for its built-in checker, or use an online checker that stops at the bad news. Ceereo closes that gap: the audit runs in the browser against the same class of machine checks (PDF/UA tag structure, language, title, alt text, font embedding, extractable text), every finding is itemized in plain English with the standard it maps to — and unlike checker-only tools, the same page can then produce the remediated, tagged file, pixel-identical to the original. Nothing to install, nothing Windows-shaped in the workflow.
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Last updated: August 6, 2026 · Reviewed by the Ceereo team
Free audit, no signup — your full report opens on the next page.
How it works
From upload to accessible PDF in four steps
The fastest way from an inaccessible PDF to a tagged, verified one — no tag panel, no service queue, no visual changes.
- Step 1
Upload your PDF
Drop in the PDF you need to make accessible. Your file is processed only to audit and remediate it, and is never used to train models.
- Step 2
The document is audited
Every PDF/UA and WCAG machine check runs: tags, reading order, language, title, alt text, font embedding and text integrity.
- Step 3
The structure is written in
Headings, paragraphs, lists, tables and figures are tagged in reading order, with headers and footers marked as artifacts to be skipped.
- Step 4
Download the accessible PDF
Get your own file back with a full tag structure, re-audited and pixel-compared so you can prove nothing visible changed.
In short
PAC 2024, the standard free PDF accessibility checker, is Windows-only. On a Mac, Ceereo checks PDFs in the browser against PDF/UA and WCAG machine checks free — itemized findings, severity and score — and can then produce the fixed, tagged PDF itself, visually unchanged. No install, no VM, no Acrobat required.
How do I check PDF accessibility on a Mac?
Use a browser-based checker: PAC 2024, the standard free desktop tool, runs only on Windows. Ceereo audits the PDF in the browser — tag structure, reading order scaffolding, language, title, alt text and font embedding, mapped to PDF/UA and WCAG — free and without an account, then can produce the remediated file in one click. Acrobat Pro's built-in checker is the main installed alternative on macOS.
Mac-first
Not a port — nothing to install at all
The Windows-only problem never gets solved by another desktop app. Running the checks server-side and showing the report in the browser means the same workflow serves a Mac, a locked-down work laptop, or a Chromebook — and the fix lives on the same page as the findings.
- Free audit: every machine-checkable failure named and explained
- Same checks class as desktop tools: PDF/UA (Matterhorn) + WCAG
- One-click remediation — the part checker-only tools don't do
- Works anywhere a browser works; nothing to install
Features
Why teams choose Ceereo
No Windows dependency
The whole audit-and-fix loop runs in the browser — no PAC VM, no Acrobat license.
Itemized, mapped findings
Each issue in plain English with severity and the PDF/UA or WCAG criterion it breaks.
The fix on the same page
Tags, reading order, metadata and artifacts written into your original file, pixel-verified.
Use cases
Where Ceereo works best
Mac-based design and comms teams
Check the PDFs you publish without borrowing a Windows machine.
Quick verification of vendor work
A 'remediated' file arrives — confirm it actually passes before paying the invoice.
Pre-publication checks
Audit reports and public documents from the same laptop they were made on.
Why not do it by hand?
Ceereo vs. doing it manually
Remediating a PDF by hand in Acrobat's tag panel takes days and rarely verifies clean the first time. Here's the difference.
Output quality
What the remediated PDF looks like
Every run produces a tagged, machine-verified PDF that is pixel-identical to your original. Here's what you get.
- PDF/UA (Matterhorn) and WCAG machine checks, itemized
- 0–100 score with critical/major/minor severities
- Honest scope: born-digital PDFs; scans are detected and declined
- Same-engine remediation available immediately
Topic cluster
Related PDF accessibility tools
Other ways to audit and fix your PDFs for ADA, 508, and EAA compliance.
Frequently asked questions
Is PAC 2024 available for Mac?+
No — PAC 2024 is Windows-only. Mac users are usually pointed at online checkers or Acrobat Pro. Ceereo runs the audit in the browser and adds the step those tools lack: producing the fixed file.
Is the Mac check different from the Windows one?+
There is no separate version — the checks run server-side, so every platform gets the identical audit. 'For Mac' here means nothing to install, not a port.
Does it certify PDF/UA conformance like PAC does?+
It runs the machine-checkable layer and says exactly that — a passing result means the automated checks pass, with an honest disclaimer that full conformance also involves human judgment. For formal certification workflows, PAC on Windows remains the reference viewer.
Check a PDF from your Mac now
Free itemized audit in the browser — and the fix in one click if it fails.