Competitive Landscape
The only platform that checks more and costs less
14 automated accessibility checks. AI-powered remediation from $0.30/page. Every competitor either charges 10x more, checks half as much, or requires a human to do the work manually.
14
Automated Checks
All run automatically on every PDF
$0.30
Per Page
Published pricing — no sales call needed
90%+
Automation Rate
LLM + Vision AI remediation
Seconds
Time to Results
Free scan — no install, no signup
No one else lets you test instantly
Every competitor makes you fill out forms, download software, install plugins, or schedule a demo before you see a single result.
CASO Comply
Instant web-based scan
- 1Enter your website URL
- 2We crawl and find your PDFs automatically
- 3Get a compliance score in under 60 seconds
No signup. No credit card. No install. Works on any device.
Everyone else
Multi-step gauntlet
CommonLook “Free” Validator
Fill out 6-field form → download installer → requires Windows + Adobe Acrobat Pro → install plugin → open each PDF one at a time
Equidox
“Schedule a discovery call” → sales demo → concurrent-user license purchase
codemantra
“Request a quote” → weeks of enterprise onboarding → 7-day trial (with training)
Continual Engine PREP
“Request a quote” → platform licence negotiation → setup and configuration
Feature-by-feature comparison
Real data. No marketing fluff. Based on published product capabilities, public pricing, and hands-on analysis of competitor software.
Swipe to compare →
| CASO Comply | CommonLook | Equidox | codemantra | Continual | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approach | AI-powered (LLM + Vision) | AI-assisted, human-driven | AI-assisted (Smart Zones) | ML auto-tagging | AI/ML + computer vision |
| Platform | Cloud + Docker | Browser + desktop | Cloud SaaS or on-prem | Cloud (AWS) | Cloud (on-prem available) |
| Free instant web scan | |||||
| API access | High-volume only | Licensees only | |||
| Setup time | Minutes | Days + training | Days | Weeks | Days to weeks |
| On-premise option | Enterprise only | ||||
| Per-page cost | $0.30 - $12 | Quote-based | Quote-based | Quote-based | $1.25-2.75/pg (service) |
| Licensing model | Per-page (no seats) | Quote-based seats | Concurrent user seats | Enterprise licence | Platform licence + per-page |
| Transparent pricing | |||||
| Automation rate | 90%+ | AI-assisted (no % published) | Up to 90% (claimed) | Up to 80% (claimed) | 90% tagging (claimed) |
| LLM / Vision AI | GenAI emerging | ||||
| AI alt text generation | Templates only | Basic ML | |||
| AI heading hierarchy fix | |||||
| AI reading order correction | |||||
| Auto artifact detection | |||||
| Bulk processing | |||||
| Structure tree analysis | |||||
| Font embedding check | |||||
| Unicode mapping check | |||||
| Language attribute | |||||
| Document title | |||||
| Alt text validation | |||||
| Table header validation | |||||
| Link accessibility | |||||
| Form field tooltips (/TU) | |||||
| Tab order validation | Manual | ||||
| Required field flagging | Manual | ||||
| Bookmarks / outlines | |||||
| DisplayDocTitle | |||||
| Standards coverage | WCAG 2.1 AA, PDF/UA, 508 | WCAG 2.2, PDF/UA, 508, HHS, EAA | WCAG 2.2, PDF/UA, 508, EAA | WCAG 2.2, PDF/UA, 508, EN 301 549 | WCAG 2.2, PDF/UA, 508, EAA, RGAA |
| Human review tier | Yes ($12/pg, 100%) | Yes (5-day turnaround) | Built into workflow | accessibilityReview module | Included in service |
| Office docs (DOCX/PPTX) | |||||
| Total automated checks | 14 | ~12 (manual) | Not published | 120+ (claimed) | Not published |
Data sourced from published product documentation, public pricing, software analysis, and the PDF Association validator comparison study. Last updated April 2026.
Two fundamentally different approaches
Most competitors use AI to assist human operators or auto-tag documents with traditional ML. CASO Comply is the only platform using frontier LLM vision models that actually see your documents.
Traditional approach
ML + human review
- ML detects document structure — can't understand content meaning
- Auto-tags by pattern matching — can't judge if hierarchy makes sense
- Cannot see the rendered page — works from tag metadata only
- Human review required for complex documents
- Alt text is generic ML captions or manual — not contextual
- No public pricing — enterprise sales process required
CASO Comply
AI-powered analysis + remediation
- Vision AI sees each page and generates meaningful alt text
- AI verifies heading hierarchy makes semantic sense, fixes it if not
- Renders pages as images for visual layout understanding
- Processes hundreds of PDFs in bulk, automatically
- Finds issues AND fixes them — full remediation pipeline
- Cloud-based or Docker — works on any OS, any device
No single validator agrees with another 50% of the time
A PDF Association study tested 155 PDFs across veraPDF, PAC, CommonLook, and Adobe Preflight. 50.3% of files got different results depending on which validator was used. Only 33.5% got unanimous agreement.
CASO Comply validates every document with veraPDF automatically — the open-source, vendor-neutral standard recognized by the PDF Association and the European Commission.
Competitor deep dives
What each platform actually does, how much it really costs, and where it falls short.
CommonLook / Allyant
Browser + Desktop + ServicesApproach
AI-assisted, human-driven
Automation
AI-assisted (no % published)
Platform
Browser-based (any OS) for main product; free validator is Windows-only
Pricing
Quote-based (no public pricing); 5-day remediation service available
Strengths
- Trusted brand in federal government (70%+ federal adoption)
- Deep PDF tag tree control
- 100% compliance guarantee on remediation services
- Main product now browser-based (cross-platform)
- Broad standards coverage (WCAG 2.2, PDF/UA, 508, HHS, EAA, AODA)
Limitations
- No API — cannot integrate into automated workflows
- Free validator still requires Windows + Adobe Acrobat
- No public pricing — sales call required
- AI assists but still requires trained human operators
- One PDF at a time — no bulk automation
- Free validator has zero AI capabilities (.NET 4.7 from 2017)
Equidox
Cloud SaaS + On-PremApproach
AI-assisted (Smart Zone detection)
Automation
Up to 90% (per their claims)
Platform
Browser-based (PC or Mac)
Pricing
Quote-based (concurrent user licensing, no public pricing)
Strengths
- Browser-based — no desktop install, works on Mac
- Smart Zone Detector for AI-assisted tagging
- Equidox AI product for fully automated high-volume templated docs
- On-premises deployment option available
- GSA contract holder (sells to federal government)
- Collaborative multi-user editing
Limitations
- PDF input only — no Office document support
- AI alt text only for trained templates, not general-purpose
- No public pricing — sales call required
- API only available for high-volume Equidox AI product
- Full automation limited to templated/repetitive documents
codemantra
Cloud Platform (AWS)Approach
ML auto-tagging (up to 80%)
Automation
Up to 80% (per their claims)
Platform
Cloud-based (AWS)
Pricing
Quote-based (licence model; no public per-page pricing)
Strengths
- 300+ global customers
- Broad format support (PDF, Word, Excel, PPT, ePub)
- MathML equation support
- UK Government approved (G-Cloud listed)
- 120+ automated accessibility checks
- SOC2 Type 2 and ISO 9001 certified
Limitations
- Core pipeline uses traditional ML — LLM/GenAI only in separate CalibrAI brand
- Review UI is explicitly not accessible (per their own G-Cloud filing)
- API available to licensees only — no public self-service access
- No public pricing transparency
- Weeks-long enterprise onboarding
Continual Engine PREP
Cloud PlatformApproach
AI/ML + computer vision (90% auto-tagging claimed)
Automation
90% auto-tagging, 95% accuracy (per their claims)
Platform
Cloud-based (on-prem available for enterprise)
Pricing
$1.25-2.75/page (managed service); platform licence quoted separately
Strengths
- Broad format support including PDF-to-HTML output
- LMS integrations (Canvas, D2L Brightspace, CivicPlus)
- Auto-Tag, Checker, and Audit APIs (launched March 2026)
- AI-generated alt text for images, charts, and graphs
- Used by Stanford, Virginia Tech, Johns Hopkins
- ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type I certified
Limitations
- Vague on underlying AI technology (never names models or frameworks)
- Managed service pricing ($1.25-2.75/page) higher than initially positioned
- No free scan or instant web-based trial
- Cloud is primary deployment; on-prem not prominently offered
- No evidence of LLM usage for semantic understanding
ADA Title II Deadline
April 24, 2026 is here
State and local government entities serving populations of 50,000+ must meet WCAG 2.1 AA for all web content — including every PDF on your website.
5,000+
Average PDFs on a state government website
$500K+
Cost to manually remediate at $8-12/page
$1,500
Same 5,000 PDFs with CASO at $0.30/page
See it for yourself
Scan your website for free. See every non-compliant PDF with a compliance score — in under 60 seconds, no signup required.