Quick Start

OpenScouter connects businesses that need real accessibility insights with neurodivergent experts who provide them. Whether you are commissioning a study, earning money as a tester, or integrating programmatically, you can be up and running in minutes.

For Businesses

Get Your First Accessibility Study

OpenScouter gives you actionable accessibility reports from neurodivergent experts who use your product for real. Here is how to get started.

1. Create your account

Sign up at openscouter.com with your work email. Account setup takes under two minutes. You will land on your business dashboard where all your studies and reports live.

2. Get a free instant audit

Before committing to a full study, run a free automated audit on any public URL. Enter your site address and receive a scored accessibility report within seconds. This gives you a baseline and highlights the highest-priority areas for human review.

3. Commission a study

From your dashboard, click New Study and provide the URL or prototype link you want tested. Choose the type of neurodivergent expertise most relevant to your product, set your timeline, and confirm the study. OpenScouter matches you with qualified testers automatically.

4. Receive your reports

Once testers complete their work, structured reports appear in your dashboard. Each report includes a numerical accessibility score, categorised findings, and prioritised recommendations. You can export reports as PDF or pull them via the API.

For Testers

Start Earning as a Neurodivergent Expert

OpenScouter pays neurodivergent experts to test websites and apps. Tests pay £6 each, which works out to an effective rate of £24 per hour. Here is how to get started.

1. Register your profile

Sign up at openscouter.com. Provide basic information about yourself and your neurodivergent experience. Your profile helps OpenScouter match you with studies where your perspective adds the most value.

2. Complete the capacity quiz

After registering, you will complete a short capacity quiz. This is not a pass or fail test. It helps OpenScouter understand how you work, what types of tasks suit you, and how to match you with the right studies. It takes around ten minutes.

3. Accept a test offer via Telegram

When a study matches your profile, you will receive an offer through Telegram. Review the brief, confirm you can complete it in the available window, and accept. Offers are time-sensitive, so keeping notifications on helps you claim the best opportunities.

4. Test using the Chrome extension

Install the OpenScouter Chrome extension before your first test. The extension guides you through each test, records your interactions and observations, and submits your findings automatically when you are done. You do not need any specialist software beyond Chrome.

5. Get paid

Payment is processed after your report is reviewed and accepted. Each completed test earns you £6, and most tests take around 15 minutes, giving an effective rate of £24 per hour. Payments are issued on a regular schedule to your registered payment method.

For Developers

Integrate OpenScouter via API

The OpenScouter API lets you embed accessibility scoring directly into your workflow. You can trigger instant audits, retrieve structured results, and pipe findings into your own tooling.

1. Get your API key

Sign in to your OpenScouter account and navigate to Settings > API. Generate a new API key and store it securely in your environment. Never commit API keys to source control.

2. Run an instant audit

Send a POST request to /api/audits/instant with the URL you want to audit. The endpoint returns a full accessibility report synchronously.

curl -X POST https://openscouter.com/api/audits/instant \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"url": "https://example.com"}'

3. Parse the JSON response

The response includes a top-level score field (0 to 100), a summary string, and an issues array. Each issue contains a category, severity, and description.

{
  "score": 74,
  "summary": "Good baseline with some critical contrast and focus issues.",
  "issues": [
    {
      "category": "contrast",
      "severity": "critical",
      "description": "Text on hero banner does not meet WCAG AA contrast ratio."
    }
  ]
}

4. Handle errors and pagination

The API uses standard HTTP status codes. A 401 means your key is missing or invalid. A 422 means the URL could not be reached. For bulk audit endpoints that return paginated results, use the page and limit query parameters to iterate through findings.

5. Explore the full API reference

The instant audit endpoint is a starting point. The full API supports commissioning human studies, retrieving historical reports, and managing your organisation’s projects programmatically.

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What’s next?

Now that you are set up, explore the rest of the documentation to get the most out of OpenScouter.

• How It Works . Understand the full study workflow from commission to report.
• For Businesses . Commission studies, read reports, and track your accessibility progress.
• For Testers . Everything you need to know about testing, earning, and the Chrome extension.
• API Reference . Full endpoint documentation with schemas, authentication, and rate limits.
• Glossary . Definitions of all terms used throughout OpenScouter.