If stairs are becoming a problem, you have two main ways to solve it: a stair lift or a home elevator. Both get you safely between floors, but they suit different homes, needs and budgets. Here is how they compare.
Stair lifts at a glance
A stair lift is a chair that rides a rail along your existing staircase.
- Cost: the lower-cost option
- Installation: often done in a day, with no structural changes
- Space: uses the staircase you already have and folds up when not in use
- Best for: people who can walk short distances and sit and stand without much help
Home elevators at a glance
A home elevator carries you, and anything you bring with you, between floors in an enclosed cab.
- Cost: a larger investment
- Installation: ranges from a few days for a shaftless model to a longer project for a traditional elevator
- Space: needs its own footprint, though compact designs fit in a corner or closet
- Best for: wheelchair users, households with more than one person who needs help, and anyone planning for the long term
Questions that help you decide
- Do you use a wheelchair or walker? A stair lift carries you but not your wheelchair. An elevator carries both.
- How many floors? A stair lift serves one staircase. An elevator can serve every level, including the basement.
- How long will you stay? If this is your long-term home, an elevator adapts as your needs change.
- What is your budget? A stair lift solves the immediate problem for less.
- Who else lives there? An elevator also helps with strollers, luggage, laundry and groceries.
There are other options too
A wheelchair lift can handle a short rise such as a porch or a split level, and a dumbwaiter takes care of carrying loads between floors.
Get advice for your home
Nationwide Lifts of Central New York installs both, so we can recommend what fits your home, not what we happen to sell. We serve Syracuse, Rochester, Utica and Binghamton. Call (315) 849-2952 for a free consultation.