Stairlift and home-access buyer statistics 2026: UK and US.
Demand for stairlifts and home access is growing in both markets. The UK has 11.1 million people aged 65 and over in England and Wales alone, and 1.9 million English households need home adaptations. The US has 61.2 million people aged 65 and over, and 77% of adults over 50 want to stay in their homes.
By Femi Nwaojigba · Figures checked against each source on 10 October 2026. These are public statistics, not Acquiri results.
United Kingdom
11.1 million
people in England and Wales were aged 65 and over at Census 2021, 18.6% of the population, up from 9.2 million (16.4%) in 2011.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Census 2021 population and household estimates
1.9 million
households in England (8% of all households) had at least one person with a long-standing health condition who said they needed adaptations to their home in 2019-20.
Source: English Housing Survey 2019-20: home adaptations (MHCLG)
16%
of those households needing adaptations inside the home needed a stairlift. Grab rails in the kitchen or bathroom were the most common need (42%), and a level-access shower was needed by 20%.
Source: English Housing Survey 2019-20: home adaptations (MHCLG)
£30,000
is the maximum mandatory Disabled Facilities Grant a local housing authority in England can be required to pay per application.
Source: The Disabled Facilities Grants (Maximum Amounts and Additional Purposes) (England) Order 2008
£711 million
is the total Disabled Facilities Grant funding for England in 2024/25 and in 2025/26, including an uplift the government says could provide around 15,600 home adaptations.
About 1 in 3
people aged 65 and over, and around half of people aged 80 and over, fall at least once a year.
Source: NICE guideline NG249, Falls: assessment and prevention
United States
61.2 million
Americans were aged 65 and older in 2024, up 3.1% in one year.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2024 Population Estimates (press release CB25-99)
55.8 million
people were aged 65 and over at the 2020 Census, 16.8% of the US population, or about 1 in 6 people.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census
77%
of adults aged 50 and older want to stay in their homes as they age, and 33% say their homes would need modifications for them to do so safely and independently.
Over 14 million
older adults, about 1 in 4 adults aged 65 and over, report falling every year. Falls are the leading cause of injury in this age group.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Older Adult Falls Data
$126,526
is the maximum VA Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) grant for fiscal year 2026. The Special Home Adaptation (SHA) grant maximum is $25,350.
Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Disability housing grants
$6,800
is the VA HISA (Home Improvements and Structural Alterations) lifetime benefit for service-connected disabilities; $2,000 for other qualifying veterans.
What this means for dealers
In both markets the buyer pool is large and growing, and a meaningful share of older households already say they need adaptations. Funding routes differ: UK buyers may come through the Disabled Facilities Grant, while US veterans may qualify for VA grants, and many US states fund home modifications through Medicaid waivers.
Because grant-funded and private-pay buyers follow different paths, qualify the funding route on the first call. Read more in our guides to home-adaptation leads and stairlift lead generation benchmarks.