A stairlift and a home lift solve the same problem – moving safely between floors – in very different ways, at very different prices. This guide compares them honestly: what each costs in Australia, who each suits, what happens at resale, and when a stairlift is genuinely the better buy.
30+ years · 11,500+ lifts installed · 8-year warranty
For one person who can transfer safely on a single straight flight, with a budget under about $10,000, a stairlift can be the sensible buy. For wheelchairs, couples ageing in place, families, resale value or multi-level homes, a home lift – from $44,900 – is the option built to last the life of the house.
A quick note on who’s talking: Lift Shop is Australia’s largest dedicated home lift specialist, with 1,200 lifts sold annually – and we don’t sell stairlifts. That means we have no stairlift to sell you, and no reason to pretend one product suits everyone. It doesn’t. The right answer depends on who’s using it, for how long, and what you want your home to be worth when you’re done.
The short version: a stairlift is a mobility aid for one seated person on one staircase. A home lift is a permanent piece of the house that moves everyone – and everything – between floors. The rest of this page unpacks what that difference costs, and what it buys.
A stairlift is a motorised chair that travels on a rail bolted to your staircase, carrying one seated person. A home lift is a fully enclosed cabin travelling in its own small shaft, carrying people, wheelchairs, prams, shopping and furniture between floors – a permanent part of the home rather than an addition to the stairs.
A stairlift follows the staircase you already have. A folding chair rides a rail fixed to the treads or the wall; the user sits, fastens a belt, and travels the flight at walking pace. Straight-flight models are largely standardised; curved staircases need a custom-made rail, which is where costs climb.
A Lift Shop home lift is a different category of thing. It’s a fully enclosed cabin – a Lift Shop lift, Italian-made – travelling in its own shaft, with automatic doors, battery backup and an 8-year warranty. It reads as an architectural feature rather than a medical one, and because Lift Shop is Australian-owned, locally engineered and serviced, the lift is supported for decades, not seasons. Explore the full residential lift range to see how the A, C and E Series differ.
In Australia, a straight stairlift typically costs $4,500 to $10,000 installed, and a curved or multi-flight design $12,000 to $18,000 or more. A Lift Shop home lift starts from $44,900. The gap is real – and so is the difference in what each one does for the household and the home’s value.
| Option | Typical price in Australia | What that generally covers |
|---|---|---|
| Straight stairlift | $4,500 – $10,000 | Chair, straight rail, survey and installation on a single straight flight |
| Curved or multi-flight stairlift | $12,000 – $18,000+ | Custom-made rail shaped to your corners, landings and flights |
| Lift Shop home lift | From $44,900 | The lift itself – cabin, doors, drive system and 8-year warranty. Building works are quoted separately by your builder. |
Stairlift pricing in Australia is quote-driven – most suppliers publish no fixed prices because every rail is measured to the staircase. The ranges above are drawn from published Australian price guides.
On the home lift side, the honest comparison isn’t just the sticker. A stairlift serves one user on one flight for as long as that user needs it. A home lift serves the whole household, every level, indefinitely – and stays with the house as an asset. For the full breakdown by series, doors and drive systems, see current home lift prices in Australia.
A stairlift solves stairs for one person. A home lift removes stairs as an obstacle for the whole household. If the person who needs help today uses a walker now but may need a wheelchair later, that difference is the whole decision.
A stairlift occupies part of the staircase itself: the rail and folded seat sit on the treads, and everyone else shares what’s left of the flight. A home lift needs its own small footprint – the Lift Shop A-Series suits narrow shafts and tight footprints, with a pit of just 150 mm.
This is the trade-off most people don’t see coming. A stairlift doesn’t take up a room, but it does take up the stairs: the rail runs the full flight, and even folded, the seat and footrest narrow the path for everyone else in the house. On a tight Australian hallway staircase, that matters daily.
A home lift takes the opposite approach – it borrows a small, defined footprint somewhere else and gives the staircase back. Lift Shop lifts are designed to fit tight spaces: small enough to slot into a stairwell void, a stacked-cupboard space, or a corner of a room. The A-Series is the pick for narrow shafts and tight footprints, needing a pit of only 150 mm – shallow enough for most existing slabs – with Italian engineering that allows flexibility in cabin dimensions to fit the exact shaft opening. One of our favourite proofs: a lift installed inside the void of a circular staircase, rising through the centre of the coiled flight.
A stairlift carries one seated person at a time, and wheelchair users must transfer out of the chair at both ends. A Lift Shop home lift carries 4 – 6 persons (300 – 400 kg) in the A-Series – a person and their wheelchair, a couple, a parent with a pram, or the weekly shop, together.
| Household situation | Stairlift | Home lift |
|---|---|---|
| One person who can transfer safely; single straight flight | Well suited | Also suited – larger investment |
| Wheelchair user | Requires transferring at both ends, plus a second chair upstairs | Roll in, ride, roll out – no transfer |
| Couple ageing in place together | One person at a time, seated | Travel together |
| Family life – prams, toddlers, washing baskets | Carries a seated person only | People and loads together – 4 – 6 persons (A-Series) |
| Shopping, luggage, furniture | Not designed for it | Yes – 300 – 400 kg capacity (A-Series) |
| Three levels, curved or multiple flights | Custom curved rail; cost rises steeply | One cabin serving every level |
Stairlifts are fitted for a specific user, so they’re generally removed when a home is sold – the money doesn’t stay in the property. A home lift is a permanent architectural feature that stays with the house and broadens its appeal to buyers of every age and stage.
Ask any agent what happens to a stairlift at sale time: because it’s fitted to one staircase for one user, the usual path is removal before listing – often at extra cost – because to most buyers it reads as a mobility aid, not a feature. The purchase serves its user well, but it rarely adds a dollar at the other end.
A home lift works the other way. It’s part of the building – a considered design element, not an off-the-shelf add-on – and it stays. For downsizer buyers it removes the single biggest objection to a multi-level home; for younger buyers it’s a premium feature; for everyone it signals a house that’s been invested in properly. That’s why so many of the 11,500+ lifts Lift Shop has installed went into homes whose owners were thinking a decade ahead.
Funding can apply to both options. NDIS participants may be able to include home modifications in their plan, and older Australians can explore support through My Aged Care, including Home Care Package and Support at Home funding. Eligibility is personal – always confirm directly at ndis.gov.au and myagedcare.gov.au.
Broadly, two public pathways exist. For NDIS participants, home modifications can form part of a plan where they meet the scheme’s criteria – your planner, plan manager or occupational therapist is the right person to walk you through it, and NDIS-compliant home lifts explains how Lift Shop supports that process, from OT documentation to compliant specifications. For older Australians outside the NDIS, My Aged Care is the front door to government support such as Home Care Package and Support at Home funding.
We won’t summarise eligibility rules here, because they’re personal and they change: check ndis.gov.au and myagedcare.gov.au for current criteria, and bring your OT into the conversation early. What we can say from experience is that good documentation and the right specifications make every funding conversation easier – and that’s work Lift Shop does every week.
A stairlift genuinely is the better choice when the need is short-term, the budget stops well under $15,000, only one person uses it, the staircase is a single straight flight, or you’re not planning to stay in the home. Honest answer: not every household needs a home lift.
We’d rather you buy the right thing than buy from us. Choose a stairlift when:
And choose a home lift when any of these are true: a wheelchair is in the picture now or plausibly later; two or more people need help between floors; the staircase is curved, narrow or busy; you’re staying long-term and care about what the home is worth; or you simply don’t want the daily reminder of a chair on the stairs. If you’re weighing it up, the only real way to compare is to stand in one – our showroom consultants will give you the same straight answer this page just did.
Specifying for a client? Get the technical detail architects and builders need – lift shaft construction, the lift door preparation guide, or send us your drawings.
Reading about the difference is one thing; standing in a lift cabin is another. Visit a Lift Shop showroom in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or Perth – with Canberra opening soon – and ride the lift, measure the footprint and ask the hard questions.
We install right across Australia, in every state and territory. Find our showrooms or book a visit below.
Straight answers on stairlift and home lift costs, wheelchair access, funding, resale value and installation timelines across Australia.
Published Australian price guides put a straight stairlift at roughly $4,500 to $10,000 including survey and installation, and a curved or multi-flight stairlift at $12,000 to $18,000 or more, because the rail is custom-made to the staircase. Most suppliers price by individual quote rather than a fixed list.
Lift Shop home lifts start from $44,900, with the final figure depending on the series, number of stops, doors and finishes. Building works for the shaft are quoted separately by your builder.
Not on their own. A stairlift carries a seated person, so a wheelchair user must transfer out of the chair at the bottom, ride, and transfer into a second chair at the top - with help usually needed at both ends. A home lift removes the transfer entirely: you roll in, ride, and roll out.
Yes - a stairwell void is one of the most common homes for a Lift Shop lift. The A-Series suits narrow shafts and tight footprints and needs a pit of just 150 mm. We've even installed a lift rising through the centre of a wrap-around circular staircase.
A standing (or perch) stair lift carries the user in a standing or half-seated position instead of fully seated - typically chosen when knee or hip conditions make sitting difficult. It still carries one person on one staircase, and it requires good balance, so suppliers assess suitability case by case.
A stairlift is fitted for a specific user and is generally removed before a home is sold, so the spend rarely carries into the sale price. A home lift is a permanent feature that stays with the property and widens its buyer pool - from downsizers to families planning ahead.
Possibly, for both. NDIS participants can discuss home modifications with their planner or occupational therapist, and older Australians can explore Home Care Package and Support at Home options through My Aged Care. Eligibility is individual - check ndis.gov.au and myagedcare.gov.au.
A straight stairlift is usually the faster fit - once surveyed and made, installation is typically quick. A home lift is a planned building project: the shaft is built or prepared first, then the lift is installed and commissioned, so timelines are measured in months, not days. Your Lift Shop consultant will give you a current timeline for your home.
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