The most common placements are beside the toilet, at the entry point of the shower or tub, and inside the shower on the wall the person faces while bathing. Bars must be anchored into studs or with rated mounting hardware, never suction-only for weight bearing. An occupational therapist can pinpoint placement based on the person's height, reach, and how they actually move.

A shower chair works well in walk-in showers or for someone who can step over a tub wall but tires while standing. A tub transfer bench straddles the tub wall so the person sits down outside the tub and slides over, which is safer when lifting the legs over the wall is the hard part.

A walk-in or roll-in shower makes sense for wheelchair users, people with a high fall risk who plan to age in place long term, and anyone for whom equipment alone no longer makes the tub safe. It is a contractor-level project, so get an occupational therapist's input on the design and a vetted contractor for the work.