Living with arthritis can make everyday tasks more difficult than they used to be.
Opening a jar. Turning a key. Getting dressed. Preparing a meal. Getting in and out of the shower. Reaching something from a high shelf. Walking safely through your home.
These are ordinary activities, but when joint pain, stiffness, reduced grip strength, fatigue, or limited mobility get in the way, the right tools can make a meaningful difference.
Arthritis supplies and assistive devices are designed to make everyday tasks easier, safer, and less demanding on your joints. They can reduce the amount of force, twisting, bending, reaching, or repetitive movement required to complete a task while helping you maintain greater independence.
The challenge is knowing where to start.
There are thousands of arthritis-friendly products available, from simple jar openers and adaptive utensils to dressing aids, bathroom safety equipment, mobility devices, and ergonomic tools for work and hobbies. This guide brings the major categories together in one place so you can identify the types of tools that may fit your needs, then explore our more detailed guides for each category.
| If you struggle with… | Consider… | What they can help with | Explore next |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weak grip or hand pain | Jar openers, key turners, easy-grip tools | Gripping, twisting and finger strain | Hand Relief Tools |
| Cooking and food preparation | Adaptive utensils, electric openers | Gripping, cutting and meal preparation | Kitchen Tools |
| Getting dressed | Button hooks, sock aids, shoe horns | Fine finger movements and bending | Dressing Aids |
| Reaching or bending | Reachers and long-handled tools | Bending, stretching and reaching | Reacher Grabbers |
| Bathing and bathroom safety | Grab bars, shower chairs | Stability and safer bathing | Bathroom Safety Aids |
| Walking or balance | Canes, walkers, rollators | Mobility and stability | Mobility Aids |
| Standing from a chair | Lift chairs, stand-assist devices | Sitting and standing | Lift Chairs |
| Household chores | Lightweight tools, rolling carts | Lifting, carrying and repetitive strain | Arthritis-Friendly Home |
| Working at a desk | Ergonomic keyboards, mice and supports | Repetitive hand and wrist movements | Office Setup |
| Gardening and hobbies | Ergonomic and adaptive tools | Grip, cutting and repetitive movements | Gardening Tools |
Quick takeaway: You don’t need every arthritis product available. Start by identifying the everyday tasks that are most difficult for you, then look for tools that reduce the specific gripping, twisting, bending, reaching, or repetitive movement that makes those tasks difficult.
What Are Arthritis Supplies and Assistive Devices?
The terms arthritis supplies, arthritis aids, arthritis tools, and assistive devices are often used interchangeably, but there are some useful distinctions.
Arthritis supplies is the broadest term. It can include everyday tools, adaptive products, comfort products, mobility equipment, and other items that can make living with arthritis easier.
Arthritis aids generally refers to products that help you perform everyday activities more easily or independently. Dressing aids, reachers, grab bars, and jar openers are good examples.
Arthritis tools usually refers to physical tools designed for a particular task, such as gripping, opening, reaching, cutting, writing, or gardening.
Assistive devices is a broader accessibility term that can include simple daily-living aids as well as mobility and safety equipment.
In practice, you may see all of these terms used when shopping for arthritis-friendly products. What matters most is not what the product is called, but whether it solves a specific problem you are having.
A useful arthritis aid might be something as simple as an easy-grip kitchen utensil or key turner. It could also be a shower chair, rollator, lift chair, or ergonomic workstation.
The goal isn’t to buy every arthritis product available. It’s to find the right tools for the tasks that are most difficult for you.
How to Choose the Right Arthritis Supplies
Before buying anything, start with the problem rather than the product.
Think about the everyday activities that cause you the most difficulty. Is it opening containers, holding utensils, getting dressed, getting into the shower, standing from a chair, walking, reaching shelves, working at a computer, gardening, or enjoying a hobby?
Try to identify the specific movement that causes the problem.
If gripping is painful, a larger or cushioned handle may help. If twisting is difficult, an electric or lever-operated alternative may reduce the effort. If bending is the problem, a long-handled tool or reacher may be more useful.
This approach is much more helpful than simply searching for “arthritis products” and buying whatever looks interesting.
Consider where you’ll use the product
Your environment matters too.
A bathroom aid needs to fit your shower or tub. A mobility aid needs to work with your doorways, hallways, and other spaces. Kitchen tools should be easy to access and operate. An office product needs to fit your workstation.
Before buying larger equipment, measure the space and check the manufacturer’s dimensions and weight limits.
Look at how much effort the product requires
A product marketed as arthritis-friendly isn’t necessarily easy for everyone to use.
Look at the handle, trigger, buttons, controls, and other moving parts. If operating the product still requires a strong grip or painful twisting motion, it may not solve the problem you’re trying to address.
Also consider weight, adjustability, stability, fit, and how easy the product will be to clean and store.
The best arthritis aid is one that makes the task easier without creating another difficult task.
Arthritis Kitchen Supplies and Cooking Aids
The kitchen is one of the most common places where arthritis interferes with daily life.
Opening containers, chopping food, lifting cookware, turning knobs, peeling vegetables, and gripping utensils can all stress painful or stiff joints.
Helpful kitchen products include electric jar and can openers, easy-grip utensils, adaptive knives, wide-handle peelers, lightweight cookware, non-slip cutting boards, and other tools designed to reduce gripping and twisting.
Small changes to the kitchen can help too. Store frequently used items where they are easy to reach, avoid putting heavy cookware in difficult-to-access cabinets, and consider using a rolling cart to move heavier items rather than carrying them.
Explore more: Kitchen Tools for Arthritis: Adaptive Utensils and Helpful Gadgets
Hand and Grip Aids for Arthritis
Hand arthritis can make everyday objects surprisingly difficult to use. Keys, pens, toothbrushes, scissors, faucets, and small buttons all require some degree of grip strength and finger movement.
Hand and grip aids can reduce the amount of force required.
A key turner gives you a larger surface to hold, making it easier to turn a key without relying on fingertip strength. An ergonomic pen with a thicker, cushioned barrel can make writing more comfortable. Voice-to-text software can also be useful when writing or typing for longer periods is difficult.
Compression gloves are another popular product for people looking for hand support and comfort. When comparing them, consider compression level, fabric, fit, finger length, and whether you prefer open or closed fingertips.
Explore more: Best Hand Relief Tools for Arthritis and Best Compression Gloves for Arthritis
Dressing Aids and Adaptive Clothing
Getting dressed can become frustrating when finger stiffness or reduced hand dexterity makes buttons, zippers, socks, or shoelaces difficult to manage.
Dressing aids reduce the fine motor movements required.
A button hook lets you fasten buttons without manipulating them directly with your fingertips. A sock aid can make putting on socks easier if bending, reaching, or gripping is difficult. A long-handled shoe horn reduces the need to bend down.
Elastic shoelaces and slip-on footwear can also make getting dressed simpler.
For some people, adaptive clothing with magnetic closures, Velcro-style fasteners, or elastic waistbands can replace traditional fasteners altogether.
Explore more: Adaptive Clothing and Dressing Aids for Arthritis
Bathroom Safety and Bathing Aids
The bathroom deserves special attention if arthritis affects balance, strength, or mobility.
Wet surfaces can increase the risk of slipping, and getting in and out of a tub or standing in a shower can require significant strength and balance.
Properly installed grab bars can provide a stable handhold. A towel bar should never be used as a substitute for a properly installed grab bar.
A shower chair can reduce the need to stand for long periods. A handheld showerhead can reduce reaching and twisting, while a long-handled sponge or brush can make it easier to reach areas that are otherwise difficult to access.
When choosing bathroom equipment, pay attention to stability, dimensions, adjustability, weight capacity, and installation requirements.
Explore more: Best Bathroom Safety Aids for Arthritis
Mobility Aids for Arthritis
Arthritis can affect walking, balance, endurance, and confidence.
Mobility aids can provide additional support and may make moving around easier. Common options include canes, walkers, and rollators, although the right choice depends on your individual needs.
A cane may provide additional stability, while a walker generally provides more support. Rollators add wheels and typically include a seat, which can be useful for someone who needs mobility support but also benefits from being able to rest.
Proper fit is important. A cane or walker that is too high or too low can affect posture and walking mechanics.
If you’re unsure which mobility aid is appropriate, a physical therapist or other healthcare professional can help assess your needs.
Explore more: Best Mobility Aids for Arthritis and our guides to walking canes and walkers and rollators.
Reachers and Grabber Tools
A reacher can be one of the simplest and most useful assistive devices in the home.
It lets you pick up or retrieve objects without bending, stretching, or reaching as far. This can be useful for items on the floor, high shelves, or other difficult-to-reach places.
When choosing a reacher, consider the trigger design, required hand force, weight, length, and grip comfort. Some models have rotating heads or different types of gripping jaws that may be useful for particular tasks.
If squeezing a conventional trigger is difficult because of hand arthritis, pay particular attention to how much hand force the mechanism requires.
Living Room and Home Comfort Aids
Your home environment can either make daily life easier or create additional obstacles.
Small changes can reduce unnecessary bending, reaching, lifting, and standing. Supportive chairs with firm armrests, rolling carts, easy-grip door handles, motion-sensor lighting, and voice-controlled devices are examples of products that may make certain tasks easier.
If getting up from a low or soft chair is difficult, a lift chair or stand-assist device may reduce the effort needed to stand.
When considering a lift chair, look at seat height, armrest position, weight capacity, available space, and how easy the controls are to operate.
Explore more: Recliner and Lift Chairs for Arthritis
Bedroom and Sleep-Related Arthritis Aids
Pain and stiffness can make sleeping, changing position, and getting out of bed more difficult.
Depending on the problem, products such as adjustable beds, supportive pillows, bed assist handles, lightweight bedding, and mattress toppers may improve comfort or make certain movements easier.
An adjustable bed allows you to change your position without manually rearranging pillows. A bed assist device may make getting in and out of bed easier for some people.
If you use a bed rail or assist handle, make sure it is designed for your specific bed and installed according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Products aren’t the only part of creating an arthritis-friendly bedroom. Sleeping position, mattress support, temperature, and your nighttime routine can all matter too.
Explore more: How to Sleep With Arthritis and Best Products for Morning Arthritis Relief
Arthritis-Friendly Office and Technology Tools
If you work at a desk or spend significant time at a computer, repetitive movements can contribute to hand, wrist, neck, or shoulder discomfort.
Ergonomic keyboards, alternative mice, trackball or vertical mice, cushioned wrist supports, monitor stands, and adjustable desks are all potential options.
But the most expensive equipment isn’t necessarily the best solution.
Sometimes simply changing your workstation setup can make a difference. Keep frequently used items within easy reach, position your monitor comfortably, and avoid prolonged awkward wrist positions.
Voice-to-text software can also reduce the amount of typing required when writing or typing becomes uncomfortable.
Explore more: Arthritis Office Setup Guide: Keyboards, Mice, and Ergonomic Accessories
Gardening and Hobby Tools for Arthritis
Arthritis shouldn’t necessarily mean giving up the activities you enjoy.
Gardening tools with larger cushioned handles, ergonomic grips, spring-assisted mechanisms, or longer handles can reduce the amount of force and bending required.
Raised garden beds and rolling garden carts can also reduce the need to kneel, bend, or carry heavy items.
The same principle applies to crafts and other hobbies.
A larger ergonomic handle on a crochet hook, adaptive scissors, a card holder, or a book stand can sometimes make a favorite activity much easier without requiring you to replace all of your equipment.
Explore more: Best Ergonomic Gardening Tools for Arthritis and Arthritis-Friendly Hobbies.
Personal Care and Grooming Aids
Personal care tasks often involve repetitive gripping and precise finger movements.
Electric toothbrushes, large-handle grooming tools, long-handled combs, and pump dispensers can make some tasks easier without requiring specialized equipment.
For example, replacing a difficult squeeze bottle with a pump dispenser can eliminate a repetitive gripping motion.
Think about the specific task that causes difficulty and look for a product that reduces that movement.
Explore more: Personal Care Tools for Arthritis: When You Can’t Grip or Reach
Pain Relief, Comfort, and Joint-Support Products
Some products are designed primarily to help with comfort or support rather than to make a daily task easier.
These include compression gloves, braces, splints, heating pads, cold therapy products, and massage tools.
This distinction is useful when deciding what you need.
A jar opener is an assistive tool because it helps you perform a task.
A heating pad is primarily a comfort product.
A wrist brace provides support.
All may have a place in an arthritis management routine, but they serve different purposes.
When choosing braces, splints, compression products, or other products that significantly affect movement or fit closely to the body, follow the manufacturer’s instructions and consider professional guidance when appropriate.
Explore more: Heat vs. Cold Therapy for Arthritis Pain, Best Hand Therapy Tools for Arthritis, Best Thumb and Wrist Braces for Arthritis, and Best Massagers for Arthritis.
What to Look for When Buying Arthritis Supplies
Once you’ve identified the problem you want to solve, look carefully at how the product works.
Ease of use: The product shouldn’t create another difficult task. A tiny trigger or fiddly latch defeats the purpose if you have difficulty using your fingers.
Grip and handle design: Large handles, cushioned grips, and non-slip surfaces can be easier to hold than small or smooth handles.
Required force: Automatic, lever-operated, or spring-assisted designs may be preferable when hand strength is limited.
Weight: Lightweight products are often easier to handle, although products used for support also need to be stable enough for their intended purpose.
Adjustability: This is particularly important for canes, walkers, rollators, shower chairs, reachers, and office equipment.
Fit and sizing: The wrong size can make a product uncomfortable or ineffective. Pay particular attention to sizing for braces, compression gloves, mobility aids, and seating.
Durability: Look at construction, materials, warranty information, and customer feedback.
Storage and cleaning: A product that’s difficult to retrieve, clean, or maintain may end up sitting unused.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Buying Arthritis Supplies
One common mistake is buying a product before identifying the problem. Start with the task you want to make easier.
Another is choosing something that still requires too much grip or force. Always consider how the product actually operates rather than relying on the words “arthritis-friendly” on the packaging.
Don’t overlook measurements and fit, particularly with mobility aids, bathroom equipment, chairs, and other larger products.
It’s also easy to buy too much at once. You don’t need to transform your entire home overnight. Start with the task that causes the greatest difficulty, see what works, and then make additional changes if needed.
Finally, remember that more expensive doesn’t necessarily mean better. A simple product that solves your particular problem can be much more useful than a complicated gadget with features you don’t need.
Should You Buy Arthritis Supplies on Amazon?
Amazon can be a convenient place to shop for everyday arthritis aids because you can compare multiple products, review specifications, and read customer feedback in one place.
But more choice isn’t always better.
Before purchasing, check the product dimensions, weight, weight capacity, sizing information, return policy, warranty, and manufacturer information. Read customer reviews carefully and pay attention to comments about how the product actually works for people with similar difficulties.
For medical or safety-critical products, don’t rely solely on star ratings. A product that works well for one person may not be appropriate for another.
If you’re specifically looking for discounts, see our guide to How to Find the Best Deals on Arthritis Products for strategies to compare prices and identify genuine savings.
When Should You Ask a Professional?
Many everyday tools are simple to choose.
However, some assistive devices deserve more careful assessment, particularly canes, walkers, rollators, braces, splints, transfer equipment, bathroom safety equipment, and anything related to significant balance or mobility problems.
An occupational therapist can be particularly helpful with everyday activities. They can help identify ways to reduce joint strain, adapt difficult tasks, and select equipment based on your individual abilities and environment.
A physical therapist may also be helpful when choosing or properly adjusting certain mobility aids.
If you’re uncertain about what type of equipment you need, professional guidance can help you choose more safely and effectively.
A Simple Arthritis Supplies Checklist
You don’t need to buy everything on this list. Use it as a starting point to identify areas where an assistive tool might make your day easier.
Hands and Grip
- Jar opener
- Key turner
- Ergonomic pen
- Easy-grip scissors
- Large-handle tools
Kitchen
- Electric can opener
- Adaptive utensils
- Easy-grip peeler
- Lightweight cookware
- Non-slip cutting board
Dressing
- Button hook
- Zipper pull
- Sock aid
- Long-handled shoe horn
- Elastic shoelaces
Bathroom
- Grab bars
- Shower chair
- Non-slip bath mat
- Handheld showerhead
- Long-handled bathing tool
Mobility
- Cane
- Walker
- Rollator
- Reacher
- Stand-assist device
Home
- Motion-sensor lights
- Easy-grip door handles
- Supportive chair
- Lift chair
- Rolling cart
Office and Hobbies
- Ergonomic keyboard
- Alternative mouse
- Wrist support
- Voice-to-text software
- Large-grip craft or gardening tools
Frequently Asked Questions About Arthritis Supplies
What are the most useful arthritis supplies?
The most useful arthritis supplies depend on the tasks that are difficult for you. Commonly helpful products include easy-grip kitchen tools, jar openers, dressing aids, reachers, bathroom safety equipment, mobility aids, and ergonomic office tools. Start with the activities that cause you the most pain, strain, or frustration.
Do assistive devices really help with arthritis?
Assistive devices can make everyday activities easier by reducing the gripping, twisting, bending, reaching, or repetitive movement required. They don’t treat the underlying cause of arthritis, but they may reduce the physical demands of daily tasks and support greater independence.
What are the best arthritis aids for weak hands?
People with weak or painful hands may benefit from large-handle utensils, electric openers, key turners, ergonomic pens, and other products that reduce the need for forceful gripping.
Should I buy a cane or walker for arthritis?
A cane, walker, or rollator may be appropriate for some people, but the right choice depends on your balance, strength, mobility, and walking pattern. If you aren’t sure which mobility aid you need, ask a physical therapist or other healthcare professional for an assessment.
How can I make my home more arthritis-friendly?
Start with the areas where you experience the most difficulty. Easy-grip kitchen tools reduce hand strain, better lighting improves visibility, grab bars and shower chairs improve bathroom safety, and supportive seating or lift chairs can make standing easier. Small changes make the biggest difference when they address a specific daily challenge.
Are expensive arthritis products always better?
No. The best product is the one that solves your specific problem effectively and is comfortable and easy for you to use. A simple, inexpensive jar opener may be more useful to you than an expensive gadget with features you don’t need.
How do I know if an arthritis aid is right for me?
Think about the specific movement that causes difficulty. If gripping is the problem, look for a larger or cushioned handle. If twisting is painful, look for an electric or lever-operated solution. If bending is difficult, consider a long-handled tool. If balance is the issue, explore appropriate safety equipment or mobility support and consider professional guidance.
Final Thoughts: The Right Arthritis Supplies Can Make Everyday Life Easier
Living with arthritis doesn’t mean you have to struggle through every difficult task.
The right assistive device won’t eliminate arthritis, but it can change how much effort a task requires.
A jar opener can replace painful twisting. A dressing aid can make getting ready easier. A reacher can reduce unnecessary bending. A shower chair can make bathing less tiring. An ergonomic tool can help you continue working or enjoying a favorite hobby.
Start small. Identify the one or two tasks that cause you the most difficulty, then look for a tool that directly addresses those problems.
Over time, these small adaptations can add up to a home and daily routine that work better with your joints — not against them.
About This Guide
Why trust this guide: This page is written and maintained by the Arthritis Wares Editorial Team, drawing on published occupational-therapy guidance and manufacturer product specifications. Recommendations focus on practical features such as product design, grip requirements, ease of operation, adjustability, stability, and stated intended use. We do not independently test medical devices ourselves and encourage checking with a healthcare professional for products used for a specific diagnosis, mobility need, or safety concern.
This guide is reviewed and updated periodically as new products and information become available.