What is the difference between a walker and a rollator?

A standard walker is a frame with four legs, or with two front wheels and two back legs, that you lift or push forward a step at a time. A rollator is a wheeled walker you push along, usually with hand brakes and a seat, and often a basket. Your clinician or supplier can help you decide which type suits you.

Does Medicare cover rollators?

Medicare Part B covers walkers, including rollators, if you're eligible: the walker has to be medically necessary and prescribed by your doctor or other provider for use in your home. Medicare's billing policy treats some add-ons, such as most hand-operated brakes and baskets, as noncovered extras, so ask the supplier what you would pay for yourself.

Will Medicare pay to repair my walker?

Medicare.gov says you can use any Medicare-approved supplier to repair a walker you currently own, including replacement parts needed for the repair. Ask the supplier whether it accepts assignment before the work is done.

Do the pharmacies listed for walkers in your directory sell rollators?

We can't tell from the data. Medicare's supplier data has a category for walkers but none for rollators, so a pharmacy or supplier listed for walkers may or may not carry them. Call and ask.

Walker vs Rollator: How They Differ and What to Ask

"Walker" covers more than one kind of frame. Some have four legs and no wheels. Some have two wheels at the front. A rollator rolls on wheels, has hand brakes, and usually has a seat. They all help you walk, but they move differently, weigh different amounts, and fold to different sizes.

The short answer: a standard walker gives steady support and moves a step at a time. A rollator rolls along with you and lets you sit down to rest. Which one suits you is a question for your doctor, physical therapist or the supplier's fitting staff. Your surgeon or physical therapist can help you choose the type of walker ^[3]. This guide covers how the types differ, the specs to compare, how Medicare handles walkers and rollators, and what to ask before you buy or rent.

Standard walkers and rollators

Walkers come with no wheels, two wheels or four wheels, and you can also get a walker with brakes, a carrying basket and a seat ^[3].

Standard walker. Federal device rules describe a mechanical walker as a four-legged device with a metal frame that gives moderate weight support while walking ^[4]. With no wheels, you lift it and place it in front of you to move forward ^[3].
Two-wheeled walker. Wheels on the front legs, with tips or glides on the back legs. If your walker has wheels, you push it forward to move ^[3]. Medicare's billing policy describes a glide-type brake as a spring mechanism that raises the walker's leg post off the ground when you aren't pressing down on the frame ^[6].
Rollator. A walker on wheels, usually three or four, with hand brakes and often a seat and basket ^[3]. Medicare's billing policy defines a wheeled walker as one with two, three or four wheels, fixed or swivel ^[6]. It mentions gait trainers, "sometimes referred to as a rollator", and says they're billed using the walker codes ^[6].

Medicare.gov's walker page names rollators directly: Part B covers walkers, including rollators, if you're eligible ^[1].

What to compare

Ask the supplier for the spec sheet of each walker you're considering, and line up the same numbers.

Walker weight. How much you, or a helper, will lift into a car or up a step. Ask for the exact figure, with and without any basket or bag.
Folded size. Length, width and height when folded. Any walker you use should be easy to fold so you can transport it ^[3]. Measure your trunk or the space where you'll store it.
Handle height range. The lowest and highest handle settings. Ask your clinician or the supplier what height to use. Don't guess.
Seat height and seat width. On a rollator, the height of the seat from the floor and how wide it is. Ask how the seat compares with the chairs you sit on now.
Weight capacity. The maximum user weight the walker is rated for. Medicare's walker policy has heavy-duty walker classes for people who weigh more than 300 pounds ^[5]. Ask for the rating of the exact model.
Brakes. On a rollator: what kind, how they lock for sitting, and whether you can squeeze them comfortably. On a two-wheeled walker: whether the back legs have glides or tips.
Overall width. Compare it with your narrowest doorway and the space beside the toilet or bed.

Indoors, outdoors, or both

Where you'll use the walker shapes the choice, but that's a conversation to have with your clinician or supplier, not a rule to apply yourself. Bring these questions:

Will you use it mostly at home, mostly outside, or both?
What surfaces does it need to handle: carpet, tile, thresholds, ramps, grass, gravel or broken pavement?
Will you need to sit and rest on the way?
Does it need to fit in a car, on a bus or in a small apartment?
Who will lift and fold it?

Also ask about upkeep. Tips and wheels wear out and need replacing ^[3]. Ask the supplier which parts it stocks and what they cost.

How Medicare covers walkers and rollators

Medicare Part B covers walkers, including rollators, if you're eligible ^[1]. Part B covers medically necessary durable medical equipment when your doctor or other provider orders it for use in your home ^[2]. Medicare's coverage policy also says a standard walker is covered only when you're able to use it safely and a walker is enough to address the mobility problem ^[5]. Your provider documents that, not you.

A few details are worth knowing before you order:

Add-ons. Medicare's walker billing policy calls some features "enhancement accessories": style, color, basket, and hand-operated brakes other than on one heavy-duty walker type ^[6]. It denies enhancement accessories as noncovered ^[6]. Ask the supplier which parts of the rollator Medicare pays for and which you'd pay for, and get it in writing.
Repairs. You can use any Medicare-approved supplier to repair a walker you currently own, including the replacement parts needed for the repair ^[1].
Costs. After the Part B deductible, you pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount if your supplier accepts assignment ^[1]. Medicare pays only for equipment from suppliers enrolled in Medicare ^[2].
Assignment. A supplier that participates in Medicare must accept assignment. A non-participating supplier doesn't have to, and may charge you more ^[1]. Ask before you order.

Why so many pharmacies are listed for walkers

If you search our directory for walkers, many of the results are pharmacies and stores, not specialist equipment suppliers. That's how Medicare's data works. The Medical Equipment Suppliers data lists the supplies each location carries and its Medicare participation status ^[7]. Walkers are one of its categories, and many pharmacies are enrolled for them. Our walker results show these locations separately, as other local retailers.

The data has no rollator category ^[7]. A listing for walkers tells you a location is enrolled with Medicare to provide walkers. It doesn't show whether that location has rollators, which models, or what's on the shelf today. Call before you go.

Questions to ask a supplier or pharmacy

"Do you carry standard walkers, two-wheeled walkers and rollators? Can I try them?"
"What does each one weigh, and what are its folded dimensions?"
"What is the handle height range, the seat height and the weight capacity?"
"If I use Medicare, which parts does Medicare pay for, and what would I pay myself?"
"Do you accept assignment?"
"Do you repair walkers, and do you keep replacement tips, wheels and brakes?"

Write down the answers, who you spoke to and the date.

Where to go next

Read our walkers overview, then search for locations listed for walkers near you and call with the questions above. If a walker isn't enough and you're looking at chairs, see transport chair vs wheelchair.