The bathroom wellness gap:whathomeowners say theywant versus what they actually install.
Homeowners report that heated floors and soaking tubs are two of their most common remodeling upgrades, revealing a gap between aspiration and action that holds real opportunity for builders.
The bathroom has become one of the most emotionally loaded rooms in the home, a space where design aspiration and daily wellness ritual collide. But when COGNITION Smart Data asked homeowners what they want in a bathroom and what they've actually done, the gap between desire and action turned out to be quite instructive. The data reveals significant room to convert interest into investment.
When asked to identify the single most important bathroom feature for physical comfort or relaxation, the largest share of respondents, 18.05%, answered "none of the above," a striking plurality that suggests many homeowners haven't yet organized their wellness thinking around the bathroom specifically.
Among those with a clear preference, a rainfall, handheld, or multi-function shower system came out on top at 13.31%, followed by natural daylight additions such as skylights or larger windows (10.65%) and walk-in or curbless showers (10.36%). Comfort-height toilets (8.88%), soaking tubs (7.40%), and heated floors (7.10%) round out the most commonly cited priorities.
What homeowners actually install tells a very different story
Among the 74 respondents who have intentionally upgraded their bathrooms for comfort and relaxation, the installation choices diverge dramatically from stated preferences:
Heated floors—cited as "most important" by just 7.10% of respondents overall—surge to 40.54% of actual upgrades.
Natural daylight features and soaking tubs are both installed at 32.43%, well above their "most important" rankings.
Smart or digital bathroom controls come in at 28.38% of actual renovations, despite being a top priority for only 4.14% of the broader sample.
Comfort-height toilets (25.68%) and dimmable or layered lighting (24.32%) also see significant installation rates among active renovators.
The generational breakdown of actual upgrades reinforces these patterns with added nuance. Gen Z leads on heated floors (47.83%), comfort-height toilets (43.48%), and smart digital controls (39.13%), a cohort that upgrades with both function and future resale value clearly in mind. Millennials show the broadest distribution across categories, with notable installation rates for heated floors (40.63%), soaking tubs (34.38%), and smart controls (31.25%). Gen X leans into experiential upgrades, with 50.00% installing natural daylight features and another 50.00% adding soaking tubs, the highest rates of any generation for those categories.
What explains the aspiration-action gap? In many cases, the "most important" response reflects idealized preference: a rainfall shower sounds luxurious, while the actual upgrade data reflects how homeowners prioritize when budgets, timelines, and contractors are involved. Heated floors, soaking tubs, and smart controls have compelling functional ROI, both in daily use and at resale.
For builders and designers, that gap is actionable intelligence: leading with functional wellness benefits such as warmth underfoot, sensory comfort, and future-readiness may convert more buyers than leading with aspirational aesthetics alone.
The wellness bathroom isn't a niche category anymore, it's what homeowners build when they finally commit to the renovation. Only 22% of survey respondents have reached that tipping point so far, which means the remaining 78% represent an enormous conversion opportunity. Builders who understand both the dream and the data will be best positioned to help homeowners close the gap between what they imagine and what they actually build.
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Jennifer Castenson currently serves as the vice president of COGNITION Smart Data and market analytics at Green Builder Media. She also serves as contributing writer to Forbes, reporting on innovation in the built environment.
The Bathroom Wellness Gap
The bathroom wellness gap: what homeowners say they want versus what they actually install.
The bathroom has become one of the most emotionally loaded rooms in the home, a space where design aspiration and daily wellness ritual collide. But when COGNITION Smart Data asked homeowners what they want in a bathroom and what they've actually done, the gap between desire and action turned out to be quite instructive. The data reveals significant room to convert interest into investment.
When asked to identify the single most important bathroom feature for physical comfort or relaxation, the largest share of respondents, 18.05%, answered "none of the above," a striking plurality that suggests many homeowners haven't yet organized their wellness thinking around the bathroom specifically.
Among those with a clear preference, a rainfall, handheld, or multi-function shower system came out on top at 13.31%, followed by natural daylight additions such as skylights or larger windows (10.65%) and walk-in or curbless showers (10.36%). Comfort-height toilets (8.88%), soaking tubs (7.40%), and heated floors (7.10%) round out the most commonly cited priorities.
What homeowners actually install tells a very different story
Among the 74 respondents who have intentionally upgraded their bathrooms for comfort and relaxation, the installation choices diverge dramatically from stated preferences:
Heated floors—cited as "most important" by just 7.10% of respondents overall—surge to 40.54% of actual upgrades.
Natural daylight features and soaking tubs are both installed at 32.43%, well above their "most important" rankings.
Smart or digital bathroom controls come in at 28.38% of actual renovations, despite being a top priority for only 4.14% of the broader sample.
Comfort-height toilets (25.68%) and dimmable or layered lighting (24.32%) also see significant installation rates among active renovators.
The generational breakdown of actual upgrades reinforces these patterns with added nuance. Gen Z leads on heated floors (47.83%), comfort-height toilets (43.48%), and smart digital controls (39.13%), a cohort that upgrades with both function and future resale value clearly in mind. Millennials show the broadest distribution across categories, with notable installation rates for heated floors (40.63%), soaking tubs (34.38%), and smart controls (31.25%). Gen X leans into experiential upgrades, with 50.00% installing natural daylight features and another 50.00% adding soaking tubs, the highest rates of any generation for those categories.
What explains the aspiration-action gap? In many cases, the "most important" response reflects idealized preference: a rainfall shower sounds luxurious, while the actual upgrade data reflects how homeowners prioritize when budgets, timelines, and contractors are involved. Heated floors, soaking tubs, and smart controls have compelling functional ROI, both in daily use and at resale.
For builders and designers, that gap is actionable intelligence: leading with functional wellness benefits such as warmth underfoot, sensory comfort, and future-readiness may convert more buyers than leading with aspirational aesthetics alone.
The wellness bathroom isn't a niche category anymore, it's what homeowners build when they finally commit to the renovation. Only 22% of survey respondents have reached that tipping point so far, which means the remaining 78% represent an enormous conversion opportunity. Builders who understand both the dream and the data will be best positioned to help homeowners close the gap between what they imagine and what they actually build.
Like this COGNITION Hot Take? Unlock the data driving the industry's sustainability transformation to build smarter and sell faster. Subscribe to COGNITION Smart Data.
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By Jennifer Castenson
Jennifer Castenson currently serves as the vice president of COGNITION Smart Data and market analytics at Green Builder Media. She also serves as contributing writer to Forbes, reporting on innovation in the built environment.Also Read