50 Of The Most Poorly-Designed Staircases That May Leave You Awestruck In The Worst Way
As we mentioned in a previous piece, climbing down a flight of stairs is one of the most mundane activities that carries inherent dangers that we often overlook. We also mentioned reports from law firms, which reveal that over one million people sustain stairway injuries in the United States each year.
A well-designed staircase should minimize the likelihood of bodily harm, but the photos you’re about to see are the exact opposite. We lifted these from a growing subreddit where 15,000 people share images of the worst stairs you likely wouldn’t want to set foot on.
Feel free to scroll through, and hopefully, you won’t develop a bad case of vertigo after you’re done.
This post may include affiliate links.
In Peru
I know! I am having a panic attack just looking at those stairs!
Load More Replies...Hope This One Will Count For The Sub
🫣🫣🫣Somehow, I don't fancy going there anymore 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Load More Replies...Just what I was thinking. I hope Shelob didn't grab the photographer!
Load More Replies...No, this does not fit "130 Of The Most Poorly-Designed Staircases That May Leave You Awestruck In The Worst Way ". I imagine the stairs are very old and what else would you build alongside a cliff? I don't think it's poorly designed as it still stands after so many years.
I'm Not Even Sure How I Will [Get Hurt]
I too, am suddenly questioning all my stairwalking abilities
Load More Replies...DIE, BP. The title reads "I'm not even sure how I will DIE". Fսcking hеll.
I think I need to take my contacts out wash my eyeballs and put my contacts back in.
What the actual p***k is this supposed to be, because all I see is concrete bone breakers
Let’s shed more light on the cases of stairway injuries, this time in the UK. According to a September report by the British Woodworking Federation (BWF), nearly half of adults, or 43%, have either slipped, tripped, or fallen down the stairs in the last 12 months.
Sixty percent of people who had experienced a staircase accident stated that it happened on their own property.
No Room For A Staircase
I hope thats just for storage up there because if it's the bedroom I'm peeing in a bucket, climbing down that half asleep is a death risk im not willing to take
How on earth would you carry something up (or down) there if it was for storage?
Load More Replies...I mean yeah, not for somewhere I have to go multiple times a day, but okay-ish. But WHY place a desk AND a shelf in the way. That seems like an unnecessary obstacle.
Airbnb Insanity
This is quite accaccuraly how the stairs in my nightmares are built.
That looks like someone converted a spiral staircase to this monstrosity
This Belongs Here
The design in iself is bad but on top of it it looks like the stairs are bended down at the left side. Nope!
I’d love to hear moving companies chime in: would you take this job or pass?
The report also revealed that 32% of accidents were linked to broken safety features, such as poor maintenance. 40% were due to slippery surfaces, 32% were due to poor lighting, and 29% were because there were items along the stairs.
Then, there were the structure-related issues, with 26% of injuries occurring due to uneven steps and 26% due to the lack of handrails.
Stairs At The Local Gay Club That Lead Down From One Bar To Another Bar
To put these stairs in a bar where people are going to be drunk is diabolical.
Just don't drink alcohol until after you've gone downstairs. You need all your faculties for this one!
I hate stairs with that kind of carpet. At least put reflective strips on it so you can see the stairs.
For When You Want To Make Your Life Just That Much Harder
or the thing that is used to lift water (sorry don't remember the english name)
Load More Replies...Twisted Spine. Or the Dasher from our old ice cream freezer, take your pick.
At least there's that central bar to hold on to. I find there are quite à few strange stairs I can negotiate if I have something to hold on to.
Also, the wall is right there—you can't grab on like a railing, but at least it's somewhat harder to fall in some directions.
Load More Replies...A Quick Slip To The Beach
Fall down you die, walk up you die of a heart attack, ill just admire the beach from above
This is Jacobs Ladder on St Helena, it has existed since the early 1800s
I work with somebody from there. 699 steps apparently. Terrifying.
Load More Replies...They could make it an amusement park ride. You'd just make it a slide, and put a big soft cushion at the bottom for people to slam into. People would pay for that. Or, angle it with a little curl at the end so that people end up in the ocean. People would pay for that.
However, not all staircase accidents were due to poor design. According to BWF chief executive Helen Hewitt, people are also at fault and are putting themselves at risk by using their phones while on the stairs, carrying something heavy, or rushing up or down.
“While a clear reflection of today’s busy lifestyles, these behaviours increase the risk of a slip, trip or fall, which could result in serious or potentially fatal injuries,” Hewitt said.
This Occurs Every Winter At My Hometown.. The Sing Says No Winter Upkeep And Yes They Lead Strait To River Bank
I Was Helping A Family Friend Move And Found These
Maybe paint each one different colours or just lock it off and live downstairs
Paint them all the same colour, and add a strip in a contrasting colour to the edge of the step.
Load More Replies...At least you can see the steps. Interesting use for leftover flooring.
High Heels? Or Barefoot?
Apparently one must be a ghost to use them. Cause and effect for the end user.
I like how the lady in the picture looks like she is wondering if the person on the stairs is going to make it.
Reports indicate that stairway accidents result in an average of 12,000 fatalities per year. There are several ways to reduce this risk, and according to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), one of them is to design handrails that are easy to grasp.
Specifically, you should be able to run your hand smoothly along the entire length without needing to adjust the grips.
The Stupid Carpet On These Stairs!
At least you can slightly see where to step. But my poor, sweet brain.
My Sisters Landlord Wanted To Improve The Accessibility, So Added These Planks
*ONE* nail or scr3w per? HAHAHAHAHA, yeah, that's a death trap.
Stairs At My Hostel
Looks like stairs that simply don't have the wooden planks (the steps) yet. They're probably completely normal stairs once they've installed the wood.
The CCOHS also urges improving visibility on staircases. This can be achieved by utilizing angular lighting and color contrasts to enhance depth perception and incorporating matte finishes to minimize glare.
Patterned carpeting isn’t advisable because it can create a visual deception and hide the differences in depth of each step.
High Turnover Apartments
Stairs In My Friend's Flat
The colour and lighting make them blend into each other on the way down. Absolute nightmare while carrying a suitcase.
And now I'm thinking while posting this - what on earth was the point? You're not saving any space by doing this
These are fairly common in older homes. Particularly in homes from the 16th and 17th centuries, but you'd also see them in new homes with very tight spaces where a full size stairwell wasn't practical. I see these a lot in older homes in places like Salvador Brazil, or New England in the US.
They are banned or heavily regulated in most of the world for their being very dangerous, so not common in the world at large.
Load More Replies...It is saving space though, this way you can have a much steeper stairs that wouldn't have enough space for your foot if it had normal steps. And it's not hard, you just have to start with the correct foot. They're only hard for people who have trouble walking left-right-left-right-left-right, but I don't know many people who don't know which foot to use after they've used their left foot. (Well, Monty Python maybe)
Steep stair. If you made them all the same size they'd either be too short to securely put your foot on, or too long, so your feet would catch lifting up to the next step. This way you can at least lift your foot from one step to the one two above, then repeat on the other side. Still want a railing to hold on to, and I can't see one...
Stayed in an apartment in Peru many times with stairs like this. You get used to them.
My shins hurt when I see this. And it looks like one of those weird stair thingies inside a fun house in Texas state fair.
Wet 'N Wild
He's got the right idea. If you have to use those stairs, you crawl up or down them.
Not sure, but the person looks like they are thinking about their life choices
Smooth As A Pebble
But so cool!!!! Again, wouldn’t want them in my house
Load More Replies...The Stairs Up To The Kids Loft In My Beach Rental For The Week. They Shake When I Walk On Them. Fun!
Ah yes, the same trope of flimsy stairs at a rental that gave me my last big scar
New Floors At My Job
Pass. I like my teeth and bones right where they are. This staircase looks like I’d have to get used to my teeth and bones moved around on my body and I’m not mentally equipped for that at this stage of my life.
They need to add step illuminators or strips. Being in a fitness club does not guarantee you'll live after falling down these steps.
Tower Of Babel
Pop quiz: how many sprained, strained or broken ankles can happen as the result of one staircase? Answers in comments!
The What?
It would probably be safer to just jump off the landing above
Load More Replies...Do people know what handrails are! I've broken my neck 6 different times looking at these photos.
Moving companies: need your opinion on this slippery design. would you use these stairs to move furniture to another level?
This would be a world-class b'stard to keep looking good. Fingerprints from installation, scratches, dust. There's a reason you don't see as many glass-top tables as you do other types, and it's not the structural strength - properly made glass would easily take the weight.
Just Saw This
Should There Be Two Railings?
The number of railings is the least of your problems here.
They Look Normal Far Away
Well, I'd climb up or down these steps than the others I've seen so far!
I Hate Going To The Theater
I’m glad theaters are not the sort of places where lights are off for most of the time….
The lights are on when people are coming or going. In theory, very few people should be moving around during films/plays. Still, it's not good for people with mobility issues.
Load More Replies...There's no handrail. If that wall is solid, there should be a handrail.
By Windex
Does the title mean the stairs were made by windex or do they mean buy windex?
Or designed by someone who doesn't wear skirts, to see people who do wear skirts using them.
Load More Replies...I'm painting the underside of these steps various colors so I know where to put my foot!
Love these, they look amazing but keeping them clean you would be going through a bottle of windex a week
This looks at least semi-safe - but still not a great design unless show is more important than practicality for you...
SOMEONE is gonna spend hours of work a week on those. They look spectacular but require a full-time maid.
At Least They're Colorful
Yes because the colour will save you when you fall up/down/sideways
I think it's less wonky than it initially looks. Like some of the other stairs on this page, I think you're meant to only put 1 foot on each step: from the bottom, right then left then right...
Sure, They Look Nice
I do think they look nice but how does that help when they look so unsafe and why is the railing on the middle instead of the outside of the stairs?
It looks better in the middle! Who cares about safety!
Load More Replies...Just put a railing outside (ya hear me builder, OUTside) and it would be nice
"Okay. Cool. Now where's your actual staircase? What do you mean, this is it??"
Wood work is stunning. I'd also be stunned slipping and cracking my head on a step
The Closer You Look The Worse It Gets
I Guess We're Gonna Have To Feel Our Way Down These Stairs
All I see is a flat carpet, what half price cheap àss designs these death traps
This infuriates me so much I would buy spray rustoleum in three different colors and turn the steps into alternating single solid colors.
Camouflage Stairs From Above
Seriously?
"Beatiful And Sturdy Stair" It Says In The Listing
That kind of glass isn't sharp. Still won't help much if you miss your step on a hard-to-see arrangement that doesn't even have a railing...
Load More Replies...There is a hotel in Italy we stayed at they had glass staircases and a glass elevator in the lobby
Do These Count?
Nah that’s the Neck Breaker. I’d probably trip over my own feet going down the first step and SPLAT
Load More Replies...Stairs In A Century House I Toured!
Curved, Yet Rhomboidal
Stairs like that are not only dangerous but thats a workout and they seem to have enough room for a proper stairs
Not entirely. If they wanted a staircase exactly where this is, starting from the same point (it's hard to see from the pic if they could extend it way farther away), each step would have to be as tall as what you see on one half here. That would be quite uncomfortable, and - especially coming down - dangerous. This type of staircase is designed for spaces where you must cram lots of stairs into a short distance. Some claim that if you start with the correct foot each time, it's easy to get used to and easy to climb, not dangerous at all. I'm not saying I agree, but it is fairly common in small vacation houses and the like. I for one would pass...
Load More Replies...The Last Step
Don't know why you were downvoted. Great Groundhog day reference.
Load More Replies...Combo
Apparently, they've never heard the expression "Don't sh1t where you eat"
When including a toilet in an "efficiency" apartment was way down on the priority list. Just an afterthought. "Yeah... a place to go wee-wee and doody, meh, might be nice. We'll wait and see if we have room after we get all the cupboards installed."
For Design
Looks Like A Trap
trap is Dutch for stairs... so yeah, they sure do look like a trap to me
Very practical. You trip, you fall, you break your neck and the rocks follow you down forming an instant burial cairn.
Head Trauma
Reminds me of some stairs at a castle where I used to work. They were off limits to the public. I wonder why...
Nearly 90° Stairs Leading To The Backstage Area Of My Latest Stand-Up Performance
I once got shown into a "dressing room" that was a concrete basement alcove where they kept the leaking ice machine.
Stairs With Handholds
Yeah, I'm wondering what you're meant to do at the top.
Load More Replies...Rippling Ribbon Staircase
One Misstep Is All It Takes
I've seen this photo on BP many times and believe I have read that they are unfinished (there will be wood steps applied on top of the metal bars)
I've seen the later photo, wood steps were added, thick, wide, and it ended up looking very sturdy and nice
Load More Replies...Even Fell Down These Stairs Once
One Wrong Move And You’ll End Up In The Hospital
If I continue up those steps, will I eventually "step" into the shower?
Gives you a chance to catch up on the local gossip as you have your morning dump.
These Stairs In This Flipped House
Why the emojis ? What exactly is the OP hiding? Maybe I don’t want to know on second thought
Yep. You crack your head on the wall going down, slip and fall to your d***h and join the ghosties living in the basement. Yeah, no.
Load More Replies...This is a sit on your b*m and shuffle down staircase and even then you may have to be careful!
Location: Havanna, Cuba. Level 9/10 (Gets Wet When It Rains)
Special Ramp For Wheelchair Users
Carry Chair Extrication Anyone?
You Can See When You're Going!
You can see where you’re going…. To break your shins.
Load More Replies...It is beyond me why anyone would voluntarily want this kind of staircase in their home.
This Is Sooooo Terrible
Fire exit, think i would rather take my chance with the fire than try this
There’s Nothing Like Relaxing In Bed…
How often do you fall out of bed? The last time I did was when I was 3 years old.
Load More Replies...This looks like a room in which you would keep one of those poor abducted children that you keep as a pet.
Not My Picture But Thought It Belonged Here
So many of these stairs seem to have been designed by upskirters.
Going To A Bar In Finland
“Honey, I Installed The New Stairs!”
Those Are Stairs
Steady…
Stairs
Yeah, they're stairs. You can tell looking on the left side that there are steps. Wrong carpeting to use on these stairs!
Can Break A Leg Just Looking At These Stairs
The Stairs At My Friends House
The shoes at the bottom belong to all the former friends who didn’t make it out alive
Never forgotten. Just like the sounds they made when they tumbled to their twisted deaths. R.I.P. Pete, Mickey, Dodo Dave,...
Load More Replies...You’re Given A Throne…
And how do you explain to someone how you got injured when you fall off there? That sink looks a right treat as well.
I guess it's connected to a sewer that's above the floor.
Load More Replies...Knock, Knock
Hold The Walls?
It won't be once the blood stains it
Load More Replies...Friend’s Loft. It Jiggles And Shakes When You Walk On It
Who thought this side steps stairs were a good idea????? Not only this one's, obviously, there's plenty to choose from in the post.....
The “Ankle Twister”
There is no way in hell I could make it up or down those stairs without twisting an ankle, and you can't even sit on your butt and slide down without personal damage.
Staying At The In-Laws
Weird Perspective?
That Is A Slide
Again. It would be fun to sled down it, but you can’t get up on it.
Slice And Dice
That’s Quite The Step Down
Don't Cut Yourself
Moreover at the top they give you the choice to just jump to your death.
The gray spots are from when somebody scraped a shin and cut a leg on those stairs.
They Need A Sign
Chicago Slip And Slide
Tight Squeeze?
Looks Like Stools
Just To Smoke, With My Broken Ankle I Have To Traverse This Nonsense
Good reason to stop smoking before you fall and break something else.
Just Why?
Make Your Day A Little More Interesting
At Least You Fall Into The Lake?
Imagine having a barbecue downstairs on the platform and then you realize you forgot the ketchup upstairs!
Around And Around And Around
And going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and going and……
ah yes the stairs to the Weatherspoon's loos in all their glory HA HA
I wouldn't mind going up them, but my knees would buckle walking down.
If Maps Didn't Mislead Me, This Is A School Building In Alghero, Sardegna
I'm curious if the building on the left, with the decrepit stairs, is no longer in use, with what looks like the addition of a newer building on the right side?
Stairs At My Friend's House
What In The…
Fun!
Inside A 200-Year Old Home In Japan
We had something similar in our small river house. They were easy to climb up, a b***h to climb down... And there was a door at the top, for keeping the warmth in
Long Invisible Steps
Quality Craftsmanship
The Stairs Down In My Local Movie Theater
Do These Count? Not Steep But I Tripped Multiple Times
Unique
Heavy Duty
These Glass Stairs My Dad Was Faced With At Work
Hidden Stairway
It's A Gamble Everyday
Trip Right In…or Out
Stairway To 💀
Just Spotted On A Zillow Listing
Just No With These Stairs
A Thousand Cuts
It looks pretty and ‘belong in a witch’s house’ at the same time.
Load More Replies...Somebody Suggest I Share My Girl Here Too...would You Walk These Stairs?
Definitely Colorful
Old Dutch House
The Less Snowy Bits Are Glazed Over
Just stay home and watch other people doing this shìt on the discovery channel
I'm Sure They Are Fine
Nice…but I Could Still Use A Railing
Never Make Assumptions
To The Attic Of A House Built In 1902
My Dad's house has stairs like this. Pain in the b**t to go up to the attic.
The Original Plan They Paid For On The Second Pic
Airbnb Stairs
Does The Tape Prevent It From Being Dangerous?
Glass Staircase, Go'o Shrine, Designed By Hiroshi Sugimoto
Bachelorette Party Airbnb
It Ain’t Much, But It’s Something
Malerweg Mountain
It would be safter to take them away and walk on the actual ground in between the rocks
Hmmm This Doesn’t Look Right
For Those That Like To Play Hopscotch
Storage
Hybrid Stairs
This Looks Safe
There is a door at the top of the stairs
Load More Replies...What The…
Does It Go Up Or Down?
I am quite curious about what a one-way staircase would look like...
Holiday Cottage; We Feel Slightly Threatened
When you fall down the stairs your life will pass by your eyes in fact.
Stairway To Heaven
Most of these are not to code. This is why regulations are important, and what makes me shake my head when people freak out about 'too many regulations!" Those regulations keep you safe, friend.
Where I live none of them would pass inspection. No handrail, improper tread size and/or rise, improper overhead clearance, improper support just to name a few.
Load More Replies...I have a bad left knee, bad right hip, balance issues and a massive phobia about stairs. I will stick to level ground, thank you very much.
This is one of those rare, delightful days in which I feel relatively sane. Thank you, BP.
As soon as you add a website address or a picture, BP puts your comment as "hidden" and gives you -2 points, or more? Why, and since when? Is there any reason left to use this website?
It's quite recent. I thought at first it was to block those annoying scam bot "I earn so much working from home" but they still appear. I think (I don't know for sure) that BP give the -2 downvotes themselves to give an apparently valid reason for the "hidden" message?? As BP won't explain, we are left in the dark!
Load More Replies...For someone with severe dyspraxia (like me), this is scarier than the scariest horror movie. I need the handrails on regular ones, the stairs depicted here are impossible to climb for me.
Is BP run completely by bots now? Any comment with web link is hidden, regardless of its content. It happened to me last week. Simply a real estate site. This makes me think that BP editors either don't exist, or can't be bothered checking web links in comments. If it's the former, then one can't help wondering whether its worth visiting the BP, anymore!
It happened to me, too. Not only is your entry a "hidden comment", BP also automatically punishes you with two or more downvotes.
Load More Replies...Tbh I think bp should get rid of downvotes they are very discouraging and I got a lot of hate in this post so…… but the post was ok.
Most of these are not to code. This is why regulations are important, and what makes me shake my head when people freak out about 'too many regulations!" Those regulations keep you safe, friend.
Where I live none of them would pass inspection. No handrail, improper tread size and/or rise, improper overhead clearance, improper support just to name a few.
Load More Replies...I have a bad left knee, bad right hip, balance issues and a massive phobia about stairs. I will stick to level ground, thank you very much.
This is one of those rare, delightful days in which I feel relatively sane. Thank you, BP.
As soon as you add a website address or a picture, BP puts your comment as "hidden" and gives you -2 points, or more? Why, and since when? Is there any reason left to use this website?
It's quite recent. I thought at first it was to block those annoying scam bot "I earn so much working from home" but they still appear. I think (I don't know for sure) that BP give the -2 downvotes themselves to give an apparently valid reason for the "hidden" message?? As BP won't explain, we are left in the dark!
Load More Replies...For someone with severe dyspraxia (like me), this is scarier than the scariest horror movie. I need the handrails on regular ones, the stairs depicted here are impossible to climb for me.
Is BP run completely by bots now? Any comment with web link is hidden, regardless of its content. It happened to me last week. Simply a real estate site. This makes me think that BP editors either don't exist, or can't be bothered checking web links in comments. If it's the former, then one can't help wondering whether its worth visiting the BP, anymore!
It happened to me, too. Not only is your entry a "hidden comment", BP also automatically punishes you with two or more downvotes.
Load More Replies...Tbh I think bp should get rid of downvotes they are very discouraging and I got a lot of hate in this post so…… but the post was ok.
