If the niche is done correctly it will have a 1/8" slope so that water drains back into the shower. All of my showers have niches and to me they are clean and there are no issues. I have not done a single shower that has not had one and none have had an issue. If you use bar soap in your shower then a drainable soap dish that sits on the shelf will work. If you have the room I would do a two section niche for more storage. If your shower is the size of a tub then your wall mounted wire baskets are taking up valuable space that a niche would not.

We have shower niches in two of our showers and zero issues. Well worth it. I prefer the look of no baskets or metal whatever.

"The niches would have to go on the short wall opposite the plumbing"

That sound far away from the place the person showering would be standing and thus inconvenient.

Disagree. Sounds like it is the way one would be facing as they shower and they can easily step forward and grab shampoo etc. Also with it being opposite of plumbing means unlikely to be wet at all.

As WestCoast describes works perfectly for me.

This is a shower we did that replaced the tub shower combo. This is before the glass was installed and excuse the red arrows this is just a shot I had sent to my wallpaper installer poiting out some issues. Anyway this is a single niche. in the same space parameters you have. The client only wanted a small single niche but we have done double and even triple when called for.

My shower niches stay clean if the bathroom is cleaned fairly regularly (once every week or two). I do need to wipe the bottom of shampoo bottles if it's been more than a month since they were opened.

I'm not a niche fan. Your tiler had better be very expert to make them look good and he's going to charge accordingly.

In my previous house I did "fancy" niches in 4 showers and in the new house I used shower baskets in 3 showers.

They both work as intended!

Flip a coin!

What I did do with the shower baskets was place them behind a wing or pony wall, so all the toiletries are not visible unless you are inside the shower. Some of the niches were visible, specially in the teen bathroom, and I didn't love seeing all the products. I don't like clutter!

Kartners shower baskets

"Fancy" niche

I don’t have shower niches in either of the baths in my primary home but all the showers in my second home have them. I MUCH prefer having the niches. What I DO have a problem keeping clean is something that a lot of people on here like, my teak shower stool. Even though I squeegee it after every shower it still is a magnet for soap, shampoo or? scum.

We have a niche and a low ledge. The low ledge is the height I need to rest my foot to shave but it also allows me to put large shampoo and conditioner bottles on it. As far as cleaning we rinse, squeegee and wipe down the shower with a microfiber cloth after each shower so the niche and ledge are always clean.

I've read too many shower niche fails on Houzz. I wouldn't put one in.

My sister has nice baskets in her showers. Easy to clean around and can be moved if you think they will function better in another location.

I am planning to do a ledge like this in my remodel. It will hold a lot of stuff so hopefully that won't trigger me!

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@partim ….that’s odd, I’ve had them in three different homes during the past 35+ years. No problems, i wonder what the ”fail” could be?? I miss them in my current home.

I love my shower niches. They are perfectly easy to keep clean, perhaps in part because I keep a squeegee in my shower and clean immediately after each shower.

Some people dislike shower niches for aesthetic reasons. They don't like having their daily-use items "on display." Since I live in my home, and not on TikTok, Instagram, or Pinterest, that has never bothered me. On the other hand, visual clutter makes me uncomfortable, so I keep my shower product load to things I use more than once a week.

I lived for many years in several places without shower niches. I found it very inconvenient! When I planned my renovation, I thought of niches as a must. But I really think it comes down to personal preference. Have them if you like them. Don't if you don't.

Pictured: My guest bath niches. I have nice pix of my primary bath, but they don't include the niches—I think because of awkward camera angles, not because the niches don't look nice.

I love my shower niche. A couple details about "getting it right":

- You need a piece of granite (or something else) instead of more of the same tile for the base of the niche.

- The base must be slightly tilted so water will run out of it. If you do this, you won't get scum build-up.

- Do not go with a simple 12" niche like you might see on Pinterest. Put in a minimum of twice that much space + a space for bar soap. Think about large pump-top bottles that we all like -- shampoo and conditioner alone will fill that 12" niche.

Yes! I sized the niches I built to be able to fit the large Costco Neutrogena Rainshower bottles!

We love our niche and our ledge. The niche is purely functional as you only see it when you are in the shower. And the ledge only has nice looking shower gel on it. I don’t want all my bath products on display.

WestCoast Hopeful: "Sounds like it is the way one would be facing as they shower and they can easily step forward and grab shampoo etc."

The shower is the "size of a tub space" If the niche were "on the short wall opposite the plumbing", the person taking a shower would have to turn around (i.e., face away from the controls and shower head) and possibly leave of the water stream to reach out for the soap.

DH removed the avocado plastic shower/tub surround about 15 years ago. Installed a bathtub and tiled the walls above. He put in two niches on the narrow wall opposite the plumbing. No issues, they do not get grungy, the water doesn't really hit them. I have pump bottles for shampoo sitting in them that are too large for a the shower caddy hanging from the shower faucet. Maybe it all hinges on what you use your niches for, assuming they are properly installed. Everyone showers differently but I do not comprehend a huge issue in turning around in a shower. Hopefully rinsing off includes such turning. Rinsing my hair I am sure I spend more time with my back to the water raining down than I do my face, but that's the beauty of a shower you can turn and get water hitting you at all angles.

@wdccruise I don’t think most people shower facing the controls. I also don’t think it’s a huge deal to step toward where the shampoo etc is and get some. There are plenty of reasons to step away from the water steam as you call it in the shower and none are dramatics

FWIW, in my primary bath the niches are on the same end as the main controls, and the shower head and handheld are on the opposite end, along with the fold-up/down teak bench. In my guest bath, the niches, controls, shower head and tub-filler are all on the same end.

I think showering styles must be pretty varied. Some people get wet, turn off the water, soap up and scrub, and then turn the water on again to rinse. It can be a little chilly, but you get used to it—especially in times of water shortage. It's quicker and more efficient than luxuriating in torrents of hot water, but there's something to be said for luxuriating.

Raise your hand if you sing in the shower! 🖐🏻

We love our niche and our ledge. The niche is purely functional as you only see it when you are in the shower. And the ledge only has nice looking shower gel on it. I don’t want all my bath products on display.

Oh, yes -- if you can hide your niche, you should. Note that Pinterest showers never have shampoo bottles, etc. Hidden for the win!

Bonus: Hidden usually means less glass, which means less cleaning.

I prefer a liquid body wash but my husband prefers a bar soap. I had this installed in the upper niche so he could have his bar soap and it easily drains . https://www.rejuvenation.com/products/wall-mounted-soap-dish/?catalogId=84&sku=2159263&cm_ven=PLA&cm_cat=Google&cm_pla=Bath%20%3E%20Bath%20Furniture%20%26%20Storage&cm_ite=2159263_14334675725_aud-944520937335:pla-297623692937&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=14334675725&gbraid=0AAAAADtoK0RbNlLW94hSEjzkoEpZJ89GK&gclid=Cj0KCQiA1JLLBhCDARIsAAVfy7jKMHfD2OgIdAUbBwWr7pKLEJL8MBc9NImDB_Bn_ORam-hV3agy7DMaAn-5EALw_wcB

something to plan for if you are a bar soap user.

I just saw a study that said men face the shower stream and women face away. I believe it.

"Note that Pinterest showers never have shampoo bottles, etc."—I bet they do. Just not when the pix are taken; those pictures are staged for effect.

amystoller: "Note that Pinterest showers never have shampoo bottles, etc."

My first criteria when buying soap and shampoo is that the container color match the surrounding wall.

amystoller: "@wdccruise, the Pinterest showers remark was @Theresa Peterson's, not mine."

Jeez lady, it was a joke.