For a long time, each type of soap required its own unique dispenser. If a restroom had liquid soap and facility managers wanted to switch to foam soap, a new dispenser would need to be ordered and installed. Plus, the old unit would need to be removed.

More recently, there have been advancements that now make soap dispensers able to handle a variety of soap options. For example, some dispensers can dispense either liquid soap or foam soap. Others allow even more choices, including liquid, foam, spray and gel soap, providing benefits in terms of variety, convenience and uniformity.