It was the purpose of this thematic review to review the academic literature from the last 10 years surrounding the design and functionality of wheelchairs and the social experience of wheelchair users across both manual and electric wheelchairs. Within this review, the findings of 45 journal articles categorised into two categories are reported and discussed across six subcategories: wheelchairs and social experiences; wheelchairs and social participation; wheelchairs and accessibility; wheelchairs and social perception; wheelchair design; and wheelchair accessories. Three recommendations for future research directions are provided. The first recommendation is implementing recommended improvements to the social experiences of wheelchair users present within the selected articles. The second recommendation is documenting the social impacts of new design of wheelchairs and accessories on wheelchair users. The third and final recommendation is wheelchair customisation should be investigated further to determine how customisation could be used to improve the social experience of wheelchair users.