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Ask HN: Best Office Chair?

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Re: Ask HN: Best Office Chair?

#11

Post by danielbarla »

Some decent options in this thread, I thought I'd add some general advice, which I could have used in the past.

Firstly, figure out if you want / need a neck rest. This turns out to be important for me, and I would not want a chair that doesn't have one (this point could be expanded with exceptions).

Next, adjustability is key. Some things are standard (backrest angle, height), but many are rarer. For me, being able to adjust the height of the armrest was eye-opening. Without this, you will either slouch in the chair, or hold your elbows in the air, neither of which are ideal.

Lastly, a word about sturdiness and durability. Some chairs start to misbehave as they age, e.g. I once had a cheap office chair which started to "list" slightly. I didn't pay much attention until I noticed frequent cramps on one side of my back, and realised it's because I'm sitting at a few degrees angle to the right.

Overall my advice would be: get the right chair (for you), sit correctly in it, and do plenty of exercise. The best chair in the world doesn't help enough if you sit for 14 hours every day, without any of the latter.

Re: Ask HN: Best Office Chair?

#12

Post by buss »

_bxg1 wrote: post #3
jonah wrote: post #2

Steelcase Leap. I've had mine for maybe 17 years and it still works perfectly and looks good. I find it far more comfortable that those mesh chars like the Aeron (its main competitor back when I bought it). They also have fantastic warranties, I had it maybe 12 years when the gas strut failed, the tech drove up from 2 towns away to replace it the next day in my home office.

That sounds great, but woof, it is expensive ($1,036 normally, $880 right now for those following along at home). Seeing as I'm hoping to be back in an office a few months from now, I was hoping to ideally spend more in the $100-$300 range.

I just bought a used/refurbished one from Madison seating for about the same price as I could find a used one on CL in SF (~$400). I've been using a Leap for years at the office and swear by them.

Re: Ask HN: Best Office Chair?

#14

Post by moepstar »

Someone1234 wrote: post #4

Steelcase Leap. I went and sat in a bunch of high end office chairs including the Herman Miller Aeron, Herman Miller Embody, and Steelcase Gesture. I feel like the HM chairs are a lot more "opinionated" about how you sit, and sitting wrong will be punished with pain (e.g. back of the legs for folding your legs under the chair). I have heard that shorter people find them more comfortable though (6'1" here). The Steelc…

I find the not-really-locking arms on the Gesture infuriating - this is my chair, i sit on it each and every day and after some initial adjustment i don't expect it to move, like, at all :/

Re: Ask HN: Best Office Chair?

#16

Post by mturmon »

_bxg1 wrote: post #3
jonah wrote: post #2

Steelcase Leap. I've had mine for maybe 17 years and it still works perfectly and looks good. I find it far more comfortable that those mesh chars like the Aeron (its main competitor back when I bought it). They also have fantastic warranties, I had it maybe 12 years when the gas strut failed, the tech drove up from 2 towns away to replace it the next day in my home office.

That sounds great, but woof, it is expensive ($1,036 normally, $880 right now for those following along at home). Seeing as I'm hoping to be back in an office a few months from now, I was hoping to ideally spend more in the $100-$300 range.

A used Aeron for in the neighborhood of $400 might work.

Assuming you’ll continue to use it, this really is a “hurts once when you buy it, rather than a little every time you use it” thing.

Re: Ask HN: Best Office Chair?

#18

Post by salt-licker »

Modway Articulate is what we have for everyone in our office: https://www.amazon.com/Modway-Articulate-Ergonomic-Office-Ch...

At $150 I find it comfortable enough to sit in all day without issue, which is rare even among more expensive chairs I’ve tried. One of our employees has ergonomic issues and loves it. I really like having the ability to adjust seat tilt and back tilt separately, as well as initial back height. The only downside is the armrests don’t go low enough to fit under your desk easily, so we generally leave the armrests off when building them

Re: Ask HN: Best Office Chair?

#20

Post by neilk »

It's an extremely personal choice. Bodies are different.

The following are somewhat pricey options.

In my opinion the Knoll Regeneration is pretty good.

Hermann Miller chairs are also good, but the Aeron is probably the least ergonomic thing they sell now – and definitely not "minimal". The Setu might fit your criteria.

Just remember, the ideal chair for six hours of sitting doesn't exist; your goal should be to keep changing your body position as much as is feasible.

https://www.painscience.com/articles/chair-trouble.php

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