Shopping for a New Desk Chair

[eytonxav]

My current desk chair's faux leather is delaminating and flaking off, and the chair also is starting to not hold its height adjustment. I have been looking around for another high back executive chair that would be both comfortable, adjustable for good ergonomics and well made. The reviews on these various chairs that I see on Amazon scare the hell out of me, with too many 1 and 2 star reviews mentioning the chairs falling apart too soon or ending up being uncomfortable after a months use. Even the chairs sold by places like Staples/Office Depot do not have stellar reviews. Any one here have any recommendations for a great high back desk chair?

 

[mpeirce]

I’ve got a 15 year old Aeron chair that’s still wonderful to sit in.

I have replaced two parts over the years:

I replaced the cylinder with a “long stroke” version that lets me position the chair a little higher. Makes it more comfortable for me (long legs).

The other was the caster wheels. I got heavy duty rubber replacements. These work better than the originals.

It’s the most expensive office chair I’ve ever used, but so worth it.

 

[SnowballCamper]

Go to Herman Miller. You will have to pay, but absolutely worth it IMHO. We got six of their cheaper office chairs for our dining table, and they're great!

 

[Qs Laptop]

I went through the process of finding a new desk chair about three(?) years ago. Like you, I had a "pleather" chair that was peeling and shedding. Like you I found quality options on Amazon and the office supply stores were limited. Most of them are the same Chinese manufacturer with the same components, same assembly instructions but with some minimal cosmetic changes.

I ended up getting a Serta Hannah II executive chair for around $150 at Wayfair.com. I got it in black but there were other color options. A couple of my criteria were a wide seating area and a long seating cushion. Most of the chairs on Amazon and office supply companies failed in this area.

Oh my, I just checked Wayfair's current pricing and it's now $289!! What?! I see I paid $146 for it in November 2019. I also see it's available in several other places for under $200.

I sit in the Serta Hannah II chair for about 5-6 hours a day. I'm 6' 2" and 200 lbs. This chair has held up nicely. One complaint is it now creaks a bit when I rock it, but every chair I've ever had has done that. It's made in China but it had sturdier bolts than my fake leather chair. It's a pretty solid chair.

You can spend a lot of $$ on office chairs but this one hit the sweet spot of price, comfort, and size.

 

[Qs Laptop]

Go to Herman Miller. You will have to pay, but absolutely worth it IMHO.

My son did this, spent about $800 on a chair. It's got adjustable everything and is built like a tank. He's had it about three years and swears by it. I thought of going that route but figured if I got five years out of a $200 chair, I could buy four of them in the next 20 years. And if I got seven or eight years out of one, even better.

 

[savory]

During Covid, while spending a week or so at a hotel, I used their office chair which was located in the room. I was surprised how comfortable it was and this quality of chair was part of their offering, especially given the retail price. It was the HumanScale, Liberty model. https://www.humanscale.com/products/seating/liberty-task-office-chair/custom

I bought it used for $225 delivered from a guy in WI. It was in good shape. I also recommended it for my daughter who purchased the same for her office desk and likes it very much.

For whatever reason, the Amazon reviews, except one, are bad. I would agree with the guy who likes it.

No issue with the Herman Miller brand as I think that is a good choice. But, I would definitely consider the Humanscale and I would look for a used one, since so many offices have closed.

 

[OldShooter]

LBYM: I buy all my home office furniture at used office furniture stores that stock high-end products like Herman Miller. Salespeople can guide you to the best quality pieces. The stores I have been in display acres of chairs -- plenty to test. And, really, this is not like getting married. If a chair lasts a few years that's a win. If you hate it after a few months, the financial damage to replace it is minimal.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

Go to Herman Miller. You will have to pay, but absolutely worth it IMHO. We got six of their cheaper office chairs for our dining table, and they're great!

Nothing constructive to add* but this sounds like a FIRE fail when you turn your dining room into a conference room!


*except humor for those few that find me funny.

 

[braumeister]

I agree with the Herman Miller Aeron chair. You really do get what you pay for.

Mine served me extremely well in daily use for a quarter century. When it finally croaked I immediately ordered another.

 

[Montecfo]

LBYM: I buy all my home office furniture at used office furniture stores that stock high-end products like Herman Miller. Salespeople can guide you to the best quality pieces. The stores I have been in display acres of chairs -- plenty to test. And, really, this is not like getting married. If a chair lasts a few years that's a win. If you hate it after a few months, the financial damage to replace it is minimal.

i think this is the right idea but when I was looking a couple of years ago, there was little such inventory.

I had shopped Office Depot, Costco, all the local shops abd we had ordered a bunch of samples in my office right before FIRE. Did not love any.

So after a bunch or research I bought the Forbes chair from Zuri furniture. Real leather, found good reviews, and very nice looking. I love the chair.

https://design.zurifurniture.com/modern/office/office-task-chairs/executive-chairs

 

[Montecfo]

LBYM: I buy all my home office furniture at used office furniture stores that stock high-end products like Herman Miller. Salespeople can guide you to the best quality pieces. The stores I have been in display acres of chairs -- plenty to test. And, really, this is not like getting married. If a chair lasts a few years that's a win. If you hate it after a few months, the financial damage to replace it is minimal.

i think this is the right idea but when I was looking a couple of years ago, there was little such inventory.

I had shopped Office Depot, Costco, all the local shops abd we had ordered a bunch of samples in my office right before FIRE. Did not love any.

So after a bunch or research I bought the Forbes chair from Zuri furniture. Real leather, found good reviews, and very nice looking. I love the chair. Not the cheapest but it is well made, comfortable and lovely.

https://design.zurifurniture.com/modern/office/office-task-chairs/executive-chairs

 

[explanade]

Nobody uses stand desks?

There used to be studies showing that sitting all day was bad.

But standing all day isn't a lot better unless you move often enough.

 

[SnowballCamper]

Nothing constructive to add* but this sounds like a FIRE fail when you turn your dining room into a conference room!


*except humor for those few that find me funny.

I was skeptical of DW's idea too, but it works... (photo from the mfr website)

 

[GalaxyBoy]

Years ago [-]slave master[/-] employer set a few of us up in different test configurations of office furniture and I got the HM Aeron Chair. I absolutely loved it, and regret not buying one a couple years ago when I had to replace my computer chair at home. Be sure to choose the right size, A, B or C, depending on the size of your butt.

 

[Mr. Tightwad]

Just bought a Secretlab Titan Evo 2022. Delivery tomorrow. Mint green.

$539

 

[tulak]

I bought an Aeron chair. I’ve had low back issues in the past, but no issues sitting in this chair for long periods of time. I’d buy it again without hesitation.

 

[USGrant1962]

LBYM: I buy all my home office furniture at used office furniture stores that stock high-end products like Herman Miller. Salespeople can guide you to the best quality pieces. The stores I have been in display acres of chairs -- plenty to test. And, really, this is not like getting married. If a chair lasts a few years that's a win. If you hate it after a few months, the financial damage to replace it is minimal.

+1

I got my used Aeron at a place like that for about $450.

Nobody uses stand desks?

There used to be studies showing that sitting all day was bad.

But standing all day isn't a lot better unless you move often enough.

I have both a sitting and a standing desk. Triple-monitor desktop computer on the regular corner desk, and the laptop stays on my standing desk when I'm home. The standing desk was only a couple hundred dollars on Amazon.

 

[eytonxav]

LBYM: I buy all my home office furniture at used office furniture stores that stock high-end products like Herman Miller. Salespeople can guide you to the best quality pieces. The stores I have been in display acres of chairs -- plenty to test. And, really, this is not like getting married. If a chair lasts a few years that's a win. If you hate it after a few months, the financial damage to replace it is minimal.

Several years ago DW wanted to get me Aeron, but I said no too expensive. They are even more costly now, but hadn't thought about a used office furniture store. Good idea

i think this is the right idea but when I was looking a couple of years ago, there was little such inventory.

I had shopped Office Depot, Costco, all the local shops abd we had ordered a bunch of samples in my office right before FIRE. Did not love any.

So after a bunch or research I bought the Forbes chair from Zuri furniture. Real leather, found good reviews, and very nice looking. I love the chair. Not the cheapest but it is well made, comfortable and lovely.

https://design.zurifurniture.com/modern/office/office-task-chairs/executive-chairs

Some of those chairs do look nice.

Just bought a Secretlab Titan Evo 2022. Delivery tomorrow. Mint green.

$539

Hadn't thought about a gaming chair, and certainly this one has some solid reviews.

I appreciate everyones input, thank you!

 

[OldShooter]

Several years ago DW wanted to get me Aeron, but I said no too expensive. They are even more costly now, but hadn't thought about a used office furniture store. Good idea ...

Truth be told you will be lucky find an Aeron. They are pretty popular and probably go out as fast as they come in. But in the DFW area there are certain to be plenty of stores to shop and plenty of chairs to try. My favorite place is actually a charity store that gets office furniture donations from several megacorps.

Re Amazon et al, I would avoid those channels. The serious office furniture companies like Herman Miller are targeting corporations that will be repeat customers for years. Longevity and reliability issues will kill them in those markets, so they have to prioritize quality. The vendors on Amazon et al aren't really concerned with developing long-term customer relationships. The customer reviews are a help in evaluating the product but most of those are coming from very recent buyers.

 

[eytonxav]

The serious office furniture companies like Herman Miller are targeting corporations that will be repeat customers for years. Longevity and reliability issues will kill them in those markets, so they have to prioritize quality.

Yes, my former mega corp only bought Herman Miller or Steelcase. The other thing with the Aeron however, it's not a high back executive type of chair which does detract it some with me. I like to lean back with cushioned head support.

 

[Katsmeow]

My current desk chair's faux leather is delaminating and flaking off, and the chair also is starting to not hold its height adjustment. I have been looking around for another high back executive chair

For years I bought very inexpensive (cheap) desk chairs like that and just replaced them every 2 or 3 years.

This time we went a different direction and decided to buy chairs that we expect to last many, many years. They were expensive but looking at cost per expected year we are happy with them.

DH went to Design Within Reach in Dallas since it carried Herman Miller chairs. He thought he would get an Aeron chair since he had that when he worked. To his surprise, he ended up with the Herman Miller x Logitech G Embody Gaming chair which he very much enjoys.

https://www.dwr.com/furniture-gaming/embody-gaming-chair/2517590.html?lang=en_US

I ended up at Relax the back and the Lifeform High Back Executive Office Chair.

https://relaxtheback.com/products/l...executive-office-chair?variant=14774479454267

I considered getting the cloth which was actually the most comfortable seat in memory foam. But I didn't really like any of the colors and I was concerned about the chair holding up to many years of use. I liked the Brisa simulated leather from appearance but again worried about it holding up.

I ended up with the Tribeca leather in scarlet.

Oh -- a little tip. The prices are negotiable. While it was an extremely expensive chair, I paid several hundred dollars less than the list price.

I also did a custom pattern where I used the scarlet but also black. I also added the memory foam and different casters for the feet.

There are far, far more customization options for appearance than what you see on the website or in the brochure.

The chair is so adjustable. There were certain things that I really wanted to be able to adjust and customize to me and I was able to get that. I also like the ability to lock in something like the recline but then switch it to something else and with a touch lock it in.

Yes, this chair is insanely expensive compared to any chair I have every had before. But, I see this chair as something I will never have to replace.

(Oh, the website says that in home set up was $299. I bought it from the store and when it was shipped they brought it to my house, set it up and showed me how to adjust everything. They did not charge me for this.)

 

[GenXguy]

I bought a home desk chair from Staples about 15 years ago, and it just broke a few weeks ago. A metal piece underneath busted part way, and the chair was leaning to one side. The vinyl covering was ripping apart some also. I threw it out. I'm temporarily using an older smaller office chair that I already had. I probably paid $60 to $70 for that Staples chair back when I bought it, so I felt like a got a pretty good run out of it.

At work, I use a SteelCase. I think I've had it over 10 years. I think it was around $500 back then. I like it but don't really want to lay out the kind of cash it would take now to buy that chair today for use at home.

 

[Jerry1]

I don’t know how durable it will be and given the small amount of time I’m actually in my office anymore, it probably won’t matter. But, I recently bought this chair. Unfortunately, I think chairs are very much like mattresses - very personal. Maybe you can find one at a Staples near you to see how it fits.

https://www.staples.com/beautyrest-...-executive-chair-black-60003/product_24376320

 

[powerplay]

During my last couple of working years I got a Neutral Posture chair. It was the most comfortable chair I've ever had and I even thought about bringing it to meetings with me. I've thought about getting one for home, but I guess it just hasn't been a high priority yet.
Neutral Posture — 8000 Series


I do agree that a comfortable chair choice is really very individual. Being able to try it out first would be important to me.


Good luck with your search and I hope you post when you make your decision.

 

[RobbieB]

I bought my Herman Miller from a recycle outfit in New York City. But no picante sauce eh?

Around $500 back then (more than 4 years) and less than half of new. Can't tell it from new. Still have it and still looks and works like new.

Yeah, you get what you pay for. And in my retirement years, at my desk, surfing for info and entertainment for hours on end, in front of the 43 inch monitor with the 3.1 sound bar, well worth the dough.