Despite my best efforts, in the past few years I have had no luck with desk chairs--each one I've had grows uncomfortable after 10-15 minutes of working. This discomfort manifests as sore legs, sore back, feeling too warm, poor seating posture, and similar inconveniences. I recognize the need to stand up and stretch periodically, but these uncomfy chairs make it really difficult to get into the zone.
Have you found a chair that makes you happy? Given the amount of time I must spend at a keyboard, I am willing to spend real money. For reference, I am a 40ish 5'10" male with an average build (pandemic deterioration notwithstanding).
I also have a treadmill desk, and it's great for humdrum work, but sometimes it is necessary to sit down and dig in when the task at hand is more challenging.
Due to lockdown restrictions I took a risk and ordered one without trying it first (knowing I had the return policy to fall back on).
I was immediately disappointed with the comfort when it first arrived, and almost sent it back. But I stuck with it for a few more days and found that once I'd adjusted to the chair, I now find it the most comfortable thing I've ever sat in. I've since read that it's quite common to take a few days to adjust to a chair like this, where the ergonomics are very different (better) than cheaper chairs.
I used to get various aches and pains after sitting in my cheap office chairs for a few hours (even with breaks in between), now I find that there is almost no upper limit for how long I can comfortably work in this chair.
So yes it's f*king expensive, but I do highly recommend it. A year on, I think it was a very good investment.
BTW I highly recommend the Atlas Headrest for the Aeron - it looks 100% like a genuine original part and it really makes a big different to comfort (in my opinion). The only downside is the headrest alone costs about the same as what I used to spend on "upper-range" office chairs from Staples.
Before I had the Aeron I'd replace my office chairs every 4 years or so. Not only have I saved money long term, their longevity makes them the better choice for the environment.
Enjoy your chair, you'll get a lifetime of use out of it.
1: https://theofficeoasis.com/products/rollerblade-office-chair...
I found mine (large) preferable to the newer one I bought (medium). The depth of the seat pan on the medium was just too shallow. (I’m 6’ 1”).
It’s amazing how well this 15+ year old chair has held up. No signs of wear to the seat or back, nor visible scratches on the frame. It does need a new pneumatic cylinder post though ($45).
Would that be the pad behind your (upper) back? I never replaced anything on mine in 10/11 years but I may have not been paying attention. I'll definitely check for any flattened pad when I get back from vacation (they seem super cheap to replace moreoever).
It's worth noting that it comes with a 12 year warranty:
* https://www.hermanmiller.com/customer-service/warranty-and-s...
So if you keep it for (at least) that long, the initial price may be high, but if you amortize it over more than a decade, the annual or monthly cost isn't as crazy. You probably spend more on buying lunch or coffee.
(The arm rests may not be included IIRC, so those may have to be replaced at some point.)
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1. This chair comes in sizes. Make sure you are actually getting the right size for your body. 2. I was able to find several of them used on Craigslist locally with a few small minor defects such as worn armrests, gas cylinders, etc.. I was able to buy my chair used with a bad gas piston, buy a replacement for $40 on Amazon and easily install it. I was able to do all of this for a few hours of work and under $300. 3. I would recommend taking a few minutes to read the website on how to properly configure this chair. 4. Even if you have the best desk chair, if your desk, monitors and keyboards are not also ergonomically aligned, you will not be getting the majority of the benefit. 5. There are a number of great accessories for this chair. I also have an Atlas headrest that I really like.
Conversely I have, for the last four years, sat in a cheap IKEA MILLBERGET swivel chair. It has been excellent, and all my back issues have completely disappeared.
I think perhaps it's good to temper the enthusiasm of a lot of folks online who seem to be buying Aeron sight unseen -- there's a lot of chairs out there, and people come in a lot of different shapes and sizes.
After about eight months with the HM, I couldn't take one more day of it so I bought my own generic chair and have been happy ever since.
I have bought three used Aerons, and refurbished them with replacement parts.
Because Aerons are everywhere, replacement parts (both OEM and aftermarket) are incredibly easy to find.
Some of these Aeron chairs are 10 years old, and I can find parts for them now. 10 years from now, I will still be able to find parts for them.
Between their overall durability and the availability of replacement parts, I expect that I will be able to keep these chairs going for a very long time. And frankly, that's more valuable to me than any tiny incremental improvements some alternatives to the Aeron might be able to offer.
Ten or eleven years on here: have I think a bit more than a year left on the 12-years warranty. Looks brand new. Nothing has moved. When it came, there was a booklet (or a PDF?) explaining how to set it up: took me 30 minutes to set it up and since then, I never had to change the settings once.
It's not suitable for people used to cross their legs then and kinda sit on their legs (I had a roommate doing that).
The most common complain with the Aeron is that the frame pushes too hard on the back of the thighs but I don't get it: too me it's an improperly set up chain as I'm only in contact with the (amazing) pellicle mesh.
I love that chair. In the US it's very easy to find refurbished ones as good as new at a big discount. In Europe it's doable but not at easy.
If that chair dies before me, I'll immediately rebuy one.
EDIT: a "trick", I think explained in the official doc: the recommended setting (but you do what you want) is that the chair has to lean back if you put both your arms behind your head and then lean forward again when you extend your hand in front of you (for example reaching for your keyboard).
Yeah I'd read that concern prior to buying it to but like you I've had zero issues with that thankfully. Not to say that it might not be genuine concern for some body shapes/sizes...
For anyone earning a high wage, though, I'd say a new Aeron at full price is easily worth it.
I'd liken it to Apple gear. Yes it is arguably overpriced objectively speaking, but it is still genuinely well made (although let's not mention butterfly keyboards...)
Pro tip for bay area people - company liquidation events happen all of the time and lots of companies buy these.
That means you can get a like-new chair on craigslist from someone who bought a bunch of them at a liquidation sale for ~$350-400 which is a great deal.
If you're worried about fakes, check for bumps behind the top back of the chair - the number of bumps is the size. Small, Medium, Large -> 1, 2, 3, bumps.
I'm 6'1" and ~200lbs, I'm comfortable in a medium and a large. I got the medium via craigslist because they're more available, but have a large at work.
During COVID I bought a desk chair off Craigslist for $60 (MSRP $200, IIRC) and it's been roughly as good for me as the Aeron was. I'm glad to hear others enjoy their Aerons, but I wanted to share my experience since not everyone finds them to be so amazing.
And they complainers were right insofar as I never sat down in the chair and went “damn this is comfortable”.
But that was also the first time in my life by hour 5 or 6 nothing was _uncomfortable_. Body felt fine, nothing was sweaty, everything was still just… fine. I felt the same as when I sat down.
And that’s pretty much been my goal for chairs since. Anything that can make the unnatural act of sitting upright in one place for a third or more of my day not _hurt_ is a good piece of equipment.
I’ve tried other cheaper chairs since. Some sufficed for a while, some sufficed until I got older. Finally but the bullet and got a Mirra and everything’s been great since.
I ahve a Titan from SecretLab, most amazing chair I've ever had. I now have three, one at my home office, one at work, and one in a box for a location I haven't decided upon yet.
I'm not really capable of not-manspreading in order to minimize the Aeron seat side lip pain so one day I brought a belt to the office to tie my legs together so I could relax ... which helped but was just as ridiculous as it sounds. So I just went and bought my own chair instead for my home office and never went back to the office again.
Thanks for mentioning the Titan, it looks like my next chair!
I do have a sit/stand desk now too though, so whenever I feel like I've been sitting for too long I switch to standing for about 30 minutes. Maybe that helps too?
I have to say I think it's a great chair, but could be a little better. The recline limiter has only two positions and it would be nice to have a continuous adjustment, or at least more positions. The size C is probably larger than I need, but it seems more comfortable than the other one - don't know if it's the size or the brand new web material.
That said - I agree. The ergonomics are excellent and I can use it for countless hours without discomfort.
It would be nice to hear if others have compared say aeron vs embody.
The warranty is only for the original purchaser and is nontransferrable, AIUI.
I guess the wheels are quieter on the hardwood floors, my office is above a bedroom so that is much appreciated. And the armrests on the Ikea chair are getting torn up after only a few years so hopefully the Aeron is more durable.
But for $1600 or whatever it was I could invest the money and replace the Ikea chair every two years for the rest of my life.
But it was just for me. So I just ordered another Aeron with the new back support system and I couldn't be happier. Right call. Mirra 2's are OK--we have them at least one of our company offices--but they're not Aerons. (And I prefer the web style to something like an Leap or Embody.)
I would routinely break XL weight and sized chairs, probably because of odd sitting positions although I'm around 260 right now and the chairs were rated for 375.
This thing? Rock solid.
My advice if you are looking for a chair? Buy one. You don't have to buy a new one either. One of the first thing a lot of companies do when they're flush with VC money is to upgrade the offices, and that often means name-brand chairs. There are TONS of Aerons floating around for a few hundred bucks.
It's worth noting that that I have the larger sized Aeron - can't quite remember if the back is taller on those or if they're just wider...
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My employer sent me a Steelcase Series 1 to use at home and it's total crap compared to the Leap. The back adjustment is either 89 degrees (totally upright) or like 10 degrees (basically laying down), nothing in the middle. Those numbers may be approximations based on my feelings.
I have a $40 chair I bought on Amazon and it's almost as good as the Steelcase Series 1.
But let me tell you something: I recently bought a split keyboard (Dygma Raise) and it allowed me to change my posture significantly and adjust the chair height, and it made me much more comfortable. Chair height is such a changing factor, and pretty much every one supports it.
I am also considering buying a keyboard tray to attach under the table (just search for Keyboard Tray on your favorite sales website) so I can lower the chair even more.
I am also considering a foot rest.
So, to conclude: comfort is not only the chair, but everything else around you, which makes you sit differently.
I picked up 16 Steelcase Amia chairs (plus 2 others). Had them delivered to my office. They took away 10 old crappy chairs we had to the dump. Total price was $635. For 18 chairs.
It was a bargain, to be sure. I'm not sure what effect covid will have had on the whole 'office furniture liquidation' process, but there's likely bargains to be had before things get to the 'office liquidation company' warehouse.
Many of these liquidation companies with steam clean the chairs for you too, at least in my experience, so the chair will look almost new even if it's fairly old. And a high quality office chair is something that really lasts for quite a while. My used Leap that I got for $150 3 years ago from a liquidation company was manufactured in the mid 90s and I find it every bit as comfortable as the brand new aerons and other chairs that I've used in offices.
1. It’s much more adjustable so you don’t need to be carefully about buying the exact right size (unlike the Aeron which has sizes A, B and C)
2. It has a fabric seat with no protruding edges. If you sit cross legged on an Aeron, you’re going to grind against the seat’s edges. Aerons aren’t good for folks who sometimes sit cross legged.
For return to the office we're going to new offices with only Aeron chairs, so I'm just planning to pack in a seat cushion every day unless I can find another solution.
As another poster suggested, the most comfortable chair is the one you find comfortable. Definitely go and sit on a few, then see which one feels the best.
I definitely agree with the "everything else" part -- I know keyboard trays are kind of unfashionable these days, but unless you have a desk which is as low as a standard keyboard tray (or an adjustable desk, of course, which lets you get there!), it really makes a difference in posture. My current home desk is a little awkward for this -- it has a tray, but the desk height puts the 27" monitor (iMac) I have at too high a level unless I raise the chair enough that my knees are just about touching the tray. In retrospect, I wish I'd gotten a desk without a tray, and used my chair with a foot rest. (Which I just saw you mentioned.)
[1] I'm using past tense because at the end of 2020 we moved from "independent subsidiary of [LargeCo]" to "just part of [LargeCo]", and when we stop being remote we'll move to LargeCo's offices. I have no idea what they have there.
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Any solutions?
Did anyone have a similar experience and find a solution?
Getting uncomfortable after remaining stationary for 15 minutes is normal. Your body is telling you something - being stationary is the enemy. I think trying to optimize your chair is the wrong solution. Instead the answer is a diverse work environment you can move around in and continually adopt different postures! My favorite work environment is a carpeted floor which I can lie down on, crouch, sit up, work at a coffee table, or even pace around. Any one of those postures would probably get uncomfortable after a while, but I cycle through them too quickly. Admittedly this probably wouldn't work well for work involving huge amounts of typing, such as long form writing - but for the kind of programming and data exploration I do it's great! I've always been a fidget, and being able to fidget with my entire body feels like I'm finally embracing something I was always meant to be doing.
This working style has only become practical in the last decade or so, with the advent of very light computers with excellent battery life, and I don't think we've culturally caught up.
You don't need a super-expensive desk either, in fact you probably don't need to buy anything. I use the counter-top at my house, you can also get a box or chair to put on your regular desk.
The seat is very firm, however. It took a while to adjust to.
I also used to have a floor chair, and floor chairs are amazing! I’ve been considering getting a floor couch just for that reason but not many choices and not many people talk about it.
https://agr-ev.de/de/ratgeber-produkte/produkte/2837-aktiv-b...
These chairs aren't for everyone, i encourage you to try them before you buy!
The ones i know personally are
- Aeris 3Dee
Super nice chair, very ergonomic, quite pricey, starting at around 1000€
- Dauphin Stilo with 3d-balance system
Bought this chair for my adult son who is super happy with it and uses it lots. Costs around 550€. I may buy one for myself, too.
- Haider Bioswing
I bought a used chair with this mechanical principle and it's pretty good but not as good as the other two, at least for this (quite old) chair. A new one would probably be more ergonomic
They are no longer in business :'( https://web.archive.org/web/20160422143349/http://www.swingc...
This seems pretty similar, but I haven't tried it: https://www.eurekadesk.com/ergonomic-chair-swing-chair.html
I bought a glass corner desk around the same time that's still in use, most likely because it and the keyboard tray seem to be the perfect height for me/the chair. I can't recommend an under-desk keyboard tray enough, if you don't have one I'd strongly recommend investigating it.
https://spinalis-chairs.ca/
The thing is, high end chairs differ radically in comfort. I thought the Embody was a great chair but the Aeron outdid it. I thought the Aeron was great but the Mira was better. For me, of course.
If I ordered online I wouldn't have known this. At the most I'd have returned the Embody for an Aeron but not found the chair that suits me best - the Steelcase Gesture ;)
To answer your question, I would recommend going to a furniture store and trying chairs from Herman Miller and Steelcase.
Meanwhile, when I got my Aeron, I didn’t like it for the first few days, and even thought about sending it back. But now that I’ve adjusted to it, I love it, and I can confidently say it’s the most comfortable office chair I’ve ever tried.
It’s hard to evaluate comfort in a short period. Ergonomics is all about support, and I personally find that something that is more firm and maybe less comfortable on my first try is actually more comfortable in the long haul.
It’s hard to turn this into concrete advice, other than that you probably want to just make sure there is a good return policy for whatever you buy, and to make sure you buy a product with a good reputation.
This has been every chair I've ever tried.
Also, this is the only chair I've had whose height adjustment is rock solid. All the others, which were not as comfortable to begin with, started to leak after a few years.
Leaks are related to worn-out cylinders. They're easy to change. There's nothing wrong with the chair itself unless it's physically-damaged.
1) Familiarize yourself with basic chair adjustments. Every high-end chair will have some combination of these.
2) Go to a furniture store (or used furniture store) and try out every chair. Don't forget to tinker with the adjustments.
I tried a variety of Herman Miller & Steelcase chairs, and somewhat surprisingly landed on an Amia. Not the most expensive chair they had in inventory, but it felt the best when dialed in. (And even better than the Leap V2s we had at an old job)
It bothered me so much, had to return the chair which was a huge hassle.
So even if you try to sit on it in a showroom, you gotta actually use it for a few days.
Ergonomics depends on the right distance from seat to floor, from arms to floor and from eyes to floor. A good chair solves the first, a good adjustable desk solves the second and a good monitor arm solves the third. If you only solve one, you won't be comfortable. Especially if you're tall, you'll realize that most default setups are not built for people above 6 feet. Without my monitor arm, I was always craning downward to look at my screen. Without my desk my legs wouldn't fit underneath and my wrists were always angled downwards.
I bought a DX Racer Drift looking for the foot rests, but I rarely use those.
The big, big difference I saw in gaming chairs over most of the desk chairs is the ability to recline the backrest independently from the seat. While most office chairs will allow you to recline, the seat is fixed into the backrest so the angle between your legs and your back is always fixed at 90 degrees. Being able to tilt just the backrest, making a >90 angle between my legs and the back is the super-dupper-killer-feature for me.
I usually leave it slightly over 90, not too much, maybe something like 110 degrees, which gives me max confort without hurting my shoulders (which start to hurt if you go too far back, as you lose some support while typing).
What I found in the end is that all this ergonomics bs is just that: BS. Find a chair that works for you, it does not even need to be expensive. For a long time I was using my kitchen chairs because they were less painful then my previous two other office chairs.
I've been doing physical therapy and pilates, so never really looked for anything else. I don't think this things are available locally (Brazil) but quite interesting concept!