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Ergonomic chairs are specially designed to support your body in key areas when seated. These types of office chairs are most commonly used by people who sit in front of a computer for most of their day. If you are still using an old standard-type computer chair, and you are experiencing discomfort in your back and shoulders, then you are not alone. The fact is that even though ergonomic office chairs exist and would be beneficial for everyone, they are usually cost-prohibitive. Good ergonomic chairs will cost at least $200.00, and if you really want a good one that will last for years you need to spend upwards of $400.00 to $800.00. Anything you find cheaper than that is a piece of junk and is not worth the investment.

Now that you know how much you need to spend to get a good ergonomic computer chair you need to compare the features of chairs in your price range. It will be confusing at first, and you’ll probably see words you don’t even understand in the descriptions of ergonomic chairs, but spend some time learning what they’re all about and what features would be most important to you. Most chairs offer similar features and functions but there are subtle differences that will set one chair apart from another.

Most important is the size of the chair. Everyone’s body is a different size and shape and should be treated in its own special way. Manufacturers of high quality ergonomic chairs will always offer multiple seat cushion sizes and multiple back support sizes. To figure out what size would be best for you take out a tape measure and measure the dimensions of the chair you are sitting in now. Is the seat big enough? The seat cushion should reach just behind your knees, if half of your thigh is hanging off the chair than your seat is too small. How high is your back rest? To get a real ergonomic benefit from a chair the back support cushion should be at least as high as your shoulders.

After figuring out what size chair you need it is advised to look at how the chair adjusts. Critical features in the best ergonomic chairs include a height adjustable seat (almost all chairs have this) and a tilt adjustable back rest. This is very important; to get your body in the proper ergonomic posture you need to be able to move the position of the back support in small increments until the best possible position is attained. Not every chair has an adjustable back, so make sure you specifically look for this function. There are varying levels of seat and back adjustment mechanisms in the chairs on the market. They differ wildly in price and this is due to the research and development companies have to put into building the perfect chair. Generally the more expensive the chair the more ergonomic it is, and the better it will feel when you sit in it.

Lastly, arms on an office chair are almost always optional. There isn’t too much ergonomic benefit from having arms on your chair because it has more to do with how your computer workstation is setup. Sometimes having height adjustable arms could be beneficial if you’re not close enough to your desk, or if you don’t have an ergonomic keyboard tray installed. But, if you do have a keyboard tray installed, which you should, you really don’t need arms on your chair because the tray will bring your keyboard and mouse closer to your body and this will take the stress off your arms.

Brands you should stick to when shopping for an ergonomic chair include Balt, Humanscale, HAG, Herman Miller, VIA Seating, Steelcase, BodyBilt, and Ergohuman.

Steve Lott

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