An ergonomic office chair can contribute to less back pain and more efficient work in the home office. We show popular models and what to look out for when buying one.
Anyone who regularly works from home should pay attention to an ergonomic workplace. An unhealthy home office can lead to back pain, headaches, mouse arm, generally less efficiency and many other undesirable effects. In the guide to ergonomics in the home office, we explain what countermeasures can be taken: Preventing back pain, mouse arm and headaches from 15 euros .
The right mouse is one of the simplest yet effective measures for healthier work. More on this in the article Finding the right mouse for the office and home office . For the right lighting, we recommend Smart, bright & chic: the right light for the home office . On the other hand, if you are looking for a flexible table that also allows you to work while standing, you will find it here: Purchase advice: Electrically height-adjustable tables from 175 euros .
In this guide, we show you what to look out for when buying an office chair. We give general tips and also tried out three office chairs in different price categories. The Blitzwolf BW-HOC5 costs a good 200 euros at Banggood (purchase link) from the Czech Republic, the Flexispot BS10 400 euros and the Steelcase Gesture with headrest just under 1000 euros.
backrest
In the case of backrests, a distinction is made between upholstered backrests and mesh backrests. Those who sweat easily should choose a breathable mesh back. Upholstered backs, on the other hand, offer greater comfort in many cases. They are often made of fabric, faux leather or leather. However, there are also high-quality mesh backs, which nestle comfortably against the back.
Ideally, the backrest of the office chair has adjustable lumbar support, also known as lumbar support. It supports the natural S-shape of the spine and prevents back pain. The backrest should not only be adjustable in its angle of inclination, but ideally also in height.
If there is a headrest or neckrest, buyers should make sure that the height and angle of inclination can be adjusted. This is the only way to ensure that it relieves the neck muscles and does not lead to an incorrect posture of the head.
seat
A height adjustability of the office chair is elementary. When your feet are straight on the floor, your feet, knees and hip joint should be at right angles. The seat should be straight or slope slightly forward. There should be about a hand’s breadth of space between your knees and the seat. If this is not the case, prolonged sitting could impair the blood supply to the legs and thus increase the risk of thrombosis.
When buying, the material of the seat also plays a role. The thickness of the upholstery determines the softness of the seat. Deep springing ensures that the office chair does not unnecessarily compress your back when you sit down.
armrests
Often underestimated by many, armrests are an essential part of an ergonomic office chair. Because without armrests, your arms hang in the air when working with the mouse and keyboard or rest on the hard edge of the table. An armrest also relieves the shoulders.
It should be adjustable in height, width and depth. The height should match that of the desk. In the best case, the angle of the crook of the arm is 45 degrees. In addition, buyers should pay attention to padding.
mechanics
A rocking mechanism is widespread in office chairs. If the user shifts his body weight, the backrest tilts backwards together with the seat and armrests. The rocking mechanism should be adjustable to the body weight. However, if you work in the chair for a long time, you should do without the rocking mechanism.
The synchronous mechanism is better than the rocking mechanism . Here the backrest adapts to the movement and thus maintains contact with the back. In contrast to the rocking mechanism, the angle between the seat and the backrest does not remain the same, but increases. The body opens up when you lean back. This corrects incorrect posture and relieves the back.
The king of office chair mechanics is 3D mechanics . It expands the synchro-mechanism with movements to the left and right. These additional micro-movements strengthen the muscles, mobilize the spine and activate blood circulation. If you spend a lot of time on the office chair, you should pay attention to a 3D mechanism. Corresponding chairs are expensive, however.
In the guide to gaming chairs, we clarify whether there are really cheap gaming chairs for longer work : How does it gamble on 50 euros? In the following price comparison, we also show models with a synchronous mechanism in addition to particularly popular and particularly inexpensive office chairs.
Blitzwolf BW-HOC5
The black Blitzwolf HOC5 is one of the most popular office chairs with a headrest on Banggood (buy link) . It costs a good 200 euros there, is shipped from a European warehouse and offers many functions for the price that are otherwise only found on more expensive models. Its backrest is made of a breathable mesh material and is just as height-adjustable as the headrest. The lumbar support is also variable. The armrests are sufficiently softly padded and can be adjusted in terms of height and distance from one another.
The approximately 50 centimeters wide seat is soft and comfortable even when sitting for long periods. As is usual with office chairs, the entire seat height is variable from 44 to 52 centimetres. The mechanism on the underside of the seat determines the angle of inclination of the backrest in several stages. The seat itself can also be pushed forwards or backwards. What we miss, however, is adjustability for how much pressure the backrest needs to rock backwards. Overall, the backrest can be tilted up to 150 degrees if desired. That’s more than many other office chairs. If you want, you can fix them in 20-degree increments.
A gas spring ensures that the chair springs softly when you sit down. Thanks to six rollers on the underside, the Blitzwolf BW-HOC5, which weighs a good 21 kilograms, runs smoothly on smooth surfaces.
Trying out the Blitzwolf BW-HOC5 leaves a mixed feeling. First of all, we are surprised at how many customization options the chair offers. It should be easily adaptable to the body of both larger and smaller people. The seat is also comfortable, the armrests are soft and the lumbar support works well in our case.
However, we have a problem with the height adjustment of the backrest and headrest. Because both don’t seem to fit properly, at some point they slip back into their basic position. Sitting also seems a bit wobbly overall. But that doesn’t have to be a bad thing, at least in terms of ergonomics, after all, regular micro-movements when sitting promote blood circulation.
Flexispot BS 10
The Flexispot BS 10 costs about 400 euros. It is predominantly gray with beige elements. On its back sits a part in wood look. The continuously adjustable seat height varies from 47 to 56 centimetres. The backrest covers a gray mesh. It is not height-adjustable, but it fits the tester, who is 186 centimeters tall, well. The lumbar support is adjustable in height and inclination. The same applies to the completely removable headrest. The backrest has a synchronous mechanism, so it opens the body slightly when it tilts backwards. The strength at which the backrest tilts can be adjusted using a rotary knob on the mechanism. The backrest can also be fixed in several stages.
The seat feels comfortable even after sitting for a long time. A small lever lets them slide forwards or backwards. The armrests are padded and can be adapted to your own ergonomics in many ways. However, the height adjustment could have been a little easier. The Flexispot BS 10 stands on a metal base with five smooth-running castors.
Overall, the Flexispot BS 10 leaves a very good impression. The materials look high quality, nothing wobbles. The optics also have their appeal. Thanks to the light colors, it looks less massive than it is. But instead of beige, we would have preferred a white option. The wooden element on the back looks classy. The customization options are diverse and leave nothing to be desired. It would have been good if the maximum angle of inclination of the backrest could be limited. Instead, you can only fix them in several positions. Nevertheless, we can recommend the Flexispot BS 10.
Steelcase Gesture with headrest
The Steelcase Gesture with headrest is an excellent office chair, but it is quite expensive at around 1000 euros. It can be bought in many different colors, we have it with a dark brown leather upholstery. Despite its size, it doesn’t look massive.
It shines particularly through the diverse and simple setting options, which can all be found on the right side of the mechanism. The rear buttons regulate the backrest, the front ones the seat, for example the seat depth, in order to relieve the thighs. We really like the simple adjustment of the strength to be used, from when the backrest tilts backwards. The user can set several maximum recline angles for the backrest. The lumbar support can also be easily adjusted using sliders. The armrests, which can be rotated 360 degrees, are softly padded and can also be adjusted in height and distance with a handle. Adjusting the headrest is also good. The buyer not only adjusts the height, but also the depth.
Overall, you immediately notice that the Steelcase Gesture is a very high-quality office chair. Not only its appearance and the materials used belong to the upper class. The setting options are diverse and very easy to use. The chair quickly and optimally adapts to the physiology of the tester. Especially those who spend a lot of time on their office chair should consider digging deeper into their pockets to do something good for their body.
The 5 most popular office chairs
Here we show the five office chairs that have the most hits on the price comparison portal Billiger.de in October 2022 and are therefore particularly popular.
Ikea Markus There is probably no office chair that is more common in the home office than the Ikea Markus. No wonder, after all, there is hardly any other office chair that offers such good value for money. The Markus costs just 179 euros. There is almost the full range with a gas spring, headrest, lumbar support, lockable rocker function and castors.
Steecase Gesture If you want luxury, you have to pay for luxury. Because the Steecase Gesture costs almost 1000 euros. Our experience report above.
Ergotopia Nextback A good office chair does not necessarily have to catch the eye. First and foremost, it should promote ergonomic sitting. The Ergotopia Nextback seems to offer that in the middle price segment. Instead of a simple rocking mechanism, buyers will find the higher-quality synchro-mechanism here.
Trend!Office to-strike work pro This office chair is relatively inexpensive at 300 euros. He uses comfortable fabric instead of mesh for the backrest. He doesn’t have a headrest. There is a lumbar support on board for this. The synchronous mechanism also speaks for the Trend!Office chair.
Interstuhl Famos 139RS The 129RS is really cheap with its price of 235 euros. Nevertheless, it offers a variety of customization options. It has a seat cushion made of molded foam, a gas spring, a lockable synchronous mechanism up to 120 degrees, a seat tilt adjustment of 3 degrees, an adjustable seat depth of 6 centimetres, a height-adjustable lumbar support and soft 4D armrests.
Conclusion
Before buying an office chair, you should try it out or at least make sure that the online purchase can be returned without any problems. Because the office chair primarily has to do one thing: fit your body perfectly. Sometimes buyers don’t even have to spend a lot of money for it. So it may be that even an inexpensive office chair fits perfectly with the physiology already in the basic settings. In most cases, however, it makes sense to pay attention to as many setting options as possible. This is especially true when several people use the office chair.
