Any Office Chair Recommendations?
Posted September 9th, 2009 @ 11:31am by Erik J. Barzeski
Does anyone have any recommendations on a good office chair?
I'm primarily looking for only two things: cost and comfort. I'd like a chair that's priced in the mid-range and which is comfortable. Clients don't visit my home office, so I'm not concerned with looks at all.
The chair I have now I've had for, heck, eight years. It's a simple mostly plastic chair with a cloth back. It's getting up there in years and I'll only really be motivated to replace it if I can find a nice replacement.
Any suggestions?
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Posted 12 Sep 2009 at 11:58am #
Herman Miller Aeron chair is the best.
Posted 12 Sep 2009 at 12:44pm #
I have no idea if Joel Spolsky is right when he recommends the Aeron because I've never sat in one, but he's made two points about it: despite being a cliché, it's a good chair, and if you splash the upfront money over the time it lasts, it costs you less than toilet paper.
Posted 12 Sep 2009 at 3:03pm #
I can second the Aeron recommendation. The cheaper Mirra is great too. I had one in one of my client's offices.
Posted 12 Sep 2009 at 3:05pm #
I was also going to recommend the Aeron chair.
We had the Aeron at our office in Lisbon and I've used it for 5 years, for work plus intensive UT games 😛
also perfect for power naps during those long nights of coding and proposal/requirements witting 👿
Having the choice, would want any other chair. Definitely worth the investment.
Posted 12 Sep 2009 at 3:22pm #
"Coding Horror" had a post on this. Not sure if all the options would meet your criteria of 'mid-range' though:
http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/001146.html
What you would consider mid-range: $300? More? Less?
At work Aeron's were purchased for all employees, that they're quite comfortable, but a little complicated to adjust--they've since standardized on Mirras. Herman Miller released the Mirra a few years ago that's a bit less expensive. The Humanscale Freedom is another that's well-regarded, though not cheap either.
Generally I tend to agree with the sentiment that if you're going to be sitting in it for 8+ hours a day, then it's worth spending a little more--especially if it's going to last a decade or so. Kind of like mattresses: you're spending close to a third of your day in it, make it worthwhile. (Budget willing of course. 🙂 )
Posted 12 Sep 2009 at 6:52pm #
I got my aeron about 8 years ago for $450 used from ebay. Guy delivered it to my personally. Love the chair! Still in great shape!
My co workers who have come over to my place think i stole it from work, heh, but i didn't!
Posted 13 Sep 2009 at 10:31am #
[quote comment="55374"]What you would consider mid-range: $300? More? Less?[/quote]
"Mid-range" is not $800.
To be honest, I was thinking $200 to $400. The chair in which I've been sitting for nearly a decade cost about $180 at an Office Depot or something in Lima, OH. It's been with me to Florida and back up here to PA. It's cloth, has plastic arms, and reclines and swivels. It has a high back and decent lumbar support.
The more I type the more I talk myself into simply keeping what I have.
Posted 13 Sep 2009 at 1:06pm #
My company provides everyone used Aeron chairs and I absolutely love mine... Makes it comfortable to sit in front of two huge displays for eight hours a day. You can get them used from around $350, which seems pricey but pales in comparison to $800 for a new one.
Posted 13 Sep 2009 at 2:04pm #
I've had a Sealy for three years now and have zero complaints.
Posted 06 Oct 2009 at 9:25am #
I bought my chair from ThriftyChair.com. They had a bunch of office chairs that were pretty mid-range in price. I ended up buying a mesh office chair from Office Star. I like it just fine. I found the website when researching for a Global chair, but I just couldn't make myself drop the $800-$1,000 for one.