PC chair on test - how to find the best model for your body!

Westerners sit too much – I’m sure we’ve all heard that before. Sofa, car seat, PC chair – many hours a day we spend sitting. At the same time, everyone knows someone who has a lot of problems with their back. If you stay tuned now, you might not be one of them in the future!

In this PC chair review, I don’t want to slap a few links on you and try to sell you something, I also want to show you how to recognize a good PC chair for gamers or homeworkers and what you have to look for when buying your new seat. Of course, there are also product recommendations to shorten your search!

With a decent PC chair you not only sit comfortably, you also protect your spine including surrounding structures and thus prevent pain. And you’ll really be surprised how different PC chairs from the gaming sector can be!

The advantages of a well-designed PC gamer chair

Man is not born to sit, so it is so important to buy a chair that compensates for as many disadvantages of sitting too long as possible. If you buy the right PC gaming chair for you, you will have several advantages over a standard chair. In the best case, you sit dynamically, actively & naturally and at the same time comfortably, even if you have to or want to work or gamble for many hours.

Starting with small things like additional padding for the neck and back area, you can also adjust such a PC gamer chair to your seating needs. This means that the seat height as well as the position of the backrest should be adjustable, the armrests should allow flexibility and you need a good mechanism that fits your movements.

By the way, another word for “PC chair” is computer chair, or gaming chair. The information on the linked pages is mostly the same as here.

Marco's TOP recommendations - find your computer chair!

On the page now linked, you’ll find my absolute favorites from the more than 20 chairs tested. I have tested in detail and tell you exactly what is important in the individual models and what they bring you. There you also have the opportunity to view the test reports:

There really is something for everyone here: for those who want to save money, those who don’t want to spend so much money and those who simply want the very best. Take a look and find the chair that suits you personally:

▷ To Marco’s Top5 with reviews, pictures, videos & more! ◁

What is meant by an ergonomic PC chair?

A gaming PC chair has an ergonomic design when a good and pleasant seating comfort is provided. An ergonomically designed PC gamer chair can also be individually adjusted for your own body size and adapts to any body shape. As a rule, ergonomic models also have a synchronous mechanism.

Adjustment possibilities of a PC chair

Flexibility is what your gaming PC chair has to give you, it should offer many adjustment options with which you can adapt the PC chair to your sitting habits. By the way, the difference between a gaming and “normal” desk chair is basically the design with some exceptions, so it’s definitely not that only office chairs allow ergonomic sitting. You’ll get to know some chairs from office chair manufacturers in a moment.

Adjustable armrests of your PC chair

Starting with the smallest punbt, the armrests. Adjustability of the armrests is certainly not a must, but still makes many things more pleasant. Above all, height adjustability should be a minimum.

You want to buy a gaming PC chair and the manufacturer advertises the great height-adjustable armrests? Don’t be dazzled. The feature is cool and also important, but not worthy of praise, because even the PC chairs under $200 offer this minimum level of equipment.

Height adjustment is nice, so that the shoulders don’t hang too low or stand much too high when supporting the elbows. However, the comfort upgrade is usually offered more by 3D or 4D armrests, which can be adjusted in many directions. So height adjustment, rotation, moving back and forth and more are possible.

The advantage of rotating the armpads is, for example, the improved controller posture – if you adjust the armrests as shown in the picture, gaming with gamepads on the computer is much more comfortable. Generally, most gamer chairs have such armrests, even in the budget price range – with exceptions.

Tilt, incline and adjust the height of the backrest?

Ergonomically designed chairs for the PC in particular are usually equipped with an adjustable backrest, which is intended to support the back through its shape alone. Ideally, the backrest is pre-shaped and supports you without having to adjust anything in the lordosis area through a discreet protrusion.

Additionally, most PC chairs offer a lever on this side that allows you to adjust the angle between the backrest and the seat, in simple terms, you can fold the backrest back and lock it in multiple positions.

For further movement of the backrest contribute mechanisms, but more about that in a moment.

Lumbar support on the PC chair - a must or a gimmick?

Some models, such as noblechairs HERO, Secretlab TITAN or Backforce One Plus, offer lumbar supports with their chairs, which are supposed to support the lumbar spine, i.e. the lower back. But does that have to be the case?

Especially the lower back is often strained when sitting a lot, you don’t sit down much and small muscles and structures are strained a lot by this one-sided load. Here, the lumbar support should fill the lordosis or your hollow back and relieve the muscles.

Most chairs come with lumbar cushions, which are rarely a good solution. Most of the time, the cushions are much too thick and force us into an even stronger hollow back. The models mentioned above have real lumbar supports, usually even adjustable by means of a rotary wheel.

With the TITAN & HERO, such variable support is also appropriate, since the backrests would otherwise be very straight. Not with the Backforce One, though: the chairs are already pre-curved in the lumbar area anyway, which is enough for many people. For someone with a pathologically diagnosed hollow back, however, the upgrade to adjustable support can also make sense, or for those who want 100% perfection through fine-tuning.

Height adjustable chairs for PC

There are basically no PC chairs that are not height adjustable. This allows you to adjust the gaming PC chair individually to fit your height or the desk height. This feature is also helpful when the chair is used by several people of different heights.

Various PC chair mechanics

Each PC chair has a mechanism, which is located under the seat. There are many differences between the mechanisms, which are also reflected in the price. However, they all have one thing in common: the seat height can be adjusted with the PC chair mechanism together with the gas spring.

Rocking mechanism

The rocker mechanism is the simplest form of mechanism. When you lean back on your PC gamer chair, the backrest and seat move backward with you in the same proportion, following your movement. Think of it as sitting in a solid shell that you rock back and forth with.

This means that there is no actual change in the monotonous sitting position, which does not provide any significant relief for the intervertebral discs. However, the back only experiences relief through “real” movement. If the upper and lower body rock backwards at the same angle, as with the rocking mechanism, then we do move, but there is no movement in the back. It’s still pleasant, though, because you don’t always want to sit up straight and lean back sometimes.

I especially like to lean back when watching YouTube videos or movies. So a rocker mechanism is better than no mechanism! There are 2 types of mechanics for PC chairs, one allows just rocking, the other also allows locking. In this extended rocking mechanism, you can set fixed in many positions, in the normal one, we can only turn the function on or off.

Synchronous mechanism

In contrast, a synchronized mechanism can provide a decent amount of relief. When we lean backward here, the backrest tilts back much more than the seat surface. The result: we have movement in the intervertebral disc area. Only through movement can our intervertebral discs nourish themselves.

For high-quality office chairs, for example, a synchronous mechanism is almost mandatory. And even in the gaming and PC chair sector, there are the first Made in Germany models that come with a valuable synchronous mechanism. One example is the Backforce One.

Where to buy PC chair - online or in store?

If you want to buy a PC chair for gaming, you have several options. In addition to a purchase in a specialty store, the chairs are sometimes available in ordinary stores. In addition, the Internet is also a good place to buy a gaming PC chair. Each of these options has different advantages and disadvantages.

Buy in a store - Don't let anyone sell you anything!

First of all, you can buy a gaming PC chair in a department store, a supermarket or a discount store. The PC chair test has shown that you are usually only offered a small selection here and there are also no particularly high-quality chairs of this type.

Especially supermarkets and discounters usually only have PC chairs on offer during special promotions. Another disadvantage is that you will not find competent staff that can advise you on your choice. If the PC chair is to be cheap, you will find good prices here, but the models are correspondingly worse in terms of quality and features compared to the more expensive ones from the specialty stores.

But don’t let them sell you anything! There are sellers, both in stores and online, who actually have no idea and even praise things like height adjustability to the skies – while every PC chair has that.

Purchase in specialized trade

Then again, you can also purchase your PC chair in special stores. In addition to a selection, you have the advantage that you can get advice from the staff. They can give you tips and help you choose the right model for your needs.

In addition, you will mainly be offered the top brands in the specialty store. Even if it is not directly a specialty store, it is also possible to buy the PC chair in Ikea. There are different departments here, so you can also count on advice in a furniture store.

Disadvantage: Chairs in stationary trade are often very expensive and the store space is often not sufficient to present an actually large selection of suitable PC chairs. You are often limited in the selection here as well. My recommendation therefore:

Purchase via the Internet

The last option would be to buy online. You can go directly to the manufacturer’s site as well as buy from third-party sellers. You could find a PC chair on Amazon or eBay. Both sites offer the advantage that you can choose from a wide range of products. You are offered gaming chairs from many different manufacturers.

You are also guaranteed to find the perfect gaming PC chair for your needs in terms of features. Amazon, for example, lets you sort the search results according to different criteria. It is also possible to search for models in a certain price range. It is also advisable to make a comprehensive price comparison online to find the cheapest model with the best price-performance ratio.

Another advantage is the usually fast delivery in connection with the availability. Thus, if the PC chair is no longer available at one retailer, you can simply look for the model at another.

The big advantage is that on the web, you can read through and view the opinions of other users. There are also websites like this one, where more than 30 chairs have been tested. You can also get decent advice from me: You can write to me via live chat, by mail or via comments.

Marco's TOP recommendations - find your computer chair!

▷ To Marco’s Top5 with reviews, pictures, videos & more! ◁

Buying a gaming PC chair: Which upper material?

A gamer PC chair is generally used for sitting on it for a long time, usually for several hours. For this reason, the model you decide to buy should perfectly fit your needs. While some features and functionalities of a PC chair are only for comfort, others are important so that sitting for a long time doesn’t harm your health.

Another purchase criterion is the material of the chair. It should be breathable, especially if you sweat a lot or live in the attic. If the PC chair is to be inexpensive, a mesh material is recommended for the backrest. This is an inexpensive alternative to upholstery or leather (real and imitation) and still convinces with a lot of flexibility. In addition, with a mesh cover you benefit from good heat regulation on hot days, so you won’t sweat even when sitting for several hours.

Higher-quality models rely on PU and also genuine leather. Both are more comfortable to sit on, and leather in particular has a long service life. In addition, you benefit from a leather cover because it is easy to care for. The covers are also easy to clean.

Fabric covers

Fabric provides the most breathability, doesn’t it? Not necessarily. Many fabric covers are made of polyester, which in the end is also just a plastic. But there are big differences in quality here, and I would say that even a polyester cover is still more breathable than cheap PU leather.

Advantage of fabric covers: They are always at temperature and do not seem as cold as a leather at first contact.

Disadvantages of fabric covers: Their cleaning is more complex. A leather can usually be simply wiped off, but if we have smeared the fabric cover of the PC chair, we have to treat it with upholstery cleaner. This is not such a big deal, but just a difference from the more easy-care PU leather.

PU or imitation leather covers

Among the most widespread are PU leathers, also known as artificial leather. PU stands for “polyurethane”, a plastic that can vary greatly in quality. They are usually considered to be non-breathable, although the quality mentioned is decisive here: On very cheap artificial leather you sweat much faster than on more expensive ones.

I have sat on PU chairs for a very long time, for many hours every day, and I never sweated excessively. On my cheap dining chairs with PU, on the other hand, I sweat very quickly. So you can’t lump all synthetic leathers together.

On the subject of softeners: cheap leathers also contain cheap softeners. Softeners must be used so that the material remains soft and flexible. But if the manufacturer saves too much here, these softeners evaporate after very few years, the cover becomes brittle and flakes off. This is very disappointing and I think it’s a shame when you have to dispose of an entire chair because of its cheap synthetic leather. Here it is worth investing a little more. Then you don’t have to replace the chair after 2 years.

Advantage of imitation leather: They are very easy to clean and look noble.

Disadvantage: They are not a prime example of breathability and there are very many cheap leathers on the market that disintegrate after only 2 years.

Genuine leather covers

Of course, genuine leather covers are the top of the line. But be careful: If a genuine leather PC chair is very cheap, it may be very thin split leather that threatens to tear quickly, or leather from inappropriate animal husbandry.

The animal cover material is not for everyone, but has always been considered extremely high quality and durable.

Advantages: With proper care very durable, pleasant feel and breathable.

Disadvantages: It needs regular care and is very expensive.

Novelty vinyl & PU covers

Nowadays, hybrid covers take a special position. These are mostly made of PU & vinyl and are characterized by excellent breathing properties. This material can almost keep up with real leather. The noblechairs Black Edition, for example, is covered with it.

Advantages: Breathable faux leather, classy look & cheap compared to real leather.

Disadvantages: More expensive than regular PU leather.

Other features of gamer PC chairs

We have clarified the most important things so far, there are now a few more or a few small points that might be of interest to you when buying your PC chair:

The processing

Make sure that you choose a PC chair that is properly manufactured. You can find out if that’s the case in test reports like the ones on this page. There’s a lot of junk sold on the web, so never buy just any chair blindly.

From a certain price range, you usually get better processed chairs with higher quality materials. However, one must not forget here either: These chairs are man-made – tiny inconsistencies like a loose thread should not necessarily motivate you to return the entire PC chair.

Rollers

Casters on a PC gaming chair are generally practical, but you should consider what you are using the chair on. While a carpeted floor still offers you a secure stand despite the casters, you should rely on high-quality casters when using the chair on smooth floors.

Otherwise, casters are not particularly important in my PC chair tests. They are often more visually appealing, but you can hardly find casters on good PC chairs that are particularly loud or run stiffly.

The right look

Even though the appearance of a PC gamer chair is important in principle, this criterion should come last in the choice. A traditional gaming PC chair usually has a certain design. Nevertheless, you can choose between four and also five legs. The latter offer a safe anti-tip feature, which can be important.

Which PC chair is the best?

You can find a good insight into the best PC chairs on the home page: Gaming chair or in the TOP5. Choosing the best chair is difficult, because the chair often has to fit its user and therefore there is no universal best PC chair for gamers.

A very good PC chair, however, combines as many of the positive features mentioned in this article as possible and thus gives you maximum flexibility. It should also look good, but above all the functions are crucial: Your new PC chair should at least have a rocker mechanism, ideally a synchro mechanism.

Seat height and armrests should always be adjustable, and if you buy a particularly high-quality model, then seat depth adjustment and height adjustment of the backrest are also a great thing.

Lastly, the purchase price should match your usage patterns. If you spend many hours a day on your gamer PC chair, it should be a more robust model that improves and supports your posture as much as possible to relieve your muscles and structures.

However, all these points are of no use if you don’t find your chair comfortable – but that goes without saying. Without a real comfort factor, no PC chair in the world is fun!

Are there special PC chairs for children?

Children usually do not use a PC chair for video games, but only as a desk chair. Nevertheless, children should also use such a special chair to protect their bodies and especially their backs at a young age.

However, optimally adjusted models for children are rarely available, children will often not get their feet on the floor or the seat is too long.

There are also smaller PC chairs for kids, but these in turn rarely have sophisticated features that greatly improve ergonomics. So for most kids, it’s either a suitable small chair without great features, or a larger chair with a stool for the feet.

The bottom line, though, is that it’s not too crucial for kids how ergonomically they sit. As a rule, children have an extremely active lifestyle compared to adults, so their backs don’t always need the intensive care that some adults do.

PC chair cheap - tips for buying

A PC gamer chair can also be found in every price range. If the PC chair is cheap, then you will find a number of models that cost less than $100. However, the PC chair test proves that you get much fewer features and you also have to accept losses in terms of quality. A particularly cheap PC chair therefore also has a shorter lifespan. You can usually find such a gamer PC chair on the Internet.

For example, this is the inside of a PC chair that I cut open. Old, gammy wood in a brand new chair? Read more here: Chairs cut up and examined!

Conclusion

The PC chair test has proven that it is generally worthwhile to buy a professional gaming PC chair if you need one. Not only can it be used for a variety of purposes, but such a chair also offers you enough comfort to be used regularly for PC gaming or work. This gamer PC chair review has shown you what you should look for when choosing a model, so that you are now able to choose the right PC gamer chair for you. You can find many suggestions & reviews on this website!

Marco's TOP recommendations - find your computer chair!