Best Ergonomic Office Chair for Short People – Searching for a good chair is a challenging and overwhelming task. It’s become more difficult to find a comfortable chair that will fit perfectly for a short person.
If you are working from a chair that doesn’t physically fit you well then you might end up having back pain, neck pain, lack of blood circulation in your legs and possibly pain in other places.
Using a suitable ergonomic chair is highly recommended. In this blog, we have selected some of the best ergonomic office chairs for a person whose height ranges from 5’4″ to 4’11”. These chairs are highly adjustable, ergonomically built, well designed to fit you perfectly.
To create our guide, we focused on the following key features: adjustability, lumbar support, seat height, and materials. Hands down, adjustability, and seat height are the two most important factors. We prioritized picks with seats that could be lowered even as far as 16 inches from the ground. We also ensured that all of our picks included built-in lumbar support. For the most part, we focused on mesh chair designs for breathability but did include other options such as microfiber, leather, textile, and faux leather upholstery. Keep reading to learn more about our selection criteria and to shop from our recommendations on the best office chairs.
ROUND UP
1.Flash Furniture
If you’re looking for exceptional comfort and minimalistic design, the Flash Furniture mesh back office chair will fit the bill and your office space.
This petite office chair features a ventilated curved mesh back with built-in lumbar support that prevents overheating. This doesn’t only help you stay fresh during hot days, but it also lets you keep a correct posture throughout your shift. Moreover, a 3-inch padded waterfall seat relieves pressure from the legs while providing cushioning for long workdays.
You can also set the chair’s height as low as eight inches from the floor, perfectly fitting your body structure. The list of goodies this office chair offers doesn’t stop here. You’ll also be delighted with padded flip-up armrests and a convenient footrest that will instantly take your workstation to the next level.
This Flash Forniture chair features a tilt lever that can be pushed in to lock the backrest in an upright position, or alternatively it can be pulled out to activate the rocking motion.
However, the only flow you might notice in this chair is that the height of the armrests can’t be adjusted. But at least you can flip them up, right? In any case, if armrests bother you or you’re just looking for a space saving chair, then you might want to take a look at the armless office chairs we’ve reviewed.
Pros & Cons
- Satisfy all the professionals in the office with a high standing desk, with this ergonomic drafting stool with flip-up arms. The contemporary high back draft chair serves as your dual office chair, to be enjoyed as an armless chair or with arms
- Ventilated curved back provides lumbar support and breathability
- Full swivel seat, modernized height adjustable foot ring, pressure relieving contoured seat with waterfall edge
- Tilt lever - push in to lock in an upright position; pullout to activate rocking motion, while tilt tension knob controls tilt resistance
- PRODUCT MEASUREMENTS >>> Overall Size: 27"W x 27"D x 42-49.5"H | Seat Size: 20"W x 19"D x 21.5-29"H | Back Size: 17-17.75"W x 21"H | Arm Size: 30.75-38.5"H from floor; 6.5"H from seat | Foot Ring Size: 20" Diameter
2.Ergousit Home
This office chair for petite people by Ergousit features an interesting butterfly shaped backrest design that not only enhances your overall comfort while sitting, but it is also made to fit most interior styles. More specifically, the S-curve back frame perfectly adapts to the human body, fitting the spine and ultimately allowing you to sit for several hours each day without experiencing any pressure or discomfort.
The chair has a ton of adjustable features included which help you find and keep a comfortable seating position. That’ll help you reduce back and neck pain. These adjustments include height customization, which allows the chair to go as low as 15”, and a rocking mechanism that lets the chair tilt from 90 degrees to 110 degrees. Plus, the curved headrest, made of mesh fabric, provides head and neck support while you work.
As for the seat cushion, included in the chair we found a thick cushion made of high-density foam that is supposed to keep its original W-shaped design to provide a larger support area while dispersing pressure on your hips and legs.
Last but not least, the breathable mesh used on the backrest enhances air circulation to prevent heat from accumulating.
As a negative note, we noticed that if you sit in the chair leaning all the way back the armrests might result too far apart to actually be 100% comfortable.
Pros & Cons
- 【Ergonomic Office Chair with Lumbar Support】The ergonomic back design of the home office chair provides good lumbar support to minimize back problems and encourage good posture. No need to worry about horrible ergonomic issues with unsupported posture and position caused by Full-time work. Simple and stylish shape, exquisite appearance suitable for any occasion-office, meeting room, home.
- 【Solid Home Office Construction】This ergonomic office chair has explosion-proof hydraulic cylinder at international standards, heavy-duty metal base with smooth-rolling castors make a superb stable structure. No squeaks either when reclining back and forth or swiveling. (Maximum weight capacity: 250LBS)
- 【Convenient Flip-up Armrest】Another plus with this desk chairs is having the Flip-up armrests, it's a great feature to have to depend on your need. Being able to lift up the arms makes it easy to tuck in and store under a table or desk, easily saving precious space.
- 【Breathable Mesh Back and Comfortable Seat Cushion】The cushioning of the seat and the netted comfortable back of the home office desk chairs are all made of upgrade materials. High-density mesh is very breathable and not easy to tear. The large and thick seat cushion is made of high-quality foam, which is high resilience and never deform.
- 【Well Packaged and Quick Delivery】All parts are packaged well with the bubble wrap protected it well enough, ensuring all the parts are intact with no damage to the fabric or structure. Our professional delivery service guarantees that the chair will be delivered as soon as possible.
- 【Responsible Customer Service and Easy Assemble 】The task chair is equipped with easy installation tools and clear Instructions. You only need 10-15 mins to assemble it. We provide 5 year warranty and 24 hour online customer service, if you have any issue with our chairs, please do not hesitate to contact us.
3.KOLLIEE Mid
Other than offering a variety of customizable features, this petite chair by Kolliee caught our attention thanks to its good price for value ratio. For less than $120 you can purchase an ergonomic office chair with an adjustable height mechanism that can make the chair go as low as 15” to help you find the most comfortable position to work in.
Speaking of comfort, the chair was designed with a human-oriented ergonomic construction, meaning that the lumbar support will provide back support throughout the day to effectively reduce sitting-related back pain or stress.
The backrest is entirely made of high-density mesh to allow air to circulate freely, while the seat provides a high-resilience foam cushion to keep pressure off your legs. Compared to other foam cushions we’ve found during our search for the best office chair for short people, we think this one is quite durable and built to last without losing its shape over time.
Lastly, we’d like to mention that even though the armrests aren’t adjustable nor padded, they can be flipped up in case you need to store the chair or if they just bother you while working.
Pros & Cons
- SWIVEL, ADJUSTABLE HEIGHT MESH OFFICE CHAIR: 360 degree swivel, adjustable height mechanism, flip up armrests.
- ERGONOMIC OFFICE CHAIR: This office chair designed with human-oriented ergonomic construction, providing back support to reduce back pain caused by long time sitting.
- HIGH QUALITY OFFICE CHAIR: Our office chair is high quality, environmentally that comes from a responsible manufacturer.
- SUPERIOR QUALITY MATERIALS: American-made high density mesh, high resilience foam cushion, high quality gas lift cylinder. All materials are in good quality, durable, and not easy to deform.
- EASY INSTALLATION: Our office chair is easy to install. We offer installation instruction and video to help you.
4.NOUHAUS Ergo3D
This stylish and modern ergonomic chair is a real gem if your budget isn’t limited. If you’re looking for a chair that would provide you with the ultimate ergonomic comfort for your body and life during workdays, you’ll be more than satisfied with this choice. And yes, as a petite person, you won’t be disappointed too.
With the 18.5~22.4 inches from the ground to the seat, you’ll find this chair extra comfortable, if not the most comfortable chair you’ve ever owned. Plus, the exclusive Ergo3D lumbar support system will accommodate your tiny body structure perfectly. Additionally, the headrest can be adjusted to support your neck regardless of which position you’re sitting in.
The backrest of the chair, as well as the headrest, are made of breathable mesh to reduce heat and provide optimal air flow.
And we almost forgot to mention that this office chair features a super-lounge tilt. So you’ll have up to 135° of tilt to keep you in the Ergo3D Comfort Zone for your next task or to simply lounge back. It’s hard to beat that, isn’t it?
Although this chair isn’t cheap, we do need to mention an additional set of Blade Castors is included in the price.
The only thing you might find a bit inconvenient is that the armrests move if you get up from or into the chair from any angle other than perfectly straight.
Pros & Cons
- CONFORMS TO YOUR LIFE: With it’s 4D Adjustable Armrest and Lumbar System, ElastoMesh, 135 Degree Back Tilt, Smooth HydraLift, Dual Castors (and a set of hardwood floor Blade Castors) – it’s easy to think the Ergo3D is from the future, but instead it’s evolved Ergo Seating at its finest and it’s here now.
- EASE INTO WORK, OR PLAY: Mesh Headrest adjusts up and down while the 4D Adjust Arms go forwards, back, up, down, side to side, and rotate for the best fit to your body. 3D Lumbar Support hugs your back, while the seat glides up and down for the ultimate in customized comfort in the office, or in front of your game!
- SOFT HD OFFICE CHAIR: Our breathable ElastoMesh provides optimal airflow to avoid sweating and sticking. But it’s also smooth, and nothing like sitting on wire like many of the chairs you’ll see today. And while it’s good to take regular breaks, the Ergo3D is so comfy you’ll forget you’re even working.
- HEAVY DUTY: Our 5-Point Base with dual castors gives greater stability and strength over common 4-Point, single castor chairs. And our strong iron base makes this heavy-duty office chair ideal for adults up to 275 lb. We also give a set of blade wheels – smooth as silk on hardwood.
- SUPER-LOUNGE RECLINE: Settle back, because you have up to 135° of tilt to keep you in the perfect position for your next task, or to simply lounge back and admire how smart you are for finding such a remarkable ergonomic chair. Try the Ergo3D and feel the difference it makes to your life.
5.KERDOM
Another great ergonomic chair for short people we found is this space-saving chair by Kerdom. In terms of comfort, it offers three support points (back, hips and hands), to help you keep a correct posture when sitting. Moreover, the height can be adjusted from 15.4” up to 18.9” to specifically suit petite people.
Whenever you need to take a small break and relax, the chair’s 90-125 degree rocking mechanism will be just what you need. And when you want to sit upright, the adjustable lumbar support will constantly make sure you won’t sit in an unhealthy position.
This chair comes in handy whenever you need to save space because thanks to its small dimensions and flip-up armrests you’ll be able to make it fit under any kind of desk. Plus, its simple design can fit close to any interior.
This chair has a light breathable mesh back to help you survive hot summer days in the office. The material was used on the backrest as well as the seat cushion to keep you fresh during the day. It’s a reliable and sturdy office chair for people with a petite physique and it comes in 6 different color options. On the negative side, the armrests aren’t padded and they can’t be adjusted in height or width.
Pros & Cons
- 【Ergonomic Office Chair】 The office chairs are designed with human-oriented ergonomic construction, provides comfortable support to help you keep a relaxed posture in a long time working. Easier to disperse pressure and relieve muscle fatigue.
- 【Comfortable and Safety】 The computer desk chair is made of the high-density and breathable mesh back with lumbar support and thick cushion to provide you the most comfortable posture. The thickened explosion-proof seat plate give you more comfort and double coverage. Max capacity: 250 lbs.
- 【Convenient Storage】 The mesh office chair comes with adjustable padded armrests which can be flipped up or down. It saves your space and can be easily stored. Suitable for office, living room, study room, meeting room, etc.
- 【Multi Function】 Pneumatic seat height adjustment; Tilt lock function(angle adjustable); 360 degree swivel; Solid rolling silencer casters for smooth movement.
- 【Easy to Assemble】 We offer installation instruction and video to help you. It usually takes about 10-20 minutes to assemble. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
6.Modway EEI-757-BLK
While chairs with lower seat adjustment ranges are ideal for shorter people, this assumes that all short people are working at standard-height desks. Yet, we know this isn’t always the case. So, if you’re working at a taller table like a drafting desk, or like to work at a standing desk, you’re going to want a chair with a higher height adjustment range.
We like the Modway drafting chair because it’s one of the few office chairs that can still accommodate shorter people while also providing a large eight-inch height adjustment range. Through the use of gas cylinder controls, you can adjust your seat height from 21.5 to 29.5 inches. We like that you still get a breathable mesh back with built-in lumbar support out of this adjustable drafting chair. And since this is one of the best drafting chairs, you’ll get a built-in foot ring which can give you a place to rest your feet, and make you less reliant on needing a chair that allows you to firmly place your feet on the floor.
Pros & Cons
- ERGONOMIC OFFICE CHAIR - Featuring reliable ergonomic support, Articulate comes with a breathable mesh back, passive lumbar support, and generously padded and contoured 6” thick mesh seat cushion
- RELIABLE COMFORT - Designed with productivity in mind, Articulate is perfect for everyday use. Sturdy and supportive, this executive office chair holds up to 331 lbs and comes in a variety of colors
- ADJUSTABLE SEATING - Articulate is a computer chair that easily adjusts to your needs with height adjustable armrests, one-touch chair height adjustment, 360 degree swivel, and a tilt and lock system. Seat : 18 - 22"H
- OFFICE UPDATE - Refresh your office space with this versatile choice for computer desks and workstations. Enjoy mobility over carpeted or hardwood floors with five dual-wheel casters
- OFFICE CHAIR MEASUREMENTS - Product Dimensions: 26.5"L x 26"W x 34 - 39"H; Armrest Height: 27.5”H - 32"H. Backrest Height- 22 H inch. Cushion Thickness-6 inch. Floor to top of Bacrest- 37 - 41.5 H inches, Seat To Top of Backrest- 22 inch
How We Decided
Picking an office chair is all about finding the one most likely to keep you comfortable after extended periods. And this is especially true when you’re shopping for a chair and are shorter than average height. To create our guide, we focused on the following key features — adjustability, lumbar support, seat height, and materials.
All of our recommendations featured adjustability specifically in customizing seat height. But if you want full customization, you’ll want to look for chairs that allow for backrests that can be independently raised or lowered, back angles, and adjustable armrests.
Lumbar support is another key feature that is fairly common when shopping for an ergonomic office chair. All of our picks come with built-in lumbar support. But another factor to consider is breathability, which ties into materials. You’ll note that the majority of our recommendations feature a mesh-combination chair with a mesh backrest and a padded seat. This option allows for some of the best ventilation while still providing lumbar support and a comfortable seat. Still, you can find fully padded backrests or chairs made from leather, faux leather, or other fabric upholstery. Just keep in mind that those chairs may not be as breathable.
Of course, seat height is going to be an important issue — especially for shorter people. Picking the wrong seat height range could leave you working in a chair where your feet don’t touch the ground. We prioritized options that offered a lower seat adjustment range. This means that we looked for chairs that could be adjusted to heights of at least 18 inches or lower from the ground to the base of the seat.
Best Office Chair for Short People Buying Guide
The Most Important Features to Consider
- Adjustability
Hands down, one of the most important features that you’ll need to prioritize if you’re shorter is a chair with adjustable height. This will ensure that you can properly position the seat height so that you’re able to maintain ergonomic posture as you work. You should be able to adjust not just the seat height, but also the backrest height, and armrests. In some instances, you can also find seats that allow you to control the forward tilt and pitch of the seat. - Seat Height
Most office chairs feature an adjustable seat height. The standard seat height range is between 18 to 22 inches. For people who are shorter, an ideal seat should give you the ability to lower your seat to at least 18 inches tall if not lower. The goal should be for you to find a comfortable position where you’re able to comfortably work at a desk and have your feet firmly flat on the floor. - Lumbar Support
Regardless of height, everyone should prioritize their back health. This means investing in a seat with proper lumbar support for your lower back. - Material
Office chairs are made in a variety of materials which include real leather, faux leather, fabric, mesh, and even plastic. While mesh is the most breathable, the material can also offer the least support if it isn’t paired with a cushioned seat or a backrest with built-in lumbar support.
What is the best office chair for a short person?
The best office chair is going to be one with seat height adjustment that allows for customizing the seat height to within 18 inches from the floor to the seat. In our guide, we prioritized those types of chairs with a focus on chairs that offered even lower seat adjustments between 16 to 17 inches at their lowest settings. Our Top Pick, the Flash Furniture Mid-Back Ergonomic Office Chair is a great option that can be adjusted to as low as 17 inches.
What is the best office chair for sitting long hours?
If you’re going to be sitting for long periods, you’ll want a chair that offers a waterfall edge, as well as something that is well padded to provide additional comfort. From our guide, the Best Quality pick from Serta would be ideal since it’s a fully padded chair with a waterfall edge that’s designed to mimic the comfort and support you would get from a body pillow.
How do I know what office chair will fit?
You’ll want to look for a few key features when shopping for a new office chair. First, the backrest should be adjustable, with the ability to comfortably follow the shape of your spine. You should be able to adjust the seat height so that your feet rest flat on the floor. You should also be able to adjust the armrests so that you can work with relaxed shoulders. And your arm height should be able to match the height of your desk.
Are mesh office chairs better?
There are benefits and drawbacks to mesh office chairs. On the one hand, they’re one of the most breathable options, which can be important if you spend long periods sitting in a chair. But sometimes cheaper mesh-based chairs lack proper support and can lead to sagging over time. A good option is to pick a mesh combination seat with built-in lumbar support. A combination seat will usually feature a padded cushioned seat that’s either upholstered in mesh or fabric and a mesh backrest with the built-in lumbar support.
The Benefits of an Office Chair for Short People
Choosing an ergonomic chair for short people isn’t always the same as selecting a regular office chair. Office chairs for a petite person offer some specific benefits than can greatly improve the overall comfort for short people and that’s why here we’ve listed some of the main pros that come with this kind of chairs:
- Wide range of adjustments: Ergonomic chairs for short people usually include a wide range of adjustments that allow the users to customize features such as the seat tilt or armrests height.
- Adjustable height: One of the most important benefits is the option to adjust the chair’s height. By adjusting the height, a short person can lower the chair as they see fit.
- Adjustable seat depth: Seat depth is often overlooked, however it is an essential part of your comfort because if the seat pan is too deep it might result in circulation problems for short people.
- Lumbar support: When talking about office chairs, lumbar support is always important as it allows you to keep a healthy posture when sitting.
- Armrests’ width: A petite person might find a chair’s armrests to be too far apart, resulting in an uncomfortable working experience. To solve the problem, some chairs let you adjust the armrests’ width.
Is a Petite Office Chair Worth It?
Picking a good office chair for short people can take a while. However, once you lay your eyes on one of the chair models, make sure you check its seat height, width, and depth. If the chair is too big for you, you’ll feel discomfort throughout your workdays and have less motivation and energy to finish your daily tasks.
Of course, there’s no single best office chair that would fit every petite person. Yet, it’s still possible to find the one that would be the most comfortable for your tiny body type.
We hope that our comprehensive guide to the top nine best office chairs for short people will help you better understand all the main chair specifications and make the right purchase. If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to let us know.
What is a good seat height for short people?
If you’re around 5’6” then you should look for a seat height of 16”, while if you’re 5’2” you should try to go for 15”. In case you’re shorter than 5’2” then we recommend a chair that can go as low as 14”.
I like a chair but it doesn’t go as low as I need. What can I do?
If you fell in love with a chair that can’t be lowered as much as you need then that’s not an irresolvable problem. If the chair’s height doesn’t quite suit your needs, you can always use a footrest to make sure your feet won’t dangle off the ground.
What is a good desk height to fit a chair for short people?
When talking about chairs for petite people we must not forget that another important factor is the height of your desk. Generally speaking, when typing on a computer you want your desk to be about 8” higher than your seat height. This means that if your seat height is 15” your desk should be around 23” high.
How We Review: Our Office Chair Ratings Methodology
At Overheard on Conference Calls, we take pride in how we review office chairs. Our team of office chair experts spend hours researching and reviewing dozens of products before they even start writing their review or article. Our goal is to bring you honest and unbiased information to help you make an informed choice that will be the best for you. Our recommendations are not for sale and they are not influenced by any of the manufacturers we review.
When reviewing an office chair, there are numerous factors we analyze to determine our recommendations. Here are our four most important:
- Comfort: Comfort is key to a good office chair. It’s likely you’ll be sitting in it for hours so you’ll want something that won’t cause you aches and pains after hours of use. We gauge comfort by testing for 4+ hours as well as looking at the thickness of the seat cushion and its material.
- Durability: Not all office chairs are built the same. Our durability factor looks at the quality of the materials and how sturdy the chair is after assembly. Because we have a limited tested period, we also conduct customer research of longtime users.
- Lumbar Support: While this is an ergonomic feature, we made this its own separate rating factor because of how important it is to your overall posture, health, and comfort. We analyze each chair for its lumbar support or lack thereof.
- Ergonomic Features: In addition to lumbar support, we also look at other ergonomic features such as the armrests, height adjustment, reclining, seat ergonomics, and more. The better it is for your ergonomics and the more features/adjustability, the better.
Why isn’t price included on that list? Fair question! We do consider price in the order of our recommendations but because everyone has their own budget in mind, we won’t rule a chair in or out just because it has premium or budget price.
Our team has researched and reviewed hundreds of chairs and we’re confident in our recommendations. We strive to only recommend the best products and we periodically refresh our reviews and rankings.
WRAP UP
Best Ergonomic Office Chair for Short People – The selection of office chairs for petite and short people can feel limited. There certainly isn’t going to be as many options as standard office chairs, but there are things that you can do to expand your selection. Things like a footrest and keyboard tray can be amazing tools. An electric height-adjustable desk can also be a game changer for a lot of people. These will make the seat height less of a problem.
If there isn’t a chair on this list that will work for your needs, then make sure to take our “7 Things to Consider” with you on your search. If you are armed with the knowledge of what to look for and what to avoid, you should be able to find the best chair for your needs.
One request that we have been getting quite a bit at BTOD.com is recommendations for chairs for short or petite people. It can be difficult to find small chairs. Manufacturer specs can often be tough to find, and even when you can, the choices are pretty limited.
Below is a list of five chairs that I feel are nice options if you need an office chair for a short or petite person. I am defining short as 5’ 6” and under. These chairs all feature dimensions that are smaller than standard office chairs.
I also recommend checking out my seven things to consider when shopping for these chairs; you can find them right after the final chair in the list. This information will help you on your quest to find a new office chair. It also helps to explain why I chose the chairs featured in this list.
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