I got one of these:- http://www.ergohuman.net/enjoy-chairs/enjoy-office-chair.html This chair has meant that when I work from home 3-4 days a week my back doesn't hurt. In fact this is now far more comfy than my work chair. The mesh is nice and supporting. Next on the list will be a human scale, but not sure how that is for extended use. This one does the job for now.
I've used the ergohuman quite a bit. My parents bought a bunch of them for their business. And they have a few of them at their house that they use for their home office. Could probably snag one from their storage unit if I really wanted one. I found that it got rid of my back pain, but made my legs fall asleep. A lot of people really seem to like them. I think it just depends on the size and shape of your body.
I'm at the 2.5 year mark and my my Marcus and my butt/back is hurting now. The chair looks like it's in good shape but the padding has definitely compressed. Time to look for another chair.
Pretty much as I suspected from prior experience. No matter how much you pay 2 years is about the lifespan of a office chair. Not sure if I'll ever upgrade outside the $50-80 range from Walmart or Staples again. I actually bought a standing desk recently so I wouldn't need a chair.
I think this is pretty much what we concluded before. They all seem to wear out after several years, typically right around the 2 year mark. Expensive chairs usually get you more adjustments. Price doesn't seem to correlate well with comfort. And you will be tossing them and buying something new regardless. I'm liking my DXRacer chair, but not sure if I can justify spending $500 every two years on chairs. When this one wears out, I'm not sure what I'll do. The market has been flooded lately with cheap DXRacer knockoffs so maybe I'll take a look at those.
I'm thinking about getting one of those 24/7 office chairs. I got one for my work place about 8 years ago and it hasn't worn down at all. It's not sexy or mega super comfy. It just exists and servers my butt without complaint. Sams has this one for $300. It's about $450 in the wild. https://www.samsclub.com/sams/24-hour-big-tall-chair-charcoal/prod1550086.ip I'm also considering the HON Ignition ($350) which is highly rated. This Argomax mesh ($240) chair is on my list. I'm sure it's a cheap 2 year chair but I've always wanted to try an all mesh chair. Lastly I'm considering buying a used Steelcase Leap. A company near me has about 100 of them from a closed office space. They are asking for $75 per chair. The fabric matches the office carpet which is to say it's super fugly but Steelcase sells new fabric for $25. I could probably pay someone $100 to reupholster it. New arm pads are only $25 for a pair. So I might be able to build a like new Leap for about $300. https://store.steelcase.com/service-parts/fabric-by-the-yard/cogent-connect-fabric
At work, I still have the very same Steelcase Leap from the beginning of the thread. It's ludicrously priced at $900 new but probably worth it at the refurb price. The underlying structure is much sturdier than other chairs, and it reclines much more naturally than cheap chairs. Can you just re-upholster it every 2 years to keep like new?
Don't buy a steelcase leap. Yes it's sturdy. Yes it has a ton of adjustments. But it's not comfortable, no matter how you adjust it. It's also completely awful if you are over 6' tall. The leap is made for short people with small frames. I'm 6' 2" and big and couldn't make it work for me. I think you're even taller if I remember correctly? Other than the sturdiness and adjustments, I'm not sure why this chair has the reputation that it does with internet hipsters. Also the $900 starting price is insane. My wife is now using my old leap. It fits her well because she is short, but she also says it isn't comfortable. You will likely end up like me with a chair that refuses to die but that no one likes sitting in because it's not comfortable.
lol true, I can't remember if or when the Leap was comfortable. At this point, I'm basically sitting on the frame with a razer think layer of cloth. That's why I'm wondering if reupholstering it might be a good solution. Sadly, if I want a new chair at work, they are buying those super cheap chairs from high school computer labs.
Went and tried the Leap and I was surprised at how short it was. I would have been pissed if I'd ordered one. The place also had a Hon Endorse big and tall and it was huge. Literally the widest office chair I've ever sat in. It was also $700 I'm thinking the regular size might be as comfortable and I can snag a new one with headrest for $310. The first 3 reviews on Amazon are from people 6.5 and over and they all liked it. This is what it looks like with the head rest.
AHhh the anguish! I got the chair and it's good but bad. If this chair was at work people would fight over it. It's very comfortable. However, it has one critical flaw and a few issues. The flaw is that the seat bottom moves forward but the arm rest don't move back. The product video shows the arm rests moving back but I probably got an older version that doesn't do that. Consequently my elbows have no support and the arm rests hit my desk. The chair also came damaged. It's hard to notice at first but one lever is bent and one arm wrest is .25 inch higher. I'm also pretty sure I got a used product. It's going to be returned but I have to decide if I want to gamble on another one or search elsewhere. I found another chair I like at Staples. It's a typical 2 year bonded leather chair but it fit really well.
It's been almost exactly 1 year since I bought the DXRacer Tank. I still think it's the most comfortable computer chair I've ever sat in. It's very sturdy. I haven't noticed any wear on it. Unfortunately, it looks like DXRacer stopped making it, so I have no idea what I'll do if it breaks. Figures I would finally find a chair that fits me perfectly only to have it get discontinued.
Maybe you can snag a second one and keep it in storage. I'm still using my Hon Endorse. It's been good to me.