Gaming chair guide: Expert shares how to buy a gaming chair

What is a gaming chair?

There's nothing particularly unique about gaming chairs, except the style. Sure, you'll find everything fromgaming armchairstogaming chairs that bring you down close to the floorand everything in between. But these days, the term "gaming chair" tends to denote a specific type of office chair with a leather or faux-leather build, a high-back race car-style seat and colorful patterns.

1. DXRacer Racing Series Gaming Chair

DXRacer was the first brand to produce this style of gaming chair back in 2006 and has grown to offer many different shapes and styles — most built on the same race car chair design. This model uses an artificial polyurethane leather with high density foam and a carbon fiber texture on the seat. You also get strap-on lumbar and neck pillows, and a number of colors and patterns to choose from.

Since their inception, gaming chairs have grown incredibly common behind esports teams, Twitch streamers, YouTubers and other gaming personalities — leading to a surge in popularity.

Are gaming chairs ergonomic?

The word "ergonomic" gets thrown a lot in marketing — especially when it comes to chairs — ultimately, ergonomics is all about customizability.

"If I had to pick one important thing, it's that a chair be easily adjustable" said Karen Jacobs, a board-certified professional ergonomist and clinical professor occupational therapist at Boston University. Specifically, she explained, you want a chair whose height, tilt and armrests are versatile, and then you want to actually learn and use those adjustments so you can get that ideal sitting position at a desk. In fact, it's best if you adjust it throughout the day to vary your posture just a bit, rather than staying in one formation. So, in summary, adjustability is key.

2. GTRACING Gaming Chair

There are dozens of chairs using this racing seat design, but with different features. Many more affordable chairs like this popular model on Amazon — whose more than 18,500 reviewers left it a 4.5-star average rating — allow the back to recline but don't allow for the full seat to tilt. If you're sitting at a desk for long periods, you’ll likely want that full tilt mechanism.

It can be tempting to lean forward during an intense gaming session, too, but you don't want to sit like this for very long. "The chair isn't providing the support you need," noted Jacobs. You want to be able to tilt the chair back and forth to promote some movement. In addition, she said, you want some cushion in the armrest and a porous, breathable material in the seat, neither of which is particularly common among gaming chairs. The lower the price, in fact, the quicker the faux-leather will start peeling and the seat cushion will wear down to its rock-hard bottom.

None of this is to say gaming chairs are terrible. Certain models do allow you to lean back and elevate your legs, much as you would on a couch, which will be decently comfortable. Jacobs also mentioned that if you're sitting back, the extra high back support can be nice, provided you have support for your neck, too — a lot of gaming chairs come with neck pillows, though some may be more comfortable than others.