ErGear

3 chairs in this section

Drafting Chairs

The chair that exists because a standing desk spends half its life somewhere in the middle.

A drafting chair is an ordinary task chair with a longer gas cylinder and a ring for your feet, and those two changes make it the only chair that works with a height-adjustable desk. The problem it solves is specific. Most people who buy a sit-stand desk do not alternate between two extremes; they settle at a perched height somewhere around 36 to 40 inches for part of the day. A normal office chair cannot reach that, so the desk gets driven back down to seated height and stays there.

The foot ring is the part that makes perching survivable. Without somewhere to put your feet, a raised seat puts the whole weight of your legs on the front edge of the cushion, and that is the sensation people describe as the chair being uncomfortable when the real problem is that they are hanging off it. The ring here adjusts, which matters because its correct height depends on your leg length rather than the seat height.

All three chairs are the same chair in khaki, blue and black: 300 pound capacity, flip-up armrests, lumbar support in the back, nylon upholstery, and an overall height of 55 inches. The armrests folding up is worth more than it sounds on a desk with a keyboard tray or a drawer unit, because it is what lets the chair go all the way under the desk when you stand up instead of parking it in the room.

All 3 chairs, cheapest first

Side by side

ChairColourCapacityOverall sizeFootrestPrice
Drafting Chair with Footrest Ring - KhakiKhaki300 lb21.06 x 25.19 x 55.11 inAdjustable ring$98.99
Drafting Chair with Footrest Ring - BlueBlue300 lb21.06 x 25.19 x 55.11 inAdjustable ring$100.79
Drafting Chair with Footrest Ring - BlackBlack300 lb21.06 x 25.2 x 55.12 inAdjustable ring$114.99

Sorted by price. Figures are the published specifications for each model; where no figure has been published the cell says so instead of guessing.

Questions about drafting chairs

Is this comfortable at a normal desk height?
Yes, but it is not what it is for. The cylinder is long, so at its lowest setting the seat is still higher than a standard task chair, and the foot ring will be in the way of your feet on the floor. If the desk never leaves seated height, an ordinary chair is the better purchase.
Do the armrests come off?
They flip up rather than detach, which does the same job for getting the chair under a desk and is one fewer component to lose. It also means they can be lifted out of the way while you are sitting in it, which detachable arms cannot.
What is the difference between the three colours?
Nothing but the fabric. Same frame, same cylinder, same ring, same 300 pound rating, same 55 inch overall height. Choose on the room rather than the specification.