Are you confused about the differences between a gaming chair vs office chair? Well, both have their advantages and disadvantages. Let’s compare the pros and cons of a gaming chair vs office chair to see what you need as a gamer.
Gaming chairs combine ergonomics with a sporty and eye-catching design to give the chair a great look and appearance. Besides, the looks and the design, some provide further features to enhance the gaming experience. This may include Bluetooth connectivity, integrated speakers, steering wheels and pedals, as well as many other extras.
Office chairs don’t have these extra features. They rather focus on sophisticated, ergonomic design. This is to maintain productivity during long days in the office.
But in general, all the better seats have features that support a healthy sitting posture. So, when it comes to gaming chairs vs office chairs, a lot depends on your personal preferences.
Gaming Chair vs Office Chair – At a Glance
Gaming Chair | Office Chair |
 Gamer seats differ visually from office chairs. The design of nearly all esports seats is inspired by racing themes or that of popular video games. They are available in various colors with many features build in. Multi-adjustability and their clever ergonomic design make them suitable for long game sessions. Gaming chairs are made for video game enthusiasts and come in different styles from simple rocking chairs, pedestal chairs, racing-style seats to racing simulators. |  When comparing a gaming chair vs office chair, an office chair is generally less visually striking and in more subtle colors. Although the ergonomic design is of the utmost importance here as well, a desk chair may lack some adjustment options such as fully adjustable armrests or a rocking mechanism. A good office chair may also be suitable for playing video games, especially if you are only an occasional gamer and rather have your desk appear more business-like. |
The benefits of gaming chairs
| The benefits of office chairs
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Features any good chair should have
An ergonomically designed gaming chair or office chair that promises comfortable sitting for many hours at a time should have a minimum of features to allow the chair occupant to individually adjust the chair.
Essential features that every quality chair should have:
- Seat height adjustment
- Seat depth and seat pan adjusting – benefits circulation in legs
- Adjustable Armrests take the weight off shoulders
- Backrest, reliefs back muscles
- Back-ward tilt – promotes dynamic sitting and provides relief to the discs
- Lumbar support – additional support the lower back
The benefits of an office chair
Let’s first check out the major benefits of office seats.
- Specially made for people who spend a lot of time working at their desks
- Ergonomics reduce the strain and fatigue in the back to keep up productivity
- Business like executive looks, that makes them fit into any room, whether it is at home or the office
- The expensive models have advanced features. They can come with leather accessories, intricate details, or other exciting features
- Expensive models also provide visual appeal and are meant to impress
Modern Office sitting furniture might surprise you with a multitude of features and designs to fit any budget. If you are looking for one, you should be able to find one to fit your exact specifications and one that is suitable. Chair manufacturers have realized the huge video game industry and when designing office chairs, they also keep gamers in mind. They offer built-in speakers, wireless connectivity, and other special features along with the chair.
Gaming chair vs office chair which is better?
Hard to tell. But as far as serious gamers and esports enthusiasts are concerned, spending hours in front of their computers playing games in a regular office chair wouldn’t be the ideal fit. Even though a gaming chair or an office chair may offer similar comfort and great features, a true gamer may not decide unbiased. After all, many gamers identify themselves with their hobby. So esports fans would definitely prefer a gaming chair offer an office chair, as this is simply what it needs for the complete setup.
Amazing Features of the best esports seats
We have already seen some of the amazing features offered by this special piece of furniture
- Great looks, taking inspiration from many different places and themes, such as popular video games, car races, and motorsports
- Good chairs have 4D adjustable armrests
- Most models come with a detachable headrest pilow and lumbar support cushions
- Very high backrest often winged with integrated headrest
- High Level of Back Recline up to 180 degrees
- Flashy colors and sporty designs
Turning office chairs into seats for gamers
These days, companies are trying to come up with models that work well in an office as well as in a gaming room. These ergonomic seats might look like traditional office furniture, but they offer the functionality of gaming chairs, thereby bridging the gap between the two. Such models offer great comfort and stability.
Some of the best models combine highly ergonomic design with functionality and features that esports enthusiasts demand. They may not be the cheapest but they last many years and your back would be grateful for the investment.
So, what is the difference between a gaming chair vs office chair?
In summary, we can say that gaming chairs and office chairs differ from each other mainly in pure optics and design. One is made for the video game enthusiast in mind the other is to provide a simple professional look for your workspace.
Both of them, when not really buying the cheapest, are of a high-quality ergonomic design that provides sitting in comfort and adds to an efficient workspace setup.
So the question about gaming chair vs office chair and which one is the better one depends much on your personal preferences.
If you are looking for a striking, comfy, and racing-style chair to fit into your game room, then opting for a cool esports chair is the correct choice for you.
But if you want a good ergonomic chair for your home office or a gaming setup with the highest level of comfort, then you should take a look at the high-quality ergonomic office chairs.
The high-priced models in particular are designed with the latest knowledge of dynamic seating. They adapt to the movements of the user and involuntarily stimulate compensatory movements.
What’s important when buying a gaming chair?
What’s meant to be a quick game session can easily last the whole night. If this is you then you want to make sure that your sitting furniture is not only comfortable but also ergonomically designed so you can make it through those long sessions without a sore back.
A modern seat for gamers should combine great looks, a flashy design and ergonomic features with a consumer-friendly price. As there is an ever-growing number of chair manufacturers that compete, the gaming chair prices have fallen. However, there is a limit where cheaper just means you have to buy again soon.
The Components of a gaming chair vs office chair
Regardless of the manufacturer, or gaming chair vs office chair, they are all chairs and as such are of similar construction. It is the good quality of the components and thorough workmanship that determines the seating comfort and the durability/longevity and in the end, the price.
The backrest
The ergonomic design of these seats provides support to the back. It must adapt to the shape of the back to ensure a health-friendly posture without restricting the body. However, many racing-style chairs do have winged backrests. Not every occupant finds this comfortable and may feel squeezed into to seat. If you have a very wide back make sure you choose your chair accordingly. The correct size of a gaming chair is crucial for comfort
As it is difficult not to crouch in a chair, manufacturers of racing-style seats have introduced neck pillows and lumbar cushions that assist the occupant to sit in an upright healthy posture. When properly adjusted the lumbar pillow will force you to always sit with a straight back.
Many of the better office chairs have a lumbar support feature built into the backrest which can then be adjusted using a rotary knob on the side. This adds additional mechanics and thus costs to the price of the chair.
The seat
Many Racing style gaming seats have adopted the bucket seat design found in real car race seats. The elevated or winged sides of the bucket-style seat, give additional support to the race driver when cornering. As a gamer, you may not experience those g-forces but it looks and fits the theme.
Important here is enough width of the seat pan (just as for the backrest) to allow comfortable ergonomic sitting without feeling cramped. The depth of the seat should be such that when sitting straight against the backrest the inside of the knees is about 2 inches away from the seat edge.
The Armrests
Good comfy, well-padded armrests provide comfortable rest for your arms and relieve pressure and strain from your shoulders. Their surface should be large enough for sufficient support for the forearms during play without restricting freedom of movement.
- 4D armrests are height adjustable, can be moved in and outwards from the gamer, as well as back and forward, and can be rotated
- The 3D armrests are adjustable in height, width, and in-depth
- A 2D armrest is adjustable in width and height
- Static armrests are not recommendable as they can not be adjusted to your body
Footrest
For additional seating comfort, a footrest may be an option. Some gaming chairs have a footrest that can be folded out if necessary or be stored underneath the seat. When folded out and having the backrest fully reclined it turns the chair into a “bed” or into a comfy armchair for watching a movie…
The covers
As with any chair, the covers can be made of fabrics, mesh, imitation leather or genuine leather. Each having its own practical pros and cons, important is durability, abrasion resistance, and breathability.
- Fabric covers or mesh covers are particularly breathable and quite effective to prevent sweating. When sitting down it always feels pleasantly warm. A disadvantage of mesh or fabric covers is the difficulty of cleaning. Spills must be wiped off immediately and to remove stains a special upholstery cleaner must be used.
- Synthetic leather or faux leather is usually Polyurethane plastic therefore also simply called PU leather covers. Synthetic leather covers are easy to clean, spills can simply be wiped off without leaving a stain. Low-quality artificial leather may have a strong smell when new and is often not as breathable as high-quality artificial leather.
- Genuine Leather upholstery gives the chair a noble look and ensures a pleasant sitting climate. Leather covers are able to absorb moisture without feeling wet. Real leather is also very durable and resistant to abrasion. Genuine leather covers push the price of a gaming chair.
Upholstery and Padding – the denser the firmer
Polyurethane – PU, with its seemingly endless appearances and applications, is the common material for chair upholstery. As an open-cell foam, with different weights per volume, the density of the foam influences the firmness of the chair’s cushion effect. PU foam has the property to yield under load and deform and to return to its original shape when the load is lifted. If the foam is too soft, the occupant sinks too deep into the seat, if the cushioning is too hard it leads to discomfort through too much pressure.
Mechanics of a gaming chair
To assume an optimal sitting posture, adjustable mechanics are essential.
The seat height range varies depending on the chair model. Usually, it is adjustable with the help of a gas spring. For safety, the maximum specified load limit should not be exceeded.
A rocking mechanism allows the entire seat and backrest to slightly rock back and forth and is an essential feature for dynamic sitting.
Chair Tilt Mechanics
There are essentially three types of chair tilt mechanisms
Simple tilt mechanism: With this construction, the seat and backrest are tilted at the same time. The angle between the seat and the backrest remains constant, it is actually just a rocking mechanism.
Synchronous mechanism: In a chair with a synchronous mechanism, the seat and backrest tilt synchronously at the same time. But the backrest reclines at a different inclination as the seat. Depending on the design of the chair the ratio is between 2: 1 or 3: 1, which means when the backrest reclines by 20 degrees the seat reclines by 10 degrees (or 30 and 10 degrees). This changes the angle between the upper body and the legs.
Asynchronous mechanism: In a chair with an asynchronous tilt mechanism, the seat and backrest are decoupled and can be tilted independently of each other. The seat or the backrest can be locked so that only one of the two can be adjusted. This is a very pleasant ergonomic solution, as it allows the user himself to find the perfect angles for the backrest and seat with which he sits most comfortably.
Regardless of the chair tilt mechanics, dynamic sitting requires that the angle of the backrest is individually adjustable and can be looked at any angle. A lockable swing mechanism is also a feature that should not be missing in any good chair.
The frame
The seat and backrest are load-bearing parts of the chair and as such need to be strong and durable. The best frame would be one sound construction made of tubular steel.
The base
Video game sessions can be exciting and often lead to full-body use and jerky movements. It is crucial that even then the stability of the chair is assured and its base can absorb such strong forces.
The base has five arms extending outwards from a common center, rolling casters are fastened at the end.
In cheap chair models, the base is made of molded plastic with reinforcing struts inside.
However, a good and solid chair base should be made of either steel or cast aluminum.
Casters
Choosing the right castors for gaming chairs is critical so that they don’t slide or scratch your floor. To move comfortably in all directions without resistance, the castors have to swivel in all directions and turn without resistance.
There are chair casters for hard floors and soft floors.
Chairs usually come with a standard version of casters that are suitable for both types of floor types. However, casters that are specially made for either type of floor have advantages. These can easily be exchanged afterward.
Maximum weight
An important consideration when choosing a gaming chair is the right size and maximum weight rating.
Overweight people, in particular, need a chair that can carry their body weight. It must also offer ample space and freedom of movement so one can sit comfortably on it.
These maximum weight ratings normally refer to the load the internal frame, the gas spring, and the rollers can take.
For durability and the chair to last long take a chair that can handle a bit more. If the chair’s rating is at 260 pounds and you weigh near that, you’ll want to get a chair with a higher rating.
Conclusion Gaming Chair vs Office Chair
When you buy a gaming chair take all the above considerations into account. For a gamer the advantage of a gaming chair vs office chair is obvious. It is the high level of comfort that a good gaming chair provides, plus the many additional features that conventional office chairs do not offer…
