Standing desks have been a popular trend in most office spaces for many years now, and a lot of studies have proven that working at a standing desk comes with several benefits.
Plenty of studies have shown that working at a stand up desk helps increase calorie burning and energy expenditure, which is a good thing. Several other studies have also highlighted that it is associated with additional health benefits.
Sitting at the traditional desk has been found to be physically unhealthy. It can bring about a negative impact on your mental health. The longer you sit on your traditional office chair, the more you brain health suffers. This might eventually cause possible impairment in memory and learning.
Given these benefits and more, a significant number of people are migrating to modern standing desks or desks that come with height-variability. Consequently, many companies are encouraging their employees to adopt standing desk preferences and policies in the office.
To maximize the health benefits of using a standing desk, you should ensure you are using the standing desk the right way by putting a couple of measures in place. For instance, you should work on your posture, core strength, and balance to prevent leg pain and other complications.
One of the best ways to put together a safe workstation is complimenting your standing desk with the best stand up desk stool. A proper standing desk stool enables you to sit in a position between sitting and standing.
To find a standing desk stool that works best for you, you must consider several factors. Here are a few:
Quality: examine the fit and finish to determine whether the stool will last for a long time. You should also identify areas that are likely to fail with repeated use.
Design: since design also matters, you should settle a for a design that appeals best to you
Comfort: the surface of the stool should be ergonomic and comfortable.
Stability: since the stool will be subjected to a lot of pressure when you are sitting on it, it must be stable enough to support your weight.
Height adjustment: a good standing desk stool allows you to adjust the height to suit your posture.
This article rounds up some of the best standing desk stools to help you make an informed decision when making a purchase.
1. ErgoStool - The Best Stand Up Desk Stool
ErgoStool is an ergonomic stool from Autonomous and designed for active sitting. This chair is conducive to the progressive strengthening of your core and your back. Not only that, this stool has several colors to choose from to complement different locales.
2. Aeris GmbH Swopper
The Swopper by aeris GmbH is the first standing desk stool to make it to this list. Henner Jahns designed this exceptional product. It has been in existence for over 20 years and has won several industry awards, thanks to its state-of-the-art spring design. It is made in Germany and boasts of high build quality.
The Swopper comes with a large, round base that is built with cast aluminum and features powder coated paint finish. The seat has a round, convex shape and features an Ultrasuede upholstery. The Swopper is padded and incredibly soft to the touch.
A prominent feature about the Swopper is the spring incorporated into the vertical post. This spring is built from steel and has a powder coated finish. The essence of the spring is to enable the seat move in a circle, front to back, and even side to side. The spring also lets you bounce up and down, which is a unique feature that most standing desk stools lack.
The Swopper allows you to adjust the spring tension in all directions. It also comes with seat height adjustment.
The Swopper has a small height adjustment range, which is one of its drawbacks. The Swopper High Version, however, solves this challenge. It allows you to use the Swopper as a perching stool or at full standing height.
3. Varier Move
The Move by Varier was designed by Per Øie. Although it was designed in Norway, it is currently being made in Poland. It is safe to say the Move has stood the test of time since it has been on the market since 1985.
The Move boasts of high build quality, and parts are shipped from Germany and Norway. Its base is built from hardwood and the edges curve upwards.
One of the exciting features about this stool is its ability to wobble. Nonetheless, the base features a flat section that enables you to sit comfortably without having to worry about holding the chair in position.
The seat is built with three sides, and each of the corners are slightly curved upwards. The seat is also made with high-quality fabric to ensure longevity. It is also padded nicely, a feature which adds to its comfort.
The Move features a massive height adjustment range, thanks to its three-cylinder height options. These cylinder height options offer a total range of 19” to 34”, thereby making the move suitable for a wide range of heights.
4. Focal Upright Locus Seat
The Locus Seat is unique since it comes with a built-in footrest that comes in handy in the leaning position.
The built-in footrest is made from a platform built with 13-layer hard plywood. Black grip tape is used to cover the footrest. In addition, a polyurethane anti-fatigue mat is included. Its shape is similar to that of the platform.
The front of the platform features two wheels to allow for better mobility. The seat also folds down, thus making it easy to store. The seat is padded using an EVA foam seat cushion and has a concave shape that tends to cradle you.
The seat and platform are connected using an anodized aluminum leg. The leg has a wide range of motion, thus enabling you to move in any direction. Since the seat pivots from front to back, you get to enjoy a more comfortable position when you change the angle of the leg.
5. Aeris GmbH Muvman
The Muvman by aeris GmbH was developed by the same designer as the Swopper: Henner Jahns. It has received several industry awards, including Best of Neocon Award and Red Dot Award.
It has a round polymid base, which is reinforced by glass fiber. Also included is a non-slip rubber rim. These features give the base great stability at all heights. The steel cylinder features a 13” height adjustment range. There is also an extended height option with an extra 3”. It is fixed to the base using a robust steel mounting plate.
One of the best things about the Muvman is a large height adjustment range that can accommodate a normal seating position, leaning, or perching. The cylinder is designed with a four-degree forward tilt to yield a better seat angle for leaning and perching positions.
The seat pan has a convex shape and is manufactured from glass-reinforced polymid. A built-in handle is added in the back to allow for easy carrying. The seat upholstery is soft to the touch and is built with microfiber.
6. Focal Pivot
The Pivot features a seat pan made with fiberglass-reinforced nylon. The seat cushion is made with EVA foam. The steel gas cylinder aids in seat height adjustment. The Pivot’s base is unique because it is not flat. Instead, the Pivot features a rounded bottom designed with octogrip overmold grips.
The base of the Pivot is weighted using concrete. Although the grip and concrete combination prevents the base from sliding, you are still able to swivel and wobble in all directions. The lack of tilt restriction in the base provides you with a larger range of motion compared to other models designed with flat bases.
The seat has a contoured, concave shape. It is tilted a little bit forward to provide an open hip angle. When you are seated, you feel as if the seat is holding you rather than you sitting on it. Unlike other seats where you are forced to sit on the front edge when leaning, the Pivot’s seat lets you sit on top of it.
7. Focal Mobis II
Although the Mobis II is more or less similar to the Pivot, it is designed with a stationary base rather than a wobble base like on the pivot. The seat cushion is made with EVA foam, and the seat pan has a fiberglass reinforcement.
The cushion has a concave shape and cradles you when you sit on it. The stool comes with a steel cylinder to help you with height adjustment.
The Mobis II comes with a round, fiberglass reinforced nylon base. The base is designed with a robust steel mounting plate that links the cylinder to the base. The bottom of the base features rubber pads and a rubber rim to hold it firmly into position. The base is stable at all heights.
The seat has a built-in handle that makes it easy to carry or move the stool. It offers a wide range of motion and supports full upright leaning and several perched positions. The seat tilts a little bit forward to yield an open leg angle; however, the tilt range does not allow you to stay on top of the seat when leaning. You are forced to sit on the front edge of the seat.
8. Focal Mobis
The Focal Mobis is almost similar to the Mobis II. The two products only differ when it comes to handling design, height adjustment range, and seat cushions used. The range of motion of the Mobis starts out a little bit shorter compared to that of the Mobis II.
Although the seat cushions of both products are made from the same EVA foam, the foam on the Mobis II is 1” thicker than that on the Mobis. The Mobis II also has extra padding. The Mobis II also comes with a good range of motion and is very stable at all heights. Also, it features a built-in handle for carrying and provides a large height adjustment range.
9. OFM VIVO 2800
The OFM VIVO 2800 features a stationary base with a crescent shape. The base is built with plastic and comes with a square steel plate for mounting the cylinder. The bottom of the base features a strip of rubber that helps keep the base from sliding. Consequently, it is stable at all heights.
The cylinder links to the steel plate via a joint, which enables the cylinder to tilt in any direction you want. The cylinder is slightly tilted forward to promote a good seat angle when leaning or perching. The seat pan is manufactured from plastic and has a built-in handle on the seat’s back.
Thanks to the handle and lightweight design, 2800 is easy to carry around. The movement of the 2800 is more or less similar to that of the Muvman, but it has more tension, hence a limited range of motion.
10. Focal Mogo
The Mogo was specifically designed to be a mobile standing chair you can carry with you on the go. You can also use it for non-office applications, such as sporting events, concerts, and other activities.
You can easily detach the pole from the seat. Furthermore, both items can effortlessly fit inside a backpack that comes with the Mogo. The weight of the whole unit is less than 3 lbs. For this reason, it is easy to carry around.
The seat on the Mogo is similar to that of the Mobis. It is built with EVA foam and has a concave contour. The metal tube is constructed from extruded recycled aluminum, and the seat pad is manufactured from fiberglass-reinforced nylon.
The Mogo Has a 20” height adjustment range making it one of the few standing desk stools that can be used for leaning, perching, and sitting.
Conclusion
Stand up desk stools are a fun and cool new trend that incorporates different standing and sitting postures throughout the day. These stools are a fantastic addition to a standing desk to aid in relieving soreness and stress that result from standing for long hours. More often than not, it gets confusing to choose from the few options you are provided with. This article will provide you with a great starting point when shopping for the best stand up desk stool.
Do not agree with this stool list? Here is another option!
Our Office Stool
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