How to Find the Right Desk Height: A Buying Guide

OSHA's keyboard guidance says your elbows should be about the same height as the keyboard, with the keyboard directly in front of you and wrists straight. OSHA's position guidance adds that elbows stay close to the body and bend between 90 and 120 degrees.

Cornell University offers a figure for writing tasks: a stable surface roughly 28 to 30 inches above the floor. Treat any such number as a starting point and let your own elbow height settle it.

Because your feet need to rest on the floor, the chair is normally set before the desk is judged. OSHA says the seat is at the right height when the soles of your feet are flat and the back of your knees sits slightly above the seat.

If the desk is too high once the chair is set that way, OSHA's guidance is to raise the chair and give your feet a footrest. Raising or lowering the surface, or using a height adjustable desk, is the other route when the desk allows it.

Height is not only about the top of the desk. OSHA gives leg clearance under a desk as generally between 20 and 28 inches high, and says a work surface should generally be no thicker than 2 inches so the chair can be raised enough.

A thick desktop or a drawer unit under the surface can quietly cost you the clearance you need.

This list covers home office desk chairs, and its table compares the back, armrests and weight capacity. Read each listing for the seat height range, since the table does not show it.

• Seat height range: 4 points for adjustable height, plus 2 when the stated range spans at least 4 inches, which helps a chair meet a fixed desk.
• Armrest height adjustment: armrests are scored by direction of adjustment, and OSHA says they should be low enough to keep shoulders relaxed.
• Casters and base: OSHA asks for a strong five-legged base and casters suited to the flooring, which affects how easily the chair slides into position.
• Gas lift: the build score rewards a Class 4 or Class 3 lift, the part that raises and lowers the seat.
• Seat edge: a waterfall or flexible front edge is scored separately and matches OSHA's description of a good seat pan.

1. Set the chair height so both feet rest flat on the floor.
2. Bring your forearms up to the keyboard and check that your elbows land at about keyboard height.
3. If the desk is too high, raise the chair and add a footrest, or lower the desk if it adjusts.
4. If the desk is too low, look at raising the surface or using risers rather than hunching.
5. Measure the gap under the desk and confirm it falls in OSHA's 20 to 28 inch clearance range.
6. Retest after a day of work, since a setting that feels right for ten minutes can feel different by afternoon.