Today we are taking a closer look at two of the most popular mesh office chairs in the world: The Herman Miller Aeron and the Eurotech Ergohuman. The Herman Miller Aeron is the OG when it comes to mesh chairs. The Ergohuman isn’t so new anymore, with over ten years of history being sold around the world. Like most of the mesh chairs to hit the market, Ergohuman was designed with the sole purpose of knocking the Aeron off its mountain.
Did Ergohuman succeed in its quest to beat out the Aeron? Not quite, but it did make a name for itself over the last decade. While both chairs are mesh, they have more differences than similarities. Is either chair better for your specific needs? In this post we will compare the most important aspects of each, to help you decide if either is a good fit for you.
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Aeron vs. Ergohuman v1 Links
– Specifications
– Pricing
– Return Policy and Warranty
– Shipping and Assembly
– Build Quality
– Scope of Users
– Seat Comfort
– Back Support
– Armrest Comfort
– Ergonomic Adjustments
– Upholstery Options
Specs
| Aeron Chair | Ergohuman Chair | |
| Manufacturer | Herman Miller | Comfort Seating |
| Country or Origin | USA | China |
| Overall Dimensions | 27”W x 27”D x 36.5-41”H | 26.5”W x 29”D x 46-52”H |
| Seat Height Range | 16” – 20.5” | 18.1” – 22.9” |
| Base Dimensions | 27” Diameter | 27.5” Diameter |
| Seat Dimensions | 17”W x 16.75”D | 20.5”W x 18.5”D |
| Back Dimensions | 21.5”W x 22”H | 20.5”W x 28-30”H |
| Distance Between Arms | 17” | 18.75” |
| Arm Height from Seat | 5.5-9.75” | 5.5-9” |
| Weight Capacity | 350 lbs. | 300 lbs. |
2024 Pricing
The Aeron and Ergohuman chairs are priced at two different points in the industry. The Aeron is on the high-end, with a base price at $920. Depending on the options, it can exceed $1300. The Ergohuman starts at $911. The only options for the Ergohuman are different upholstery configurations.
| Aeron Chair | Ergohuman Chair | |
| Starting Price | $1,275.00 | $911.00 |
| Add Fixed Arms | Included | N/A |
| Add Height Adjustable Arms | $195.00 | N/A |
| Add Fully Adjustable Arms | $255.00 | Included |
| Adjustable Lumbar Support | $75.00 | Included |
| Adjustable Posturefit SL Lumbar Support | $100.00 | N/A |
| Tilt Limiter with Seat Angle | $245.00 | N/A |
| Hard Floor Casters | $45.00 | Included |
| Braking casters | N/A | N/A |
| Translucent casters | N/A | N/A |
| Where to Buy | Buy Refurbished Aeron | Buy Ergohuman on Amazon |
Return Policy
The return policy of each of these chairs is about as close to polar opposites as you can find. The Herman Miller Aeron comes with the best return policy in the business, offering 30 days to try it. If you decide to return it, Herman Miller covers the return costs and there are no additional fees.
The Ergohuman chair is available for return 30 days after you receive it, but there is a 25% restocking fee and the return shipping costs incurred as well. This means that you can expect to pay upwards of $225 to $250 if you don’t like the Ergohuman.
Warranty
The Aeron comes with the best office chair warranty available today. It includes 12 years of coverage, with no exclusions on any of the components of the chair. This warranty covers 24/7 usage and a 300 lbs. capacity for the size A version of the Aeron. The B and C sizes come with a 350 lbs. capacity. If an Aeron needs service in the field, Herman Miller will either send a technician or cover the cost for service.
The Ergohuman comes with a limited lifetime warranty, which has some exclusions. The foam and upholstery are covered for a period of five years. There is a lifetime warranty on the remaining parts of the chair (casters, mechanism, frame, etc.) The warranty is rated for 300 lbs. and for 40 hours a week.
Shipping & Assembly
If you’re looking for an office chair that doesn’t require any assembly, the Aeron is a great option. When ordered directly from Herman Miller you will receive your new chair fully assembled. It ships via common carrier like FedEx Ground or UPS. Both carriers will bring the box up to your door or office suite.
The Ergohuman will also ship via common carrier as well but requires some assembly. While it’s not overly difficult, it will take 15-45 minutes to complete. The parts are heavy, and you may want to consider an extra set of hands to help. The mechanism is pre-assembled to the bottom of the seat which helps speed up the assembly process. In total, there are seven bolts: two for each arm and three to hold the backrest and seat together.
Build Quality
Between the two chairs, the Aeron has the upper hand with regards to the build quality. There is a distinct difference between the Aeron that is made in the USA and the Ergohuman that is made in China. The Aeron is our top-rated chair for build quality, with a 95 out of 100. The Ergohuman is more of the middle of the pack, with a 65 out of 100 rating.
The Aeron is the highest rated chair in our list for a reason. It features high-quality components throughout. When you sit in the chair or feel the Aeron’s components, the level of build is obvious. Even after using the Aeron for close to a year, everything fits tightly, and the chair still moves like new. The Pellicle mesh on the Aeron is the highest quality of any that we’ve tested to date.
The Ergohuman is closer to the middle of the road for build quality. For the price, this is a bit disappointing, since other chairs around the same price point rank higher, including the Raynor IOO. Some of the most obvious differences are the fit and finish of the Ergohuman. The components fit a bit looser, so there is some play in things like the arms and backrest. The molded plastic components on the Ergohuman are nice, but again, they aren’t as perfect as the Aeron.
Scope of Users
The scope of users score is important for many reasons, especially for those looking to buy a chair sight unseen. Understanding how likely a chair is to fit you properly is one of the most important aspects of proper ergonomics. When we score this category, we use a single chair’s ability to fit all users properly. We feel this is especially important for those looking to buy for large offices or shared work areas.
The Herman Miller Aeron scored 66/100 in this category. Because of the way we score scope of users, the Aeron suffered here. While the Aeron can fit 95% of the population with their three sized chairs, single chairs are not able to do as well. Three major areas for improvement include: adding a sliding seat pan, adjustable height backrest and width adjustable arms. All of these adjustments help to customize a chair’s fit, specific to the individual.
The Ergohuman chair is the exact opposite when it comes to adjustment required to do well with scope of users, but even so it still scored near the Aeron. The biggest reason for this lower score was the odd ranges that Ergohuman has for seat height and arm height/width. This is a common issue that we’ve found with chairs being manufactured in China.
Seat Comfort
One of the most subjective things about an office chair is the seat comfort. Because of this, we take a completely different approach to scoring a seat’s comfort. Using the average of nine user scores from our office, we were able to come up with a better idea of how comfortable a seat would be to most people. The Aeron scored 73/100 and the Ergohuman ME7ERG scored 67/100.
With both chairs being upholstered in mesh, it is interesting how different the seat comfort scores were. With the Aeron scoring six points higher than the Ergohuman, I wanted to look at the individual scores. The first commonality between the two chairs was how polarizing a mesh seat is for people. This type of seat is either loved or hated.
One thing that was consistent through testing is users who scored low for the Aeron mesh seat, also scored low for the Ergohuman’s mesh seat. The two highest scores for seat comfort were found on the Aeron, with a 95 and 90 score. The lowest scores were on the Ergohuman, with a 35 (by me) and 55.
When you take out the top two scores on the Aeron and remove the bottom two for the Ergohuman, the overall scores basically flip. This means the Ergohuman rating jumps to 73/100 and the Aeron 68/100. What does this mean? Both of these mesh seats are around the same overall and most won’t notice the difference.
Backrest Support
The second category that we scored with an average of nine users was the backrest. This area of the chair is almost as subjective as the seat. When scoring this area of the chair, we considered how much support the entire backrest offers. This meant chairs with incredible lumbar support and below average upper support scored lower overall. The Aeron scored 78/100 and the Ergohuman 67/100.
Unlike the seat scores, there was a wider margin for the backrest scored between these two chairs. The Aeron chair configuration that we used for scoring included the Posture-Fit SL lumbar system. Even without this added option, the Aeron’s natural curve in the lumbar of the backrest offered good lower support. Adding the Posture-Fit SL added unique support, that is vertical, supporting your spine versus the entire lower lumbar region.
The upper portion of the Aeron’s backrest was a better option overall. The design of the chair allows the user to sit upright and have good upper back support. The added forward seat tilt makes this upper support even more noticeable for computer tasks.
The Ergohuman ME7ERG’s lower lumbar system is one of the most standout features on the chair. If you’re looking for incredible lumbar support, you won’t find a chair that has a more pronounced system. Even when you cheat and lean forward in your chair, you’ll notice the lumbar provides solid lower support. The lumbar can be moved up and down 2”, to fine tune where the support is.
Unfortunately, when you consider the backrest as a whole, the Ergohuman loses points because of the lack of upper support when seated in an upright position. Because the lower lumbar pushes out so far and the upper backrest isn’t in a perfect 90-degree position, you’ll notice a lack of upper support. If you like to sit in a slightly reclined position, this won’t impact you as much as those who want to sit perfectly upright.
Armrest Comfort
Armrest comfort is the final of three comfort scores that utilize the average of nine users for scoring. When scoring the comfort, we looked at two specific areas of the armrest. First, how well do the arms adjust and fit the user’s body? Secondly, how comfortable are the pads of the armrests for forearms and elbows? The Aeron scored an 81/100 and the Ergohuman 74/100.
The Aeron’s armrests that we tested were three dimensional, offering pivot height and depth adjustments. The Aeron is also available with height adjustable only arms and no arm options. The first thing that users noticed, when testing the Aeron’s arms, was how soft and squishy they were. Even though they are soft, the arms still come with a durable outer shell that will hold up well to most abuse.
The arms on the Aeron are attached to the backrest of the chair, which creates a unique experience for those that enjoy reclining in their chair frequently. This is where most chairs fail, not offering great support for the arms in a reclined position. The Aeron’s arm offered consistent support when seated upright and fully reclined.
The Ergohuman armrests are also three dimensional, offering a similar range of motion. While the arms aren’t quite as squishy as the Aeron’s, they are made with a bit softer material. Overall, they offer a good amount of squishiness, better than most of the chairs we’ve tested.
Unlike the Aeron, the arms on the Ergohuman are fixed to the seat pad. This means when you recline in the chair, the arms don’t move at the same rate of the backrest. Because of this, the support in the arms can be a bit lacking when in a full reclined position.
Ergonomic Adjustments
While both the Aeron and Ergohuman are ergonomic chairs, they couldn’t be any different. The Aeron doesn’t include some key adjustment options that are found on many ergonomic chairs, the Ergohuman, on the other hand, has all the adjustments.
As mentioned above, the Aeron is an ergonomic chair, but doesn’t offer as many adjustments as many alternative chairs. Our test chair included the 3D arms, seat height and forward seat tilt adjustment. There are also two adjustable lumbar support systems available. It’s missing three important features though: arm width, seat depth and back height adjustment. Each are key to fine-tuning your chair fit to your body.
The Ergohuman, on the other hand, includes virtually all of the ergonomic adjustments you could want. The only major miss is the lack of arm width adjustment.
Upholstery Options
The Aeron is only available in all mesh and Herman Miller chose to go with some of the highest quality mesh on the market. It is a combination of polyester and elastomeric material. The mesh is soft to the touch, flexible and retains its shape. It has been tested to 200,000 double rubs so it is also durable. The Aeron is only available in three mesh colors: graphite, carbon and mineral. Graphite is black, carbon is medium gray, and mineral is a really light gray.
The Ergohuman is available in a mix of different upholstery options. There are six different colors of mesh available. There is also a combination of mesh/leather and all leather upholstery. Overall, there is a good mix of standard options for the Ergohuman, that ship within 24-48 hours.
Bottom Line
If you’re looking for a chair with high build quality, you can’t beat the Aeron. It is the best-built chair that we’ve tested in 2024. From the metal components to plastic parts, everything on the Aeron fits perfectly, with an impeccable fit and finish. With the best warranty in the business and a great return policy, there isn’t a ton of risk involved with purchasing an Aeron. Unfortunately, not everyone will be able to afford the high price tag, so it might not even be an option.
The Ergohuman chair might not offer the same build quality as the Aeron, but an equally equipped Aeron retails for almost twice the price. If you’re looking for a highly adjustable ergonomic chair, the Ergohuman comes loaded right out of the box. From sliding seat adjustment to an adjustable height backrest, the Ergohuman has it all. The lower lumbar support system on the Ergohuman is its most popular feature but isn’t for everyone. If you’re looking for a mesh ergonomic chair, there is a high likelihood you’ve considered one or both chairs. While each is upholstered in mesh, they couldn’t be any different.
Additional Office Chair Resources
- Herman Miller Aeron Chair (Review / Rating / Pricing)
- Steelcase Leap v2 Ergonomic Office Chair (Review / Rating / Pricing)
- Humanscale Diffrient Smart Chair (Review / Rating / Pricing)
- 5 Reasons Ergonomic Chairs Will Improve Your Back Pain
- 6 Common Problems With Mesh Office Chairs
- 9 Most Common Problems With The Raynor Ergohuman Chair
