Starting at $147.30 the Staples Hyken chair (Buy on Amazon) is one of the most affordable ergonomic office chairs on the market. Here at BTOD.com, we typically only review mid to high-end office chairs, but because of this chair’s popularity, we decided to check it out. While this chair is on a lower-end price scale, this could be a good option for someone on a budget. In this blog, we’ll go over the pros and cons of the chair, and if it’s worth the $244.17.
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Is The Staples Hyken Chair Worth It?
Policies
Right off the bat, the Staples Hyken has great policies for a chair at this price range. You’ll get a true money back guarantee after a 30-day trial with your chair. This means if you don’t like it right away, you can simply disassemble the chair, put it back in the box, and return it for a full refund.
The Staples Hyken also includes seven-year warranty that covers everything on the chair. This is a fantastic warranty in comparison to other chairs at this price range, ensuring you have seven years of quality usage of the chair.
Staples Hyken Adjustment Package
Another thing we liked about this chair is the adjustment package. It features seat height adjustment, tension control, multiple-position tilt lock, height adjustable arms, height, adjustable lumbar support, and a two-way adjustable headrest. Overall, you’re getting a lot of adjustments for a chair that is only $147.
It’s tough to find a chair with a decent headrest on it for a price close to that of the Hyken. A lot of the times if you do find one, it won’t have a lot, or any adjustability. The Staples Hyken will give you a decent headrest with adjustability at a low price.
Hyken Chair Overall Build Quality
At the price point it’s at, you can’t expect the Staples Hyken to be a high-end chair. Unfortunately, that means that every component on this chair is low-end. The casters, base, armrests, arm pads, and mesh are all made from low quality materials. We also noticed that the functions don’t operate quite as smoothly as mid to high-end chairs, which is expected from a chair for $147.
One thing that we questioned about this chair are the quality control standards. Out of the box, we found a few imperfections on the chair including staining on the mesh, tears on the mesh of the seat pad, and a bent armrest on one side.
Flexfit Hyken Seat Comfort
The mesh that is used on this chair is not high-end, so it won’t hold the same elasticity and softness as mid-higher end chairs. This is something that you’ll definitely feel when you’re sitting in the chair because it doesn’t have the same type of spring.
Something that was particularly uncomfortable with the Hyken is the pronounced frame. It’s not a very large seat and you can feel the frame on the sides and the front (which is common with mesh chairs), but due to the size of the frame, it’s uncomfortable to move around in this chair while seated.
Another thing we didn’t love about this seat is the front pad design. A lot of mesh chairs put a pad in the front of the seat to give users more cushion and protect legs from hitting the front of the frame. Unfortunately, this leads to a crease between the foam and mesh, causing discomfort for users.
Hyken Backrest Comfort
Similar to the seat, the mesh on the back is lacking in elasticity. You don’t get the cradled, form-fitting feeling that you’d get from a mid or high-end chair, instead, it feels like you’re just resting on top of the mesh. The frame itself is hard and stiff, which may prevent you from moving freely or stretching without discomfort from hitting the frame.
Something that was also noted during testing was the gap between the backrest and the seat. While this may not apply to every user, one said that he kept wanting to move the backrest down, but due to the chairs lack of height adjustment, he couldn’t. This caused the user to feel like he was missing some support in his lower back area.
Lastly, the range of the adjustable lumbar height is only an inch or so, not giving you a lot of leeway for placing it exactly where you want it.
Staples Hyken Not Great For Tall People
For those 6 feet and taller, this chair may not be for you. The seat and arm height will be fine, but the seat depth and headrest may be uncomfortable. Because the chair doesn’t have seat depth adjustment, taller people may be uncomfortable due to the seat feeling too short. As for the headrest, the height adjustment only goes up so far, making the headrest too low on your head/neck and causing discomfort.
When looking at the overall adjustability of the chair and the policies you’re getting from Staples, it’s hard to argue against the $147 price tag. If you break down it down to a per-year price and don’t have any issues with the chair, you’re guaranteed seven years with the chair. Dividing that, you’re only paying about $29 a year for this chair, which is one of the least expensive options on the market.
Because this chair has low-end components and build quality, it’s safe to expect something to fail if it’s being used consistently at around the two-to-four-year mark. This will require a little bit of time and energy in to replacing parts.
While the comfort and build quality are questionable at best, the Staples Hyken is a good option if you’re looking for a nice chair in this price range. From a pure value standpoint, this chair is very fairly priced and it’s hard to argue that it’s not worth $147. (Buy Staples Hyken on Amazon)
Daniel Bellissemo
This chair is absolutely the worst office chair I have ever owned in 30 years. While writing this sentence the chair has lowered itself 3 times. I have to raise almost 300 times a day. If you buy this chair you are absolutely wasting your money. This chair will be out on the curb this Monday for the trash.