What We Would Buy
As usual, everything breaks down to your preference. If your budget is within $100 to $199, then this list of the best gaming chairs under $200 should help you narrow down your choices.
However, if you truly want a chair that makes every cent worth it thanks to stellar comfortability and easy adjustability, you will want to buy the E-WIN Ergonomic. If you need something cheaper than that, the GTRACING chair is a great second choice. Need a more budget-friendly chair that sacrifices some adjustability in favor of basic gaming chair features? The Homall Computer Executive does the trick. How about something more elegant and supreme in exchange for around $150 to $199? The Musso Ergonomic is your top answer. But if you want the cheapest of the bunch just because you want a gaming chair for the sake of having a gaming chair and nothing else, the Homall Gaming is right for you.
It all depends on your situation and reasons. Click on the links to see which one is best to answer your gaming chair questions and needs.
Buying Guide
Office or Racing Style?
There is a huge divide in the gaming community whether an office or racing chair suits better for a gaming set-up. Generally speaking, it all comes down to looks: if you like simplicity but with the slight edginess of a hardcore gamer, go with a more calm office style gaming chair. If you prefer a sporty look, the racing style is an obvious choice.
Office chairs (or at least the subtle ones) have limited customization but have a lot of leg space and provides the best comfortability and ergonomics – especially the ones with back mesh to keep air circulating around where you sit.
Meanwhile, a lot of gamers like the racing style chairs because these chairs make them stick to the gaming status quo; it offers the best in personalization and customization – and it generally turns your gaming set-up look much better no matter the brand you buy.
In the end, it all depends on what you want and what you need.
Best Gaming Chair Brands?
The most common popular gaming chair brands such as Secret Lab, Razer, HyperX, DXRacer and CLUTCH CHAIRZ deliver competent racing and office-style chairs. However, these cost a fortune – much like any accessory or furniture inside the gaming category.
But if you are planning for low-cost but effective brands, we highly recommend sticking to the chairs mentioned in the top 5 – especially E-WIN and Musso.
About Ergonomics
Gaming chairs – especially racing style types – always get mixed receptions: on one hand, a gaming chair makes you look like a true gamer and you can customize your seat to tailor your needs and preferences; while the other always bring up comfort issues, hardened seats, constricted leg space and back sweating.
Office chairs get a free pass since their only flaw is limited customization. But as for racing style, you will need to do some extensive research before you buy; some may cost as much as $399 but does not live up to what Pewdiepie said, others are selling at an expensive price for the sake of its high profile name while others cost less but offer more than the triple-A companies.
Size
Most of the time, gaming chairs are fully adjustable from the backrest to the armrest. It is mostly tilting and leaning action with some occasional flipping and bending. Other gaming chairs – especially the expensive ones – even have a switchable feet rest in case you want to treat the gaming chair as a fully-fledged recliner. Depending on your height, you may need to do strict research on the gaming chair that you like – perhaps the backrest is too short, the armrests do not have cushions or the leg space is too narrow.
Materials
The most common gaming chair material is PU leather – Durable and comfortable enough while retaining a reasonable price; this leather is one of the major determining factors of the chair price. Cheap to mid-range chairs use PU leather and plastic but higher-end seats add some fabric, real leather and memory foam into the mix in order to showcase a more premium product that promises optimal comfort and great value.
Value
You are buying a gaming chair for several other reasons besides long gaming sessions: maybe you are a content creator on social media, or maybe your work lies on your PC and you need a chair that will keep you on your seat for hours without feeling any body aches. To get the most value out of the chair you are planning to buy, it must address these issues.
Although, if your purpose is to be like the rich gamers with NASA-tier PCs, then you will need to buy a gaming chair that costs more than the $200 range.
FAQs
Are Gaming Chairs Worth It?
That varies whether you want to flex how much of a gaming nut you are or if you just want something more to your theme than a regular office chair. Most people buy gaming chairs because of the chair’s representation of their GAMER nature. Some buy it just because they are streamers or internet personalities.
We will not sugarcoat this: gaming chairs are expensive – much like anything else labeled as a gaming brand. But if you insist on showing your gamer pride to the community, then a gaming chair is truly worth it.
Gaming Chairs vs Office Chairs
You may think there is a huge difference between a gaming chair and an office chair. Most of the time that is true but take note that gaming chairs exist for the sole purpose of showcasing the video game culture. Most are built as racing seats because they claim to give you better gaming experience.
However, there are some unnecessary elements to a gaming chair – particularly the grooves and the huge pads along the backrest and seat rest. The reason a car seat has pads on the sides of the backrest and seat rest is so that you experience minimal shaking when you collide or when your car is turning. In the case of a gaming chair, these are just for show. Reality speaking, would you be shaking and sliding while playing? No – you would just lean forward and focus on the screen.
Office chairs are simple: they are chairs made for computer-related work and recreation. And since PC gaming is technically computer recreation, an office chair works fine as a general-purpose seat.
Can gaming chairs be used as office chairs?
You can use a gaming chair for work but it can only be good depending on how you use it – even if it is not part of the best gaming chair under $200 list. A lot of gaming chairs are culprits of causing body aches and back sweating but if you find a proper one – which over more than 90% of the gamers in social media groups like it – then yes, a gaming chair can be used as an office chair. As long as it keeps you sitting comfortably for hours on end, it is good enough.