The best racing office chairs for work and play

Office chairs, despite being designed to be sat on for hours, can be uncomfortable and pretty boring. There's nothing more disheartening than walking into an office to see a blue fabric chair with terrible foam padding, that seemingly want to adjust on itself. It probably has one wheel stuck back on with duct tape.

Gaming chairs are, like office chairs, purpose made to be sat at for hours and not feel uncomfortable thanks to soft leather fabrics and memory foam cushions. What’s more, you’re getting double the bang for your buck as you can be comfy during the day at work and then, once you’ve clocked off, be comfy doing whatever it is you do to your pixels – shooting them up or just racing them around some of the best courses on Xbox or PlayStation 5.

We’ve had a look at the gaming chairs you can buy to double up as an office chair.

The best racing office chairs

With a nice thick and extra soft PU faux Leather, the cold foam density is there to give you breathability and comfort. Cold curing foam is meant to maintain its structure for longer as the air pockets inside act like little springs, getting the foam to bounce back into place once you get off it. The way the foam is made to a specific shape also gives it an advantage, normal foam padding is cut from a larger piece so its shape isn’t structural, as opposed to cold foam.

A weight limit of 120kg and a sophisticated rocking mechanism means the chair will recline to 135 degrees.

Neck and lumbar supports are included with the wheels are made for soft and hard floors, allowing you to roll around from office desk to gaming desk with ease.

Pros
• Extra soft faux leather
• Air Pockets
• Large weight limit

Cons
• High cost

Not the most subtle of gaming chairs to also be an office chair but it will offer you support in places you didn’t know you needed. The body-hugging seat is made from a metal frame with hardwearing faux leather covering long-lasting high-density foam.

The chair will tilt back a full 170 degrees, enough to make you think you’re lying down, with a fully adjustable back cushion and neck pillow, you may just fall asleep there, handy for when you’re working super long hours, we guess.

The caster wheels are styled like car alloy wheels, don’t get too excited though because, instead of 22-inch rims, you’ll likely be rolling on around two-inch alloys. They don’t come with an option for spinners either, unfortunately.

Four-way adjustable armrests will help you get just right as you settle into a long day of work or gaming

Pros
• Added cushions for extra support
• Variety of colours available

Cons
• Wheels might struggle on carpeted floors

We get it - you want to be in a chair that makes you feel like you’re in a racing car, right? Well, Sparco makes the Torino Gaming Chair.

If you’re not competing on the latest driving game at least you can be comfy at your desk with this one, more comfortable than you would be sitting in a race seat for many hours of the day, anyway.

It comes with 3D armrests with multidirectional movement, several different ranges of adjustment and an anti-tip device with the backrest lock at 150 degrees.

Pros
• Made by Sparco
• Wide variety of colours
• Anti-tip device

Cons
• Colours aren't exactly 'subtle'

Designed with motorsport in mind the Corsair T1 Race is built on a solid steel frame construction which will recline a full 180 degrees for those moments you want to stretch right back and get angry at computer games. This comes with a tilt lock so you can adjust your overall angle at ten-degree increments.

The 4D armrests are adjustable up and down, forwards and backwards and will swivel inwards for arm support using a controller, keyboard or steering wheels.

The seat also comes with something racing drivers don’t get, pillows. Neck and Lumbar support pillows are wrapped in microfibre fabric for comfort all day long.

Pros
• Solid Steel frame construction
• 180 degrees recline

Cons
• Heavier due to construction

While the name of this makes us think of an angry cabbie shouting at cyclists, the chair is actually a bit more sophisticated than that. Think of this as a sports version of the above Corsair T1 Race, with a wider seat, taller back and deeper seat cushion, it’s a bit plusher.

A perforated PU leather seat back and cushion offer breathability while using a steel frame for durability like the Race version.

Unlike the Race though, the Road Warrior will recline to 170 degrees and you’ll be able to adjust your tilt angle with 17-degree increments. Slightly less control over where you exactly need your seat to be but still there is an option.

Pros
• Respected brand
• Lots of support pillows

Cons
• Looks towards the lower end of the market

A British-made racing-style office chair where the lumbar support even comes on what looks like a seatbelt for a five-point safety harness. Along with a headrest pillow, the armrests are adjustable and the wheels are soft grip to help your chair from wanting to skate around on laminate flooring to rolling wheels.

The black and red design with the B, which looks a lot like a three, reminds us of Daniel Ricciardo driving at Renault. So, if that was a moment in time you’d like back, then this chair is for you.

Pros
• Extra support with straps to hold them in place
• Variety of accent colours

Cons
• Not the most reputable of brands

Best non-racing office and gaming chairs

This super secret gaming chair is so subtle at what it is, that even you won't be able to tell whether you're gaming or working...

It comes at a slightly higher price than most office chairs but with that, you get all of noblechairs knowledge and wisdom. With vinyl imitation leather and micropores for breathability the lumbar support is built in and don't even get us started on how good the stainless steel adjustment system looks...

Pros
• Reputable brand
• Well-respected chair

Cons
• Very expensive

This is the option you should go for if you want to try and convince your better half that you have had to sacrifice a new gaming chair for a new office chair. You’ll have to "put up" with it as a gaming chair, although for the price, you’ll likely want to admit that it’ll happily do both!

Herman is a company that thinks ergonomics is something that should be invested in and that goes beyond some plush lumbar support and headrest. The whole chair is designed to give you maximum support and now that we mainly work from home, we can appreciate a supportive chair, considering most of us were sitting at our kitchen tables during recent lockdowns.

What’s more, this chair comes with a 12-year warranty. That’s longer than Kia’s warranty when they first started selling cars over here. Equated out, it’s a little over £100 a year. So if the chair lasts that long, there’s another argument for you to keep in your back pocket when the cost of the chair comes about…

Pros
• Looks much more like an office chair

Cons
• Very expensive

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