The Best Guitar Chair For 2021 - Sit Comfortably With Good Posture While You Play

Guitar chairs, stools, thrones, seats, or whatever you call them are an often overlooked bit of kit for your guitar setup. While practicing for hours on end, holding your guitar in a comfortable position is extremely important.

Sitting comfortably will help avoid repetitive stress injuries or back pain. A chair designed specifically for playing guitar can assist with this.

These chairs can even improve your playing. They do so by allowing for better angles of your wrists, elbows, and fingers to put the right amount of pressure on the frets.

Wherever you are along your guitar journey a quality seat should be a welcome addition to your guitar-related hardware.

If you plan on using your guitar chair at gigs or to take to jams, you will probably need something collapsable.

I prefer to stand at gigs but I can tell you there have been many Sunday sessions in the past where I wish I'd had my own stool with me.

Having to use the seating from the restaurant or bar can give terrible ergonomics. I eventually learned my lesson and bought a portable stool and was so glad when I did.

I would also recommend buying a small portable table or microphone stand mount for your mixer for similar reasons. But, that is a discussion for another day.

I personally prefer a guitar chair with a back but everyone has their own taste. If you prefer a backless stool, the Gator GTRSTOOL is our favorite in the sub $70 range. It plain and simple has more padding on the seat than most of its direct competition. The padding is still firm enough that you don't feel like you're sinking in the metal frame which is a common problem among budget guitar seats.

This portability of this chair is one of its strong points. It folds up extremely easily and slides right back into position when you get it out again. While compacted down it gets nice and flat with a small bulge from its padding and the guitar seat. This makes it very easy to stack on top of your other gear in the boot of your car.

On top of its portability, this little tyke is also very sturdy. If you are set up on a solid and flat surface it won't feel rickety. Unless you have abused the chair in transport or you clock in over its recommended weight limit of 250 lb/113.4 kg. If you're a bigger boy or girl you may have to look elsewhere. Make sure to account for your guitar if you are pushing close to the weight limit. A Les Paul can weigh up to 12 lb for example.

As with any budget guitar stool, you don't have much wiggle room in terms of height adjustment. It is what it is in terms of how tall the chair can go.

If you are a particularly tall or short guitarist you should probably aim for a more expensive chair.

Thems the breaks, unfortunately.

Yet, you could get away with a guitar stool like this if you absolutely can't afford something more expensive because of its built-in footstool. It's just not as comfortable as something you can adjust.

If you actually like a little less padding for your tush, there are other options like the On-stage DT7500.

This stool shares most of the qualities that we consider to make the GTRSTOOL great but with much thinner padding.

Less padding can mean less butt sweat, so if you know you play in hot environments often this may be a preferable choice for you.

Personally, I prefer a softer seat. Let me know in the comments what you think. Maybe you could sway me to write a full review for this guitar chair too.

Let's compare this directly to the Gator. The DT8000 is easier to set up as you don't have to pull the padded backrest completely off during pack down. This also means it takes up a little more space in your car though. A fair tradeoff if you have a lot of other setup to do at your gigs.

This chair is equally as robust as its competitor save for its 100 lb less tolerable weight capacity and two-piece backrest support.

If you don't come close to 200 lb and you take care of your gear then neither of these should really bother you.

The extra adjustment of the back support should actually be a bonus to you. You will get even more comfort from this chair than the Gator.

I'm sure most people are gentle with their hardware. I just know that I am quite prone to shoving my gear in anywhere it will fit after a long gig.

One benefit that this chair has is that it doesn't have a guitar cradle at the front of the chair. As mentioned earlier this can get in the way if you feel more comfortable with your feet resting on the footrest. Instead, they have mounted the guitar hanger to the backrest.

As there is no cradle at the bottom you should make sure your guitar is not swinging before you walk away from it. This will eliminate the chance of it tipping the chair over. It would take some serious bad luck for this to happen, but is something to be aware of.

If you are not conscious of your budget, this seat sh**s on all of the others. The others in our list still offer comfort and portability but this seat has so many extra features when compared to the cheaper options.

This guitar stool is portable and packs up and down in seconds. Hence the name Quik Lok. The rubber feet pack down flat and the footrest collapses down on top of it.

The cushions clip completely off so all that's left are the metal parts. These parts can even fit in a big hardware case if you've got one.

Some may find pulling the chair completely apart annoying but the Quik Lok system means it is a quick process.

Just don't accidentally leave a cushion behind at your gig!

As the playing height is adjustable to 9 different positions you will be sure to find one that suits you. It also unlocks a little extra bonus.

Sometimes when playing in a restaurant or bar you need to seat yourself a little higher for the audience. In this case, you can ramp the seat height up and move the footrest up too. This will maintain your preferred playing position while boosting your view of the gig.

One small let down of this guitar practice chair is that it is actually pretty heavy at around 28 lb. The last thing you want while loading in is to lug around any extra heavy gear.

It is a tradeoff that you must think about. The extreme speed of setup and multiple adjustable parameters vs the weight. Which is more important to you? I personally think it's worth the one extra trip back to the car but some of you I'm sure will disagree.

The price point is also something you should consider when making your choice. Are the extra features worth paying around $160 instead of $60. If you aren't strapped for cash I think it definitely is. But, you are under no obligation to yourself if you don't want to spend that kind of money on your guitar chair.

This is a perfectly fine chair for any guitar player but it has a massive price tag. Despite being more expensive it has no real advantage over similar chairs such as the Gator Frameworks or The DT8000. The Fender 351 guitar chair costs more than twice the price of those comparable stools. Still, let's take a look at what is good about this chair.

Where this seat separates itself from the competition is the aesthetics. It has a pick shaped backrest. This undeniably looks a lot cooler than the others but does not really offer anything in terms of comfort.

A traditional square-shaped backrest is much more comfortable than a triangle. It's hard to argue this would not look nicer both on stage or set up in your lounge room though. It has much more centerpiece appeal than most other collapsable guitar stools.

This chair also comes with tweed fabric instead of leather or pleather. It's a good choice for the particularly sweaty among us, however, it stains more easily than those fabrics - not great for gigs with beer flowing.

The only situation where I could wholeheartedly get behind the purchase of this stool than our other top picks is if you're an avid Fender fan. This would actually be a lovely piece for your collection to match your Strats and Teles.

So if you're in love with the way this seat looks and you aren't fussed about the extra spend you can of course go for this one. It won't let you down. It just the exorbitant price tag when compared to the competition that makes it tough to recommend.

That's right! Just your run of the mill bar stool. It has all the hallmarks of a decent guitar chair. It's got an adjustable height mechanism, a padded seat cushion and a mini backrest to keep you in a comfortable playing position. It even has a built-in footrest if you choose to play with the height adjusted to its maximum. Alternatively, it can get low enough for you to have your feet on the ground.

The swivel action may be an issue if you don't keep your feet firmly planted but should not cause too many issues for most players.

The heavy-duty frame is extremely sturdy and won't be break without some serious intentional abuse. The simple black design should fit right into most households too. A nice simple design for your kick around the house guitarist.

You could even have a look at your local second-hand furniture stores for a nice barstool. Make sure it is one that can lower itself close enough to the ground to get your feet in a comfortable position though.

Okay, so this is not a review for any one particular guitar stool. There are so many of these available on the market with minimal outstanding differences. That is not to say that they aren't great, just that they have similar designs and materials.

The good thing about having so many different options is that you will definitely be able to find an aesthetic design that you will fall in love with. Got an SG or LP guitar? Then maybe a Gibson barstool. Prefer Fenders? There are plenty of those floating around too. Maybe you prefer to identify with your amps. You can find Marshall stools too. You get the idea.

One thing I will mention is that it may be best to buy your guitar barstool from a music shop. Amazon has a lot of nice stools but there's no telling if they were actually built by the brand. Most fakes would also be fine, but if you want the guaranteed quality of a branded stool, it's best to shop at a dedicated music site.

Another thing to be aware of is that these types of stools are rarely adjustable. You will have to be happy with the height once you make your purchase so make sure you are paying attention if you're buying online. If they are particularly high, make sure they have multiple footrests and that should keep you out of trouble.

Guitar Chair FAQ

Can't I Just Use A Regular Chair I Already Own?

You could probably get away with using the chairs you have around the house for your guitar playing. You could also chop a steak with a butter knife if you really wanted to.

Nothing beats a tool designed specifically for a job. A guitar stool often has better padding than a normal stool making it comfortable to sit for hours. They may also be adjustable for this purpose too. All of these additions create maximum comfort while playing.

Another cool little feature many guitar thrones include is an integrated guitar stand. This may not be a major selling point but is awesome for those of us that have minimal space in our apartments.

Drum thrones actually make excellent guitar chairs too. They are adjustable and designed to be sat on for hours comfortably. If you are also a drummer and have a quality drum throne there is no reason you couldn't use that.

If you don't own a drum stool but would still rather stick to a office chair or something that you already own, there are a few little guidelines I'd recommend.

• Your feet should be able to touch the ground or a solid foot rest
• Your thighs should be parallel to the ground
• The chair should be comfortable
• There shouldn't be arms on the chair especially if you are an acoustic guitar player. The arms really get in the way.
• A padded cushion - for long sessions

These are boxes that all specialized guitar chairs check. However, you may also have something at home that will do a fair job.

Do I Need To Worry About My Posture?

Yes! I am sorry to let you down but there is no automatic way to fully correct your posture.

A specialized guitar chair may help you move freely with your guitar and encourage correct form. However, you still have to be aware of whether or not you are slouching, leaning over your guitar, or even misplacing the guitar on your body.

It's best to use a guitar strap while playing, even while sitting down. This will help you to keep the guitar in a single position and make it easier to transition to standing up if you so choose.

How Do I Figure Out The Right Guitar Chair Height?

Honestly, If you fit somewhere toward "average height" than most of the single height collapsable chairs will be fine for you. If you're very tall or very short you will need something adjustable.

If you want an at-home barstool they often come in 24" or 30" which, again, either would be fine for an average height male or female. If you're short go for the 24" and vice-versa for a taller person.

Do I Need A Backrest?

Nah! Need is definitely an overstatement. I love having one though, when I occasionally brush against it reminds me to sit up straight.

They're also good to prevent you from slouching too far back in your chair if you stay leaning against it. You don't want to have a rounded back while playing for hours.

Many of the options presented in our top picks have a removable backrest. If you decide you don't want one anymore - don't attach it!

Do I Need A Guitar Footstool?

This boils down to personal preference. Personally, I hate using a footstool and want my feet to be on the ground. Using a footstool makes it difficult to use pedals and stompboxes which for me are necessary for my performance.

If you have a high chair though you most definitely will need a footrest. Whether it is included with the chair or separate. You should not leave your legs hanging. That will give you posture issues and can cause the positioning of the guitar to shift.

What Should I Consider Before Deciding On A Guitar Chair?

Materials

Aluminum stools are a little lighter than steel chairs but aren't as tough. If you are particularly heavy set or you know you throw your gear around a lot, go for a steel seat. If being lightweight is important to you go for an aluminum chair.

Leather and pleather seats are comfortable, easy to keep clean and look good. Fabric chairs are a little less sweaty as they breathe better but they also stain much easier. Both are good choices and just depends on what you like.

Padding

Much like the fabric used, an excess of padding can increase the amount of butt sweat you get while performing. Some may argue that this is a minor trade-off for extra comfort but can be a real deal-breaker for others.

Soft padding can also encourage you to sink into the chair more and affect your overall posture. Make sure you have padding that is enough to create a comfortable chair but also firm enough to avoid bad posture.

Aesthetics

Sometimes it is just as important to have something that looks good. This is especially true if you are going to leave the chair set up in the main room of your home.

You wouldn't buy an ugly couch on purpose so maybe an ugly guitar chair shouldn't be on the cards either. If the chair is going to have a permanent place it's better to get a branded chair or a very nice looking barstool with a footrest.

Final Word

With its adjustable footrest, playing height, and overall comfort, the favorite for us is the Quik Lok. However, literally, any of the picks would serve you well. Even our "not recommended" Fender 301 is still a great guitar chair. If you want to save money, go for the gator GTRSTOOL. If you need something that is going to look good in your home a branded permanent guitar stool should be your go-to choice. Let us know what you decide in the comments or if you have any questions for us.