Pros & Cons
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- Reduces back pain from sitting
- Comfortable and supportive
- Free video consultation before you buy
- 60-day return policy and 12-year warranty
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- Expensive
- Unique back support requires an adjustment period
We spend a lot of time sleeping in bed, so a quality mattress is a good investment to avoid aches, pains, and long-term back problems. The same logic applies when sitting at a desk. It's not unreasonable to spend more than $1,000 for a good office chair or gaming chair. The Anthros Chair (starting at $1,897) uses a unique pelvic support system to keep your spine properly aligned. While it isn't for everyone, the Anthros Chair could be the answer to your back issues. The Herman Miller X Logitech G Vantum remains our Editors' Choice winner for more conventional gaming chairs thanks to its much lower price.
Pricing and Options
The Anthros Chair has many options that increase the price beyond its $1,897 starting cost. You can choose from black or off-white ($99) for the chair frame; six fabric or four synthetic leather colors for the upholstery ($299); 10 different back panel designs including five wood veneers ($159 to $298), eight stylized, non-wood panels including circuitboards and esports themes ($79), and carbon fiber ($299); standard or scratch-resistant ($25) casters; black, chrome ($39) or gold-finished ($49) control knobs; and arm-free or 4D, adjustable arms ($149). Anthros provides a 60-day return policy.
(Credit: Will Greenwald)Anthros provides a free video consultation with one of the company's ergonomics therapists before you buy. This allows you to determine if the chair is a good fit. The expert also helps you adjust the chair after you receive it.
The company recently switched its chair fabric to Gabriel Fabrics Athlon, replacing the somewhat rough-feeling Gabriel ShapeKnit material. Anthros sent me replacement cushions to test the new fabric, which I found softer, smoother, and sturdier to the touch.
If you already have an Anthros Chair with the older seat fabric, you can order a set of replacement cushions with the new upholstery for $279. You can also spend $299 for cushions featuring a new Port leatherette, which Anthros says is updated from the previous faux leather material.
The Anthros Chair has four-spoke and five-spoke base options, which is a choice I haven't previously encountered. Every desk-focused gaming and office chair I’ve previously reviewed has had a five-spoke base with a rotating, central pillar gas cylinder. It lets you spin left and right while the casters stay in approximately the same place. The Anthros Chair's four-spoke base option locks the central pillar under the seat and doesn’t rotate. This keeps the casters set at consistent positions relative to the rest of the chair, but means spinning isn't as smooth as five-spoke seats. However, it reduces the chance of something getting caught under the spokes. Neither option is superior.
My four-spoke test chair had a black body with black fabric upholstery, a white circuit-styled design, a four-spoke base with standard casters, and armrests. It cost $2,157 as configured. You'll almost certainly push past Herman Miller prices with this chair.
The chair comes with a lengthy 12-year warranty similar to Herman Miller's products, which is good. Most other gaming chairs have warranties that last one to three years. Secretlab extends its standard three-year warranty to five years if you post about your chair on social media. The Anthros Chair is manufactured in Grand Rapids, Michigan, so you can enjoy a seat that's made in America (similar to the Herman Miller Embody).
Super-Simple Assembly
Instead of shipping in one large box, the Anthros Chair ships in two, with one dedicated entirely to the base. Although this means more shipping bulk and slightly more complicated logistics, the assembly process is a breeze. The chair body comes almost entirely preassembled, with the seat, lower back, and armrests attached.
The only bolt tightening involves connecting the upper back to the chair via a torsion bar that clicks securely into place. The base is ready to go with its pre-inserted gas cylinder and casters. Anthros says you can put the chair together in five minutes; I did it in two.
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(Credit: Will Greenwald)Pelvic Support
The chair uses a two-part back with separately adjustable upper and lower sections for its approach to ergonomics. Instead of using lumbar support like most gaming and office chairs, including the Herman Miller X Logitech Vantum, the Anthros uses pelvic support. This contoured arm is designed to support your sacrum and coccyx. Keeping them supported and aligned with your upper back's thoracic vertebrae encourages proper posture (including the lumbar region between those sections).
Two knobs under the seat move the lower and upper back sections forward and backward separately. They should be set so the lower section sits against your tailbone and the upper section sits against your upper back. This probably won't feel natural if you habitually lean forward while gaming.
Besides the back support adjustments, the chair has many other standard tweaks. Two other knobs under the seat let you adjust the chair’s tilt tension. You can either freely tilt the chair up to 16 degrees or lock it upright or at a six-degree tilt. A tab on the right knob triggers the gas cylinder for setting the chair's height. The padded 4D armrests move up, down, forward, and backward, and rotate between three horizontal angles. The armrest pads can't move left and right like most other chairs’ 4D armrests, but you can move each entire armrest assembly left and right. This is a big contrast from chairs where the armrest supports are bolted to the bottom and can only be shifted in and out by loosening and retightening the bolts.
Unlike most conventional gaming chairs like the Secretlab Titan Evo, the Anthros lacks a lever-based recline that lets you set the back at a deeper angle from the seat. You can still tilt up to 16 degrees by leaning back with the tilt mechanism unlocked, but the chair’s supports always stay at a consistent angle relative to the seat. The Embody and Vantum have similar functions, but they incorporate automatic recline adjustments that shift the chair back as the seat tilts. The Anthros doesn’t, likely to keep your back alignment set even if you lean back in the chair.
A Light, Sturdy Build
You might think the Anthros Chair feels a bit plasticky and cheap for its price because it is built using almost no metal. The frame is 30% glass-filled PA-6 nylon with some structural parts featuring polypropylene and ABS. The nylon skeleton lacks steel or thick aluminum's weighty feel, but it's incredibly strong. I noticed no flex in the chair's frame, from the base to the back section's long support arms. Although the chair has a recommended 300-pound weight limit, Anthros says its structural components are tested to withstand 400 pounds of pressure.
The padding for the seat and back is firm and pliable. The contoured seat's foam is dense throughout, except for two intentional hollows designed to reduce pressure on the sit bones. The cushion was comfortable in testing, and I felt no pressure while sitting in the chair.
Gabriel Fabrics Athlon is the upholstery Anthros uses for the fabric versions of its chairs. It's a synthetic textile that's sturdy, breathable, and smooth. It feels similar to the SoftWeave Plus material used by Secretlab for its fabric chairs, though denser and with a thickness closer to leatherette than cloth. It's pleasantly soft to the touch and seems resilient enough to handle cat claws. It's a significant upgrade from the Gabriel ShapeKnit textile Anthros previously used, which was thinner, coarser, and not nearly as nice.
The Slouch-Free Sitting Experience
I had a video consultation with one of Anthros’ physical therapists, Ashley Williams, who answered my questions and helped me adjust the supports to fit properly. This is a compelling benefit, especially if you want a chair that improves your posture and reduces back pain. It's a feature that the Embody (a chair that also requires tweaking to best fit your body) lacks.
Anthros notes in the ergonomics guide included with the chair that it takes between one and six months to correct your seat position. However, the Anthros ergonomics expert I spoke with said that discomfort should last less than a week once you find the best position for both supports and become acclimated to sitting against them. Although I quickly got into the habit of sitting upright against the two supports, I developed an occasional ache in my lower back, just above my tailbone. It disappeared in a short time.
(Credit: Will Greenwald)True to the company's mission statement, the Anthros Chair encouraged me to maintain proper posture. Once I adjusted the chair to fit me properly, sitting with my back against both supports felt more natural than leaning forward, which I typically do in other chairs. Keeping those consistent contact points prevented me from slumping in my seat. Likewise, the six-degree locked tilt is surprisingly useful when sitting away from the desk. I kept the chair locked in this position when playing video games on my TV, and found it comfortable. It feels natural and produces fewer lingering initial aches.
Final Thoughts
(Credit: Will Greenwald)
Anthros Chair
Though pricey, the sturdy and adjustable Anthros Chair can potentially reduce your back pain by encouraging you to sit with better posture.