Embody Chair, Charcoal Rhythm

As a 14 year owner of a Herman Miller Aeron, I thought I would see if the Embody was an improvement. Big mistake, it is a huge improvement for me. Overall, the Aeron was great, but the lumbar support could have been better and sitting cross-legged could be uncomfortable due to the thick frame. I tried the Embody at a local dealer, and with a quick trial, it seemed slightly more comfortable that the new Aeron. Despite the lack of explicit lumbar support, the back support was superior. Also, sitting cross-legged was much better. I purchased the chair (Rhythm fabric, all black) via Amazon. It arrived promptly and was easy to assemble. At first it felt great, but then I started imagining that i could feel the support fingers. I then discovered that the back tilt adjustment does alter the curvature and lumbar support of the back. That changed everything. Once I adjusted the seat back, I can say that it is nearly perfect. The back is flexible so if you sit off center, it gives some. The seat has little padding but is constructed like a mattress. It seems to adapt to your shifting position. So, it is possible to shift around in the chair and still get good back and seat support. This is impossible with the Aeron and most other chairs I have tried, because they force you into one position because the back does not flex. The Embody seat is very comfortable because it lacks a frame hard frame and sitting single (one foot under the other leg) or double cross leg. The Aeron could be painful doing this. My only fear is that my wife who was inheriting my Aeron (which is still good as new after 14 years), will try it and want one. The only con is the price, but with the warranty it is not really expensive when you compare to $100-$200 chairs that are uncomfortable, and break within a year or 2.

This was my 2nd embody chair purchased. Because of Covid I am splitting tine between home and office. After a week at home without this chair, I recognized how spoiled I was sitting in it all day. This chair is by no means a miracle cure for back pain, but it will definitely take the edge off of sitting all day. FYI, the original that I bought was back in 2012, and it still works perfectly and is very comfortable. You do need to tighten the bolts occasionally, I usually go around it once a year to make sure everything is secure.

So I ordered this chair sight unseen, for work from home during the pandemic. My use case was totally for work from home. It arrived fully assembled, but would not raise up. I emailed Herman miller, and they sent me back formal instructions to solve the problem. So apparently that problem is so common that they have written instructions at the ready. If you receive the chair and you cannot make it go up and down, then you need to put your feet on the base hold down the lever and pull up. You may have to pull pretty hard. So right off the bat I was not happy with having to do that, for a chair that cost this much money and arrives fully assembled. Nonetheless I got it to work, and it's a very comfortable chair. To me it was looking perfect, it's very cool to sit in in terms of temperature, I love The styling though that can be hit or miss depending on what you think, and the recline is fantastic. I almost threw out the box the first day, thinking I was definitely going to keep it. But fortunately I didn't, because in the fourth week of trying it out, I developed lower back pain that was clearly a result of the chair. By the time I boxed it up and was sending it back, I was more than happy to be rid of it. I tried every ergonomic adjustment I could think of, but there was no way for me to get lower lumbar support with the chair. My back is relatively flat, and the chair has a lot of adjustment capability with the back, but I just couldn't get it to work. one major frustration is that the lumbar adjustments don't just change one thing, they seem to alter multiple facets of the lumbar. So whereas the steel case gesture chair may have two knobs, the embody chair only has one knob. I think this ultimately led to me just not being able to get that lower lumbar support that's so critical. So that became a deal breaker for me. I will add that I was worried about feeling the plastic in the back of the chair, based on other reviewers. And I consider myself sensitive to things like that, but I absolutely did not notice them, so I wouldn't worry too much about that, maybe they've fixed it in the newer chairs. I did find the back a little more narrow than I would like, and did have a few times where I felt a twitch in a shoulder from not having support in the shoulder blades. But I wouldn't steer people totally away from the chair, if it fits your back it could be a terrific option. I absolutely would have kept it if it didn't end up hurting my back. So just make sure that you have a good 30 days to try it out, and a clear easy return policy.

I'll just join the chorus. All the adjustments make this the most comfortable office chair, hands down, and it is NOT hard to get it adjusted properly. Just follow the instructions. I wish the back were higher, but you have to pay more for that.

Best office chair I have ever owned Note that you will get the knock down version which requires a bit of assembly. You have to attach the entire back and it takes more work than expected. Not too difficult but it will take about half an hour.

I had a wonderful Global Conchorde chair that broke after 14 years. The reviews of the Herman Miller Embody chair sounded promising. I also had an Herman Miller Areon chair in my last job over ten years ago which was reasonably comfortable and sturdy. So I thought I would take a chance ("hit or miss" when you buy online and cannot see and try the product). But after getting the Embody chair, which was supposed to rank higher than the Aeron in reviews, I find that it is no where near as comfortable as the Conchorde. I have two degrees in mechanical engineering and it still took me 40 minutes to assemble the chair, even though there are only 4 bolts to engage. Instructions are ambiguous with low quality illustrations to understand what steps are to be taken. Operation instructions also can be challenging to follow. Chair is mostly hard plastic structural components. In my opinion, the chair is not worth the approximately $1400 price; $500 maybe, but not $1400. I would not buy this chair again. In fact, I am going to see if I can get my old Conchorde chair repaired, and then put the Embody chair in other spot in my home.

The seller ETA information was perfect and arrived when they said it would. The chair has helped my back immensely. I have less pain between my shoulder blades. Less pain more productive! The seat could use a bit more padding but everything else is great.

I didn't know a chair could be this comfortable. I'm in this chair up to ten hours a day, and all of the back issues that I had went away when I switched to this chair. It's perfect, but it's expensive. Buy it, the 12 year warranty really solidifies the value.