If you are under about 165 cm, the office chair problem is almost never the one the marketing talks about. It is not lumbar curvature and it is not tilt tension. It is that the seat is too long from front to back, and you have been sitting on the front third of it for years.
This is the decision you are actually making: not which chair has the best back support, but which chair has a seat short enough that you can use its back support at all. Everything else follows from that one measurement. We sell chairs whose published seat depth starts at 370 mm and chairs whose published seat depth starts at 490 mm, and the gap between those two numbers decides more about how a shorter person sits than any other spec on the sheet.
This is the companion to our guide on office chairs for tall people in Australia. Same principle, opposite end of the tape measure.
The two numbers that decide it
Take five minutes with a tape measure before you look at a single product page.
Number one: your seat depth. Sit right back in a hard kitchen chair with your back against the backrest. Measure from the backrest to the back of your knee, then subtract 3 to 5 cm for clearance. That result is the longest seat you can use properly. For a lot of people under 165 cm it lands somewhere between 390 and 440 mm.
Number two: your seat height. Sit with your feet flat on the floor and your thighs roughly level. Measure from the floor to the top of your thigh at the back of the knee, with shoes on if you wear them at your desk. Most shorter users land between 380 and 440 mm. A great many office chairs do not go that low.
Now you have two numbers, and the shortlist writes itself. A chair whose seat is 490 mm deep at its shortest setting is not a candidate, no matter how good the rest of it is.
What a seat that is too long actually does
It is mechanical, not medical. If the front edge of the seat contacts the back of your lower leg before your back reaches the backrest, you have two choices and you will take one of them without thinking about it. Either you sit back and let the seat front press into your calves, or you slide forward until it does not — which leaves 100 to 150 mm of air between your spine and the lumbar support you paid for.
That is the whole argument. A backrest you cannot reach is not a backrest. Seat depth is what puts you in contact with it.
The chairs we stock, ranked by what the manufacturer publishes
Every figure below comes from the manufacturer's own current document, linked at each entry. Where a manufacturer publishes nothing, we say so rather than filling the gap.
HÅG SoFi Mesh — the short-user default
Flokk's 2025 SoFi Collection factsheet gives the 7500 mesh model an adjustable seat depth of 38–46 cm and a seat height of 39–54 cm on the 165 mm gas lift, 45–64 cm on the 200 mm lift. The seat pad is 44 cm deep and 45 cm wide; the backrest is 47 cm wide; the chair weighs 16.7 kg.
Take the 165 mm lift and wind the seat slide all the way in and you get a 380 mm effective seat depth at a 390 mm seat height. That combination is rare at any price and almost unheard of at $750. The SoFi is also certified to EN 1335 Class A, the higher of the two adjustability tiers in that standard — which is a paperwork way of saying it adjusts further than most.
Suits you if: you are between about 150 and 175 cm, you want the seat slide, and you want to spend under $1,000. Only the back is mesh — the seat is upholstered, which shorter users generally prefer because a mesh seat edge is harder to sit forward of.
Does not suit you if: you want a headrest (there is none), or you need a chair for a standing desk. The SoFi tops out at 640 mm on the 200 mm lift and Flokk offers no 265 mm lift for it. If a standing desk is the requirement, the saddle chairs below are the part of our range built for it.
Live price: $750 with no arms, $950 with adjustable SlideBack armrests. Over 300 units in stock. The full breakdown is in our HÅG SoFi Mesh review.
Herman Miller Aeron, Size A — the one with no seat slide
The Aeron is the chair most shorter buyers ask about, and it needs the clearest answer. Per Herman Miller's published specifications, Size A has a seat height range of 14.4–19.3 in (366–490 mm) — the lowest minimum seat height of anything we stock — and a seat depth of 16 in (406 mm).
That 406 mm is fixed. There is no seat depth adjustment on any Aeron, in any size. You are not buying a range, you are buying one number, and you choose it by buying the right size. Herman Miller sizes the Aeron primarily by height and recommends Size B for anyone who falls between two sizes.
Suits you if: 406 mm happens to be your number, and you want the lowest seat height on the market. For a user around 155–165 cm who measures out at roughly 400–420 mm, the Size A is close to ideal and the 366 mm floor means you will get your feet down without a footrest.
Does not suit you if: you measured under about 390 mm, or you are buying for a desk two people share. A fixed seat cannot be re-set for the next person. If the chair has to fit more than one body, buy a seat slide — the SoFi, the Mereo or a Capisco.
Live price: $2,150, the same in all three sizes. Size A stock is thin at the moment, so call us on 02 9640 0642 before you set your heart on a delivery date. Sizing in full: our Aeron size guide.
RH Mereo 220 and 300 — the widest seat slide we stock
The RH Mereo factsheet gives a seat 410 mm wide and 465 mm deep, with a seat slide producing an effective seat depth of 403–483 mm. That is an 80 mm range, the broadest of anything here, and it is the reason the Mereo turns up in fit-outs where one chair model has to cover a whole floor of different bodies.
One honest caveat on seat height. Flokk publishes three different Mereo seat-height figures across its own documents: 388–520 mm on one factsheet, 410–565 mm on another and on the Flokk webshop, and 410–550 mm on flokk.asia. We have asked Flokk which is current and we do not have an answer yet, so we will not present any of them as settled. If the exact minimum matters to your decision, tell us and we will get it in writing before you buy.
Suits you if: the chair is shared, or you sit between 400 and 480 mm of seat depth and want room to move within that.
Does not suit you if: your measured seat depth is under 400 mm. The Mereo's slide does not go shorter than 403 mm, and the SoFi does.
Live price: Mereo 300 from $1,976, Mereo 220 from $1,944. Both in our RH collection, and compared against the New Logic and Secur24 in the RH buying guide.
HÅG Tion — good chair, wrong feature set for this problem
We stock a lot of Tion and we like it, so this needs saying plainly. The 2025 Tion factsheet gives a seat height of 41–54 cm on the 150 mm lift, 48–66 cm on the 200 mm, and a seat pad 42–44 cm deep depending on model. The adjustable seat depth row on that factsheet is dashes across every Tion model. There is no seat slide on any of them.
That is a design decision, not a fault — the Tion is certified to EN 1335 Type B, a lower adjustability tier than the SoFi's Class A, and it is priced accordingly. But it means a Tion fits you or it does not, in the same way an Aeron does, and its 410 mm seat-height floor is 20 mm higher than the SoFi's.
Suits you if: you measured around 420–440 mm of seat depth and you want a chair from the HÅG range at Tion money.
Does not suit you if: you measured under 410 mm. Spend the extra on the SoFi and buy the slide. Tion 2100 from $588.75; the range is set out in the Tion buying guide.
The Kyoto at $599 — read the seat depth before you buy on price
The Kyoto is our own brand and our best value chair, and for most buyers under $700 it is the answer. For this particular buyer it usually is not. Its published specification is a seat height of 470–560 mm and a seat depth of 490–540 mm. Both numbers sit above where a shorter user needs to be, and the seat slide moves within that range rather than below it.
Suits you if: you are around 175 cm or taller, or you are buying volume for a mixed office and the shorter staff will get something else. It is rated to 140 kg against ANSI/BIFMA X5.1-2017, which almost nothing else at the price publishes at all.
Does not suit you if: you are the person this article is about. Put the money into a SoFi instead — it is $151 more and it is the right shape. Our guide to office chairs under $1,000 compares both on every published number.
The saddle option, in one paragraph
If your desk is a standing desk, or you perch rather than sit, the HÅG Capisco 8106 publishes an adjustable seat depth of 370–470 mm — the shortest minimum of anything we sell — and a seat height of 400–540 mm on the 150 mm lift. Saddle geometry changes the question rather than answering it, so it deserves its own read: all the published measurements are on our HÅG Capisco models and measurements page.
Head to head, on published figures only
| Chair | Minimum seat height | Effective seat depth | Seat slide? | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Herman Miller Aeron Size A | 366 mm | 406 mm fixed | No | $2,150 |
| RH Mereo 220 / 300 | Not settled — see above | 403–483 mm | Yes | $1,944 |
| HÅG SoFi Mesh (165 mm lift) | 390 mm | 380–460 mm | Yes | $750 |
| HÅG Capisco 8106 (150 mm lift) | 400 mm | 370–470 mm | Yes | $1,858 |
| HÅG Tion (150 mm lift) | 410 mm | None — 42–44 cm pad | No | $588.75 |
| Kyoto Ergonomic Task Chair | 470 mm | 490–540 mm | Yes | $599 |
Read that table left to right and the recommendation is almost automatic. If you want one chair to fit a short user well and cost the least, it is the SoFi. If you want the lowest seat in the building and 406 mm is your number, it is the Aeron Size A. If the chair is shared between people, it is the Mereo.
What Flokk and Herman Miller do not publish
Two gaps worth knowing about, because other sites fill them with numbers that are not the manufacturer's.
Flokk publishes no maximum user weight for the HÅG range. Not for the SoFi, not for the Capisco, not for the Tribute. The 110 kg figure that circulates online is a condition of Flokk's ten-year guarantee, not a load rating, and the two are different things. Anyone quoting it as a capacity is quoting a warranty clause.
Herman Miller's public specifications page publishes no weight capacity for the Aeron either — those figures live in its separate size and fit reference document. If a certified capacity matters for a tender, ask us and we will chase the document rather than repeat a number.
Our guide to office chair weight ratings in Australia sets out who certifies what.
When the chair is right and the desk is wrong
Plenty of shorter users have the right chair and the wrong desk. A fixed 720 mm desk sets your elbow height, your chair follows the desk, and now your feet are off the floor whatever the seat height range says. The fix is a footrest, and there are two shapes of it.
The HÅG StepUp at $297.90 is a chair-mounted footrest that clamps to the gas lift column and travels with the chair. Flokk specifies it for 150, 200 and 265 mm gas lifts and for desk heights of 800–950 mm, and it is the only chair-mounted foot support that fits a 150 mm lift. Flokk publishes no dimensions, weight or load rating for it, so we do not quote any.
The HÅG Quickstep at $227.70 is a floor-standing tilting footrest. Flokk describes it as a tilting footrest with a two-sided design; beyond that, Flokk publishes no measurements for it and neither do we.
Worth knowing: the HÅG FootRing, which people often ask for in the same breath, fits 200 mm and 265 mm gas lifts only. There is no adapter for a 150 mm lift — which is the lift most shorter users end up on. The StepUp is the one that fits.
Who should buy none of these
If you measured a seat depth under 370 mm, nothing on this page is short enough at its minimum setting, and we would rather tell you that than sell you a chair you will sit forward on. Call us on 02 9640 0642 or come to the Pyrmont showroom with your two numbers. There are configurations we can order that are not on the site, and a chair you have sat in beats a chair you have measured.
The same applies if you are buying for a floor of people rather than for yourself. A seat slide is worth more than a spec sheet in that situation, and the range and split are worth a conversation before a purchase order. Bring us the schedule.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most important office chair measurement if I am short?
Seat depth. If the front edge of the seat reaches the back of your lower leg before your back reaches the backrest, you will slide forward and lose contact with the back support entirely, which makes every other feature on the chair irrelevant.
How do I measure the seat depth I need?
Sit right back in a hard kitchen chair with your back against the backrest, measure from the backrest to the back of your knee, then subtract 3 to 5 cm for clearance. That result is the longest seat you can use properly.
Does the Herman Miller Aeron come in a size for short people?
Yes, Size A, and it has the lowest minimum seat height of anything we stock at 366 mm. But its seat depth is fixed at 406 mm because there is no seat depth adjustment on any Aeron in any size, so it fits you only if 406 mm happens to be your number.
Which chair has the shortest minimum seat depth?
The HÅG Capisco 8106, at a published 370 mm with the seat slide fully in. Among conventional task chairs the HÅG SoFi Mesh is shortest at 380 mm, followed by the RH Mereo at 403 mm.
Do all HÅG chairs have adjustable seat depth?
No. The SoFi has a seat slide and the Capisco has a seat slide, but the 2025 HÅG Tion factsheet shows dashes in the adjustable seat depth row for every Tion model, meaning no Tion has one.
Is a footrest a good answer if my feet do not reach the floor?
It is the right answer when the desk height is fixed and the chair is otherwise correct, because a fixed desk sets your elbow height and the chair has to follow it. The HÅG StepUp clamps to the gas lift column and is the only chair-mounted foot support that fits a 150 mm lift.
Is the $599 Kyoto a good chair for a shorter user?
Usually not. Its published seat height is 470 to 560 mm and its published seat depth is 490 to 540 mm, both of which sit above where a shorter user needs to be. The HÅG SoFi Mesh at $750 is $151 more and is the right shape.
What maximum user weight does HÅG publish for these chairs?
None. Flokk publishes no maximum user weight for the HÅG range, and the 110 kg figure that circulates online is a condition of Flokk's ten-year guarantee rather than a load rating. If you need a certified capacity, ask us and we will chase the manufacturer's document.
Browse the full range in our ergonomic office chairs collection, or start with the two chairs that do the most work on this page: the HÅG SoFi Mesh and the Herman Miller Aeron.
