Saddle Chairs Australia

A saddle chair is not a variation on an office chair. It is a different way of sitting, and it exists for people who work over something rather than back from a desk.

If you spend your day leaning towards a patient, a bench, an instrument or a workpiece, a conventional task chair is working against you. It is built to support a reclined posture you never actually adopt.

Why the saddle position works

Who these suit

The people who take to a saddle chair fastest are the ones whose work is precise and close up.

We have written in more detail about why dentists and clinicians choose active sitting and about the Capisco for musicians.

The HAG Capisco

The Capisco was designed by Peter Opsvik in 1984 around the posture of a rider on horseback, and it is still the reference point for this category. The saddle seat lets you sit forwards, backwards, astride or perched, and change between those positions without consciously adjusting anything.

Flokk's warranty covers production defects for 10 years on chairs in normal use for up to nine hours a day, and 5 years above that; labour, transport and normal wear are not covered, and the full conditions are on our warranty page. If you want every published measurement side by side, our Capisco 8106 vs Capisco Puls comparison sets out what the price gap actually buys.

Saddle chair or saddle stool?

The two names are used loosely. In most shops, and in most searches, a saddle stool is a saddle seat with no backrest, while a saddle chair adds a backrest and usually a more adjustable mechanism. Dental and laboratory suppliers often call both "saddle stools". The name matters less than three practical questions: do you want a backrest, how high do you need to sit, and will you move around the seat during the day?

Everything we sell publicly in this category has a backrest. HÅG does make a backless Capisco, the 8105, but it is not sold through our public online range.

Saddle chairs with a backrest

A backrest changes how a saddle seat is used rather than turning it into a conventional office chair. On the HAG Capisco 8106 the backrest is height adjustable from 44 to 50 cm and 60 cm wide, according to Flokk's 2025 factsheet. There is no separate lumbar pad. You can lean back against it between tasks, or turn the chair round, sit astride it facing backwards and rest your chest on the backrest, one of the positions the Capisco was designed to allow. The Capisco Puls 8010 and 8020 also have a backrest, 40 cm high on Flokk's Puls factsheet.

If you mostly lean forward over your work and rarely sit back, a backrest matters less. If you alternate between close work and sitting back to read, think or take calls, it earns its place.

Saddle chairs in dental and clinical work: what the research says

Dentistry is where saddle seating has been studied most. The strongest evidence is a 2018 systematic review and meta-analysis that combined two trials in 150 second-year dental students working on training mannequins: students on saddle seats had substantially lower ergonomic-risk (RULA) scores than students on conventional seats, by about three points on average, and the reviewers rated that evidence as moderate. Microsurgeons working on saddle seats have reported less discomfort, and in a small Mayo Clinic study during operations, surgeons rated the HAG Capisco one of the two most comfortable of the four chairs tested.

Two cautions matter. These studies measured working posture and comfort, mostly over short periods and often in students, not long-term health. And a systematic review of seats that open the hip angle, including saddle-style seats, found no evidence that they reduce low back pain. These are research findings, not claims we make about any chair: current research does not establish that saddle chairs prevent or treat back pain. Our summary of saddle chairs and back pain: what the research says sets out the studies and their limits in full.

Seat height and gas lifts

Saddle chairs sit higher than conventional chairs, so seat height decides whether one works for you. The Capisco comes with a 150, 200 or 265 mm gas lift, which on the 8106 give seat heights of 40 to 54 cm, 46 to 64 cm and 55 to 81 cm on Flokk's 2025 factsheet. The Capisco Puls uses different figures. Our Capisco models and measurements page lists every published figure, and the Capisco gas lift guide and Capisco Puls gas lift guide explain which lift suits which desk. The desk-height recommendations there are our guidance, not Flokk specifications.

Getting the specification right

Two decisions matter more than the model.

For clinical environments, also consider castors versus glides. We stock genuine Flokk parts including glides, castors and replacement gas lifts, so a chair can be re-specified rather than replaced if a room changes use.

Give it a fortnight

Worth saying plainly: a saddle chair feels strange at first. It asks you to engage rather than settle, and most people find the first few days unusual. Nearly everyone who persists through the first fortnight does not want to go back. If you are trialling one for a practice, plan for that adjustment period before forming a view.

Try one before you commit

A saddle chair is genuinely hard to judge from a photograph, more so than any other chair we sell. Our Pyrmont showroom has the range set up so you can sit in them properly.

For practices fitting out multiple surgeries or benches, we can quote on volume and supply warranty and testing documentation for tender submissions. See commercial fit-outs or contact us with your requirements.

Frequently asked questions

What is a saddle chair?

A saddle chair has a seat shaped like a riding saddle, which you sit astride rather than on. It opens the angle between your torso and thighs to roughly 135 degrees instead of the 90 degrees a flat seat forces, and most people find they sit more upright as a result without trying to. It is designed for people who work over something rather than back from a desk.

Who are saddle chairs for?

People whose work is precise and close up. Dentists, hygienists, oral health therapists and surgeons working over a reclined patient. Jewellers, watchmakers and lab technicians at a bench. Guitarists, pianists, cellists and producers who need their arms free and their torso open. And sit-stand desk users, because a high gas lift lets you perch at standing height as a third position between sitting and standing.

Which HAG Capisco model should I choose?

The 8106 is fully upholstered with a 500 mm wide seat and an adjustable 440 to 500 mm backrest, and it is the most comfortable over a full working day. The Capisco Puls has a moulded plastic shell with a seat cushion (integrated on the 8010, an extra cushion on the 8020); clinics and laboratories often choose it, and it is the only model carrying a cleanroom rating. The backless 8105 is not sold through our public online range.

What is the difference between the Capisco Puls 8010 and the 8020?

Both have the same moulded plastic shell and backrest. On the 8010 the seat cushion is integrated into the shell; the 8020 adds an extra seat cushion for more sitting comfort. Flokk's Puls factsheet gives both the same seat depth range and chair weight, and the 8020 sits about 10 to 15 mm higher than the 8010 on each gas lift.

Which gas lift do I need?

The standard 200 mm lift suits a conventional desk or a dental chair at normal height. The 265 mm lift is the one to choose if you work at a raised bench or a sit-stand desk at standing height. This is the single most common ordering mistake and it cannot be corrected later without replacing the cylinder, so measure your working height before you order.

Do I need a footring?

On any high-lift model, yes. Without one your feet dangle and the posture benefit is undone. The Capisco FootRing fits the 200 mm and 265 mm lifts only and is colour-matched to the lift, so specify the two together. There is no adapter for a 150 mm lift; on that lift the chair-mounted HAG StepUp is the alternative.

How long does it take to get used to a saddle chair?

About a fortnight. It asks you to engage rather than settle, so most people find the first few days unusual, and nearly everyone who persists through the first fortnight does not want to go back. If you are trialling one for a practice, plan for that adjustment period before forming a view.

Is there a maximum user weight for a HAG Capisco?

Flokk publishes no maximum user weight for the Capisco or the Capisco Puls in any factsheet. The 110 kg figure that circulates for HAG chairs is a condition of the ten-year guarantee rather than a tested load rating, and the two are different measurements. If you need a certified user weight in writing for a tender or a workplace assessment, ask us and we will request the test documentation from Flokk.

What warranty do HAG Capisco saddle chairs carry?

Flokk's ten-year guarantee against production defects in normal use for up to nine hours a day, dropping to five years beyond nine hours a day, with labour, transport and normal wear excluded. Flokk separately guarantees the delivery of spare parts for a minimum of ten years after the chair's production date. Australian Consumer Law rights apply in addition and cannot be excluded.