The best $300 I ever spent on my PC wasn't a component

Your PC is at the heart of your desktop setup, but it's not the only thing that defines the experience. The displays, peripherals, audio equipment, desks—all the small things have an effect on your day-to-day computing enjoyment. The actual computer is undoubtedly an important part, but if you're an enthusiast like me, it'll always be an ongoing project, always unfinished.

One often overlooked aspect of the equation is the chair. The thing that you sit on happens to matter a lot, especially if you're planning on spending a lot of time at your desk. Whether I'm gaming with friends or writing an article, a good chair makes a huge difference, and mine was the best $300 I've ever spent on my setup.

Ergonomics is worthwhile

Invest in your future!

In my youth, it wasn't uncommon to find me sitting in a wooden dining chair, hunched over a keyboard and mouse, playing Counter-Strike into the early hours of the morning. Ergonomics as a concept hadn't even entered my mind until I was well into my post-secondary education, and even at that point I had started to feel the effects of not taking it seriously. I know people to this day that use a dining chair at their desk, and these are successful people. Developers, writers, gamers—some of whom may not be feeling it now, but they certainly will later.

Lower back pain, numbness in my legs, and tension headaches were all things I had begun to experience as a result of how my desk was setup. I changed a lot of things to remedy some of these symptoms, like monitor position, desk height, and sitting position, and it certainly helped a lot, but one specific upgrade that I made really made all the difference.

I scoured Facebook Marketplace and other second-hand websites to try and find a deal on a used ergonomic office chair. To this point, I had been using "racing" style chairs that weren't great, and an IKEA office chair that had done me well, but wasn't supporting my lower back as much as I had needed. I found a great deal on a used Herman Miller Mirra 2 for about $300 USD, and decided it was worth pulling the trigger.

Doesn't require routine upgrades

The ROI is constant

Unlike a PC, a chair isn't something that you need to upgrade with better-performing parts every 3 to 5 years. Sure, you're not going to be pushing higher FPS out of your rig with a fancy chair, but being able to game and work longer without pain (or the potential for it) is worth way more than a slight increase in fidelity or performance. It also directly benefits you regardless of what task you're doing, or which PC you're working on. You could be on a laptop at the same desk, and you'd still be reaping all the same benefits of that purchase.

A PC upgrade might still be worth it instead

$300 can be a game-changer—literally

Depending on the state of your rig compared to the state of your desk setup, it's worth considering if a PC upgrade is worth more to you. It's tough to make a value judgement on a PC upgrade versus a chair, because every situation is a little different, especially if the upgrade will affect the efficiency of your work.

In my case, my rig is already pretty well configured. My Ryzen 7 7800X3D and RX 9070 XT will be more than enough for years to come. I don't think I could spend $300 on my PC without it feeling like a waste, maybe besides adding more storage. That's part of why I'm very satisfied with the chair upgrade. Marginal performance gains in my productivity tasks and games just haven't matched the health and comfort benefits I've reaped from owning a way better chair. It'll also hold its value much better than something like a graphics card or CPU would over the course of its lifespan.

That being said, there are a few parts of this chair I'm not totally stoked on. The lack of headrest turned out to be a little more important than I initially thought it would be, but there are aftermarket options available, which I'll try in the future. All-in-all, I'm pretty satisfied with the way things stand currently.

A chair can be a life-changing upgrade

While some extra performance would be nice, every penny of the $300 I spent on my chair was a penny well spent. As someone who prioritizes their health with diet and exercise, I can't believe I didn't take the plunge and buy a nice chair earlier. Not all ergonomic upgrades need to cost a fortune, though. There are plenty of small changes you can make that can really make a difference in your day-to-day work and play.