Fabric task chairs have an upholstered, padded back for people who find foam more comfortable than tensioned mesh. Models include the Austin, built for heavy duty use, and the Barcelona deluxe high back. They suit cooler Irish offices, home workers and anyone who simply prefers the feel of a cushioned chair at their desk all day.
Reasons to pick fabric over mesh
- Warmth: when the heating takes a while to get going, a padded back is noticeably more comfortable through the winter months.
- Feel: some people dislike the firm pressure of a mesh panel against the spine.
- Appearance: a solid back looks calmer and more settled in rooms where see-through seating would feel out of place.
Mesh gets most of the attention, but preferring a padded back is entirely reasonable.
What to look for
Upholstery comes first. Fabric chosen for home use can look worn quickly under daily office wear, so the chairs here use upholstery made for office life. Foam comes second. Poor foam flattens and never springs back, and a compressed seat pad makes a chair unpleasant however good the back support is.
Who fabric task chairs suit
- Cooler offices and older buildings that are slow to warm up
- Home workers who want a chair that looks at home in the house
- People who find a tensioned mesh back too firm
Heavy duty options
The Austin models are built for heavy duty use. For round-the-clock environments or heavier users, the full heavy duty chairs range adds stronger gas lifts and reinforced frames.
Related seating
If heat is the bigger concern, compare our mesh task chairs. For existing back problems, ergonomic posture chairs give more pronounced support, and the full task and operator chairs section brings every desk chair together.
