With the help and expertise of Rachel Rothman, Chief Technologist and Director of Engineering in Good Housekeeping Institute, and Stefani Sassos, MS, RDN, CSO, CDN, NASM-CPT, the Good Housekeeping Institute Nutrition Lab's Deputy Director and certified personal trainer, we're sharing the best standing desks on the market today. These are our top tested, and expert-approved standing desks, which we evaluated in our own home offices for criteria such as adjustability, ease of assembly, customization options, price, size and appearance.
Seville Classics' adjustable model (which lifted up to 47 inches tall in our testing) is as smooth as it looks, easily transforming from a spacious sitting standing desks to standing height with a touchscreen controller equipped with three different programmable settings. Its sleek rounded design is one of the more compact options on this list, perfect for those who might be short on space but still require a standalone desk. In our tests, our experts found it small enough to be a great option for tight apartment corners or tricky layouts without impacting usability or productivity. We also like that this model comes with a drawer for storage, dual built-in USB ports and a controller that sits flush with the tabletop so it's never in your way. We particularly love the tempered glass surface which is useful for jotting down meeting notes or important logins with a dry erase marker.
If you're on a tighter budget, FlexiSpot's EN1 Model is a solid option. Sassos notes that unboxing and assembly were straightforward and that the desktop's 48" width is substantial without overtaking too much space in your home. Its width might also allow you to work in some freestanding storage beneath it. Equipped with three different height presets, this stand up desk can hold up to 154 pounds of weight and is fully extendable to 48" in height. Our testers liked its size, good value and great height range. "It's nice to have the option of either standing or sitting at comfortable heights, and I like the electric height adjustment. It makes it very easy to use and change up as needed," says one tester.
Rothman notes that like other Vari products, its full-sized standalone desk is easy to assemble out of the box and offers easy cable management for your monitor's cords and any other chargers on your desk. Rothman's tests reveal that Vari's desk isn't as speedy in changing its height as other models on this list, but she loves the fact that it's available in five different finishes — including a lovely reclaimed wood one — and two different sizes. Testers applauded Vari's desks for being of great quality, solid construction and very easy to use, though s0me warned that this desk is heavy, making it harder to set up and difficult to move around.
If you have more room in your office space, you don't have to stick to a traditional rectangular desktop. Jarvis' standing desk models have a bit more flexibility in height settings (between 25" and 50.75" in total), and the L-shaped configuration also comes in a multitude of dimensions for various office sizes. While the base model doesn't have storage, Jarvis' standing desk with drawers are fully customizable, and you can add storage solutions, power outlets, sleek cable managers and even a mechanical arm to support mounted monitors. "The standing desk from Fully is far superior to any regular desks I've owned. It's comparable to the quality of sit/stand desks at offices," says one tester, who enjoyed both sitting and standing at the desk but did mention that its design felt a bit industrial.
Among the sleekiest of the bunch, Branch's
l shaped standing desk can be tweaked by each customer for the perfect work-from-home desk of your dreams; you can add a monitor arm to keep your desk space free, or a built-in power strip to avoid trip-prone wires in your workspace. In addition to four finishes and two base options, you can pick among multiple add-ons such as desk panels, desk mats and more. Our experts loved the incredible range in height settings spanning from 2 feet when sitting to a full 4 feet, 4 inches for those users who are nearly 7 feet tall. The height panel enables four different presets, and what the brand calls "EasyGlide" promises an eerily quiet motor.