Our pick
Weirdly comfortable, even for long periods of sitting, this chair is wider than most folding chairs we tested, with a flexible, breathable—yet firm—plastic-mesh back and seat.
The HDX Black Plastic Seat Foldable Folding Chair is very comfortable and durable. It’s made of 18-8 steel and flexible, ventilated plastic that conforms to your back and legs and that can (reportedly) hold more than 600 pounds. (MityLite, the company that makes this chair for Home Depot, also sells it under the names FlexLite and Flex One at other retailers.) It’s an inch and a half wider than most of the folding chairs we tested, and it feels great to sit in, even after many hours. This nice-looking chair is currently available in all-black, all-white, and black with a silver frame, but it has also at times come in navy blue. The HDX has a 10-year warranty, by far the longest we found.
Budget pick
This chair has a surprisingly comfortable seat, given its smaller size, and it has the thinnest profile we found. A handle across the top makes the Nisse easy to carry and to hang.
The IKEA Nisse Folding Chair is an affordable, compact chair that’s remarkably comfortable—more so than any other plastic or metal chair we tested, aside from the HDX. It folds up even smaller than our main pick, which is something that may be appreciated by people living in small homes or by those who are short on space. It also looks sleeker than most folding chairs we found, so you won’t hesitate to pull these chairs out for extra seating at parties or during the holidays. And the Nisse has a convenient handle that makes it easy to move around or hang for storage. Compared with the HDX’s 600-pound rating, the Nisse’s rating is only 220 pounds (although we didn’t test this). It also has a smaller seat—about 3 inches narrower in both directions—and it doesn’t include a warranty.
