Product Review: Steelcase Leap
June 15, 2010 
10 Comments
We’ve heard so much about the Steelcase Leap, we’ve been waiting a long time to get our hands on one to review for ourselves. The review model we got goes for around $850 on Amazon
Our Summary: Workified Score – 8.5
We loved this chair, and in our comparisons…it beat out most of the competition in our “Best Office Chair Showdown” article. It’s not the sexiest chair we’ve seen in terms of visual appeal, but the moment you sit on it, you quickly realize a great amount of thought and craft went into designing and building this chair. This was easily one of the most comfortable chairs we’ve experienced, and it has a very good blend of adjustability, without being overly complicated.
Photo Walkthru
Steelcase made every effort to make their Leap chair environmentally friendly. From the materials and processes used to create the chair…to the cardboard box it came in (see picture). Kudos to Steelcase for their dedication to environmental sustainability.
As you can see, the pivot/tile mechanism is in the center of the chair, but it doesn’t rock back and forth like cheap office chairs. It feels more like a knee-tilt in that when you recline back, the seat pan glides forward a bit to match a natural reclining motion.
This is one of the more comfortable and padded chairs we’ve tested here at Workified. Although highly cushioned and padded, it still offers great breathability and ergonomic support.
The arms can be positioned every way imaginable, and we love how they hid the chair instructions directly under the pivotable arm pads. Arms can telescope forward and back, move sideways, and adjust up and down so you can find a natural position that comfortably supports the wrists, forearms, shoulders and neck.
Leap’s slatted back helps move with the spine while also allowing airflow and more breathability. The Leap chair’s back changes shape to support the entire spine. This can reduce the chance of lower back sag and a hunched posture. There is also a height adjustable lumbar support that slides up and down.
This is one of our favorite features of the chair. The knob allows the user to adjust the lumbar support tension with a simple turn.
Additional Pics
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Workified, Pat Cheung. Pat Cheung said: RT @workified office chair review: Steelcase Leap http://bit.ly/dsrJIW [...]
[...] initially thought “sexy chair”. We received this chair the same time as the Steelcase Leap, and judging a book by its cover, we thought this Think chair would be the one to beat (we were [...]
[...] initially thought “sexy chair”. We received this chair the same time as the Steelcase Leap, and judging a book by its cover, we thought this Think chair would be the one to beat (we were [...]
[...] Product Review: Steelcase Leap [...]
The built-in manual for adjusting the arms is so cute!
I see from your review on the Think chair that you didn’t care for the mesh fabric on the back at all. If Steelcase put the padded back from the Leap on the Think chair, would that be the best of both worlds? Or, would you like this one better anyway? I would have a hard time choosing between an adjustable lumbar support and the seat pan that can slide forward to take pressure off the back of the thighs.
Daisy McCarty
Have you tried this chair Daisy? Although the seat pan isn’t “adjustable”…it still moves relative to the sitter when the sitter reclines. It’s a very good design. I totally advise giving it a try as it almost relieves the user the burden of adjusting it manually. Thanks for reading!
Pat, I haven’t had a chance to try the Leap but it is one of several Steelcase chairs on my list of possibles for the next time I upgrade. Right now I’m using a task chair from True Seating Concepts. It was comfy for about 2 months and then the padding went flat. That’s one reason I am interested in a chair that has a more heavily padded seat (or perhaps one like the Aeron that avoids the whole problem by just offering a contoured seat with no padding. My husband and I both use our current office chair so it is serving double shifts every day.
Daisy McCarty
Just wanted to send a correction to a comment on the Leap Chair. The seat pan can be ordered as adjustable. Adjustable, meaning that the seat pan can slide forward to accomodate longer legs, etc. I sit in this chair all day and love it (ok I work for a Steelcase dealer). However, I am not biased. This is truely the best chair on the market (and I have worked for my competitors
).
On another note…a customer turned us on to this website and we love it! Thanks!
I like the “blue” in this chair, it may not be sexy, as describe, but the blue in it makes it look sleek and warm. I think the best feature of this chair is the Leap’s slatted back, I like that it gives a full back rest.
Well, I finally took the “Leap” and bought myself one of these. I tried several dozen chairs including the Think and there was just no comparison. The seat and back are both equally comfortable. Sitting on this chair feels like floating.
I have the feeling that this is going to be one long term investment that turns out to be a very wise one for my back.
Daisy McCarty