The Best Seating to Make Your Living Room Feel Like a Movie Theater
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If you’ve already set up your home theater with the TV and audio system you want, it’s time to upgrade your furniture.
Instead of getting a couch, which takes up a lot of room, and requires you to sit directly next to one or two people, we’re recommending single-person home theater seats. The ones we’ve researched are made out of plush materials comfortable enough to help you get fully immersed in what you’re seeing and hearing, with ergonomic designs to keep you from getting cramps, aches, and pains.
The best part about these individual home theater chairs: you won’t need to shuffle around to find the “sweet spot,” or a place where the sofa doesn’t sag.
We’re mindful of the fact that not everyone has a big, dedicated room for their A/V equipment, so we’ve made sure to pick seats that offer a movie theater-like experience whether you live in a house or apartment. In many cases, you can set two, or even three of these chairs next to one another, so everyone has their own space.
If you can’t get comfortable on a couch, or have been using your office chair in place of a recliner, here’s why it’s time for an upgrade.
What You Need to Know Before Buying Theater Seating
There are a handful of factors to think about when choosing the right theater seating for you; below are the most important ones, which we considered while we were researching this list.
Comfort: The most important feature to think about when choosing home theater seating is comfort. All of our recommendations have ample padding for your back and neck to prevent soreness after extended viewing sessions (a.k.a. movie or TV marathons) along with thick arm rests so you can stretch out.
We made sure each of the seats we chose can recline, so you can literally kick back and relax in your home theater or living room.
Size: We chose seats that are roughly 20 inches tall, 25 inches wide, and 30 inches deep. These seats can fit in your room without dominating the room, and two can fit side by side in the place of a couch.
Extras: Beyond comfort, we did consider chairs with neat little extras that enhance the experience of sitting in the chair, like electric reclining, and added accessibility.
1. Homall Recliner Chair
Homall’s Recliner Chair is alsoone of our most highly recommended gaming chairs, and it’s a great choice whether you’re playing Minecraft or watching Casablanca.
The chair is ultra-stuffed, and covered in the same polyurethane material as other home theater seating we recommend. Homall went the extra mile and designed each part of the chair to maximize comfort — literally from top to bottom. A thick headrest helps keep your neck supported when you’re reclined, a sunken back seat cradles your spine, an extra pillow at the base of the seat provides lumbar support, and you can recline to a “watching TV” or “napping time” mode.
At 17.7 inches tall, 25.5 inches wide, and 25.5 inches deep, it’s the smallest chair in our guide. This makes sense because PC gamers work at a desk, and this chair needs to accommodate that. If you’re space-constrained, or want to set up a home theater with seating for multiple people, this is the right call.
In terms of extras, Homall’s recliner also scores big. A pocket on the left side can hold remotes, game controllers, books, or magazines, which is a nice convenience. But, the standout extra is a massage function that vibrates the chair’s lumbar support cushion. You can set the duration, intensity, and vibration pattern through a remote attached to the chair. To take advantage of this feature, you will need to plug the chair into a power source.
Because it’s designed for gamers, this home theater seat does have red racing stripes on the head rest, and around its seams. The added pop of color is aesthetically pleasing, but may not fit the style of your room.
Pros: Each piece of this home theater seat is optimized for comfort, it’s pretty compact, and its massage mode puts it over the top.
Cons: The massage mode requires you to connect the chair to an outlet.
2. BestMassage Recliner Chair
BestMassage’s home theater chair is a comfortable, durable option that’s great if your home theater is in a smaller room.
The chair is stuffed with soft, doll cotton, and covered in polyurethane that’s colored to look like leather. BestMassage says the chair’s outer layer is waterproof, so you don’t have to worry if you accidentally spill your drink.
This home theater seat can recline to 120 degrees (comfortable for reading, or TV watching), and 160 degrees (comfortable for napping). An extra padded cushion in the headrest will keep your neck slightly elevated, so you don’t have to strain it to see your screen while reclined.
It’s 21.1 inches tall, 27.7 inches wide, and 30.3 inches deep, which puts it in the middle of the pack size-wise. You can still squeeze two of these home theater seats in a mid-sized room, but they may not fit in a smaller one.
Pros: Ample padding for comfort, additional neck cushion to prevent strain, Polyurethane layer looks like leather, but is water-resistant.
Cons: There isn’t much else to this home theater seat, which is fine because it nails the basics. Still, it’s always nice to see some extra design features in a piece of furniture you’re going to keep around for several years.
3. Bonzy Electric Home Recliner
If you have some difficulty getting in and out of your current chair, Bonzy’s electric recliner gets our recommendation.
It’s well-padded, and covered in chenille and velvet, which gives it an ultra-soft feel. The downside is that water or other liquids will not slide off of it, so be mindful if you’re drinking a beverage. Bonzy does say the soft fabric is easy to clean, but it may still stain.
In terms of comfort, Bonzy chose to add extra cushioning around the base and neck rest, which will support your body more comfortably when you recline. Instead of reclining manually, you can adjust your position electronically via remote control (the chair must be plugged into an outlet for this to work). Reclining backwards, the home theater seat has one mode designed for watching your TV, and another for taking a nap.
This chair stands out because it can also recline forward, which makes it easier to get out of the chair. If you have chronic back problems, or somewhat limited mobility, this home theater seat may be a big help. Beyond that, the only extra this seat has is a pocket on the right hand side, which holds its remote, and has enough space for a couple of additional accessories.
At 40 inches tall, 33 inches wide, and 36 inches deep, this is the largest home theater seat we’re recommending by a fair margin. Bonzy only gives the recliner’s maximum height (it’s very tall when extended forward), so it shouldn’t take up too much vertical space when you’re seated or laying down.
Its width and depth are another story; you’ll need a fairly big room if you want to use chair as home theater seating. That’s especially true if you want two or three in the same place.
Pros: Backward and forward recline options, ultra-soft materials.
Cons: The chair needs to be plugged into an outlet to recline, may stain if exposed to liquid, and takes up a fair bit of room.