The best desks offer the professional features essential for a productive workspace and blend seamlessly with your home décor. Our top pick is the stylish and ergonomic Jarvis Bamboo Standing Desk, which allows you to change up your position throughout the day, while the Joss & Main Mikki Glass Desk is our favorite choice for home offices, thanks to its minimalist but sturdy design.
The Fully Jarvis Bamboo Standing Desk is available in several sizes and offers ample customization ... [+] options to suit your needs. Modern Ergonomic Office Chair
Of course, there’s no shortage of options: There are height-adjustable standing desks, compact desks for small spaces, sprawling L-shaped desks and many more styles to consider as you shop. To help you find the right pick for your space, aesthetic and budget, we kept the following factors in mind: desktop depth, height (including adjustable options), design, material, weight capacity, ease of assembly and other add-ons. Ahead, the best desks to make your workspace more optimized and comfortable—and don’t forget to complete your set-up with an ergonomic office chair.
Dimensions: 51 x 60 x 27 inches (width- and height-adjustable) | Weight: 118.5 pounds | Weight capacity: 350 pounds | Color options: 3 leg colors, including Black and White | Materials: Bamboo, steel legs
Many computer desks today are lacking when it comes to ergonomics. That’s why certified professional ergonomist Melissa Afterman, MS-HFE, CPE, recommends height-adjustable desks that allow you to easily and ergonomically change up your position throughout the day. The Jarvis Bamboo Standing Desk tops our list of the best desks because it provides adjustability options: You can select your preferred height range using either a touchpad or an OLED programmable handset, with options that go as low as 22.9 inches and as tall as 51 inches.
The Jarvis can also be customized in a handful of ways. Its desktop is available in either a rectangular or contoured shape, it comes in several sizes (ranging from 30 to 72 inches wide), it has adjustable feet for uneven floors and you can change the color of the legs and add on powered grommets. Plus, it comes with a 15-year warranty on the frame components, mechanical parts, motors and electrical components.
Dimensions: 30 x 55 x 30 or 30 x 71 x 36 inches | Weight: 91 or 128 pounds | Weight capacity: 100 pounds | Color options: 4 frame colors, including Black and Brushed Brash | Materials: Glass, stainless steel
Despite its sleek profile, the Mikki desk from Joss & Main offers plenty of space for you to set up your work-from-home essentials. It comes in two sizes, both of which provide enough room to comfortably sit back from a monitor (our expert recommends a 30-inch depth). Plus, there are several frame colors available, including silver, black and gold, allowing you to tailor the look to your space. The desk’s modern design will fit very well in a home with a more contemporary aesthetic: It has a tempered glass top that’s supported by two sawhorse-style metal legs with a glossy finish.
Dimensions: 30 x 48 x 27.9 inches | Weight: 74.6 pounds | Weight capacity: 120 pounds | Color options: Silver frame | Materials: Glass, steel alloy
If you’re looking for a desk that’s primarily a home base for your computer, the Realspace Vista Glass Desk is a great value for its solid construction, high-end look and reasonable price. For around $200 on Amazon, you’ll get a sturdy and stable powder-coated metal frame, a tempered glass desktop that offers about 48 by 28 inches of workspace and a pull-out mouse and keyboard tray. This tray lets you free up space on the desktop and tuck accessories away when they’re not in use.
Dimensions: 23.5 x 65 x 94 inches | Weight: 85.8 pounds | Weight capacity: 110 pounds | Color options: 2, including Black and White | Materials: Manufactured wood
The Yerby L-Shape Desk is a funky, unique choice for a corner desk. Not only does it feature ample room for your computer monitor and work materials with a 59-inch wide desktop, but it also has five levels of attached shelving that can house office supplies, files and more than a few potted plants. The unique rotating design means you can either tuck your desk into a corner or lay it flat against the wall.
Dimensions: 50 x 20 x 30 inches | Weight: 95 pounds | Weight capacity: 200 pounds (100 for shelf) | Color options: 2, including Warm Black and Biscotti | Materials: Sustainable mango wood
L-shaped desks are a smart solution for small spaces because they can hug a corner without taking up precious real estate, all while still offering a lot of surface area for you to work on. The beautifully crafted Cayman desk from Pottery Barn stands out in this category because of its modern rotating design. Instead of being a fixed L shape that forces you to choose between a left or right alignment, you can customize its shape to your needs—and even fold the rotating desktop under the main one for a more compact desk when you don’t need as much workspace. The relatively high price tag isn’t surprising due to how well-made this desk is, and with kiln-dried, sustainable mango wood, at that (read: less likelihood of warping).
Dimensions: 48 or 60 x 30 x 25 inches | Weight: 115 to 122 pounds | Weight capacity: 275 pounds | Color options: 4 desktop colors, including Walnut and Woodgrain; 2 leg colors, including White and Charcoal | Materials: Laminated MDF, powder-coated steel
Height-adjustable desks like the Branch Standing Desk are ideal for those who like to alternate between standing and sitting, allowing you to find just the right height level for an ergonomic workstation. This desk comes in two sizes to suit your space—48 x 30 inches or 60 x 30 inches—and there are four woodgrain colors and two leg colors to choose from. The desktop can be adjusted between 25 and 52 inches with centimeter-level adjustments, and the control panel offers four preset options for quick height changes.
The laminated melamine desktop is both stain- and scratch-resistant, and there’s a cable management compartment in the back to keep all your cords organized. Many reviewers also report that the installation is easy, though you’ll likely need more than one person to help with the heavier pieces. This standing desk can support a whopping 275 pounds, and your purchased is covered by a 10-year warranty.
Dimensions: 55 x 28 x 28 inches | Weight: 65.9 pounds | Weight capacity: 110 pounds | Color options: 7, including White and Oak| Materials: Engineered wood, alloy steel
The SHW Desk one of the most popular desks on Amazon, and it’s easy to see why. It comes in three sizes ranging from 40 to 55 inches wide, and there are seven color finishes to choose from. Plus, the desk is very reasonably priced (the largest version is available for under $200) and is eligible for two-day shipping if you’re an Amazon Prime member.
This standing desk has a 28-inch deep desktop that can be adjusted between 28 and 45 inches high (and you can program up to four presets), and the industrial steel legs can support up to 110 pounds. Bonus: There are grommets in the desktop to help you organize cords.
Dimensions: 40 x 40 x 30 inches | Weight: 48.8 pounds | Weight capacity: 308 pounds | Color options: 4, including Gray Wash and Dusty Charcoal | Materials: Kiln-dried meranti wood
You can transform the corner of any room into a convenient workspace with the Livingston Corner Desk from Pottery Barn. This piece is made from solid meranti wood (a kind of hardwood commonly used in furniture making) that’s kiln-dried for unbeatable durability, and it’s available in four different finishes. The triangular desktop is 40 inches wide and 40 inches deep, providing ample room for a computer monitor, and the sturdy frame can support more than 300 pounds.
Classic details like crown molding and fluted posts give this option a timeless appearance, and if you want to add storage, there are modular accessories, such as filing cabinets, that can be added onto the design.
Dimensions: 32.7 x 32.1 x 32.5 inches | Weight: 21.2 pounds | Weight capacity: 90 pounds | Color options: 2, including Brown/Black and Oak/Black | Materials: Manufactured wood, iron
If you’re pressed for space, the Kendal Desk is just 32 inches wide and roughly 32 inches deep, and it can be easily folded flat for compact storage. This small desk has X-shaped metal legs and a manufactured wood top, and despite its small size, it can support up to 90 pounds. It has a narrow ledge shelf where you can put decorations or work accessories like a phone or speaker, and the whole thing comes fully assembled, making it effortless to set up.
Dimensions: 6.4 x 23.6 x 15.8 inches | Weight: 7.3 pounds | Weight capacity: 28.7 pounds | Color options: White | Materials: Manufactured wood, iron
This floating desk won’t take up any floor space in your home, as it’s designed to be mounted right onto the wall. When fully extended, this desk offers a petite but usable work area that’s roomy enough for your laptop and a notepad—just note that it has a limited weight capacity that’s just over 28 pounds. A nice feature: It can be folded flush against the wall when it’s not in use to help save space. Plus, rounded edges help keep you and other family members safe from accidental poking.
Dimensions: 32.8 x 44.3 x 6 inches | Weight: 38.6 pounds | Weight capacity: 50 pounds | Color options: 4, including Rustic Oak and Distress Black | Materials: Wood
Drafting tables are popular among architects and artists, as the surface of the desk can be tilted, making it ideal for drawing. This drafting table is a top choice for any office space thanks to its solid wood construction, as well as its spacious 42 x 24-inch desktop. The angle of the work surface can be tilted up to 90 degrees, and there’s a built-in pencil ledge to prevent your writing implements from falling off. The desk has a vintage-inspired, classic appearance that will look good in any space, and it’s backed by a 10-year warranty.
Here at Forbes Vetted, we’ve written dozens of home furniture articles, gathering inspiration from staff favorites, tested picks and top-rated products. For this particular article, we trusted longtime Forbes Vetted contributor Camryn Rabideau to rely on her extensive knowledge of everything home.f
Because desks play a crucial role in your day-to-day workflow and subsequent level of comfort, we sought expert advice from Melissa Afterman, MS-HFE, CPE, a certified professional ergonomist and owner of the professional ergonomics consultancy service Learn Ergo. We frequently update this story to ensure accuracy and the most current best products; it was last edited in November 2023 by home and lifestyle staff writer Fran Sales.
When selecting our final list of the best desks, the Forbes Vetted home editorial team made sure to consider a variety of features, including style, type, material, size, construction, ease of assembly, weight-bearing limit and overall quality. We consulted certified professional ergonomist Melissa Afterman (cited above), to inform our search criteria.
We also kept various budgets, spaces and styles in mind. We conducted hours of research, scanning customer reviews (when available), making sure to focus on highly rated desks that have earned at least four stars or more from buyers.
To find a desk that’s both ergonomic and comfortable, there are several factors you’ll want to consider as you shop.
One of the most important things to determine is what kind of desk will fit your space and work needs. This includes measuring dimensions, of course, but the style of desk can also make efficient (or inefficient) use of your room and working hours. For instance, if you need lots of desktop space, an L-shaped desk is a fantastic choice for maximizing surface area without taking up too much space in a room. If you like to change positions throughout the day, a height-adjustable desk is ideal, plus you can raise it to tuck your office chair underneath when it’s not in use. Working from an “office nook”? A small corner desk or floating wall-mounted unit might be your best bet.
The best desk is one where there’s enough space to separate the screen from your keyboard, according to Afterman. “A depth (from front to back) of 30 inches is best,” she says. “This gives you space to support the forearms on the desk behind the keyboard and mouse. A 24-inch-deep desk will work if the chair armrests can adjust to the same level as the desk.” Several of our picks, including the Joss & Main Mikki Glass Desk (our choice for best home office desk) and the Branch Standing Desk, offer the ideal desktop depth of 30 inches.
It’s also important to find a desk that’s an appropriate height for your work chair. “Working on a desk that is too high makes you hold the shoulders in an uncomfortable shrugged position. The correct height for a desk is your elbow height with the shoulders relaxed and the feet fully supported,” says Afterman. This ensures you’ll be able to type with your elbows hanging next to the body. The proper desk height, she adds, “also means there is plenty of leg room so you can sit in close without bumping the thighs or knees.” The Jarvis Bamboo Standing Desk and Branch Standing Desk are great examples of ergonomic desks that are easily height-adjustable.
Desks can be made from a wide range of materials, including everything from plastic and particleboard to solid wood and metal. If you plan to use the desk on a daily basis and want it to last for many years, you’ll likely want to look for more durable materials, such as solid wood, metal or glass. However, the trade-off is that furniture made from high-quality materials often costs significantly more than those made from less-durable options.
Some desks come with built-in storage compartments including shelves, drawers and even whole filing cabinets. These features are beneficial if you have papers and other supplies that you want to tuck away, but Afterman recommends avoiding desks with drawers under the main area of the work surface, as they often limit your leg space and interfere with proper ergonomics.
I am director of research for digital assets at Forbes and editor of Forbes CryptoAsset & Blockchain Advisor. Prior to this I was at Kraken, a cryptocurrency exchange based in the U.S. Before joining Kraken I served as chief operating officer at the Wall Street Blockchain Alliance, a non-profit trade association dedicated to the comprehensive adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies across global markets. Before joining the WSBA, I was the Lead Associate within the Emerging Technologies practice at Spitzberg Partners, a boutique corporate advisory firm that advises leading firms across industries on blockchain technology. Previously I was Vice President/Lead Strategy Analyst at Citi FinTech, where I drove strategic and new business development initiatives for Citigroup’s Global Retail and Consumer Bank business across 20 countries. I also served five years as a Senior Intelligence Analyst at Booz Allen Hamilton supporting the U.S. Department of Defense. I have a B.S. in Business Administration from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University and a M.A. in International Affairs from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. Additionally, I am a Certified Information Privacy Professional (United States, Canada, and the European Union) and a Certified Information Privacy Technologist at the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP).
I am director of research for digital assets at Forbes and editor of Forbes CryptoAsset & Blockchain Advisor. Prior to this I was at Kraken, a cryptocurrency exchange based in the U.S. Before joining Kraken I served as chief operating officer at the Wall Street Blockchain Alliance, a non-profit trade association dedicated to the comprehensive adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies across global markets. Before joining the WSBA, I was the Lead Associate within the Emerging Technologies practice at Spitzberg Partners, a boutique corporate advisory firm that advises leading firms across industries on blockchain technology. Previously I was Vice President/Lead Strategy Analyst at Citi FinTech, where I drove strategic and new business development initiatives for Citigroup’s Global Retail and Consumer Bank business across 20 countries. I also served five years as a Senior Intelligence Analyst at Booz Allen Hamilton supporting the U.S. Department of Defense. I have a B.S. in Business Administration from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University and a M.A. in International Affairs from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs. Additionally, I am a Certified Information Privacy Professional (United States, Canada, and the European Union) and a Certified Information Privacy Technologist at the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP).
I’m the Forbes Vetted deputy editor, currently living near Detroit. After serving in the Air Force where I operated satellites and planned space launches, I have had a varied career as a tech journalist, wildlife photographer, scuba instructor and podcaster (including co-hosting the popular Battlestar Recaptica).
Computer Lap Table I am the author of nearly three dozen books about photography, mobile tech, and more; I’ve even authored a digital interactive storybook for kids. I spent eight years as a content lead at Microsoft where I helped to develop Windows Vista and Windows 7. And before joining Forbes Vetted, I contributed to many popular websites including CNET, PC World, How-To Geek and Business Insider.