Merax High-Back Ergonomic Gaming Chair Review 2024

Are you on a budget but looking for a great, low-priced gaming chair? If so, you’ve probably come across one or more links to the Merax high-back ergonomic gaming chair and may be tempted to give it a try.

While we love Merax as a company and readily acknowledge that they make surprisingly good office furniture, which you can read about in our Merax office chair reviews, we regard this one as equal parts hit and miss. We still provisionally recommend it, but it’s got some issues. Before you commit to a purchase, we urge you to read this review so you have all the information you need to make an informed decision.

It’s not a bad chair; it’s just that it has some genuine limitations to be aware of. Don’t worry; in the following sections, we’ll put this model under our microscope and fill you in on what works and what doesn’t.

If that sounds good to you, let’s get down to business!

Key Features of the Merax High-Back Ergonomic Gaming Chair

Merax is perhaps best known for making CD and DVD cases. There’s nothing about the company that screams, ‘We make excellent office furniture!’ and yet, some of the models they offer fare surprisingly well, punching well above their weight class.

Unfortunately, this particular model isn’t one of those. We regard the Merax High-Back Ergonomic Gaming Chair as being slightly above average but a bit pricey for what you get, which is why we noted that if you can find the model on sale (and you frequently can), it becomes a much more viable contender IF you can live with the chair’s very real limitations.

Chair Specifications

Before we start talking about that, though, let’s start with some basic stats to give you a general overview so you’ll have a better understanding of what you’re getting:

There are some interesting things to discuss here: good and bad. Let’s start with the good.

It’s a good-looking chair stylistically. It is very edgy and modern, which is helped by the fact that it’s offered in various bold, two-tone colors (blue/black, red/black, or white/black).

It’s also a relatively lightweight chair, so you won’t have difficulty moving it from place to place. However, the casters or chair wheels may get bogged down in thick, plush carpet. The chair also has an impressive recline range, which we like.

Granted, this model doesn’t come with an ottoman, but with some applied creativity, you could engineer one to use with it and recline back while relaxing or playing your favorite video games. This is a good thing and one of the mainstays of gaming chair design.

On the other hand, check out the height adjustment range compared to the maximum weight limit. The height adjustment range strays into Big and Tall territory, but the weight limit doesn’t support that design decision.

That’s not a surprise; the base is, after all, non-reinforced nylon. It’s possible to ruggedize nylon to support more weight, and this chair would have been greatly aided had the company chosen to go that route or use an aluminum or steel base.

In our view, the disparity counts as a strike against the model. Unfortunately, as you’ll see below, it’s not the only one.

Adjustability

There’s more adjustability here than first meets the eye, which we’re happy about. As you saw above, the seat moves up and down in an industry-standard 4” range, although again, we’ll point out the disconnect between the height adjustment range and the Merax High Back Racing Gaming Chair’s maximum supported weight.

Versatile Recline

In addition, the tilt and lock lever on the side of the seat allows you to select any recline angle between 90 and 160 degrees, making it quite versatile.

Comfortable

Comfort-wise, the high-back racer is moderately padded with block foam and covered with PU. It’s certainly not the most comfortable chair you can buy, but for light to moderate daily use, it’s not bad, either.

Ergonomic Features

You’ll also find some reasonably well-implemented ergonomic features, including decent head and neck support, lumbar support, a sculpted seat that can’t quite be described as a waterfall-edge style but comes reasonably close, and ergonomic armrests.

This brings us back to the subject of adjustability. The headrest pillow and the lumbar support pillow are both moderately adjustable. They’re held in place via Velcro straps, which allows them to be a bit flexible in their position.

Unfortunately, Velcro isn’t a strong fastener, so if you move around much in the chair, the pillows are apt to shift with you, and you’ll probably find yourself having to readjust both periodically.

In our view, it would have been better to build in some adjustment mechanism with a locking function, but this was the cheaper approach and was likely implemented in a bid to keep costs down; we have to say that the company only moderately succeeded.

Merax is asking a pretty penny for this chair, and we don’t feel it’s a great value at full price. Fortunately, you can often find this model on sale, and at its sale price, it’s a much stronger value.

The armrests are ergonomically sculpted and lightly padded but not upholstered or adjustable. We don’t mind the relative lack of padding, but we would have expected height-adjustable arms at the full asking price.

Does Not Come Assembled

It should come as no surprise, but this chair, just like other Merax gaming chairs, will arrive in a big box and several pieces at your house. Fortunately, Merax does a better-than-average job with assembly instructions. While their production quality isn’t top-tier, the holes on the various pieces line up well enough that assembly isn’t particularly challenging.

Combine that with the fact that it’s not an especially heavy chair, and you shouldn’t have any real issues getting it ready for first use.

Merax Ergonomic Gaming Chair Pros and Cons

As we said at the start, the Merax High Back Racing Style Gaming Chair is very much a mixed bag, with some things we like and others that we don’t. In our view, here are the chair’s best features:

Now for the not-so-good:

Really though, here’s the biggest issue we have with the Merax High Back Gaming Chair:

Gamers tend to spend a lot of time playing games. Gaming chairs, then, need to withstand the rigors of heavy daily use. This chair can’t.

The base is lightweight nylon, the upholstery is PU, which will show its age quickly, and the chair doesn’t boast enough padding to make it comfortable for extended periods of sitting.

Merax High Back Racing Gaming Chair Review Conclusion

We wanted to like the Merax High-Back Ergonomic Gaming Chair more than we did. The simple truth is that it’s a slightly above-average office chair but a relatively poor gaming chair.

That said, it’s a good-looking design, and we provisionally recommend it if you’re the right kind of user. In our view, the right type of user will have the following characteristics:

We know that people who check all three boxes above exist, but they’re not a huge market segment.

If the three bullet points above describe you, and you can catch this model on sale when it’s a much better value for the money, we recommend it. If not, this almost certainly isn’t the gaming chair you want.

Recommended Reading

BestOffice Ergonomic Office Chair Review

Our review delved into the BestOffice Ergonomic Office Chair, which offers decent back support and adjustability at a low price.

Zenith High Back Mesh Office Chair Review

Our assessment highlights the Zenith High Back Mesh Office Chair, which offers remarkable ergonomic features at a good price.

Official Manufacturer Support

REFERENCES & RESOURCES

• Merax, Official Brand Website.
• The Office Chair Parts Guide, Beyond The Office Door.
• What to Look for in an Office Chair?, The Spruce.
• 8 Common Office Chair Mistakes to Avoid, HuffPost.
• How Much Weight Will A Standard Office Chair Hold?, Concept Seating.