Changing the way people sit.

Winner of 10 design awards to date-including the Design Distinction Award in the prestigious ID Design Review 2000 competition-the Liberty chair by Niels Diffrient has revolutionized the task chair industry.

Over 1 Million Sold World Wide

The Liberty chair is based on one idea - that sitting comfortably should be the easiest part of your day.

Its weight-sensitive recline and synchronously adjustable armrests set new standards for task chair performance and functionality to keep the sitter exceptionally comfortable while also lowering the risk of long-term injury.

Constructed from a contoured polyerethane seat and synchronous gel arm rests which are modular for easy replacement.

Goodbye manual adjustments
The Liberty chair is designed to give the maximum ergonomic benefit to the sitter with a minimum number of manually-adjusted controls. Once the chair is fitted, no further adjustment is required. The idea is that movement, which is essential for a healthy body, shouldn't be constricted by locking mechanisms and manual controls. In other words, sitting comfortably isn't something you should have to think about.

Movement is essential for a healthy back
People are spending more time sitting than ever before. Not surprisingly, this increase in sitting has been accompanied by a proportional increase in back problems. Our bodies were designed to move. In fact, movement, more than anything else, provides nourishment for the spine, keeps the joints lubricated and flexible, improves circulation and therefore keeps us comfortable. Conversely, when we don't move, the elasticity of our spine and joints is reduced and our muscles become fatigued. The key to healthy and comfortable sitting is being able to move without restrictions.

Any fixed posture, no matter how closely it approaches the optimal, will generate muscle fatigue. Therefore, it is important to build in flexibility to allow operators to shift positions easily.

Relax. It's good for you
An upright sitting posture transfers the weight of your entire upper body through your spine directly to the sitting bones, increasing pressure and discomfort. Reclining, on the other hand, transfers some of the body's weight to the backrest, reducing the load on your sitting bones. The more you recline, the more the weight of your body is proportionately distributed. Also, the angle between your torso and thighs opens up, allowing better breathing and easing internal pressure. This is why you can stay fully recumbent for hours without discomfort.

Perfectly adjusted recline
Liberty's revolutionary exoskeletal design works like a humansized weighing scale. The chair's virtual pivot point is at the body's natural pivot point - the hip - so the geometry of the chair parallels that of the body. As you recline, your weight automatically balances the force required to recline the chair, effortlessly keeping Liberty in perfect balance with you. That's why you're fully supported at all times without the need for locks.

Infinite Tilt
The optional Infinite Tilt mechanism allows you to tilt the entire chair 6° forward or 5° further to the rear. Forward tilt of the entire seat pan rotates the pelvis and puts the lumbar area of the spine into a healthy lordotic curve preferred for desktop work. In forward tilt, the backrest follows the tilt of the seat to provide constant back support. The additional tilt toward the rear gives the whole chair an exceptional 27° of recline - far more than the other leading office chairs.

Why traditional headrests don't work
Headrests are added to chairs because your head needs support when you recline - which is why people without headrests put their hands behind their heads when they lean back. However, a fixed headrest is usually in the wrong position. And a manually adjustable headrest requires constant adjustment every time you change position, and who can be bothered with that?

Liberty's advanced headrest technology
Liberty's headrest mechanism is as smart as the rest of the chair. It is ingeniously connected to the chair's reclining mechanism, so that when you lean back, the headrest moves forward to a supporting position (keeping your head upright). Not insignificantly, the headrest movement parallels the natural arc of the head and neck, so that it provides optimal support through their full range of motion. To fit all users, it can be adjusted vertically within a 127mm/5" range.

Armrests matter
Armrests are critical to long-term comfort and health. Without them, the neck and shoulders have to carry the weight of the arms (11% of body weight), putting strain on the upper back and pressure on the spine. But incorrectly adjusted armrests cause similar problems. Different tasks require different armrest heights: low for desk work and keyboarding/mousing, mid-range for conversational posture, high for reading/reclining. If armrests are not adjusted as tasks change, then the user isn't getting their full benefit.

Synchronous is easy
The revolutionary armrests on Liberty, with a vertical range of 178mm/7", can be adjusted synchronously without release buttons. In fact they're so easy to use that people will actually adjust them throughout the day to correctly support their many different tasks.

The Environmental Story
Constructed from a contoured polyerethane seat and synchronous gel arm rests which are modular for easy replacement. Made of 62% recycled content which is 90% recyclable.