Boulies EP600 office chair review: So good it almost dethrones our top mid-range desk chair Steve Clark | usagoldmines.com

I’ve always found Boulies to be a well-priced option in the office chair arena, and having tested several of them, the EP600 is easily the most comfortable.

Of course, that’s expected. This chair is packed with a range of adjustments for getting comfort levels just right – and I especially like the inclusion of the adaptive lumbar support and 6D armrests. Yes, some of the adjustability mechanisms are a little fiddly, but it’s pretty much set-and-forget once you’ve got them in place.

Now, the EP600 isn’t for absolutely everyone – I think if it were fifty or a hundred bucks cheaper, it’d easily topple the FlexiSpot C7 as the top mid-range pick in my guide to the best office chairs. Although it is first and foremost a home office desk chair, I used it for several gaming sessions and found it a good pick for work and play.

As it stands, you’ll need to be at your desk a lot to truly justify the outlay. But for anyone looking for a chair designed for long hours, coming in at around the $400/£400 mark, it’s more or less unbeatable value.

Boulies EP600: Price & availability

The chair is available direct from Boulies – in the US, it’s priced at $490; in the UK, it’s £430. It comes in light gray and black colorways, with hybrid mesh covering.

At the time of review, the company’s running its early Black Friday sale, where it’s down to $410 / £375. Considering the range of features here – including a built-in footrest and 6D armrests – that feels like a very fair price. It’s well within the price range of my top mid-range pick, the FlexiSpot C7.

While on discount, I’d personally snap up the EP600. It has greater adjustability than the C7, softer material that’s just as breathable, and a good build quality (no squeaks and creaks since I assembled it). At full price, I’d still recommend it, but only if you want those extra features and comfort fine-tuning.

• Value: 4 / 5

Boulies EP600: Assembly

Fixing up this chair took me a little under 30 minutes in total. Everything you need – the screws, the hex key – is included in the box.

I’ve built a fair few office chairs in my time, and if you’re an old hand at this, it’s straightforward enough. However, while the instructions are relatively easy to understand, I felt they could be slightly clearer for those who aren’t assembling an office chair a week. More step-by-step images might improve the process. But it’s seamless enough if you read the printed text carefully and make sure you match the right screw to the fitting.

As ever, I recommend building this chair in the room you intend to use it in. It’s not as heavy as some chairs I’ve tested out, like the impossibly weighty Secretlab Atlas that now lives downstairs because I can’t physically lift it up to the second floor. But it’s still heavy enough to make it worth taking up the parts separately to wherever your home office is.

• Assembly: 4 / 5

Boulies EP600: Design & build

In terms of design, Boulies isn’t reinventing the wheel here. It looks like plenty of other office chairs out there. Whether that ‘traditional’ style is a pro or a con in your book is a matter of taste. It’s fine, and does the job, but won’t turn any heads.

There’s a thick plastic base with casters, and a hybrid mesh seat (it’s a woven blend of mesh and fabrics that feels soft to the touch but still highly breathable). I wish, for the price, the base was metal.

The backrest is formed of two parts – an upper shoulder rest and a 4D adaptive lumbar support below. Both are adjustable for height. According to the company, the chair is built for users standing between 5’5″ to 6’1” tall. That feels right to me. I’m 5’9”, and sitting in the mid-range it’s comfortable. My wife, who’s 5’3”, also had no issues sitting for extended periods of time either.

Atop the backrest sits the adjustable convex headrest that’s wide enough for most users. And flanking the sides are the 6D armrests, which pivot in – you guessed it – six directions. They’re very comfortable and work well, but I’m knocking off points because beyond the height, they’re not lockable.

Instead, they use tactile detents, with every turn up or down, backwards or forwards clicking firmly, but not permanently, into place. That took me a while to get used to, with the armrests ratcheting out of position when I shifted my weight too much in one direction.

Build quality is precisely what I’d expect for the price. Neither ultra-premium like a Herman Miller or LiberNovo, nor ultra cheap. The plastic parts feel solid enough, and I’ve experienced no squeaks, creaks, or breaks despite sitting in the chair pretty much every day of the week for up to twelve hours.

• Design & build: 4.5 / 5

Boulies EP600: Performance & features

For all-day comfort, I have absolutely no complaints with the Boulies EP600. I’ve been using it for up to twelve-hour shifts without fatigue. Like the excellent value pick, the Boulies EP200, it’s swiftly become my daily driver.

Even while testing other chairs in my office, the EP600 is the one I’ve tended to drop into first for work. Despite the range of adjustments you can make, it’s pleasantly unfussy in a way. It does precisely what I suspect most people want from a $400 office chair.

Adjustability is a high-point across the board. There’s not much you can modify to get yourself comfortable. The backrest tilts and reclines, and you can lock it into place. It gives you a good laid-back position for when you pull out the under-seat footrest. Speaking of which, this retractable footrest is a hard plastic, so you might want to add a cushion for extra comfort. I didn’t have problems with it, but it’s worth noting here.

For me, the killer feature is the 4D adaptive lumbar support, which can be raised or lowered to snugly meet your lower back. Its resistance altered. I’m always happy to see adaptive support like this, as it provides more consistent support as you move in your seat. It’s one of the main reasons why I’ve tended to choose the EP600 over other chairs I have in the home office.

The 6D armrests are also pleasing in use. Once I accepted the fact that they can’t be locked into position, I grew to like, if not love, them. It’s nice to be able to properly support my forearms when typing at my desk, or, when I’m relaxing on my phone, bringing them in towards my body so I have somewhere to rest my elbows.

Where I feel the EP600 stumbles is just how fiddly making those adjustments can be at first. The controls aren’t as intuitive as a lot of chairs.

Now, I love a chair with adjustable seat depth to accommodate taller users. Here, it has a 50mm range back and forth. But the adjuster is a ring placed under the right-side of the seat. On most chairs, you’d lift or pull this, and the seat slides forward for larger bodies, and smooth rolls back to accommodate smaller users.

Here, you have to physically push or pull the seat into position – that’s not easy to do with one hand, especially when the seat appears to be fighting against you.

Once I had the seat set up for my height, I remained comfortable throughout my time sitting on it. But let me tell you, it was a little frustrating to start.

• Performance & features: 4.5 / 5

Boulies EP600: Final verdict

The Boulies EP600 delivers everything most people need from a mid-range office chair. It’s not the most glamorous, it’s certainly not the most expensive. But it is comfortable, adjustable, and supportive for extended sitting.

While I did find the controls slightly finicky, overall, it does enough to justify its price tag. For remote and hybrid workers (or those looking for a chair for work and play), it’s an easy one to recommend – so long as you can justify the expensive relative to the amount of time you’ll use it.

Should I buy the Boulies EP600?

✅ Buy it if…

You want a highly adjustable office chair for the home or office. It’s one of the most comfortable mid-range seats I’ve ever tested.

❌ Don’t buy it if…

You don’t need a fancy office chair with 6D armrests, or you’d rather spend a little extra for a more premium seat like the Steelcase Series 2.

How I tested the Boulies EP600

I used the Boulies EP600 as my primary work chair for two weeks, for a minimum of eight hours a day, but more often like ten to twelve. During that time, I turned every knob, pulled every lever, and constantly swivelled the armrests like they were an oddly shaped fidget cube. I also used it as my gaming chair while playing Xbox and Switch. Here, I reclined the backrest and drawing out the footrest to see how well it fared while in ‘relaxation mode’.