The Best Standing Desks That’ll Improve Ergonomics and Elevate Any Home Office

If you’re gifting a standing desk to a loved one, you can’t go wrong with the UPLIFT V2-Commercial. Based on my extensive evaluation, UPLIFT is one of the most reliable, attractive, and sturdy standing desks money can buy. This top-of-the-line desk is a favorite of CNN Underscored, Laptop Mag, and Wirecutter.

UPLIFT offers the most customization options, including 22 desktop finishes, five desktop sizes, four frame colors, and a variety of add-on accessories to boot.

The desk ranked second overall for wobble testing done at BTOD.com, so you know it won’t rock back and forth like a wobbly table at a restaurant. (The Fully Jarvis standing desk is known to suffer from this problem.)

I think the UPLIFT V2-Commercial’s biggest fault is its high price. During the customization process at publishing time, a 48x30-inch Bamboo V2-Commercial UPLIFT desk was close to $100 more expensive than a similarly specced Fully Jarvis desk.

Given its sturdiness and outstanding 15-year warranty — which backs its frame components, mechanical parts, electrical parts, and motor — it’s worth the splurge.

The desk is built to last, you can customize it for your loved one's design taste, it ships quickly, and it isn’t too daunting to assemble.

Fully offers a wide variety of desktops, including an eco-friendly option, and plenty of customization choices at a price that’s oftentimes cheaper than UPLIFT’s standing desks.

Many users — especially if they’re taller than 6 feet — will appreciate that the desk’s frame doesn’t have a crossbar. This will allow you to stretch your legs out from underneath the desk while you’re sitting.

Unfortunately, the lack of a crossbar means the desk will wobble slightly more. This will be a bigger problem for fast typists, but overall, the desk is quite stable. A reviewer at CNN Underscored also said this option was one of the most difficult and time-intensive desks to assemble.

Buyers can bundle a handful of accessories at a discount, such as a desk shelf or drawer, as well as power grommet covers for reducing cord clutter. I also recommend spending a little extra on the “Advanced Keypad,” which has physical buttons and displays the height of your desktop. It saves four height positions.

This desk, which supports up to 350 pounds, has a wide range of sitting and standing heights — plus, its frame components, motor, and electronics are backed by a 15-year warranty. Additionally, the desktop is backed by a 5-year warranty, which is the same as our best overall pick.

If you’re gifting a standing desk to someone who shudders at the thought of putting together IKEA furniture, I recommend opting for Vari’s electric standing desk. It’ll take even the least handy folks less than 30 minutes to assemble, and all the tools you need are included in the box.

Vari’s desk is available in just two sizes — 30x48 inches or 30x60 inches — and it comes in five different finishes. The desk adjusts smoothly without much noise, and it is incredibly stable. It has four programmable height settings, automatically adjusting 25 inches all the way to 50.5 inches. All you have to do is press a button on the included control panel that’s located on the bottom right side.

During my tests with the Vari desk, the biggest downside for me was that it’s lacking a bit in the organization department. There’s no option to add grommets to keep cords under control. Fortunately, however, there's a slight indentation on its backside, so you won’t crush your cords in the event the desk is placed against a wall.

Vari sells a cable-management tray that attaches to the desk, but at $50, it’s a bit pricey for a plastic box. On the plus side, the desk comes with a hook for holding your bag or headphones, which is a welcome touch.

This standing desk is almost identical to our best overall pick. The biggest difference is that it lacks a crossbar, so it’s easier to stretch your legs out underneath it. The desk also stands slightly taller than the V2-Commercial, reaching heights of up to about 51 inches. So, if you’re very tall, it’s a better buy, since it’ll be more comfortable to use.

Due to the lack of a crossbar, the desk rocks slightly for folks who type quickly, but its frame is so strong, it can hold a 200-pound person in a hammock. (The hammock is even included with the purchase!) The desk also has a soft-touch keypad for saving and easily adjusting your preferred height setting.

The desk comes in a wide array of finishes and desktop sizes. It’s also backed by the same 10-year warranty as the UPLIFT V2-Commercial.

The incredibly sleek and modern Branch standing desk is an attractive standing desk that’ll look good in any home office. It’s available in two sizes — 30x48 inches and 30x60 inches — with either a woodgrain or white desktop. Both variants pair nicely with its white frame.

The Branch was named as one of our sister site Good Housekeeping’s favorite standing desks for its incredible range in height settings, the electrical port that helps keep cords in place, and the extremely quiet motor.

The editor who tested the desk said it was easy to install (no power tools necessary), and that it took less than 45 minutes to get it set up.

If you have a desk or table that you love and want a standing desk — but don’t want to get rid of your existing desk — you should consider opting for a standing desk converter. A standing desk converter is basically a smaller desk that can rise and be lowered on top of your current setup.

My favorite option is the QuickStand Eco from Humanscale. It’s available in white or black, with configurations suited for a laptop, single monitor, or dual monitor setups.

I reviewed the desk back in May 2020, and found the converter to be an excellent product to incorporate more standing into my workday. It’s stylish, ultra durable, and will help improve ergonomics in your work setup, all while lessening back pain in the process!

This accessory gives users the freedom of transforming their regular desk into a standing desk with a simple twist and fold. It’s the result of a successful Kickstarter campaign — and priced at only $30, it proves you don’t need to break the bank to get a functional standing desk, either.

The Levit8 has enough space for a 16-inch laptop, and it weighs less than your MacBook Air. It’s spill- and stain-resistant, and holds more than 20 times its own weight.

The “desk” takes up virtually no space at all, and is a good option for folks who want a taste of using a standing desk without dropping hundreds of dollars on one. Best of all, it folds flat, so you can easily move from room to room with it.