There’s something about a hammock chair that just speaks to all your relaxation centers. It will unstiffen your spine, unhunch your shoulders, and whether it’s a quick half hour away from your phone with a favorite book or a long weekend away from everything with your favorite people or pets, a hammock chair says “Take time out from the hustle and bustle and remember what being you feels like.”
At least, it does if you choose the right one.
Choose the wrong hammock chair and it feels like you’ve taken your iPhone into a yoga class. Like you’re out of tune and time with the purpose you were aiming for. Like an extra dose of stress dressed up in a chill-out suit.
So how do you get it right? How do you find the very best hammock chairs on the market, and from there, how do you pick the one that’s perfect for you?
Well, you could scroll through the internet for hours, comparing features, prices, difficulty of erection (stop it!). Or you could let us do all that for you. In fact, we’ve done it already. Want to take the easy route to a happy, chilled-out hammock chair lifestyle?
No problem.
Here’s our top pick.
OUR TOP PICK
This will surprise people with bulging bank accounts, but people who have to watch their money need to chill out too. And, not to put too fine a point on it, there are more people watching their money than there are people with big bucks. That’s why the Sorbus Hanging Rope Hammock Chair tops our list. Because it offers all the chill-out at a price-point that’s helpful to people who need it.
Made of a cotton/polyester blend, it gives you a combination of luxuriant softness with the durability you need if you don’t have the budget to buy a new hammock chair every year. And as part of the package, there are a couple of throw pillows – thrown in.
The Sorbus is more or less an indoor kitty, because rain and frost are not its friends, so it’s best used indoors to establish your own miniature zone, but if you have a balcony and good weather, you can knock yourself out and get some sunshine while you chill.
While it’s fine for most people, with a capacity of 265 pounds, those with longer legs may struggle to find their perfect spot in the Sorbus because the actual frame is smaller than some. On the other hand, if you’re trying to get your kids to take a breath and have some quiet time, it’s practically perfect for your needs.
While it comes with its own throw pillows, you could do worse than invest in some separate cushions to make the Sorbus the high-comfort zone you’re looking for – and especially when it’s used by kids, any favorite pillows or blankets can really make the Sorbus into a special chill-out hideout.
Coming with a 1-year manufacturer’s warranty means if you have issues with the Sorbus once it arrives, you’re covered, so you can buy in relative safety.
Pros
- With a tolerance of 265 pounds, this is a pretty strong hammock chair
- Covered in a poly-cotton mix, you get softness and strength combined
- The price puts the Sorbus in the range of possibility for lots of would-be hammock chair fans
- A 1-year warranty gives you some peace of mind when buying
Cons
- It’s less suited to taller people, despite the impressive weight tolerance
- It can’t be left out, as wet weather will ruin it
EDITORS CHOICE
The Hammock Sky Large Brazilian Hammock Chair is a hugely popular player in the Brazilian-style hammock chair market. It combines comfort, style, and a chill-out feeling that makes for a highly relaxing option.
Brazilian hammocks are usually made of a knit fabric, and here you get a poly-cotton blend, to mix the softness of cotton with the strength of polyester.
Like the Sorbus, the Hammock Sky is not a hammock chair to leave out indefinitely, as wet weather will adversely affect the cotton element of its make-up, but the Hammock Sky is an easy hammock chair to put up and down, so it’s not a huge production every time you want to use it.
In a handy move, it also comes with a carry bag to help you if the weather turns on a dime.
Brazilian-style hammock chairs lean more toward the hammock than the chair, so you may take a little while to get used to the Hammock Sky’s swing-like, almost-weightless vibe, especially if you’re used to a hammock chair with more defined seat structure, like the Sorbus.
But the Hammock Sky hammock chair is sturdy and supportive once you’re in it, so it will give you a lot of chill-out for your hammock chair dollar.
With a slightly higher weight tolerance than the Sorbus (300 pounds, compared to 265), the Hammock Sky option more than proves its versatility, and with a similar 1-year warranty, you can try it out without worrying.
It is slightly more expensive than the Sorbus, but it’s still within the budget-friendly end of the hammock chair spectrum, so if you want to get hammock-happy without breaking the bank, it’s a highly viable option.
And it’s also available in everything from a pure cream single color option to a more vibrant, Brazilian color palette.
Pros
- It’s easy to set up and take down, so it’s highly convenient
- The combination of cotton and polyester gives you strength and softness
- With a high weight tolerance of 300 pounds, it’s suitable for heavier people
- The 1-year warranty adds peace of mind to your purchase
Cons
- The more hammock-heavy style might take some getting used to
- It can’t be left out as the cotton will weather
BEST VALUE
The Greenstell Hammock Chair is the first option in our list to be made of pure polyester, rather than a poly-cotton mix. The upside to that is that it can be used outdoors longer, as polyester is much more weather-resistant than cotton.
While it’s reasonably easy to put up and take down, it will involve some more construction than some of our hammock chairs, so you’ll need to have an idea of what goes where and how to put the support structure together.
The hammock itself is on the larger size (40 inches by 50), with a 40-inch spreader bar, and that means it also carries the largest weight limit so far – depending on the firmness with which it’s put together, the Greenstell Hammock Chair can carry anything up to 330 pounds of weight.
So you get a hardcore, durable hammock chair you can use outdoors for longer, at a similar price point to both our first two offerings.
Pros
- The Greenstell hammock chair has a weight tolerance of 330 pounds
- Fully polyester construction means you can use it outside in a wider range of weather conditions, without losing too much softness
- Relatively easy to put up or down, especially when using a carabiner
Cons
- There’s a degree to which you have to work out how to put the hammock together
RUNNER UP
The LazyDaze Hammocks Hanging Chair has everything you want from a hammock chair, without breaking any banks.
Being a Caribbean-style hammock chair, it’s particularly comfortable, being made from woven cotton ropes, and while, for instance, there’s less structure to the LazyDaze than there is in something like the Sorbus, there’s more room to lie back and recline in the LazyDaze – appropriately enough, given the name.
It has a maximum weight tolerance of 300 pounds, so while it’s not the most robust hammock chair on our list, it’s certainly up there among the better options, especially for those with longer legs.
The one big bugaboo about the LazyDaze hammock chair is that while it’s priced similarly to many of our other options, it’s the only hammock chair on our list so far that doesn’t come with its hanging apparatus as standard.
That means you have to factor in the additional cost – not to mention the additional hassle – of buying a hanging rig separately to the hammock chair.
Sure, it’s good and soft and worth it when you do it, but it’s a note that strikes against the idea of hammock chairs being a relaxing chill-out experience.
Pros
- Made of pure cotton ropes, you get an extra level of softness and comfort here
- With a weight tolerance up to 300 pounds, it’s pretty safe for most adults
- You can get a better recline in this chair than in more structured options like the Sorbus
Cons
- It’s sold without any hanging frame apparatus, so it’s essentially a string blanket until you factor in the extra cost and hassle of picking up a separate hanging frame
RUNNER UP
Like the Lazy Daze, the SunnyDaze is one the larger size, with a seat of 40 inches, and a weight tolerance of 300 pounds, but here the ropes are woven from polyester, which means you can stay outside in this hammock chair beyond the first spot of rain without your hammock chair suffering from the sudden change in the weather.
While in principle, it’s pretty easy to attach and detach, the SunnyDaze, like the Lazy Daze, comes with no stand as standard – which feels bizarre in the marketplace, especially given the Sunnydaze is at least a bump and half up in price from the likes of the Laze Daze.
So you have to think about how you’re going to suspend this hammock chair, and factor in potential additional cost, especially if you’re going to use it indoors.
Available in a wide range of color options, the SunnyDaze is a really comfortable hammock chair that gives you good cradling for use in any number of positions.
If you’re going to recline, you’ll get more freedom here than you will in things like Sorbus but it might take a little while both to get used to the Caribbean-style hammock chair and to get comfortable that it can support you securely.
Certainly, with its 300 pound weight tolerance, it will support most people, and once you get the hang of it, getting in and out of the hammock chair becomes less of a comedy and more of an instinct.
The SunnyDaze is a good option for both indoor and outdoor relaxation, but it’s aimed at slightly richer people than most of the hammock chairs on our list, given the price hike and the extra cost of a stand if you want to set it up as an indoor reading nook.
That said, it does come with a 1-year warranty from the manufacturer, so once you’ve got it set up, it should give you plenty of stress-free chill-out time in a comfortable hammock chair.
Pros
- This Caribbean-style hammock chair has a 40-inch seat and a 300 pound weight tolerance, so it should live up to the XL in its name and give most people a really comfortable experience
- With ropes made of polyester, you get a lot of the comfort of cotton, but a lot more weather-resistance than cotton can give you, so you can use it outside for longer
- It comes with a 1-year manufacturer’s warranty, to make sure you have a good time in the hammock chair
Cons
- The piece is higher than most of the other options on our list, and what you’re paying for is the XL size, so if you don’t need that, you can get a better deal further up the list
- Lize some others, this comes with no stand, so you’ll be paying out extra if you want to use the hammock chair indoors
Best Hammock Chair Buying Guide
Hammock chairs are a great idea if you want to laze away summer afternoons outdoors, or winter days indoors with a woolly sweater and a good book, while the rain beats down outside.
They’re great for zoning out the stress of the real world and just letting go. But there are a few things to remember before you click on the “Buy” button.
Size And Weight
On the one hand, you want a hammock chair that can take your bodyweight, and you want one that can give you the fully cradled feeling, however long your legs might be. So you want to check the size and weight ratings on the hammock chairs that have caught your eye.
On the other hand, you also don’t want a hammock chair that’s too big for you, because there’s a fine line between feeling cradles and feeling swamped.
Also, if the hammock chair is too large, it can be surprisingly difficult to get in and out of, and the manhandling to transport it and pack it away when you use it outside can be additional hassle that you don’t need and that works against the fundamental point of having a hammock chair in the first place. So make sure you get your size and weight right before you buy.
Cotton, Polyester, Or A Mix Of The Two
Cotton is a common material from which hammock chairs can be made, and it’s common for a very good reason. Just as we like cotton in the clothes we put next to our skin, its softness in a hammock chair boosts the comfort and the sense of luxury we feel when we’re in a cotton hammock chair.
Polyester on the other hand is perhaps a little less luxuriously soft-feeling, but it comes with the added bonus of being comparatively weather-resistant – where cotton reacts poorly to rain and cold, polyester at least gives you time to consider your actions and pack it up before any of you get too wet.
You can also get hammock chairs in a poly-cotton blend, which has at least some of the protection of polyester, but still isn’t suited to being permanently hung outside.
Which of the options you choose will depend how much outdoor hanging you intend to do. If you’re dedicatedly an indoor swinger, then go cotton every time. If you want to mix it up a little, consider the benefits of polyester in your buying choices.
Price – And Hidden Extras
Price is obviously a big factor in buying what is ultimately a self-care luxury – you don’t want it to cost you too much.
But it’s also worth reading the small print – if you’re going to have to pay out extra cash for a hanging mechanism on top of the hammock chair, then what you have is not your final price. So, remember to check for hidden extras, and budget accordingly.
Best Hammock Chair - FAQ's
Is Cotton Or Polyester Better For Hammock Chairs?
That depends on where you use them. If you’re staying strictly indoors, go with cotton, because it’s slightly softer and more luxurious. But because cotton is nor weatherproof and polyester is, if you plan to hang your hammock chair outside indefinitely, go with polyester.
Is A Hammock Chair Safe?
It certainly should be safe with two caveats. Don’t exceed the weight tolerance of your hammock chair, and make sure you attach it securely, and you should be fine. Also, a hammock chair is for chilling in, rather than bouncing on, so treat it well and it will reciprocate.
Can You Fall Off A Hammock Chair?
You’re a human being – with enough dedication, you can fall off anything. Seasoned hammock and hammock chair users have a motto: “Never hang your hammock higher than you can safely fall.” Apart from anything else, getting into and out of a hammock chair is harder if it’s higher.
You should be able to swing around and tip yourself safely forward out of a hammock chair. But yes, technically, it’s incredibly possible to fall out of a hammock chair.
