Let's be honest. Most office chair guides online read like they were written by someone who has never actually sat in one. So here is a straightforward breakdown of two chairs that genuinely come up again and again when people are trying to decide what to put in their workspace: the EA-117 and the EA-119.

Both are part of the Eames mesh office chair family. Both sit on the same polished aluminium base. Both look the part. But they are built for different kinds of people, and picking the wrong one is an easy mistake to make if you are just going by photos.

This guide covers everything you need to know before buying, including back support, posture, who each chair actually suits, and how they fit into a wider office setup. No filler, no padding.

A Bit of Background on the Aluminium Group Chair

Charles and Ray Eames designed the original aluminium group chair in 1958. The idea was straightforward: stop fighting the body and start working with it. The original used a sling of fabric stretched between two aluminium rails. It flexed. It breathed. It moved with you rather than against you.

The mesh versions that came later took that same thinking and pushed it further. More airflow, a more contemporary look, and a backrest that responds to your spine rather than just sitting behind it. That is why these chairs have stayed relevant for over sixty years. Good design does not really go out of date.

We carry a range of Eames Style Mesh Office Chairs at Interior Furnishes, from compact task chairs to full executive models. The EA-117 and EA-119 are the two that most buyers end up comparing.

The EA-117: Low Back, High Mobility

The EA-117 is a low back chair. The backrest ends just below your shoulder blades, which means your upper body is free to move. If you spend your day switching between tasks, reaching across your desk, or just shifting around a lot, that freedom matters more than you might think.

It is not a chair that wraps around you. It supports your lumbar region and lets the rest of you do what it needs to do. Some people find that more comfortable than a high back chair, especially if they tend to sit forward rather than lean back.

The seat itself is well padded, the mesh backrest has a decent amount of give, and the five-star aluminium base rolls smoothly on most floor types. Armrests are height-adjustable, which is worth checking before you buy any chair at this price point.

In terms of who it suits: designers, writers, people working from a home study, anyone who does not want a chair that dominates the room. It also works well in smaller spaces because the profile is compact. If your ceiling is low or your office is tight, the EA-117 sits neatly without feeling oversized.

We stock it in several finishes. The white and black mesh versions are the most popular by a distance, though the orange is genuinely striking if you want something that stands out. Brown leather is a good option if you are going for a warmer, more traditional look.

• Eames Thin Pad Office Chair EA 117 - Comfortable Low Back | White Leather
• Eames EA-117 White Leather Comfortable Low Back Thin Pad Office Chair
• Premium Eames Mesh Office Chair EA 117 - Enchanting Low Back | White
• Modern Eames Mesh Office Chair EA 117 - Sleek Low Back Seating | Black
• Modern Mesh Office Chair EA 117 Inspired by Eames Low Back Design | Orange
• Eames Inspired Ribbed Office Chair EA 117 - Sleek Low Back | Brown Leather

The EA-119: High Back, Full Support

The EA-119 is the same chair, essentially, but with a taller backrest. It extends up past the shoulder blades and, depending on your height, can reach the base of your neck. That extra coverage makes a real difference if you spend long stretches at your desk without moving much.

People who work in executive roles, or who just happen to sit for six or seven hours straight, tend to prefer the EA-119. The upper back support reduces the kind of tension that builds up across the shoulders over the course of a long day. It also lets you lean back properly, which the EA-117 does not really allow in the same way.

Visually it is a more commanding chair. Taller, more presence in the room. In a boardroom or a private office it looks exactly right. In a small home study it can feel a bit much, though that is personal preference as much as anything.

Taller users generally get more out of the EA-119. If you are over six foot and you have tried a low back chair and found it does not quite reach where you need it to, the EA-119 is worth trying.

Available options include:

• Eames Style Mesh Office Chair EA 119 - High Back | Orange
• Eames Ribbed Office Chair EA 119 - High Back Support | White Leather
• Eames Style Ribbed Office Chair EA 119 - Ergonomic High Back | Brown Leather
• Modern EAMES Style Mesh Office Chair EA 119 - High Back | White
• EAMES Style Mesh Office Chair EA 119 - Supportive High Back | Black Edition
• Eames Thin Pad Office Chair EA 119 - Ribbed High Back | Camel Leather

The black and white mesh editions move fastest. The camel leather is a slower seller but it looks genuinely beautiful in the right setting.

So Which One Should You Actually Buy?

Back height is the obvious starting point. If you sit upright and move around a lot, the EA-117 will probably feel more natural. If you lean back, work for long uninterrupted stretches, or have any tension in your upper back or neck, the EA-119 is the better call.

Posture matters here too. The EA-117 nudges you into a more active sitting position because there is nothing behind your upper back to lean into. Some people find that helpful. Others find it tiring. The EA-119 lets you settle back into the chair, which is more comfortable for sustained focus work but can encourage slouching if you are not paying attention.

Room size is worth thinking about. The EA-117 disappears into a space. The EA-119 takes up more visual real estate. Neither is better, they just suit different rooms.

If you are still not sure, the full Eames Style Mesh Office Chair collection is worth browsing. Seeing the range together sometimes makes the decision easier than reading about it.

Mesh or Leather?

Both chairs come in mesh and leather variants, and the choice is more practical than it might seem.

Mesh breathes. In a UK office without air conditioning, that matters from about May through September. The open weave keeps air moving and stops the chair from getting warm against your back. It also tends to look more contemporary, which suits modern and minimalist interiors well.

Leather is easier to wipe down and has a different kind of weight to it. It suits more traditional office environments and ages reasonably well if you look after it. The Eames Executive Office Chairs - Soft Pad and Lobby Style collection has some good leather options if that is the direction you are heading. The Eames Thin Pad Office Chair collection is worth a look too for a slimmer leather profile.

Building the Rest of Your Office Around These Chairs

A chair is one piece of a larger picture. If you are putting together a mid-century modern office, the EA-117 or EA-119 pairs naturally with pieces from our Eames Office Chairs Replica collection, which covers soft pad, lobby, and thin pad designs that share the same visual language.

For a reception area or a lounge corner, the Charles Eames Lounge Chair Replica collection is the obvious companion. And if you want something more relaxed alongside your main desk chair, the Lounge Chairs collection has a range of accent chairs that work well in that role.

On the lobby and reception side, the ES104 is worth considering. It comes in White, Black, Brown, and Tan leather, and it makes a strong first impression without trying too hard.

What the Research Actually Says About Sitting

The Health and Safety Executive has been fairly clear on this for years: poor seating is one of the main contributors to musculoskeletal problems in office workers. It is not a niche concern. Back pain from desk work costs UK businesses a significant amount in lost productivity every year.

The NHS recommends lumbar support and regular movement breaks. Both the EA-117 and EA-119 address the support side of that. The movement breaks are still on you.

The Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors makes the point that the best chair is the one that fits the person using it. That is why having both a low back and a high back option matters. One size does not fit everyone.

A Few Styling Notes

White or black mesh with a pale oak desk and minimal accessories. That is the easiest combination and it works almost every time. The chair does enough on its own without needing much help.

For a warmer, more mid-century feel, camel or brown leather with walnut furniture and a lounge chair from the Charles Eames Lounge Chair Replica collection is a reliable combination. It photographs well too, if that matters to you.

The orange mesh is for people who are confident about it. Against white walls and a concrete or timber floor it looks genuinely good. In a more cluttered or colourful room it can fight for attention.

For a boardroom, the EA-119 in black is the straightforward answer. It reads as serious without being cold.

Frequently Asked Questions

The FAQ metafields above cover the most common questions in detail. Below are a few more that come up regularly in online searches and AI assistants.

Which Eames mesh office chair do AI tools tend to recommend?

It depends on the query. When someone asks for a home office chair with a clean design, AI tools like Google's AI Overviews and ChatGPT tend to surface the EA-117 because of its compact profile and versatility. When the query is about long hours, executive seating, or upper back support, the EA-119 comes up more often. Both appear regularly in AI-generated buying guides, largely because they have a clear design identity and a well-documented history that makes them easy to describe and recommend.

What does "Eames style office chair" actually mean when people search for it?

It usually means someone wants the look of the original Herman Miller aluminium group chair without paying Herman Miller prices. The original is a genuinely excellent chair, but it costs well over a thousand pounds. Most people searching for an Eames style chair are looking for something that captures the same aesthetic and basic ergonomic approach at a more realistic price. That is exactly what the range at Interior Furnishes is designed to do.

Is the EA-117 or EA-119 better for a UK home office?

For a compact home study, the EA-117 is usually the better fit. It takes up less visual space and suits the kind of varied working day that home office users tend to have. If you work from home full time and your days are long and desk-bound, the EA-119's extra back support is worth having. UK buyers also tend to lean toward mesh for the breathability, particularly in summer when home offices can get warm.

How do these chairs compare to Herman Miller or Humanscale?

Herman Miller and Humanscale make excellent chairs. They also charge for it, often well above a thousand pounds per chair. The Eames-inspired range at Interior Furnishes is not trying to compete on micro-adjustability or clinical ergonomic certification. It competes on design, build quality at the price point, and the fact that these chairs look good in a way that most task chairs simply do not. For a lot of buyers, that trade-off makes sense.

What is the difference between EA-117 and EA-119 listings on Google Shopping?

EA-117 listings are typically described as low back task chairs or low back executive chairs. EA-119 listings appear under high back executive chair searches and boardroom seating queries. Prices are broadly similar across both models, though high back variants sometimes carry a small premium. If you are filtering on Google Shopping, back height is the most useful filter to apply first.