Updated on June 29th, 2023 at 04:46 pm
With the quality many furniture brands purport to have, you’d think most pieces of furniture are ideal for plus-size individuals. Unfortunately, tales of fat people breaking furniture deliver a different narrative.
While online stores try and make the search for plus-size sofas, chairs and general furniture easier, the process is still daunting. In most cases, looks and descriptions can be misleading. For this reason, we’ve taken the liberty of testing and reviewing several pieces of furniture for a heavy person.
For those that we could review physically, we researched deeply and inquired about their weight limits. We also read up on their customer reviews to get a clearer picture of their performance.
Let’s dive into the best furniture for obese people.
Patio furniture
The patio is the part of a home that combines the freshness of the outdoors and the comfort indoor lounging offers. It offers the best of both worlds. While most patio furniture are beautiful, they are flimsy.
On the bright side, PURPLE LEAF 3-seat Deluxe Outdoor Patio Porch Swing is the solution obese people have been looking for. We expect heavy-duty patio furniture to support over 250 lbs.
To achieve this, the furniture should have solid construction and firm padding for comfort. It also helps if it’s made from durable fabric and has a canopy.
The PURPLE LEAF checks all these boxes and more. It’s made from a rust-resistant steel frame and has a 750 lbs weight limit. Its polyester fabric is fade and water-resistant, breathable, and easy to clean.
It comes with a sturdy frame and adjustable canopy that provides shade coverage all day long.
As an obese person, you know how easy it is to break chairs or wear them out fast. That’s why getting a recliner is appealing. A heavy-duty recliner will support your weight when seated and reclined without giving in.
But after numerous reviews and deep research, we realized weight capacity isn’t the only thing to consider when picking the best heavy-duty recliner. Instead, the recliner chair should be well-padded and wide enough to accommodate a larger body.
We found a couple of heavy-duty recliner chairs that’ll serve you well. Though different recliner brands offer great options, Lane outdoes itself with the Stallion Comfort King Big Man.
The recliner has a simple design yet takes comfort to maximum levels. It has ample cushioning and is constructed from heavy-duty steel. As such, it supports up to 500 lbs which is more than adequate for an obese person.
Dining Room Chairs
Many American families gather around their dining room table to enjoy a great meal and each other’s company as they catch up on their day. It’d be unfortunate if an uncomfortable chair ruined this moment. As a big person, you might be familiar with discomfort at the dining table courtesy of flimsy and awkwardly designed chairs.
Heavy-duty dining chairs offer relief and ample support to obese people. Many of them have sturdy frames and can support higher weight capacities.
The HERCULES PREMIUM Series Chair by Flash Furniture supports 1,000 lbs. It’s made from solid hardwood and doesn’t have screws. The lack of screws means it doesn’t have weak points, which can compromise its strength.
Given its design, you can use this lightweight Chiavari chair in your home or for an event, including baby showers and weddings. Though it lacks high-density padding, it’s quite comfortable.
Learn more about heavy-duty dining chairs from our full guide.
Oversized reclining couch
The only thing that’s better than a comfortable heavy-duty sofa is a comfortable reclining sofa. A reclining couch provides heavy people with superior comfort by allowing you to elevate your feet.
Even better, these reclining couches come in different configurations for your living space, including a sectional sofa with multiple reclining options. As such, your family doesn’t have to fight over good spots.
When shopping for the best heavy-duty sofas, ensure they have high weight capacity, configuration, fabric color, and whether the seats are electric or manual. Some even offer pop-up headrests and USB charging ports.
Homelegance offers the best heavy-duty couch with a strong solid wood frame and an electric reclining feature. The comfortable foam padding is covered with soft polyester. We also love that it supports 900 lbs.
Office Chair
Spending 8+ hours on an office chair can be uncomfortable and bad for your back if it’s not a proper fit and doesn’t have the right ergonomics. Big and tall people especially have problems finding comfortable and quality office chairs.
Regular chairs prove to be too small and a major inconvenience. While there aren’t magic chairs perfect for all big and tall people, we compiled a list of some that are great in our Big and Tall Office Chairs Reviewed guide.
Our winning big and tall office chair is designed with PU leather and has extra thick cushioning for added comfort. As an executive chair for obese people, it supports 500 lbs and has ergonomic properties, including lumbar support.
With the 360-swivel metal base, you can move the chair around with ease and adjust it to a height that’s most comfortable for you. The seat is wide, and the wheels spin and roll quietly.
Lawn chairs come in handy when you need to relax away from the lights and noise in the house. But to enjoy your time, you need a comfortable and reliable loan. As an overweight person, only a heavy-duty lawn chair will do.
Heavy-duty lawn chairs need to be strong to support your weight plus more to accommodate your pet or child. The material the lawn chair is made from determines the weight capacity and durability.
In our Best Heavy-duty Lawn Chairs review, we discovered Timber Ridge offers the best option for overweight people. It has a wide and cushioned seat and can support 600 lbs, courtesy of its steel frame and polyester seat. For convenience, it has a phone slot and a cup holder on the side table.
Among other things, you’ll love that it’s easy to set up, rustproof, has padded armrests, and carry straps on the right.
Heavy-duty rockers for heavy guys can withstand a lot of stress and high impact caused by rocking motions. You can use an outdoor rocker in your backyard or when camping for comfort and relaxation.
The GCI Outdoor Freestyle Rocker is a premium choice for heavy persons. It supports 250 lbs and is wide enough for wide-body frames. Despite its strength, it’s lightweight and easy to fold.
Unlike most rockers, this outdoor rocking chair features advanced technology, including Spring-Action, which allows you to rock without causing too much noise.
Moreover, it’s made with mesh which provides great ventilation, and the feet are covered in nylon to keep from scratching the surface. It’s highly portable and has a water bottle holder.
Aside from the GCI Rocker, there are other heavy-duty freestyle rockers to check out.
Power lift chairs
The allure of lift chairs goes beyond comfort. Support is crucial for a heavy guy with a bad back, recovering from medication surgery, or the elderly. A power lift chair allows you to maintain the correct seated posture and gives you a boost when sitting or standing.
This helps to reduce the pressure exerted on your back.
When overweight, you need a heavy-duty power lift chair whose lifting mechanism can support your weight when seated and when reclined.
Golden Technologies presents the PR-630 Daydreamer that lives up to its name. It’s a premium electric and sturdy sofa that supports 375 lbs. it locks in infinite reclined positions, which means it can double as a zero gravity lift chair.
The incline positions are easily adjusted, and the chair doesn’t skid across the room because of anti-skid designs on the sturdy legs.
If you’d like to compare this power lift chair to other top picks, read through our ‘Best Power Lift Chairs’ review.
Guide to choosing Furniture for Big Guys
Even though we’ve listed different furniture for heavy people, some factors cut across the board that’ll help you choose the best. Weight capacity and general performance under high weight are affected by:
- Wood or steel frame – since the frame is hidden, most furniture brands tend to use cheaper materials, including particleboard and scrap wood. Be wary of quality if the furniture frame isn’t made from steel, solid wood.
- Fabric – in addition to the high weight capacity, you need the furniture, including the fabric, to be durable. Durable fabric can handle a lot of abuse and gives value for your money.
- Dense foam – with living room couches, the spots that receive a lot of traffic build-up grime, and the cushion sinks with time. Quality and stylish furniture should have high-density foam padding.
- Strong and beefy joints – different pieces of living room furniture have different weak spots. For chairs, it’s the legs and back; for couches, it’s the middle, and camp chairs, it’s the legs. These weak spots should be reinforced for heavy-duty use.
How strict are weight limits on couches?
Generally, single-person heavy-duty couches should have high weight capacities of over 250 lbs.
How much weight can a loveseat hold?
A normal love seat can handle about 300 lbs without exerting too much pressure. On the flip side, heavy-duty loveseats support 400+ lbs.
Do couches have weight limits?
When buying a sofa, either a sofa bed or a recliner, the weight might be lower than 180 lbs per seat. And given sofas are used often, it’s crucial that you get the best quality from the start. While a regular sofa can serve you for between 7 – 12 years, heavy-duty sofas can last a lot longer.