5 Best Massage Chairs

The GH Institute's product testing experts and engineers have been hands-on with therapeutic essentials for decades, including the latest massage chairs. When selecting the best ones, we evaluate everything from a chair's ease of use and operation to performance, comfort and design, as well as a variety of features like heat, massage functions and Bluetooth connectivity.

To make our recommendations, in addition to testing several of the picks that made it onto our list, we considered brands that typically perform well in our evaluations and have features that would be most useful.

✔️ Comfort: A great massage chair should always be comfortable. If you have the chance, spend as much time as you can sitting in a chair you like before purchasing it and ask yourself if you like the way it feels. Is the headrest supportive? Is the material sink-in soft and plush? Is the chair the right size for your body? Is it easy to get in and out of the chair?

✔️ Massage tracks: All massage chairs hit your entire back, but an S-track chair stops right above your buttocks. An L-track chair, on the other hand, reaches your glutes, hamstrings and calves. "If you're spending the money, you should invest in a chair that hits your buttock and hamstring muscles, since these affect back pain," says Todd Sinett, applied kinesiologist, author and creator of Backbridge, an at-home spine-decompression device. He advises spending a bit more for an L-track chair. "The farther down the massager goes, the better for your body." You can also choose an SL-track massage chair, which focuses on your entire spine and lower muscles.

✔️ Massage types: "Initial massage chairs were rollers, but now we're seeing various levels of compression and angles, like 1D, 2D, 3D and 4D," Sinett says. "The highest level is the more interactive and will have better angle support, like hitting you from the sides and impacting all muscles." He suggests opting for a 4D massager, which will be much closer to a manual massage than 2D rollers that only move up and down. 3D rollers also move up and down as well as diagonally, while 4D rollers are similar to 3D rollers but with the added bonus of being able to produce various speeds and motions.

✔️ Settings: Make sure you purchase a massage chair with several massage modes, like kneading, compression, rolling and more. Also check whether you can adjust settings like the chair's massage intensity, target zones and duration. Most massage chairs will let you customize (and sometimes save!) favorite settings, so you can create the ideal massage for you.

✔️ Extra features: Today's massage chairs offer unique features like Bluetooth-enabled built-in speakers that play the music of your choice, charging ports, mood lighting, heat settings, cupholders and footrest extensions. Some massage chairs even have a zero gravity reclining feature that tilts your chair back for a more profound experience, like feeling weightless.

✔️ Warranty: In addition to purchasing a massage chair with a good return policy, you should also double-check whether it comes with a warranty. A massage chair is pricey, and you'll want to make sure you're covered should something break or malfunction.

According to the Health Policy Institute at Georgetown University, about 8% of all American adults have chronic or persistent back pain. Whether or not you fall into that category, a massage chair can be a worthy investment if you experience stiffness, soreness or tight muscles.

"The technology in massage chairs has significantly improved over the years, so you can come close to mimicking a hands-on massage," says Sinett. "Now you're able to program the chair to increase intensity or focus on a specific body area." Plus, he says, "who doesn't feel better after a massage?"

Before investing in a massage chair, Sinett suggests first ensuring your body is in alignment: "Massage chairs can be helpful, but they can also aggravate conditions. If you have back pain, don't spend tons of money on a massage chair without first figuring out what's going on with your back. Figure out the issue, and then see if you can benefit from a massage chair." Remember, a massage chair is expensive and won't offer all the perks of an in-person massage. "The drawback would be that if you're sensitive in your right shoulder, you cannot tell the massage chair to go lower or higher," Sinett says. "There's no feedback or communication like you would have with a massage therapist."

Last, before you invest, Sinett recommends getting realistic about how often you'll actually use your massage chair. "People think they will use their massage chair regularly, but it ends up being like gym equipment that's never used," he says. "If you'll use the chair and stay committed to it, a massage chair can be a great investment in your health with tremendous benefits."

The best massage chairs are expensive. According to Sinett, you should expect to pay a minimum of $2,500, but he cautions against spending more than $9,000. "While you don't want the cheapest option, you don't need the most expensive either," he says. Most importantly, Sinett advises buying a massage chair from a reputable company. "Your massage chair should have a good return policy," he says. "It's a big investment, and you need to make sure you're happy and it's working for you. You don't want to be stuck with a unit that you can't use."

Though many of us could spend hours in a massage chair, Sinett recommends trying out your massage chair for five to 10 minutes when you first get it. Once you've made sure you're feeling OK, you can build up time. He advises staying in a massage chair for 15-minute sessions — or 30 minutes max if you really want to relax. You should always make sure the massage chair isn't aggravating you. "First and foremost, listen to your body!" Sinett says.

GH Institute Senior Reviews Writer and Analyst Olivia Lipski covers everything from consumer electronics to home, travel, fitness, appliances, health and more. She continues to stay on top of the industry’s latest innovations and helps readers make better buying decisions by testing and reviewing the best gadgets to hit the market. Although she doesn't have a massage chair of her own, she does like to take a break whenever she can in the zero gravity massage chair in the Good Housekeeping Institute's Wellness Lab.