Free Tool

Ergonomic Desk
Height Calculator

By DeskDNA Editorial Team · Reviewed September 2026 · How we test

The single most common home-office mistake is a desk set to the wrong height — it drives the wrist strain, shoulder tension, and end-of-day neck ache that no chair upgrade can fix on its own. Enter your height below and this calculator returns the four measurements that actually matter: your seated desk height, standing desk height, chair seat height, and where the top of your monitor should sit.

Your height

feet

inches

Seated desk height

31.5"

Desktop / keyboard level when sitting — elbows at ~90–110°.

Standing desk height

43"

Raise the desk to here when you switch to standing.

Chair seat height

17.5"

Floor to the top of the seat pad, feet flat.

Monitor top / eye level

48.5"

Put the top of the screen at or just below this, arm’s length away.

Desk won't reach both your seated (31.5") and standing (43") numbers? An adjustable standing desk dials in both.

Monitor sitting below eye level (48.5")? A monitor arm raises it to the line.

Chair can't hit your seat height (17.5")? See ergonomic office chairs with a wide adjustment range.

These numbers are starting points tuned to your proportions, not rigid rules — nudge them by half an inch until your elbows rest comfortably at roughly 90–110° and your eyes land on the top third of the screen. Posture, chair depth, and keyboard thickness all shift the ideal by a little, so treat the output as the target you adjust around rather than an exact figure.

Ergonomic desk height chart by height

Your height	Chair seat	Seated desk	Standing desk	Monitor top
5'0" (152 cm)	15.0"	27.5"	37.0"	42.0"
5'2" (157 cm)	15.5"	28.5"	38.5"	43.5"
5'4" (163 cm)	16.0"	29.5"	39.5"	45.0"
5'6" (168 cm)	16.5"	30.5"	41.0"	46.0"
5'8" (173 cm)	17.0"	31.5"	42.0"	47.5"
5'10" (178 cm)	17.5"	32.0"	43.5"	49.0"
6'0" (183 cm)	18.0"	33.0"	44.5"	50.5"
6'2" (188 cm)	18.5"	34.0"	46.0"	52.0"
6'4" (193 cm)	19.0"	35.0"	47.0"	53.0"

Monitor top = seated eye level; place the top of the screen at or just below it. Switch the calculator to centimetres for metric figures.

How these numbers are calculated

Each output is a proportion of your standing height, drawn from published anthropometric ratios and aligned with OSHA computer-workstation guidance. Ergonomic fit tracks the length of your limbs, not an average table height, which is why two people of the same height and a person a head taller need genuinely different desks.

Seated desk≈ 0.46 × heightYour seated elbow height — keeps forearms level and wrists neutral on the keyboard.

Standing desk≈ 0.62 × heightYour standing elbow height — the desktop level when you raise the desk to stand.

Chair seat≈ 0.25 × heightPopliteal height — feet flat on the floor with thighs supported and no pressure behind the knee.

Monitor top≈ 0.70 × heightSeated eye level — the top of the screen sits here so your gaze drops slightly into the display.

Dialling in the rest of your posture

ElbowsRest at a 90–110° angle, forearms roughly parallel to the floor, shoulders relaxed.

WristsNeutral and straight — not bent up over the desk edge or down toward your lap.

Screen distanceAn arm's length away (20–30 in / 50–75 cm); further back for larger panels.

Screen tiltAngled back 10–20° so the whole panel faces your eyes, cutting glare and neck rotation.

FeetFlat on the floor. If the chair is raised to reach the desk, add a footrest.

Frequently Asked Questions

How high should my desk be for my height?

A seated desk should sit at your seated elbow height — roughly 0.46 × your standing height — and a standing desk at your standing elbow height, roughly 0.62 × your height. For a 5'9" person that works out to about 31.5" seated and 43" standing. Enter your exact height in the calculator above to get your numbers in inches or centimetres.

What is the standard desk height, and is it right for me?

The standard fixed desk height is 29–30 inches, which suits people roughly 5'8" to 5'10" tall. If you are shorter, that desk forces your shoulders to shrug and your wrists to bend upward; if you are taller, you lean down into it. The permanent fix is an adjustable desk, but raising your chair and adding a footrest, or fitting a keyboard tray, can correct a small mismatch cheaply.

How do I know if my desk is too high or too low?

Your desk is too high if your shoulders creep up toward your ears or your wrists angle upward to reach the keyboard. It is too low if you lean forward or slump to reach it. The target is elbows resting at a 90–110° angle with forearms roughly parallel to the floor and wrists neutral. If the numbers from the calculator are more than an inch off your current setup, it is worth adjusting.

How high should my monitor be?

The top of the screen should sit at or just below your seated eye level — about 0.70 × your standing height from the floor — positioned an arm's length away (20–30 inches) and tilted back 10–20°. Your eyes should land on the top third of the screen when looking straight ahead. If your monitor stand cannot reach that height, a monitor arm ($40–180) makes it fully adjustable.

What if I can't change my desk height?

Raise your chair until your elbows hit the seated desk-height number, then add a footrest so your feet stay flat and your thighs stay supported. For the screen, a monitor riser or monitor arm brings the display up to eye level independently of the desk. A keyboard tray mounted under a too-high desk is the other common fix. An adjustable standing desk is the only permanent solution if the desk is far off.

Does this calculator work for standing desks?

Yes — the standing desk height it returns is your standing elbow height, roughly 0.62 × your height, which is where the desktop should be when you work standing. Set your desk's sit and stand presets to the two numbers the calculator gives you. Keep the monitor at the same eye-level line in both positions; a monitor arm makes that easy to maintain as the desk moves.