When shopping for church chairs, size is a critical component. There are a range of options available from manufacturers, and it can be hard to tell which to choose for your congregation. Here’s what you need to know about selecting the right size for your church chairs.
How Wide Are Church Chairs?
Church chairs come in standard sizes of 18.5 inches wide, 20.5 inches wide, and 21 inches wide. Church chairs with arms may be slightly wider, since the arms add extra inches.
While some manufacturers offer customized sizing, it’s usually cheaper and easier to rely on standard church chair sizes. The average assignment of space per occupant has risen from 18 inches to now 19 or 20 inches. Rarely is anything larger than that needed.
Options for Larger Members
You want to make sure your church accommodates people of all shapes and sizes. For larger members, it’s important to look beyond the seat size (although that is important) and pay attention to the weight capacity. There are many options now for people of a higher than average weight. Sturdy steel frames and plywood foundations provide extra support.
Did you know? ChurchPlaza’s most popular chair models support over 1,700 pounds. Shop our church chairs now.
Which Size Church Chair Is Best?
There is no ideal church chair size; each congregation will have different needs. Churches with a limited seating capacity will want to choose the smallest size available (but may want to invest in a few larger models to accommodate larger members). If space is not an issue, a bigger seat size will provide maximum comfort.
Read and Understand Product Dimensions
Most manufacturers provide specifications that tell you the dimensions of the chair. It’s important to read the product specs for the chair models you’re considering, but it’s even more important to make sure you understand what those specs mean.
Most chair manufacturers will tell you the overall width, depth, and height of the chair, as well as the seat width, depth, and height. The seat dimensions are critical for evaluating how comfortable these chairs will be. You should use the overall dimensions to determine how many chairs you’ll be able to fit inside your church.
Consider the Spacing Between Chairs
While overall width is a great starting place for determining if these chairs will maximize your seating capacity, you need to also consider how much room you’ll leave between each chair. If the chairs have ganging, you can simply hook them together to form a continuous row of seating. If the chairs lack ganging or you want to provide more room to increase the comfort of your congregation, take this extra spacing into account.
Take Price Into Account
Generally, the larger the chair size, the higher the price. However, there are some exceptions. At times, chair manufacturers will have an overstock of certain models and may offer these models at a discount.
It’s helpful to create a budget for your church chairs purchase and try to stick to that. Knowing how much you can spend will help you decide whether to go for the next size up or opt for a smaller size.
ChurchPlaza offers a variety of church chair sizes for your congregation. Our most popular models can support up to 1,700 pounds, and every chair is crafted with the highest-quality components. Browse our selection today or talk to a product consultant about your needs.
