The Best Standing Desk Converters

Wirecutter has been covering standing desk converters and adjustable-height standing desks since 2013. Among three authors, we’ve reviewed and tested more than 15 standing desk converters.

Standing desk converters, also known as desk risers or toppers, are for people who don’t want to buy a full-size standing desk but still want to alternate between sitting and standing while working at a computer. This could be for any of the following reasons:

• You have a fixed-height desk that you like.
• You need to put away your workspace after your work is done (such as at a dining room table).
• Your employer will not allow you to install a full-size standing desk but will allow a converter.
• You don’t want to pay the $600-and-up price for a full-size standing desk.

Ergonomic experts recommend alternating between sitting and standing during your workday because sitting for prolonged periods of time could be detrimental to your health. Research has associated too much sitting with a higher risk of heart disease and diabetes, certain cancers, and premature death.

But that doesn’t mean you should stand all day, either. “Repeated, long-term exposure to standing also has been implicated in the development of serious health problems,” said April Chambers, assistant professor in the Department of Health and Physical Activity at the University of Pittsburgh. So fixed-height standing desks aren’t ideal either if you’re spending long hours at them.

A standing desk converter lets you quickly raise or lower the desktop to alternate between sitting and standing throughout your workday. Researchers recommend sitting and standing for equal periods of time each day, or, at the highest ratio, sitting for 15 minutes and standing for 45 minutes every hour.

Note that a standing desk converter raises the keyboard height from 0.5 inch to 1.5 inches above the desktop. That, coupled with the height of the average desk (28 to 30 inches), might mean that people who are under 5-foot-11 will need to use a footrest for proper ergonomics when they’re sitting.

On the other end of the spectrum, standing desk converters typically raise the keyboard platform between 14 and 15 inches for standing work; coupled with the height of an average desk, this means they best accommodate people who are about 6-foot-2 or shorter. Taller people will be better off with a fully adjustable desk.

Years of using standing desk converters, full-size standing desks, and even some cardboard standing adapters have taught us a lot about what to look for in a sit-stand setup. Among the attributes we value:

• Adjustability: You should be able to lock your work surface at just the right height instead of having to settle for a small number of preset heights. For units with monitor mounts, positioning your monitor at eye level should be as easy as lifting your work surface to elbow height.
• Ease of raising and lowering: For manually controlled models, we consider how much strength or finesse is required. (For reference, in our latest round of testing, our tester was a 5-foot-2, 130-pound writer who doesn’t do a lot of strength training.) For electric models, we consider how long a desk takes to move and how difficult it is for us to make fine adjustments.
• Low likelihood of pinching or crushing: The moving parts shouldn’t catch your hands or snag a cable. Electric converters should offer collision detection.
• General ergonomics: The converter should allow you to stand about an arm’s length away from your screen, elbows bent at a 90-degree or greater angle.
• Space and layout: Any standing desk option should have optimal space for a keyboard and mouse, as well as a few other items such as a mug, a medium-size notebook, and a pen. We prefer flat rectangular surfaces over those with space-wasting cutouts.
• Maximum height: A converter should accommodate as many heights as possible. Most full-size desks we’ve recommended accommodate people up to about 6-foot-2.
• Minimum height: A thick converter work surface may raise your typing surface more than 2 inches off the desk you are using. That could mean some people may not be able to raise their chair to meet that height while still keeping their feet flat on the floor.
• Desk depth: We look for converters that can fit a typical 30-inch-deep desk
• Noise: This factor is mostly a consideration for electric models, but some manual converters also make groans, unsettling motor noises, or even screeching metal-coil-bending sounds when moving.
• Weight: For single-platform models, this is an important factor that allows you to easily remove your converter if you need the surface for other things.
• Looks: We take note if a converter does anything to distinguish its appearance or hide some of its raising mechanisms.

With the above priorities in mind, Wirecutter’s Melanie Pinola assembled and tested the converters side by side on two nearly identical 45-by-30-by-29-inch (width by depth by height) desks. We outfitted each with a 24-inch monitor, a laptop, an external keyboard, a mouse, a notebook, a smartphone, and a glass of water. She then spent a full workday alternating between sitting and standing—with an aerobic step platform to magically transform her height from 5 feet 2 inches to 6 feet to test the higher height ranges of each converter.

We’ve recommended the single-column Ergo Desktop Kangaroo Pro Junior for nearly a decade. That’s because it does the best job of turning a fixed surface into an ergonomic standing workstation while keeping a compact footprint.

It has the best adjustments. Of all the standing desk converters we’ve tested, it’s the simplest to precisely tune the position of the work surface and your monitor. Raising and lowering the components with the unit’s nitrogen-gas springs requires very little effort or pressure.

It’s really stable. Once you’ve tightened the surfaces, they stay in place. The Kangaroo Pro Junior exhibits less wobble than nearly any other converter we’ve tested, and leaning on it doesn’t lower the work surface. It also comes with a small adjustable stability bar, which prevents wobbling at the edge closest to you, and the unit’s heavy base halts most vibrations that come through the desk.

It has plenty of work space. The flat, open work surface accommodates a wider range of keyboards and mice than the shallow keyboard trays of other converters, and it doesn’t box in your hands while you’re using it.

But it won’t overwhelm your desk. The Kangaroo Pro Junior is just under 20 inches from the front of its work surface to the back of its monitor column, which is less than every other converter we’ve tested in its category.

It requires fewer adjustments when sitting. The work surface is roughly 0.5 inch thick and floats less than 0.25 inch off the desk, so it raises your typing surface by 0.75 inch. Most converters add at least an inch or two to a desktop, which means many people would have to adjust their chair height and possibly get a footrest to support their body while sitting.

It looks fine. The Kangaroo Pro Junior consists of a metal column that holds a monitor and a matte black, plastic work surface, and that’s all it looks like—no visible logos, glowing LED buttons, or attempts at sleek rounded corners.

It’s backed up by a solid warranty. Manufacturer Ergo Desktop offers a full refund within 30 days of purchase (if you buy it directly from the company). The gas springs and moving parts have a five-year warranty, and the steel structural frame is covered for 10.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

Look before you lower. The work surface of the Kangaroo Pro Junior moves straight up and down, the base is smaller than the work surface, and it doesn’t have a frame around the edges. This means objects can end up underneath the work surface and then be hit by the surface on the way down. Be sure to check underneath before you lower the work surface.

It lacks built-in cable management. If you like to have your cables neatly bundled and out of the way, that’s something you’ll have to figure out yourself (you can see our recommendations here). Every standing setup involves a bit of this work, but other converters, such as the VariDesk Pro Plus 30, the VertDesk Converter V1CB/V1CW, and Ergotron’s WorkFit models, offer at least some routing holes and included clips.

The stabilizing leg is a mixed bag. The optional, adjustable piece takes up space and is one more thing to knock over. But it adds stability, and locking the brace into your most commonly used standing height also makes it easier for you to move your work surface to a consistent height.

We like the VertDesk Converter V1CB/V1CW for most of the situations that our top pick doesn’t cover. Because it’s a two-level converter, it can work with monitors (up to two 24-inch models) on a stand or with an all-in-one computer, rather than requiring a VESA-compatible bracket.

It’s faster to adjust than the Ergo Desktop Kangaroo Pro Junior. The VertDesk is a little faster to raise and lower, with levers on each side instead of locking knobs.

You can use it with a variety of screen setups. Have your laptop on the top shelf with or without a laptop stand, a monitor on a stand, two monitors on two stands, or one or two monitors on a monitor arm. A replaceable grommet in the upper platform lets you neatly run cables to your screen, and the design also includes a few clips and suggested cable-routing spots. (If you have two stand-mounted monitors—up to 27 inches each—you can buy a 42-inch-wide version for about $70 more.)

The rising motion is very smooth. The VertDesk doesn’t lift straight up like the Kangaroo Pro Junior; instead, it moves slightly toward you in a smooth motion. It’s also easier to push back down than other models. Making small adjustments to the height wasn’t difficult for our 6-foot-1 male tester but required pushing with body weight for our 5-foot-2 female tester. If you have a physical disability or strength issues, you may need assistance with both lifting the converter for placement on a table and lowering or raising this and similar converters.

It has the roomiest keyboard tray. The VertDesk’s keyboard tray offers the most depth of any laptop-friendly model we’ve tested. That deeper space allows for more mouse room, a larger keyboard, or a small notepad. You can adjust the keyboard tray’s tilt to a negative angle, as ergonomic experts recommend, and it stays firmly at the angle you set.

It’s solid, but not quite as stable as our top pick. At its tallest height, the VertDesk comes forward about 10 inches, and typing forcefully on the keyboard tray can make it feel wobbly. Still, at various standing heights in our tests, the VertDesk was more stable front-to-back and side-to-side than our budget pick.

The VertDesk Converter V1CB/V1CW comes with a five-year warranty with “no exclusions.”

The drawbacks of the VertDesk are mostly the same as those of any desktop converter:

• The keyboard tray raises your typing surface about 1.5 inches off your table or desk when you’re sitting, so you may need to adjust your chair or make other adjustments to your workspace.
• It’s good that the VertDesk is available in white instead of the standard all-matte-black look, but it’s big and boxy.
• Although the working surfaces are contained inside a frame and the top desktop sits higher than a coffee mug when lowered, the handles on either side of the top surface could catch something underneath if you move it while you’re standing.
• Like most of its peers, the VertDesk requires that you manage your cords so that they can’t be caught in the pinching parts of the frame.

Uplift’s E7 Electric Standing Desk Converter is the closest you can get to the experience of using a full standing desk, thanks to its motorized column that raises a sleek-looking bamboo work surface and a VESA-mounted monitor with the press of a button.

It’s quiet and easy to organize. The E7’s electric movement makes very little noise while in motion, and it has more cord-routing options and suggestions than other electric converters we’ve tested.

You can program your preferred heights. Programming your sitting and standing heights into memory on the E7 is convenient, and unlike the other electric models we’ve tested, it has smartly placed and easy-to-operate buttons.

It’s pretty stable. The main work surface and the monitor mount are firm when you’re typing at both sitting and standing heights. The keyboard tray does have some wobble, especially if you’re using a mouse near the left and right edges.

But it takes up a lot of room. You need at least 26 inches of desk depth (plus another 13 inches with the keyboard tray), and it weighs 92 pounds, so it’s not easy to move to different work surfaces.

Sitting at the E7 could be slightly awkward, depending on your height. The main work surface rests about an inch above your fixed-height desk. This arrangement is more awkward than our main pick, but if you add on the optional (but included) adjustable keyboard tray, that piece sits lower than your work surface. That might work for some people—especially those 5-foot-5 and shorter, who might otherwise struggle to sit tall enough with the E7 on their desk.

Adjusting the height of the monitor stand can be annoying. The biggest flaw of the E7 is that you have to mount your VESA-compatible monitor at one of five spots on the column. Moving the monitor to a different height involves inserting a screwdriver behind the monitor. This limitation means you need to choose a monitor height that is just okay for both your sitting and standing heights. (The Ergo Desktop Kangaroo Pro Junior, in contrast, lets you adjust your monitor on a sliding column, separately from the work surface.)

If you want the cheapest possible standing desk converter that doesn’t totally suck: Consider the Vivo V000HB. With the Fully Cora now discontinued, it’s the best single-tier riser we’ve tested. Compared to the Cora, it requires a bit more pressure and angling to push back down, and it feels looser and slightly bouncy when flattened on a table. Unlike the Cora, it also moves into fixed, notched positions rather than being infinitely adjustable. And its handles, while immune to accidental pressing, take up space on your desktop. But despite these flaws, it’s still the best currently available ultra-budget option we’ve tried.

We’re planning on testing more affordable models that rise directly up and down (as opposed to up and towards you, like the VertDesk Converter), since they may be a better fit in tight spaces. These include the Uplift Desk Lady Bird Standing Desk Converter, FlexiSpot AlcoveRiser M7, and the Vivo Desk-V000. All three promise smooth, gas-powered adjustments but have slightly different sizes and height ranges. As usual, we’ll be testing for adjustability and ease of use.

The Humanscale QuickStand Eco is a sleek, single-column converter available with a laptop or dual-monitor configuration. You can easily adjust its 30-by-30-inch square platform by pulling it up or pushing down on it—no knobs or levers to fiddle with. Unfortunately, the monitor height is mostly fixed, and the desktop was distractingly wobbly to work on.

The Ergotron WorkFit-S is a single-column, mounted-monitor converter that clamps to the front of your desk surface. We found that its keyboard tray wobbled while we were typing, we could lower the unit gradually if we applied any kind of leaning pressure to it, and lowering it required angling our downward pressure just so.

The VariDesk Pro Plus 30 (also available in 36-inch and 48-inch versions) takes up just under 30 inches of depth, the most of any converter we’ve tested. In our tests it was stable while we worked at standing height, and we found its keyboard tray about as bounce-resistant at sitting height as that of the VertDesk. But the Pro Plus 30 has 11 locked height positions and its upward momentum is very strong, so at times we had to fight it to prevent it from skipping the spot we wanted.

The Ergotron WorkFit-TX Standing Desk Converter is different from most two-tier converters, with a keyboard tray that extends below your table and can toggle between tilted and flat, as well as dedicated cable-routing grommets near the back. It’s also very big—35 inches wide and 28 inches deep, not including the tray. The WorkFit-TX is a stable converter with a lot of room for your gear, and it can handle big monitors. But in our tests, pressing it down from standing height felt like doing a triceps exercise at the gym.

This article was edited by Ben Keough and Erica Ogg.