Setting Up the Perfect Ergonomic Home Office

The shift to remote and hybrid work has transformed spare bedrooms, kitchen corners, and garage spaces into full-time offices for millions of Australians. Yet many home workers are still hunched over laptops at dining tables or perched on hard kitchen chairs, wondering why they're experiencing more aches and pains than they ever did at the office. The truth is, an ergonomic workspace involves much more than just a good chair—though that's certainly important. This guide will walk you through creating a complete home office setup that supports your body, enhances productivity, and makes working from home genuinely comfortable.

The Foundation: Your Desk and Chair Relationship

Everything in your workspace stems from the relationship between your desk and chair. Get this wrong, and no amount of accessories will fully compensate. The goal is to create a setup where your body can maintain neutral postures—positions that put minimal stress on muscles, tendons, and joints.

Finding the Right Desk Height

Standard desks are typically 73-76cm tall, designed for the "average" person. But averages don't account for individual bodies. Your ideal desk height depends on your seated elbow height. When sitting with your feet flat on the floor and your upper arms hanging naturally at your sides, your elbows should bend at approximately 90 degrees, with your forearms parallel to the floor and resting comfortably on the desk surface.

For most people, this means the desk surface should be roughly level with your elbows. If your desk is too high, you'll elevate your shoulders to reach; too low, and you'll hunch forward. Neither is sustainable for long work sessions.

Chair Adjustment Basics

Once you know your ideal desk height, adjust your chair accordingly. Set the seat height so that your thighs are parallel to the floor (or angled very slightly downward) with your feet flat. Your knees should bend at roughly 90 degrees. If achieving the correct desk-to-elbow relationship puts your feet dangling, you need a footrest—don't compromise your leg circulation for keyboard access.

Adjust your lumbar support to fill the small of your back, maintaining your spine's natural S-curve. Set armrests so they support your arms at roughly the same height as your desk, allowing your shoulders to relax rather than hunch up or droop down. For detailed guidance on chair adjustments, see our article on how to adjust your ergonomic chair properly.

Monitor Position: Protecting Your Neck

Neck pain is one of the most common complaints among desk workers, and improper monitor positioning is often the culprit. The goal is to position your screen so your neck remains neutral—not tilted up, down, or rotated to one side for extended periods.

Height and Distance

Position your monitor so the top of the screen is at or slightly below eye level. This allows you to view the centre of the screen with a slight downward gaze of about 15-20 degrees, which is comfortable for your neck and reduces eye strain. If you wear bifocals or progressive lenses, you may need to lower the screen further to avoid tilting your head back to see through the reading portion.

Distance matters too. Your screen should be approximately an arm's length away—roughly 50-70cm from your eyes. At this distance, you should be able to read text comfortably without leaning forward or squinting. If you need to increase font size or zoom to read at this distance, do so rather than moving closer.

Laptop Considerations

Laptops present an ergonomic challenge because the screen and keyboard are connected. Using a laptop as-is forces a compromise: either the screen is too low (causing neck flexion) or the keyboard is too high (causing shoulder and wrist strain). For extended home office use, consider:

• A laptop stand or riser to elevate the screen to proper height
• An external keyboard and mouse to use at the correct desk height
• Alternatively, connect to an external monitor and use the laptop keyboard

Keyboard and Mouse: Wrist and Arm Health

Repetitive strain injuries affecting the wrists, forearms, and hands are increasingly common among computer users. Proper positioning of your input devices is essential for prevention.

Keyboard Placement

Your keyboard should be positioned so that when typing, your wrists remain straight (not bent up, down, or to the sides) and your elbows stay close to your body. Many people position keyboards too high or too far forward, forcing awkward wrist angles. The keyboard feet that tilt the back upward often worsen this—try keeping them folded in for a flatter, more neutral wrist position.

A keyboard tray that mounts under your desk can help achieve the ideal position, particularly if your desk is too high. These trays typically allow height and tilt adjustment independent of the desk surface.

Mouse Positioning

Your mouse should be immediately adjacent to your keyboard, at the same height. Reaching across or out to the side for your mouse creates shoulder strain. If you find yourself constantly reaching, consider a shorter keyboard (one without a number pad) to bring the mouse closer to your centreline, or try using your non-dominant hand for mousing to distribute strain.

Wrist rests are controversial. When typing or mousing, your hands should actually "float" above the surface—wrist rests are meant for resting during pauses, not for supporting your wrists while actively working. Resting on a hard edge while typing can compress the carpal tunnel and contribute to injury.

Lighting: Reducing Eye Strain

Good lighting is often overlooked in home office setups, but it significantly impacts comfort, energy levels, and eye health. The goal is even, adequate illumination without harsh glare or excessive contrast.

Natural Light

Natural light is wonderful for mood and alertness, but direct sunlight on your screen creates glare and washout. Position your desk perpendicular to windows rather than facing toward or away from them. Use blinds or curtains to control direct light while still benefiting from daylight's ambient illumination. In Australia, north-facing windows provide the most consistent natural light throughout the day.

Artificial Lighting

Layer your lighting. Ambient overhead lighting provides general illumination, while task lighting (a desk lamp) supplements for detailed work. Avoid positioning a single bright light source directly overhead, which creates harsh shadows. LED lights with adjustable colour temperature let you shift from cooler, more alerting light during the day to warmer tones in the evening.

Environmental Factors

Beyond furniture and equipment, your environment affects comfort and productivity.

Temperature and Airflow

Most people work best in temperatures between 20-24°C. Being too cold makes you tense (increasing muscle strain), while being too hot causes fatigue and reduced concentration. If your home office runs warm—common in Australian homes without dedicated climate control—a desk fan or portable air conditioning unit can make a significant difference. Position fans so airflow doesn't blow directly onto your face or papers.

Noise Management

Home offices rarely have the acoustic treatment of commercial spaces. Hard floors, bare walls, and thin doors allow noise to intrude and echo. Consider adding soft furnishings—rugs, curtains, upholstered furniture—to absorb sound. If external noise is problematic, a white noise machine or app can mask distractions without being intrusive itself.

Putting It All Together

Creating an ergonomic home office is ultimately about fitting the space to your body, not forcing your body to adapt to the space. Start with the desk-chair relationship, then work outward to monitor position, input devices, and environmental factors. Be willing to adjust and experiment—what works initially may need tweaking as you settle into your setup.

Remember that even the most perfect ergonomic setup isn't meant to be used in a single position for hours on end. Build movement into your day: stand periodically, stretch, look away from your screen regularly, and take proper breaks. The best workspace is one that supports your body and encourages healthy habits throughout the workday.