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Jan 15, 2024

The Best Lawn Chairs for Outdoor Relaxation

Every product is carefully selected by our editors. If you buy from a

Every product is carefully selected by our editors. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission.

From classic webbed folding chairs to Adirondacks and Acapulcos, these are where you'll want to sit this summer.

There is no shortage of outdoor chair styles available to purchase. From camp chairs to beach chairs to deck chairs, there's pretty much always a place to sit outside as long as you've got the right gear. And when it comes to summer seating, there's no beating the classic lawn chair.

While those aforementioned chairs admittedly share some crossover with lawn chairs, what sets lawn chairs apart is their combination of style, casual readiness and comfort. These are chairs that look good in your yard, invite relaxation and good times and can easily be stored away (in most cases) when the leaves begin to change. With these criteria in mind, we've come up with this guide to the best lawn chairs to outfit your lawn with this summer, with picks for every style and budget.

Lawn chairs are available in a wide number of materials, from nylon, canvas or vinyl stretched over frames of aluminum or steel to solid injection-molded hunks of plastic. Regardless of which material suits your style, you'll want it to be able to stand up against the elements — ideally, some level of water resistance and protection against UV damage from the sun. Unless you want to store them away after every use, picking a chair with a durable material equipped with some form of weatherproofing will ensure your chair lasts many summers.

Lawn chairs live on your lawn when the weather is nice, but depending on where you live, you're probably going to want to store them away during the off-season. To make your life easier when fall and winter roll around, opt for lawn chairs that are lightweight and that are foldable or stackable — ideally both — as they'll take up much less room in a garage or storage shed.

Lawn chairs come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes — some models even offer multiple sizes — so it's important to choose one that suits your body type, along with those of your family and friends who will also be using them. Important specs to note are the width of the seat, the recommended weight limit and the seat height, as anything below 15 inches or so will be difficult for some people to get in and out of.

If it's the prototypical American lawn chair you're after — nylon-like webbing, a folding aluminum frame, molded plastic arms and a nostalgia-inducing checkered pattern — then there's no beating Lawn Chair USA. These made-in-the-USA chairs are lightweight, foldable, stackable and durable, with rustproof aluminum and webbing that's fade-, UV- and weather-resistant. They're available in a wide variety of colors and sizes — from low-slung beach chairs up to the supersized "Magnum" lawn chairs.

A word of caution: make sure you're checking the specs before buying. While the Classic size is our favorite, its recommended weight tops out at 225 lbs, and the top-spec Magnum doesn't fair too much better at 275 lbs. So if you weigh more than that, you'll have to look elsewhere.

For those looking to eschew vintage and take the modern route with their choice of lawn chair, Tupelo Goods is perhaps your best bet. The brand's range consists of four ultra-contemporary outdoor chairs, but it's the Loop Lounge Chair that's best suited to take the place of a traditional lawn chair. The unique design consists of a single, unbroken line that's completely seamless, making for a very striking silhouette. Made from heavy-duty polyethylene, the Loop Lounge is completely waterproof (it can even be used in pools shallower than 11 inches) and incredibly durable, with a weight capacity of 500 lbs.

Because of its heavy-duty nature, though, it's not the easiest chair in the world to store. Each chair weighs 30 lbs and doesn't fold or stack, so you might end up leaving them out all year. They're completely weatherproof though, even against snow, but it's still something to keep in mind. Also worth noting: the low-slung design means these chairs can be a bit difficult to up from.

However you feel about Joanna Gaines's popularization of the modern farmhouse design style (personally, I think it needs to be put out to pasture), there's no denying that Gaines has an eye for design and a talent for creating warm and welcoming spaces. And that extends to her Target-exclusive home goods brand, Hearth & Hand with Magnolia. Just 40 bucks will get you this down-home take on the classic folding lawn chair. Fitting with Gaines's typical style, the chair cozier than the original vintage style thanks to a more muted color palette, rubberwood arms and a beige-painted steel frame. But functionally, you're still getting a foldable and weather-resistant chair that should hold up well.

All things considered, it's a heck of a bargain, especially when taking into account the more premium materials used. You've got to like dark blue or gray, though, because this chair is only available in those two less-than-thrilling colors.

Now, for something with a little more color ... ok, a lot more. Schoolhouse offers its own exclusive take on a vintage-style folding lawn chair, and this Schoolhouse rocks (pun intended). While the dimensions are different (this is larger), this chair is very similar to Lawn Chair USA's. Both feature an aluminum frame, a 225-lb weight limit and are made in the USA. What mostly sets them apart are the striking color combinations that Schoolhouse has cooked up here. There are just three options, but each one is a serious head-turner that just screams summertime fun (they're also available as a beach chair).

Given the similarities to Lawn Chair USA, it's fair to ask why this chair costs $20 more. Sure, the colors are great, but it's worth asking yourself if they're that great.

Sometimes you want to kick back in your lawn chair, which isn't something you can do in the traditional folding design. So for a reclining option, I recommend going with a zero-gravity chair. Specifically, this Amazon favorite from Timber Ridge. It reclines to a no-pressure zero-gravity position, which is great for relieving back pain and will allow to relax arguably better than any other chair in this guide. It's also fully padded, features a sliding removable pillow and boasts a foldout table with built-in phone- and cupholders. It's a beastly thing, too, with a weight capacity of 350 lbs. Despite its ample size and features, though, the chair still folds flat.

So what's not to love? Well, the style, if I'm being quite honest. This is getting into camp chair territory, lookswise, and won't make the most stylish addition to your front yard. It definitely prioritizes function over fashion, but if that's what's important to you, it's tough to beat.

Similar to a recliner, if you want a rocking lawn chair you'll need to look outside the traditional folding webbed design. But you also don't want to just stick a pair of traditional wooden rocking chairs on your lawn. Luckily, Article has the solution with its Medan Rocking Chair. Its boho design fits in with both modern and traditional styles, and its choice of materials — a synthetic wicker weave over a powder-coated aluminum frame — make it a lot better suited to outdoor living than a wooden rocker. It's got a striking design full of gentle and inviting curves, and it's also available in some unique and fun colors. Plus, it's resistant to both seawater and chlorinated water, meaning it also works as a poolside rocker or unconventional beach chair.

It's not fully weatherproof, however, and since it's on the larger size and can't be folded, you'll need ample storage room if you want to keep these chairs looking pristine year after year.

If there's a style of lawn chair that can compete with the folding webbed variety in terms of iconic status, it's the Adirondack chair. The style, which naturally originated in upstate New York, has been around for over a century and is associated with its reclined posture, high slatted back and wide armrests. Traditional Adirondacks are made of wood, but these days you'll more often find them crafted from more weather-resistant synthetic materials. And nobody has better perfected the modern Adirondack than Polywood, which crafts its chairs from its proprietary Polywood lumber — an ultra-durable blend made from landfill- and ocean-bound plastics that's resistant to chipping, fading, peeling and all types of weather. Polywood makes a bunch of different styles of Adirondack, but its folding version is our top pick thanks to its ingenious mechanism that allows it to fold flat for storage — good luck doing that with a traditional Adirondack.

While the chair is undeniably comfortable, its low and reclined design isn't ideal for those with mobility issues who may have trouble getting in and out of it. Some reviewers have also complained that the chair is somewhat difficult to set up and requires a fair amount of strength to fold and unfold.

While the design dates back to Mexico in the 1950s, the Acapulco Chair was only introduced to the US market by manufacturer Innit Designs in 2009. Since then, it's quickly established itself as an iconic piece of modern outdoor furniture for the style-savvy — just try driving through Palm Springs without spotting a few — and its not hard to see why. Both stylish and practical, the Acapulco Chair has a pear-shaped silhouette comprised of vinyl cords woven around a powder-coated steel frame. The cords are ultra-breezy, they don't get hot and they repel water, making this chair absolutely perfect for the hottest summer days. You can say that of most wire chairs, but the Acapulco Chair is especially well-ventilated.

The cords have a good amount of stretch and the Acapulco Chair is certainly comfortable, but its formless design will likely be despised by those looking for something with more structure and support — not to mention armrests.

Closing out our guide we have another mid-century classic, albeit one that's far more ubiquitous than the Acapulco. Plenty of brands make butterfly chairs — Knoll, which produced them in the 1940s and '50s but no longer, is probably most associated with the style — but Steele Canvas Basket Corp first took a crack at the design in 1960, making the brand better suited to making them than just about anyone these days. The simple design, which folds easily for storage, combines a rugged industrial-grade #8 duck canvas sling with a 0.5-inch powder-coated U.S. cold-rolled steel frame. The chair comes in multiple colors, and you can even purchase additional slings to switch up your look.

The sling is just plain canvas though, it isn't waxed, which means it will absorb and hold onto water to some degree. So if the forecast calls for rain, you'll want to fold these puppies up for storage.