Office chair mats are an important part of any work environment. They protect your floors and reduce back pain caused by wheeling around on office chairs. In this guide, we'll cover everything you need to know about office chair mats, from choosing the right type for your floor to understanding the different materials and sizes available. Let’s get started.

Choosing for Your Floor Type

The most important aspect of your new chair mat is its underside. Chair mats for carpet have small grippers studding the underside that grip into the pile of your carpet to stop it from sliding around. Hard floors have smooth surfaces on both sides.

Carpet

The length of your chair mat grippers depends on the thickness of the surface (pile) of your carpet. It also depends on whether your carpet is laid directly onto the floor below or over an underlay. Most carpets in residences are laid onto an underlay. Office carpets sometimes do not have underlay, in which case chair mats with shorter grippers are better. If your carpet has a very thick pile, you might see some movement even with the grippers. For tips on keeping your chair mat in place on a very high pile carpet, check out our article on how to stop mats from sliding around.

Hard Floor

Hard floor chair mats are more straightforward to select as they all have smooth undersides. Despite sounding like they might slip around on an equally smooth floor, all Matshop chair mats for hard floors have a non-slip base to protect your floors (and your sanity) by holding it in place. There is an additional style of chair mat available for use on hard floors, and those have carpeted surfaces. These chair mats are made from the same materials as our absorbent entrance mats, giving them the added feature of absorbency. Carpet-surfaced chair mats are only suitable for hard floors because of their non-slip rubber backing that would move around on carpets. They are perfect for anyone likely to eat and drink at their desk.

Choosing a Material

Choose from clear PVC or a carpet-surfaced chair mat with rubber backing. All our PVC mats are made without plasticisers, so there is no unpleasant smell that you often find with cheaper chair mats. They are translucent, to blend in with the style of your room, and made from a sturdy but flexible material that will not bend under the weight of your chair. Carpet-surfaced chair mats are coloured – choose from black or charcoal surfaces – and backed with rubber. This creates an absorbent, non-slip, low-profile mat that is perfect for keeping your floor clean and dry while also protecting it from caster damage.

Shape

Our chair mats come in square.

Keyhole

The most popular standard shape is the keyhole chair mat. It has three straight edges and a narrower protruding edge on one side. The keyhole shape is great for single desks as the keyhole edge slots under the desk perfectly.

Square

Square (or rectangle) shapes are also great for standard single desk setups.

Maintenance

Cleaning your chair mat is straightforward, but the best technique depends on which material you go for. PVC chair mats have a smooth surface that can be cleaned with a quick wipe, whereas carpet-surfaced mats are best cleaned with a vacuum.

Additional Features

Office workers use their chair mats for eight hours or more every day, so they must be durable and unobtrusive. Many commercial office managers choose to cover the entire office floor because it looks inconspicuous and removes any possibility of multiple mats sliding around.

All our chair mats come with bevelled edges to make rolling over their surface effortless. Bevels are slight ramps that allow a seamless transition between the floor and the mat’s surface.

Product Recommendations

To help you choose the best chair mat for your application, here are some general recommendations. For a personalised recommendation, custom-sized chair mat quote or information about any of our products, get in touch with the team.

Commercial Buildings with Carpet

Commercial buildings often have no underlay and very short pile. That makes very short grippers essential, or the mat would not lay flat. Offices also sometimes want to cover large areas with transparent chair mats to keep the style of the room and avoid multiple mats making the floor look untidy.

Residential Hard Floors

Hard floors need smooth-surfaced chair mats with a non-slip underside to protect the floors without moving with your chair. Again, we are suggesting the smallest size for residences but these are only rough guidelines.

Commercial Hard Floors

For offices and commercial buildings with hard floors, you might want to consider custom-sized matting to cover the whole floor. This offers extra protection from multiple chairs rolling around various areas of a room. No grippers are necessary, so chair mats that are smooth on both sides are perfect.

Conclusion: Ordering Process

Hopefully, this guide has helped you decide which chair mats suit your needs the most. To get your order started, you can contact the team directly or order online. At Ixaxa, we deliver all our mats flat, so they're ready to go immediately, saving you the hassle of unrolling your mat.

For durable and reliable chair mats that protect your floors and improve your comfort, choose Ixaxa. Contact us today to get started!