Brand
Many massage chair brands proclaim themselves as the best massage chair brand. Consumer reports has never done a report on massage chairs. What you should do is go with a reputable massage chair dealer who has been in the business for years. Three of those dealers also happen to be the 3 largest American massage chair brands: Premier Health Products (PHP), Panasonic, and Interactive Health Products, which specializes in lower end models.

Warranty
Read the warranty before you purchase the chair. It might be available to you on the company’s website, but if it’s not, request a copy. If the company won’t give you a copy until after you buy the chair, you should be concerned.

We contacted 10 companies requesting warranties but only received warranties from three of them. The brands that did share their warranties were the top three, Premier, Panasonic, and Interactive Health.

5 Years Coverage Means Quality
The best massage chairs today come with a 5 year warranty on parts and labor. Some knockoff companies that may appear legitimate on the surface offer 5 year warranties but don’t cover all labor costs. You also need to watch out for the "in home service" scam. While some companies, like Panasonic, offer legitimate in home service, some other companies claim to offer in home service, but deliver something less. These companies will schedule a 4 hour window on a week day when their “service” rep will arrive. He will then look at your chair and tell you that you need to send it back to the manufacturer as he is not equipped to work on the chair. Don’t wait until that point to realize that an in home service warranty alone is a scam.

Country of Origin
Every country claims they make the best massage chair, but in reality, country of origin is not nearly as important as the factory where the chair is made. There are good factories and bad factories in any country. Today, massage chairs are made in virtually every Asian Market, Brazil and Mexico. At the time this guide is being written there is no major manufacturer within the United States. A few companies like Premier Health Products design their chairs in the United States and assemble them overseas. Designing the chairs in the United States of America makes them fit the average American’s height and weight better than some of the brands designed in Asia. The top 3 companies make their chairs in different countries. Premier massage chairs are made in Taiwan, Panasonic massage chairs are made in China or Mexico, and Interactive Health chairs are made in China. The best chair can’t be determined by the country it is made in, but the best chairs for customers in the U.S. are made by the best companies in the U.S. Equal quality chairs made in Japan usually cost 15%-30% more than other countries’ chairs.

Specific Important Features

Calf Massage
Air bag massage has come a long way, and today’s airbag-driven massage is powerful enough to deliver real therapy. Make sure to get a massage chair with a comprehensive leg massage that includes massage for the calves.

Foot Massage
While airbags are powerful enough for the soft muscles of the calf, they simply do not have enough strength to give a proper foot massage. Unless the chair features pressure point plates, you should insist on a mechanical foot massage. Mechanical parts are able to manipulate the dense bone and muscle of the feet and provide soothing, relaxing massage.

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