It is 9.30 on a Saturday night and the fundraiser in the church hall has just wrapped up. A hundred and twenty chairs need to come off the floor before the playgroup arrives on Monday, and four volunteers are left to do it. Whether that takes twenty minutes or two hours comes down to the stackable chairs: how high they stack, whether they link and whether a trolley rolls them away.
This guide covers stack heights, linking, materials, row planning and trolleys for halls, churches and function rooms. The chairs compared here all come from our stacking and event chairs range.
Stack heights: on the floor and on a trolley
Stack height is the first number to check, and a figure quoted for a trolley is not the same as one for a free-standing stack.
The Stax Chair ($115) stacks up to 30 chairs high on a trolley. It has a 12mm solid rod sled frame in black powdercoat and a polypropylene shell in Grey or Black, with a perforated backrest. It is rated to 140kg and carries a 10 Year Warranty. No free-standing figure is given, so keep floor stacks to a height the shortest volunteer can steady.
Now the catch. The matching Game/Stax Chair Trolley ($359) holds up to 25 stacked chairs, not 30. Plan the trolley count on 25, so a hall with 100 Stax chairs needs four trolleys. It has heavy duty locking castors for stability while loading.
Linking chairs into straight rows
Loose chairs drift when people stand to sing, squeeze past each other or push back after a speech. Linked rows stay straight, and a whole row shifts as one.
The Stax's feet double as connectors, so chairs join into rows without separate parts. The Apollo Sled Base Stacking Chair (from $132) has nylon glides with a linking feature and a solid steel sled frame in black powdercoat. It is rated to 150kg, BIFMA tested and certified, weighs 6kg and has a 5 Year Warranty. An Apollo Trolley carries up to 25 stacked chairs.
For row planning, use the overall width where the page gives it. The Apollo is 485mm wide overall, so a row of ten linked chairs runs about 4.85 metres. The Stax and the PIPEE list seat widths only (440mm and 400mm), so allow a little more than that per chair.
If the same room doubles as a training space during the week, our guide to training room furniture, flip-top tables and lecterns covers that set-up.
Polypropylene, upholstered or timber stackable chairs
Polypropylene is the workhorse for halls: it wipes clean and is light to carry. The Heavy Duty Poly Chair - PIPEE ($41) is a monobloc chair moulded in one piece from polypropylene. It weighs 2.2kg, holds up to 150kg, stacks up to 25 high and is tested to the requirements of AS/NZS 3813:1998 for plastic monobloc chairs. It works indoors or out, though its page notes the colour fades over time outdoors.
The PIPEE comes in Grey or White and has a 3 year warranty. With no linking feature and no padding, it suits fetes, sports clubs and overflow seating better than a long dinner.
Upholstered function chairs suit dinners, weddings and awards nights, where people sit for hours. The Square Back Function Chair (Pack of 2) ($303) has a heavy-duty 25mm square steel tube frame, with the seat and back cushioned in high resiliency foam. It comes in Black Fabric or Black Vinyl, has a 150kg safe working load, weighs 7kg and stacks up to 12 high. It is supplied assembled, and the price covers two chairs.
The trade-off is weight: a stack of 12 weighs 84kg, so plan to carry these a chair or two at a time, never as a stack. Vinyl wipes down after a spill, while fabric looks softer but needs spot cleaning.
Timber suits chapels and heritage halls where the look of the room matters. Many timber chairs are not designed to stack, so look for a stated stack count before committing a whole hall to them.
Comparing stackable chairs for halls and venues
| Chair | Stack count (as stated) | Links in rows | Width (as listed) | Weight rating | Chair weight | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stax Chair | Up to 30 high on a trolley | Yes, feet double as connectors | 440mm seat | 140kg | Not listed | $115 |
| Apollo Sled Base Stacking Chair | Up to 25 on the Apollo Trolley | Yes, linking glides | 485mm overall | 150kg | 6kg | From $132 |
| Heavy Duty Poly Chair - PIPEE | Up to 25 high | No linking listed | 400mm seat | 150kg | 2.2kg | $41 |
| Square Back Function Chair | Up to 12 high | No linking listed | 440mm overall | 150kg safe working load | 7kg | $303 for two |
For talks, services and concerts, linking is the deciding column. For dinners, comfort matters more than stack height.
Trolleys, storerooms and a fast pack-down
Chair trolleys are matched to chair ranges, not universal. The Game/Stax trolley suits Link, Game and Stax sled chairs, and the Apollo Trolley suits Apollo seating. Buy them as a pair; our chair accessories and trolleys range covers other models too.
Then size the storeroom from the trolleys, not the chairs. The Apollo Chair Trolley measures 733mm wide and 454mm deep, so four side by side need about 3 metres of wall, plus room to wheel each out. Measure the storeroom door too, because a loaded trolley must pass through.
A routine does the rest:
- Mark the room once. A floor plan inside the storeroom door shows the front row and aisles.
- Set from the front. Roll a trolley to the front row, lock its castors and link chairs as you lift them off.
- Pack down in reverse. Unlink one row at a time and load each trolley only to its stated capacity.
- Count back in. Label each trolley with its chair count.
A few folding and trestle tables along the side wall handle sign-in, supper and raffle prizes, then fold away too.
Australian halls, churches and event venues
Many Australian community halls are shared. A church hall might host a playgroup on Monday, an exercise class mid-week, a Saturday fundraiser and Sunday morning tea. Council and school halls run similar bookings, and much of the lifting falls to volunteers.
The busiest stretch is the end of the school year. Presentation nights, Christmas carols and end-of-year concerts land in the same few weeks. Summer events also spill outside, where an indoor-outdoor chair like the PIPEE earns its place.
Setting up and packing down is manual work. Safe Work Australia's Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice covers lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling and carrying, and a hall pack-down involves all five. On the night, keep aisles and exits clear and follow any seating layout the venue has set for the room.
Stackable chairs — frequently asked questions
How high can you stack stackable chairs?
It depends on the chair, from 12 high for an upholstered function chair to 30 high on a trolley for a sled chair. The Stax Chair is rated to 30 on a trolley, though the Game/Stax trolley holds 25. The PIPEE stacks up to 25 high and the Square Back Function Chair up to 12, so check whether a figure is for the floor or a trolley.
Can plastic stacking chairs be used outdoors?
Yes, if the chair is made for it. The PIPEE is suitable for indoor or outdoor use, although its page notes the colour will fade over time outside. Upholstered function chairs such as the Square Back are made for indoor use.
Will any chair trolley fit my stacking chairs?
No, trolleys are designed around particular chair ranges. The Game/Stax trolley suits Link, Game and Stax sled chairs, and the Apollo Trolley suits Apollo chairs, so buy the trolley that matches the chair.
Are upholstered stacking chairs worth it for a church or function room?
Yes, if people sit for more than an hour or two, as at dinners and weddings. Foam seats are more comfortable over a long sitting, but they weigh more and stack lower.
Shop the range
Start with our stacking and event chairs, then match a trolley from chair accessories and trolleys. For a hall that wants one chair for most events, the Stax Chair links, stacks high on a trolley and has an easy clean shell. Metro delivery is a flat $75 per order, and prices include GST.
