A book stand makes an attractive and useful addition to your home library or office. Use it to display special books such as antique editions, reference volumes, or an heirloom family Bible. Book stands can also serve a utilitarian purpose, facilitating a comfortable position for reading and studying.
By positioning a book or screen to eye level at an optimal angle, a book stand encourages healthy spinal posture and reduces eye strain. With a variety of sizes, designs, and materials on the market, this guide can help identify the best book stand to suit your needs and preferences.
- BEST OVERALL: Nice Production BestBookStand INP-103-O Patented
- BEST BANG FOR THE BUCK: READAEER BamBoo Book Stand Large Size (13 x 9.3 inch)
- BEST LUXURY: LEVO Hands Free Book Stand for Hard Covers Paperbacks
- BEST DECORATIVE: wishacc Large Size Bamboo Book Stand Cookbook Holder
- BEST MULTIPURPOSE: wishacc Bamboo Book Stand, Adjustable Book Holder
- BEST FOR NECK PROBLEMS: Uncaged Ergonomics Adjustable Ergonomic Book Holder
- BEST FOR TEXTBOOKS: A+ Book Stand BS2500 Large Book Holder for Textbooks
- BEST PORTABLE: BestBookStand Actto BST-09 Portable Reading Stand
What to Consider When Choosing the Best Book Stand
While shopping for the best book stand, there are several important factors to consider. A lightweight book stand that folds flat is portable and serves a useful purpose for readers who carry it along to the classroom, public library, office, or dorm room. Alternatively, a heavier book stand may find a permanent home on a desk, countertop, or table.
Book stands come in a variety of sizes, weights, and materials, so whatever the intended purpose, users can find one that suits their needs.
Purpose
Before shopping for a book stand, it’s essential to consider the purpose of the item. A handsome decorative book stand may serve as a stationary fixture for display purposes. If you prefer to use bookends to decorate your shelves, however, you may want a lightweight, portable book stand that folds flat for easy storage or transport.
A book stand can alleviate the neck pain, shoulder tension, and backaches caused by hours hunched over a book placed flat on a desk or table. For this purpose, an ergonomically designed book stand that offers options for adjusting height and angle fits the bill.
Book stands in varying sizes and weights fulfill the needs of different readers. Students who use heavy textbooks for reading and studying may need large-size book stands that support extra weight. Casual readers who enjoy paperback novels and e-readers may find that smaller, lightweight versions work best for them.
Material
To meet the needs of readers, book stands must be durable enough for daily use but lightweight enough to be moved. Manufacturers construct book stands from various materials that provide durability and minimal weight.
Some book stands are solid wood, while others employ lightweight, medium-density fiberboard (MDF). Both materials offer strength, durability, and an attractive appearance. MDF is an engineered wood made from wood fiber, resin, and wax, and it offers resistance to warping and cracking.
Bamboo is another favorite material of book-stand manufacturers. It demonstrates a tensile strength greater than steel, yet it is lightweight for portability. Additionally, bamboo is a fast-growing plant, making it a renewable and eco-friendly material.
Molded plastic and steel provide strength and lightweight convenience in some book stands. These durable materials stand up to daily use when transported from place to place.
Size
Users typically choose book stands based on the size of the books they most frequently read. Ideally, a portable book stand is large enough to support most books but small enough to stow in a book bag or backpack. Conversely, a user may want a book stand that takes up minimal space on a desk, countertop, or table in the home office or library.
To function adequately, book stands must be wide enough to accommodate fully opened books and tall enough to support the books’ heights. These stands are available in large, medium, and small sizes to suit the needs of various readers.
Large sizes range from 15 to 16 inches wide and 10 to 11 inches tall. Medium sizes feature widths of around 13 inches and heights of approximately 9 inches. Small-size book stands measure approximately 11 to 12 inches wide and 8 to 8.5 inches tall.
Foldable book stands provide convenience for storage and transport. When folded flat, book stands range in thickness from approximately 1.5 inches to 3.5 inches.
Weight
The weight of a book stand affects its portability. For readers who plan to transport a book stand to classrooms, offices, public libraries, dorm rooms, or various locations in the home, a lightweight book stand is most desirable.
Tabletop and desktop book stands vary in weight from 11 to 12 ounces up to 5 pounds. Lightweight book stands that fold flat and weigh less than 2 pounds offer ideal portability. A freestanding book stand option that rolls on casters weighs close to 30 pounds, and although the casters make it movable inside the home, it’s not conducive to transport.
Users may consider the weight of a book stand in contrast to the weights of books they typically read. For students who must read and study heavy college textbooks, a heavier book stand may be necessary. Additionally, cooks may need book stands that can hold large, heavy cookbooks on kitchen countertops.
Additional Features
Several additional features make book stands convenient and helpful for readers. Some book stands feature mechanisms that allow users to adjust both the height and angle of the book-holding plates. These are particularly helpful for users seeking improved reading posture for relief from neck or back pain. Additionally, book holders designed to fit across the reader’s lap may be used while sitting on a sofa or bed, eliminating the need for a desk or tabletop.
Book stands feature page holders that hold the open book pages in place. Some page holders are spring-loaded to facilitate a secure position while allowing the reader to turn pages easily. Additionally, some page holders are purposefully thin to obscure as little of the text as possible.
Nonskid rubberized coatings on the bases of many book stands prevent potential damage caused by sliding across a desk or table surface, a useful feature many models include.
Our Top Picks
Chosen with readers’ needs in mind, the recommendations ahead include ergonomically appropriate book stands made from premium materials in the most useful sizes―some explicitly designed for convenience and portability, too!
Photo: amazon.com
This versatile book stand holds large and small books, putting them at eye level for readers’ comfort and healthy spinal alignment. It’s made from lightweight MDF, a strong and durable alternative to solid wood. With 15 adjustment levels, this book stand can be modified by readers to explicit angles, adapting to desk, counter, or tabletop heights.
Weighing in at 1.77 pounds, this book stand folds flat for storage and transport. Measuring 15.6 inches wide by 10.4 inches tall, it accommodates large textbooks as well as cookbooks and smaller volumes. When folded, the book stand measures only 1.46 inches deep, making it convenient to toss into a book bag or store on a bookshelf.
BestBookStand holds the patent on the coil-spring page holders. They’re designed to cover less of the printed page, thereby improving readability. A nonslip rubber backing keeps this sturdy book stand from sliding on surfaces.
Photo: amazon.com
Priced at the lower end compared to other models, this book stand offers strength, versatility, and convenient portability. The book-holding plate is made of sturdy and eco-friendly bamboo, while the page holders and moving parts are made of durable metal and plastic.
With its six adjustable-angle settings, users can manipulate this book stand to position reading material at the most comfortable level to ensure healthy spinal alignment. For additional convenience, the rounded metal and plastic page holders are designed to make turning book pages smooth and uncomplicated.
Measuring 13.4 inches wide by 9.5 inches tall by 0.44 inch thick, this book stand will hold books, documents, tablets, and laptops. It folds flat for storage or transport. Weighing only 1.85 pounds, this book stand goes with users to the classroom, library, dorm room, or office. It takes up a modest footprint on a desk, table, or shelf while serving a valuable function for reading comfort.
Photo: amazon.com
For utmost luxury, enjoy hands-free reading while sitting, reclining, or lying down. The LEVO book stand features a vertical column on a rolling base, along with a book holder attached to an adjustable swing-arm. Available adjustments allow readers to tilt the book holder for prime positioning of books weighing up to 4 pounds.
Make height adjustments from 30 to 56 inches, and secure the quick-lever height locks for optimal positioning. The five-axis swing arm cantilevers to the most favorable position via adjustable joints. It swings out to accommodate furniture, including chairs, beds, or recliners. Readers with arm- and hand-movement limitations caused by arthritis or paralysis may benefit from the versatility of this book stand.
At 47.99 inches tall by 12.99 inches wide and 12.99 inches deep, the LEVO book stand rolls on casters to fit adjacent to furniture or to stow away in a closet or corner. This book stand weighs 28.7 pounds, so it is not portable. However, the casters facilitate convenient movement from room to room.
Photo: amazon.com
A sophisticated latticework cutout pattern graces the borders of this sturdy bamboo book stand. The decorative touch adds refinement and aesthetic value to this useful tool for readers, students, and office workers.
Measuring 15.4 inches wide, 11 inches tall, and 1.6 inches thick (when folded flat), it accommodates both large and small books. The two springy page clips hold books open while allowing for easy page-turning. Five adjustment options offer versatile 180-degree positioning for books, tablets, sheet music, cookbooks, or documents.
With reading materials viewable at appropriate angles, users enjoy relaxed reading with improved spinal alignment. This decorative book stand provides a prime resting place for tablets, e-readers, and laptops. Video viewing, face-to-face calls, and virtual meetings become less stressful, as this book stand facilitates hands-free use of electronic devices.
Photo: amazon.com
For all-around convenience and durability, this bamboo book stand from wishacc meets a variety of needs. With a tensile strength greater than steel, high-quality bamboo is the ideal lightweight material for a book stand that holds books, music, artwork, recipes, phones, e-readers, tablets, and laptops.
The adjustment bracket offers five different angles for the most ergonomically beneficial positioning of books and other materials. Additionally, the unit folds flat for storage or transport. Measuring 11 inches wide by 8.5 inches tall, the book-holding surface is only 0.39 inches thick. This book stand fits neatly into a backpack or tote and weighs only 1.65 pounds.
Bamboo is a strong, shock-absorbing material that resembles wood but is actually part of the grass family. Bamboo is a reliable and renewable source for environmentally friendly manufacturing, and because of its light weight and superlative tensile strength, it is an ideal material for this sturdy book stand.
Photo: amazon.com
Alleviate back pain, shoulder tension, and neck pain resulting from reading and studying with materials in less-than-optimal positions. With articulating legs and a rotating book-holder plate, this sturdy aluminum book stand adjusts in height as well as angle for maximum ergonomic efficiency and comfort. Weighing in at 4.5 pounds, this book stand measures 22 inches wide by 11 inches high by 2 inches thick.
The height adjusts from 0 inches to 21 inches. Additionally, the book-holder plate rotates 360 degrees and adjusts in angle increments of 15 degrees, employing a locking mechanism for stability. Minute angle adjustments provide relief from glare on screens to reduce eye strain.
An open space at the bottom provides room for note-taking and organizing study materials. Alternatively, the open space allows the book stand to fit over users’ laps. With this versatile design, this book stand is useful while sitting on a sofa or in bed.
Photo: amazon.com
Heavy college textbooks, including oversize medical, law, and engineering tomes, fit securely on this wooden book stand. Measuring 16 inches wide by 10.5 inches tall by 1.5 inches thick, it accommodates large, heavy volumes. Yet, because it weighs only 2.4 pounds, this book stand is easy to move.
Thanks to the deep front tray, this book stand accommodates thick books with up to thousands of pages. Flexible stainless steel page holders feature protective tips to allow smooth page-turning without damaging the books’ pages.
Five angle adjustments offer flexibility in positioning books and other reading materials, helping readers avoid neck pain and eye strain brought on by hours of reading and studying in tense, uncomfortable positions. Using the fine-tuned angle adjustments, students may adopt improved posture for better spinal health.
Photo: amazon.com
Use this portable book stand to bring reading materials up to eye level and position them for maximum comfort. It weighs only 11.2 ounces but holds books weighing up to 10 pounds. Folded flat, this book stand measures 10.5 inches wide by 7.9 inches tall by 3.5 inches thick. It fits into book bags or backpacks for portability to the classroom, library, home, or office.
An adjustable support system allows users to achieve minute modifications in the angle of the book-holding plate, ensuring the most favorable reading positions. Proper positioning allows users to adopt appropriate posture, alleviating the neck pain, shoulder tension, and eye fatigue that commonly accompany prolonged reading and study sessions.
Made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) molded plastic, this book stand offers exceptional hardness and durability while maintaining a light weight for convenient portability.
FAQs About Book Stands
Acquiring a new book stand for your home library or office may open the door to a renewed enjoyment of reading. With designs to meet the needs of readers for heavy-duty use or lightweight portability, book stands offer utilitarian benefits as well as aesthetic value. As you begin to shop for a new book stand, the following questions and answers may provide additional practical information.
Q. What book stand helps people with neck problems?
The Adjustable Height and Angle Ergonomic Book Holder, manufactured by Uncaged Ergonomics, is a viable choice for readers seeking a book stand that promotes improved posture for relief of neck problems.
Q. Are book stands heavy?
Book stands are available in a variety of sizes and weights. Many book stands weigh between 1 and 5 pounds, making them light enough to transport from place to place.
Q. Is it difficult to assemble a book stand?
Most book stands do not need assembly, as they are sold fully assembled. For those requiring assembly, manufacturers’ instructions provide helpful guidelines.
