Working from home is now a fixed part of everyday work: around a quarter (ifo Institute) of all employees in Germany work from home at least some of the time, and in the service sector it is as high as 34.3 percent (ifo Institute) - a share that has held steady since 2022. The workspace for it, however, is often improvised: the kitchen table, the sofa, the laptop on your lap. Over weeks and months, that takes its toll. In a study by the statutory accident insurance, over 40 percent (DGUV) of employees at screen workstations reported neck and back pain. A well-arranged workspace is therefore not a luxury - it prevents complaints and makes you more productive. This guide shows how to set up your desk to the recommendations of BAuA and DGUV and how to get the tech side - second monitor, stable Wi-Fi, printer and backup - working so your home office is ergonomic and reliable.
Key takeaways
- Around a quarter of employees in Germany work from home at least some of the time, and over a third in the service sector (ifo Institute).
- Over 40 percent of people at screen workstations suffer from neck and back pain - a poorly adjusted workspace is a key reason (DGUV).
- BAuA and DGUV name clear adjustments: screen top edge at or slightly below eye level, at least 50 cm viewing distance, a chair with lumbar support and daylight from the side (BAuA).
- A poorly equipped setup carries roughly double the risk of new neck and back complaints - an external monitor, keyboard and mouse lower it markedly (DGUV).
- Good home-office chairs are rare: of 22 office chairs tested, only 6 were rated 'good' (Stiftung Warentest).
- We set up the complete workspace on site - ergonomics, second monitor and docking, stable Wi-Fi, printer and data backup - in the Hildesheim and Leine valley region.
Home office is here to stay - the workspace often improvised
After the pandemic years, working from home did not fade away but settled in. According to the ifo Institute's business surveys, about 24.5 percent (ifo Institute) of employees work from home at least partly; in the service sector the figure is 34.3 percent (ifo Institute), while in construction it is only 4.6 percent (ifo Institute). This rate has been remarkably stable since 2022 - so working from home is not a transitional phenomenon but the normal place of work for millions of people. All the more reason to set that place up properly once, instead of improvising it indefinitely.
That is exactly where things often go wrong. Between September 2023 and April 2024, the statutory accident insurance surveyed 1,274 employees (DGUV) with screen workstations. The result: over 40 percent (DGUV) reported neck and lower back pain, 30 percent (DGUV) shoulder complaints and 25 percent (DGUV) upper back pain. 15 percent (DGUV) had developed entirely new complaints since the pandemic. The link to the workspace is clear: those who sit longer at a screen while working from home carry a higher risk of complaints in the neck, shoulders and upper back - especially when the setup is not right.
Laptop on your lap
The screen sits far too low and the gaze falls steeply downward - the neck strains against it and tenses up over time.
Kitchen table as a permanent desk
A dining chair with no back support, a fixed table height, no room for two screens - fine for a few hours, not for good.
Light behind you
If the window is behind your back or straight ahead, it reflects on the screen and dazzles - the eyes tire faster.
Set up the desk to BAuA and DGUV standards
The good news: a healthy workspace is not a question of expensive furniture but of the right adjustment. The workplace rule ASR A6 from the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health sets out clear values. The screen is placed so that the top line is at or slightly below eye level and the gaze goes slightly downward (BAuA). The viewing distance to the screen is at least 50 centimetres (BAuA); with larger monitors it may be 60 to 70. The monitor should be height-adjustable, rotatable and tiltable, its image steady and glare-free. Whoever follows these few points relieves the neck, shoulders and eyes noticeably.
The four adjustments at the desk
| Aspect | Recommendation (BAuA/DGUV) | Common mistake at home |
|---|---|---|
| Screen height | Top edge at or slightly below eye level, gaze slightly down | Laptop flat on the table, gaze falls steeply downward |
| Viewing distance | At least 50 cm, 60-70 cm for large monitors | Nose almost on the display, the eyes tire quickly |
| Sitting position | Chair with lumbar support, right angles, feet flat | Dining chair or sofa with no back support |
| Input | External keyboard and mouse, wrists kept straight | Typing on the laptop keyboard, shoulders hunched |
| Light | Daylight from the side, glare-free | Window behind you or straight ahead, screen dazzles |
- Raise the screen so the top line is at or just below eye level - if need be with a stand or a few books.
- Adjust the chair so thighs and lower legs form roughly a right angle and your feet rest flat on the floor.
- Place the keyboard and mouse so your forearms rest loosely and your wrists stay straight.
- Bring the viewing distance to about an arm's length - at least 50 centimetres to the screen.
- Turn the desk so the window sits to the side and neither dazzles nor reflects on the screen.
The right chair and the right light
Of all the building blocks, the chair is the most important - and the one people skimp on most at home. A good office chair has a backrest with a height-adjustable lumbar support that props up the lower back and keeps the spine in its natural shape. That the choice is not easy is shown by a Stiftung Warentest test: of 22 office chairs examined (Stiftung Warentest), only 6 were rated 'good' (Stiftung Warentest) - so good desk chairs for the home office are rare. The investment still pays off, because the equipment acts directly on your health: a poorly equipped setup carries roughly double the risk (DGUV) of developing new neck or upper back complaints compared with a well-equipped workspace.
Get the light right
Employees with poorer ergonomic equipment developed new neck or upper back complaints roughly twice as often as those with good equipment.
The tech side: second monitor and docking
Ergonomics does not end at the chair - the technology also decides whether the workspace is healthy and productive. The accident insurance study is clear on this: precisely the absence of additional devices such as an external screen, an external keyboard and mouse raises the risk of neck and upper back complaints. Even so, around 70 percent (DGUV) of respondents used at least an external monitor plus an external mouse or keyboard - and are much better off for it. A second monitor provides space for a document and a video call side by side; a docking station connects monitor, keyboard, mouse, network and power to the laptop over a single cable. Tidy, ergonomic, docked in seconds.
Second monitor
An external screen at eye level makes room for a document and a video call side by side - the neck stays straight and there is no hunting between windows.
Docking station
Monitor, keyboard, mouse, network and power over one cable: dock in the morning, unplug in the evening, without rewiring every day.
External keyboard and mouse
Separate from the laptop, keyboard and mouse can be placed freely - the wrists stay straight and the shoulders relaxed.
Laptop stand
A stand lifts the laptop screen to eye level; together with an external keyboard it almost replaces a second monitor.
A stable connection for video calls
Nothing disrupts a meeting like a stuttering picture or a choppy voice. Video calls, cloud access and large files need a stable, fast connection - and that does not end at the router. If the home office sits far from the router, a mesh Wi-Fi or a wired network connection helps the bandwidth reach the desk. How to track down and eliminate dead spots is something we show in the article slow Wi-Fi and dead spots fixed; how a mesh carries the signal through the whole house you can read in whole-home Wi-Fi with mesh. Where the wireless network is not enough, we set up a stable connection right into the workroom as part of our Wi-Fi optimization.
Cable beats wireless for video calls
Printer, backup and tidy cable management
A complete workspace includes three often-forgotten building blocks. First, a printer on the network that is reachable from laptop, tablet and smartphone alike - so you can print and scan without swapping cables; we describe the setup in the article set up a printer over Wi-Fi and handle it on request when setting up your printer. Second, a backup of your work data: anyone who is self-employed or works from home cannot afford data loss. An automatic data backup - for example to a NAS at home - protects quotes, invoices and project files; the right strategy is explained in the article the right backup strategy. Third, tidy cable management that avoids trip hazards and keeps the desk clear.
Printer on the network
Once connected to the Wi-Fi, the device prints and scans from any laptop, tablet or phone in the house - without swapping cables.
Backup of your work data
Quotes, invoices and project files run automatically into a backup, so a defect does not cost weeks of work.
Tidy cable management
Cable ducts and hook-and-loop ties keep power and network cables bundled - it looks neat and prevents trip hazards.
How we set up your workspace on site
Between knowing what a good workspace looks like and the finished setup, everyday life often gets in the way - the monitor still to be adjusted, the docking still to be wired, the Wi-Fi still to be stabilised. That is exactly where we come in. During a home visit we set up the complete home workspace: we adjust screen, chair and light to the recommendations of BAuA and DGUV, connect the second monitor and docking station, ensure a stable network connection right up to the desk, add the printer to the Wi-Fi and set up an automatic data backup. On request, we lay the cables neatly and explain everything at your pace.
This pays off for people working from home just as much as for the self-employed and small business owners for whom the home workspace is the company headquarters - our pages on setting up a home office and tech for business owners sum this up. Because we come to you by car, much of it can be done in a single appointment. Many combine the workspace with neighbouring topics - such as a securely set up password manager for the many logins or, for those who commute electrically, a wallbox for charging the electric car at home. We are happy to give an initial assessment via our contact form.
A workspace that spares your back and nerves
Sources and studies