> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.unknowndivide.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Artek Stool 60 vs Chair 66 vs Chair 69: Which Aalto Piece Should You Buy - URL: https://www.unknowndivide.com/artek-stool-60-vs-chair-66-vs-chair-69/ - Published: 2026-11-14T06:37:21.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-14T06:37:21.000Z - Description: Three Alvar Aalto birch classics, one bent-wood leg. The story behind Artek's Stool 60, Chair 66 and Chair 69, how they differ, what they cost, and which one to buy first. - Author: unknowndivide staff - Tags: Design, Gear Three pieces of birch furniture from the 1930s have been in continuous production for roughly ninety years, and they sit in kitchens, cafes, libraries and living rooms around the world: Alvar Aalto's Stool 60, Chair 66 and Chair 69\. They share the same bent-wood leg and the same Finnish birch, they are all made by Artek, and a first-time buyer can easily confuse them. They are not interchangeable. One is a three-legged stool that doubles as a side table, and the other two are chairs that differ in a way you notice the first time you lean back. Here is the story behind them, how they compare, and which one to buy first. ## The quick answer - **Buy Stool 60 first** if you want the original, the cheapest way into Aalto and a piece that works as a seat, a side table or a display stand. It starts at 268 euros. - **Buy Chair 69** if you want a chair you can actually sit in at a table for a meal. Its curved solid-birch backrest and fuller seat make it the more comfortable of the two chairs. - **Buy Chair 66** if you want the more graphic of the two, with a wide, handle-shaped plywood backrest, and you like the idea of linoleum or laminate on the seat. ## The bend that started it all ![Birch Aalto furniture seen from above on a marble floor: a stool, a bench, a table and two chairs in black, white and natural birch](https://storage.ghost.io/c/25/41/254117cc-2631-4fb7-9f78-fa31eac12f1a/content/images/2026/11/artek-stool-60-chair-66-aalto-family-marble.jpg) Aalto's Artek pieces seen from above. Image: [Artek](https://www.artek.fi/en/products/stool-60?ref=unknowndivide.com) All three pieces come from one invention. In the late 1920s, architect and designer Alvar Aalto began experimenting with bending wood. Working with the furniture manufacturer Otto Korhonen, he developed a ground-breaking process for bending birch. Artek calls the result the L-leg, the bent leg that turns a right angle under the seat, and it is the DNA of every piece here. The Stool 60 was the first, designed in 1933, and Artek says it has remained in continuous production since. Aalto's vision was for a universal object made entirely from native birch: equally suitable as a seat, a table, a storage unit or a display surface. It is built from almost nothing, a round seat and three L-legs, and it ships flat-packed, which Artek notes keeps transport economical and ecological. The stool has barely changed in either material or form since, and the maker says time has proven its lifetime is at least 50 years. The brand even backs it with a lifetime guarantee when bought for home use. Chair 66 and Chair 69 followed in 1935, and they take the same leg and add a backrest. That one addition is the entire difference between them, and it matters more than it sounds. ![Three bent birch L-shaped legs, a round birch seat and screws laid out on a white background](https://storage.ghost.io/c/25/41/254117cc-2631-4fb7-9f78-fa31eac12f1a/content/images/2026/11/artek-stool-60-l-legs-seat-components.jpg) Everything a Stool 60 is made of: three L-legs, a seat and a handful of screws. Image: [Artek](https://www.artek.fi/en/products/stool-60?ref=unknowndivide.com) ## Stool 60: the one that is also a table Stool 60 is the most elemental of the three, and the most flexible. It is stackable, which is why you see towers of them in cafes, and it is small enough to live as a bedside table, a plant stand or a place to put your shoes on. It comes in a very wide range of finishes: natural birch, wild birch, a spread of lacquers from white and black to orange, yellow, green, petrol, red, blue and grey, honey and walnut stains, and seats in linoleum, laminate, fabric or leather. Artek also releases limited editions of it, such as the Stool 60 Celebration with laser-engraved illustrations, and marquetry versions named Lokki, Kivet and Seireeni. Its limitation is the obvious one: there is no back. It is a lovely perch for a short while and a poor choice for an hour of dinner. If you want an object, buy a stool. If you want a place to sit, keep reading. ## Chair 66 and Chair 69: the same leg, two backs ![A group of Aalto Chair 66 in natural birch, black and white with blue and white seats on a white background](https://storage.ghost.io/c/25/41/254117cc-2631-4fb7-9f78-fa31eac12f1a/content/images/2026/11/artek-chair-66-group-birch.jpg) A group of Chair 66 in birch, black and white. Image: [Artek](https://www.artek.fi/en/products/chair-66?ref=unknowndivide.com) Chair 66 has a wide, handle-shaped backrest of form-pressed birch plywood. Artek describes its construction logic as visible and additive, full of character and pleasing to the eye: you can see how the legs, seat and back come together. The handle-like cut-out also makes it easy to move from room to room. It is available in a smaller range than the others, in black, white or clear lacquer, with a choice of birch, laminate, linoleum, fabric or leather on the seat. ![Artek Chair 69 with an orange lacquered seat and backrest on natural birch legs against a white background](https://storage.ghost.io/c/25/41/254117cc-2631-4fb7-9f78-fa31eac12f1a/content/images/2026/11/artek-chair-69-orange-lacquer.jpg) Chair 69 with an orange lacquered seat and back. Image: [Artek](https://www.artek.fi/en/products/chair-69?ref=unknowndivide.com) Chair 69 is the one Artek calls one of its most popular chairs. Its backrest is a form-pressed solid birch lamella rather than plywood, a curved backrest that Artek describes as made for comfort, with a broad seat and a supportive back. It arrives in a wide range of colors, from white, black and clear lacquers to orange, yellow, green and petrol, which is why you so often see it in a mixed set around a dining table. Artek suggests it as a chair for the informal home office as well, and says it combines stability and durability with an elegant line. ## Stool 60 vs Chair 66 vs Chair 69 compared | | Stool 60 | Chair 66 | Chair 69 | | ---------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- | | Designer | Alvar Aalto | Alvar Aalto | Alvar Aalto | | Year | 1933 | 1935 | 1935 | | Legs | Three solid birch L-legs | Four birch legs | Four birch legs | | Back | None | Wide, handle-shaped plywood backrest | Curved solid birch lamella backrest | | Seat surface options | Birch veneer, laminate, linoleum, fabric, leather | Birch veneer, laminate, linoleum, fabric, leather | Birch veneer, laminate, fabric, leather | | Stackable | Yes | Not stated by the maker | Not stated by the maker | | Made in | Finland | Finland | Finland | | Delivery | Artek online store quotes 2 to 4 business days, with free shipping over 150 euros | | | | Regular price at Artek | from 268 euros | from 465 euros | from 465 euros | | Best for | Side table, extra seat, style on a budget | A graphic back, linoleum seats, small spaces | Dining and desk use, mixed color sets | ## How to choose between the two chairs The honest difference is the back. Chair 66 gives you a graphic, lighter-looking silhouette, and its plywood back is built to be a design feature as much as a support. Chair 69's curved solid birch back is the more conventional comfort shape, and it is the one Artek pitches on comfort. Both cost the same, so this is a choice of looks and sitting, not money. Think about the table. A set of four 69 chairs in different colors around a plain birch table is the classic Aalto dining scene. A group of 66 chairs in black, white and natural, perhaps with a black linoleum seat, reads more like a gallery or cafe. If you are not sure, order one in natural birch first, because the wood is the star and it takes on a warm patina with age. ## Price and what you are buying On Artek's own online store in mid-November 2026, the regular price of the Stool 60 was 268 euros, and Chair 66 and Chair 69 were each 465 euros. Prices vary a little by finish, so the figures above are starting points. Artek lists a delivery time of two to four business days, free shipping over 150 euros and a 14 day right of return. These are the prices in euros for the Finland store, so what you pay elsewhere will vary with shipping and duties. Artek also runs a separate online store for Japan and Korea. The value argument is about life, not price. A chair made of solid birch and form-pressed lamella has no electronics, nothing to wear out but the finish and the seat surface, and the stool is rated by its maker for at least 50 years. Buy the version with a simple lacquer or natural birch seat, and it will look better in ten years than it does now. ## Which Aalto piece should you buy - **Your first Artek, on a budget:** Stool 60 in natural birch. - **A dining table for four:** four Chair 69 in a mix of two colors. - **A desk chair for light work:** Chair 69, the more supportive back. - **A gallery or cafe look:** Chair 66 in black or white with a linoleum seat. - **A bedside table and a spare seat in one:** Stool 60 in a color. ## Our call **Our call: buy Chair 69 if you need a chair, and Stool 60 if you want an object.** The stool is the purest expression of what Aalto and Artek do, it costs just over half as much, and it does a surprising number of jobs. But most people reading this are choosing a place to sit, and for that we would take Chair 69, with a curved solid birch back that is simply the more comfortable shape. Choose the 66 only if its handle-shaped back is the look you are after. In every case you are buying something that has been made the same way for about ninety years, and that is rare. **Shop the Artek picks** **Artek Chair 69:** our pick for dining and desks, with the curved solid birch back. [Shop it at Artek](https://shop.artek.fi/products/chair-69?ref=unknowndivide.com) **Artek Stool 60:** the 1933 original, a seat, a table and a shelf in one. [Shop it at Artek](https://shop.artek.fi/products/stool-60?ref=unknowndivide.com) **Artek Chair 66:** the graphic alternative with the handle-shaped back. [Shop it at Artek](https://shop.artek.fi/products/chair-66/?ref=unknowndivide.com) More on the people and pieces: read our guides to the [Hender Scheme Stool 60 in leather](https://www.unknowndivide.com/artek-hender-scheme-stool-60-leather/), the [Aalto vase](https://www.unknowndivide.com/iittala-aalto-vase-alvar-aalto/) and the [Barcelona Chair vs Womb Chair](https://www.unknowndivide.com/barcelona-chair-vs-womb-chair/) comparison. More like this: browse every related post in our [Design Icons Hub](https://www.unknowndivide.com/design-icons/).