When you’re buying a chair cushion, there are a number of factors you need to consider. Firstly, you need to spend time thinking about what style, price, and materials best suit your needs, as well as what size and type of chair you are buying it for. A cushion made for a typical dining room chair is not the best choice, in terms of comfort or style, for special types such as wicker or rocking chairs. You also might want a cushion that is extra large or thick, depending on your personal needs. Another important thing to keep in mind is whether the chair you’re outfitting is to be used indoors or outdoors: Using an indoor cushion on your patio will invite mildew and other problems, drastically shortening the lifetime and quality of the cushion. Some common chair cushions include: rocking chair cushions, kitchen chair cushions, adirondack chair cushions, wicker chair cushions, dining chair cushions, and lounge chair cushions. This convenient guide will give you the advice you need to make selecting and buying the right cushion easy.

First, you should consider the location of the chair you’re outfitting and the surrounding décor, and then choose the shape and color you desire. You don’t want your cushions to clash with the room, and they can have more impact than you might think. If you’re going for a solid color, consider whether your style would be best suited by primary, bright, dull, or earth tones. You can spruce up a plain kitchen with bold colors, or choose a deep or neutral hue to lend sophistication to a dining room. Checks, stripes, and floral patterns are also popular for their folksy appeal. Other subtle patterns available, like dots, will vary based on the cushion manufacturer. Besides color, the shape of the cushion can also lend a particular impression. You might like a boxed edge, which gives the cushion a rectangular shape, or a mitered or knife-edged corner that comes to a point, without being as strictly geometrical in appearance as the boxed edge. A corded edge will have a cord-like trim running along the edge of the cushion. The right combination of colors and style will go a long way in giving a chair an appearance of fun or formality.

Next, consider the type of material used to make your cushion. Most cushions today are stuffed with either foam or fiberfill (which is a term for synthetic fibers such as polyester). Fiberfill will tend to give a cushion a fluffier appearance, but may lose its shape after long use, while foam is flat and maintains its shape well. Foam cushions also tend to have a zipper, which allows you to simply remove the foam pad and pop the outer shell in the washing machine for cleaning. However, be cautious: Foam-stuffed cushions are for indoor use only, and will retain spilled liquid just like a foam sponge, potentially developing mildew and odor. If you have kids that tend to spill juice everywhere, limit your buying options to fiberfill-stuffed cushions.

If you’re buying an indoor chair cushion, common outer materials include 100% cotton, polyester microfiber, or various blends of cotton and polyester. Some cushions may have an outer shell of nylon or rayon. Things to keep in mind are that artificial fibers may give a cushion a stylish glossy or suede-like appearance, but these fibers lack the softness of cotton and tend to retain heat. 100% cotton or cotton-poly blends are probably your best choices. Outdoor cushions are another story: They should be 100% polyester, inside and out, for resistance against wear, mildew, and color fading.

Other considerations are methods of attachment and size. Indoor chair cushions come in two types: The reversible and the non-reversible. Most of the reversible cushions have string ties to keep them in place. The problem is that string ties can rip over time, so the alternative is a non-reversible, string-less cushion with a non-skid bottom. Another factor is size: While most cushions are roughly 3” thick and a standard length and width, some come in extra large sizes, particularly rocking chair cushion sets. Also keep in mind that outdoor cushions tend to run larger than indoor ones.

As far as price goes, you should expect to pay at least $20-40 for a quality regular indoor seat cushion. Outdoor cushions cost around $75, with outdoor lounge chair cushions running around $130. Rocking chair cushions of standard size will set you back $60-80, those of large size $70- 75. Prices may run higher, depending on where you buy. Look for sales and deals online. If you can’t find a cushion that suits your specifications by shopping around, be sure to remember that there are a number of stores and web sites that will allow you to customize your own.