The 9 Best Speaker Stands of 2023: The Ultimate Buying Guide

Even if you have the best bookshelf speakers, without proper speaker stands you’ll be doing your listening experience a disservice. Speaker stands are essential in maximizing the full sound quality of a speaker.

Regardless of if you’re using a set of high-end speakers or a modest budget setup, any speaker can benefit from proper isolation and height adjustment. Here’s a guide to the best speaker stands on the market right now.

Don’t have your speakers yet? Here’s our pick for best speakers in 2023

Best speaker stands for various applications

When evaluating what speaker stands to purchase, it’s important to consider the many options available. For instance, some speaker stands are adjustable, others have hollow posts to hide speaker wires – these options might be appealing or even necessary for your setup.

We’ve outlined our top 9 picks for the best speaker stands and what strengths and weaknesses they have to help guide you through this process.

Our top pick: Perlegear universal speaker stands

• Height: 33.6 inches
• Speaker bracket adjustment range: 5.9 – 10 inches
• Weight capacity: 22 lbs
• Cable management: Yes

Coming in as our top pick, the Perlegear universal bookshelf speaker stands were an easy choice. For under $100, you will be hard-pressed to find a set of speaker stands with the same build quality and features that the Perlegear’s have.

Firstly, as the name implies, each speaker stand is universal, meaning it will work with just about any brand of speaker. Pay attention to the dimensions of your speakers though; each stand has a minimum width of 5.9 inches and a maximum of 10.

One stand-out feature is the cable management system. Hie you cables within the hollowed-out pole to provide a clean and wire-free environment. Despite the hollowed stands, each one is able to hold up to 22 pounds, meaning just about any speaker can safely sit on top.

Each speaker stand sits at ear listening level, a nice 33.6 inches from the ground.

For the price, these are absolutely some of the best bookshelf speaker stands on the market right now in 2023. If you’re looking for a design that can be used with a variety of speakers, the Perlegeat universal speaker stands are an easy choice.

Best audiophile speaker stands: KEF S2 Speaker Stands

• Height: 25.87 inches
• Speaker platform: 8.9 x 12.13 inches
• Weight capacity: 45 lbs
• Cable management: Yes

The KEF S2 speaker stands are some of the best audiophile speaker stands money can buy. With a proprietary mounting system and an integrated wire management system, heavy-gauge steel and aluminum construction, and various colors to choose from, it’s really no wonder why we chose these as our pick for the best audiophile speaker stands.

Though each speaker stand weighs are already modest 10.7 lbs, sand or steel shot can be added to increase the weight and stability. The bases of each stand come with integrated carpet spikes with included protectors for hardwood floor.

As mentioned above, these stands have a propriety mounting system for their LS50 bookshelf speakers, which were rated as some of our favorite turntable speakers. Combine that with a concealed wire management system and you have one slick-looking and sturdy speaker stand!

For the money, there are not many other premium quality audiophile speaker stands of this caliber.

Best budget speaker stands: Atlantic Bookshelf Speaker Stands

• Height: 30 inches
• Speaker platform: 10.5 x 10.5 inches
• Weight capacity: 20 lbs
• Cable management: Yes

If you’re looking for an affordable stand, the Atlantic speaker stands deliver. While they might not have the flashiest build quality or aesthetics, these stands are great for most speakers.

These stands are built with high-quality steel material and are able to hold up to 20 pounds. While the height is fixed at 30 inches, each speaker stand can be adjusted to point inwards at a 45-degree angle, perfect for creating a toe-in placement without moving the base of the stands.

Furthermore, these stands do come with concealed wire management, allowing you to run speaker wire inside each post and out of the base. Speaking of the base, each comes with carpet spikes to allow for maximum sturdiness.

Overall, many people love these stands for their affordable price and quality. While build and looks do leave some things still to be desired, these are great starter speaker stands for beginners or those with smaller budgets!

Best adjustable speaker stands: Mounting Dream Speaker Stands

• Height: 33 – 42 inches
• Speaker platform: 4.7 – 7.1 inches
• Weight capacity: 11 lbs
• Cable management: Yes

The Mounting Dream speaker stands are some of our favorite height adjustable speaker stands on the market today. Each adjustable speaker stand comes with a speaker bracket to help support the back of the speaker. Stability is always a concern with stands that come with adjustable height, but Mounting Dream does a great job addressing this.

As with most height-adjustable stands, the weight capacity is lower than traditional, non-adjustable stands. While you won’t be able to place large speakers on these, each Mounting Dream speaker stand is capable of holding speakers up to 11 lbs and 7.1 inches wide.

For added support, each adjustable top plate and bracket allows for screws to be added into wooden speakers for additional stability (requires drilling into your speakers).

If you’re someone who needs adjustable height in your speaker stands, these are some of the best on the market.

Best speaker stands for large speakers: Monolith – 124794

• Height: 24 or 28 inches
• Speaker platform: 11 x 4.9 inches
• Weight capacity: 75 lbs
• Cable management: No

If you need speaker stands for large speakers, the Monolith 124794s have been some of the favorites on the market for quite some time now. While they don’t have all the bells and whistles other speaker stands have, their heavy-duty steel construction means each stand is capable of holding up to 75 lbs!

While the steel construction and high weight capacity are certainly the highlights of these stands, each base has adjustable feet with retractable spikes for mitigating floor vibrations.

One main drawback with these stands is a lack of cable management, which would impede on the sturdy construction that many admire.

Ultimately, they’re nothing flashy, but if you need a speaker capable of carrying some serious weight, these are the best stands for large speakers on the market.

Best desktop speaker stands: HumanCentric Desktop Speaker Stands

• Height: 4 inches
• Speaker platform: 5.125 x 6.4 inches
• Weight capacity: 75 lbs
• Cable management: No

For a desk speaker system, the HumanCentric stands are some of the best desktop speaker stands on the market currently. Not only is the price reasonable, but their sleek design and form factor makes them great for home offices and desk speaker setups.

While made to be paired with smaller bookshelf speakers, these stands sit at a 5-degree listening angle meant to improve the listening experience and overall sound quality. Their low-profile design allows for easy placement and can be placed on top or under objects if necessary which makes them a very versatile speaker stand.

For simple, elegant and effective desktop speaker stands, look no further than the HumanCentric stands.

Best wooden speaker stands: Rockville RHTSC Bookshelf Speaker Stands

• Height: 36 inches
• Speaker platform: 11.4 x 9.25 inches
• Weight capacity: 60 lbs
• Cable management: No

For elegant-looking wooden speaker stands, the Rockville RHTSC bookshelf speaker stands are perfect options! Not only does each speaker stand look great, but they provide a plethora of valuable features.

Each speaker stand is clad with stained wood and centered with a dense fiber core capable of holding up to 60 lbs. The body is empty, allowing for sand or steel shot to be added to increase the speaker stand’s weight. Each stand comes with both brass and rubber feet for added stability on various floors as well as no-slip isolation pads for improved audio quality.

The only drawback of these speaker stands is their lack of cable management. Some people have drilled a hole in the top and run the wires down, but that does require some additional modification.

At the end of the day, these are fantastic wooden speaker stands that look great and deliver stellar sound quality.

Best center channel speaker stand: Sanus SFC22-B1

• Height: 22 inches
• Speaker platform: 11.8 x 14.8 inches
• Weight capacity: 35 lbs
• Cable management: Yes

For use in a home theater system, the Sanus SFC22-B1 is one of the best center channel speaker stands on the market today for its size, build quality, and cable management systems.

The speakers in a home entertainment system are often heavy, and the center speaker needs a solid foundation to sit in front of the audience. The Sanus SFC22-B1 sits at 22 inches which is low enough to be out of the way of the screen but high enough to be at a near-optimal listening level.

Its adjustable feet allow for use on both carpet and hardwood flooring. Additionally, this center channel speaker stand has integrated cable management – something that many other center stands don’t have.

Ultimately, if you need a center channel speaker stand to do its intended job and do it well, the Sanus SFC22-B1 is an obvious choice.

Best surround sound speaker stands: Sanus Adjustable Height Speaker Stand

• Height: 28 – 38 inches
• Speaker platform: mount
• Weight capacity: 3.5 lbs
• Cable management: Yes

These little Sanus adjustable speaker stands are some of our favorites for surround sound! Each speaker stand is universally compatible with popular surround sound speakers brands like Bose, JBL, and Sony.

While compatibility is a key factor, each speaker stand has a wide range of adjustability. Height ranges between 28 to 38 inches and can be adjusted on the fly right at the center of the stand.

Each speaker stand comes with a built-in cable management system for hiding wires. The maximum capacity is 3.5 lbs, making them perfect for a surround sound speaker or even a bookshelf speaker.

The Sanus surround sound speaker stands are of great value and perfect for home entertainment systems!

How do I choose a speaker stand?

Speaker stands are extremely important to overall sound quality. A good speaker stand is just as important as a good speaker which is why we suggest researching stands thoroughly.

But, what makes a speaker stand good? We’ve outlined a few key factors to consider when buying speaker stands.

Stand height

It’s important your speakers sit at ear listening height, usually around 36-38 inches. Speaker stands help with this process. Depending on your listening setup and other factors, you might need stands that are taller or shorter.

We suggest taking a measurement from your ear to the ground when seated while listening to music, then purchasing stands around this height.

For more information on speaker placement, check out our ultimate speaker placement guide.

Platform size

It’s important that the speaker stand platform is large enough to safely place your speaker on it. Platforms should be close in size to the base of your speaker cabinet, but sometimes can be a little smaller.

Weight capacity

A speaker stand needs to be able to reliably hold up your speaker without collapsing or swaying. If a bookshelf speaker is too heavy, it can cause unnecessary strain on your speaker stand which in turn can cause it to fall over or even break, both of which would likely damage your speakers.

In order to prevent this, speaker stands always include weight ratings. Be sure to check the manufacturer’s weights for both your speakers and your speaker stands before using them.

Cable management

One often-overlooked element of speaker stands is cable management. Yes, speakers do improve sound quality, but they also have practical applications as well, one of which is concealing speaker wires so they’re not open to the viewing eye.

FAQs while buying speaker stands

Many people have a few questions before buying speaker stands. We’ve put together a list of some of the most common ones to help the buying process.

Do bookshelf speakers need to be on stands?

The short answer is yes, bookshelf speakers should always be on some sort of stand. A bookshelf speaker stand works to achieve three primary functions: reduce unwanted resonances, set proper listening height, improve positioning.

A bookshelf speaker needs to be elevated from the floor in order to reduce unnecessary bass tones as well as vibrations. Even if your speaker is on an elevated surface, bookshelf speaker stands are specifically designed to mitigate vibrations from between the speaker’s cabinet and hard surfaces.

Without using bookshelf speaker stands, you’ll be doing yourself and your speakers a huge disservice.

Do speaker stands improve sound?

Yes, speaker stands drastically improve sound quality. By placing speakers on speaker stands, you’re reducing unwanted sound reflections, setting proper speaker height, and promoting proper speaker placement.

What’s an ideal height for bookshelf speaker stands?

The ideal height for bookshelf speaker stands is 24-26 inches high. This allows for the placing of the tweeter (smallest speaker cone) to be 36 inches above the floor which is considered to be ear level.

Measure what ear level is for you and then evaluate what height bookshelf speaker stand you need before purchasing.

Are speaker stands universal?

Most speaker stands are universal, however, there are some stands that are made for specific models. In its simplest form, a speaker stand is just a heavy elevated base for a speaker to sit, which makes many models compatible with most speakers.

What do you put under speakers?

Soft material such as small foam or rubber pads should be placed under speakers to prevent excessive vibrations and resonances from interfering with the sound and potentially damaging the speakers.

We suggest rubber feet like these be placed under speakers before setting them on a stand.

Why do speaker stands have spikes?

Speaker stands have spikes to reduce vibrations between the base of the stand and carpeted floor it’s standing on. Lower bass frequencies can cause speaker stands to move over time. Carpet spikes are used to prevent unnecessary sliding of speaker stands and can improve audio quality as well as prevent speaker stands from tipping over.

Do I need to fill speaker stands with sand?

It’s not necessary to fill speaker stands with sand, but it can improve the audio performance and safety of the stands. Sand in speaker stands lower the center of gravity and makes speakers less prone to falling over.

Conclusion: Finding the best speaker stands

The speaker stand is one of the most vital pieces of equipment in your audio setup, so it’s important to take your time before purchasing.

At this point, you should be well-equipped with all the information you need to make an educated purchase of a speaker stand. We’re confident that there’s something for everyone on this list.

Thanks for reading!