This is a bit too open ended but ill share the ones i have and love. they are extremely comfortable for my family but i have one larger friend who finds them too small. Dwr’s onda stool.

The best ones are those that fit best in your space. Post a pic and you'll get better feedback.

One design does not work everywhere!

I have these from Jessica Charles. You can customize the fabrics on the seat and backs, and wood stain color. I used leather on the seat and fabric on the back.

https://www.jessicacharles.com/Products/Detail?SKU=84-24-MS

I like counter stools with few legs and a more stationary base. But your choice depends on the style of the kitchen you have developed.

I have these. i had specific needs—no leather (too much in adjoining room due to Aussie dogs), they had to swivel, the fabric had to be easy clean, not protrude too far above the counter, had to have a back, had to be ready to ship (i had waited 9 months for my Hancock Moore sofa, and was tired of waiting for things) and no single pole (I had read too many negatives). You really have to determine your own specific needs since you have so much to choose from.

I started out with these. I found that they have a few drawbacks. #1) The swivel returns to the original position. You feel like your fighting the chair! #2)The arms hit the counter, you can't slide the chair under the counter(mine were taller, than in the photo). #3) Foam in the chair seat deflated quickly.

Be sure to get ones with attached back, not just stools. (Unless you don't want people to sit there too long. Helps to have a foot rest too. Good luck.

Agree it depends on the space and your preferences and who will be sitting in them -

we’ve used the CH2 chiaro in two homes - i like that they don’t look bulky and the back sits below the counter for clean sight lines, also like not too expensive, it’s easy to clean and doesn’t have arms so easy to slip in and out of (my kids would bang the counter when sitting at a neighbors’s island with the swivel)

~DH proclaims them comfortable and he is picky (he won’t go to certain restaurants in town bc their chairs arent comfortable 😅)

(fwiw our first set was bought 14 yrs ago, super high quality, nice square legs, our most recent set has rounded legs, which probably doesnt bother anyone else but me)

I have THE BEST bar stools -- my husband bought them used for $20 each from a bulletin board at his office. That was maybe 15 years ago. Details I'd recommend:

- Mine are much like those Chicagoans recommends: They swivel and have a back. These are easier to get into /more comfortable.

- When she was recovering from her hip replacement, my mother found it very easy to get in /out using the swivel feature. She wouldn't sit anywhere else in my house for a couple months. I'm pretty sure the swivel would be elder-friendly, even without the surgery part.

- I would not want "arms" like a few of these pictures recommend. Bar stools are often crowded (often too crowded), and those arms would be an impediment to easy in /out.

- Be sure whatever you buy will slide completely under your overhang. Imagine when you're NOT using the stools -- like if you're decorating cookies from both sides of the island or if you're serving pot luck from the island -- you want the stools to "disappear" /you don't want to reach over the tops of too-high backs.

- Don't choose anything too heavy -- people won't bother to slide them back under.