Keyboard Stands

Something to put the keyboard on: folding X- and Z-frames for gigging, table and column stands for heavy stage pianos, multi-tier racks for a studio wall of synths, and the matching furniture stands the piano makers sell for their own models. Filter by stand type, tiers and load rating, then compare height ranges, weights and what folds flat. Stand-specific add-ons – second tiers, bags, arms – live in Stand Accessories and are linked from each stand's page.

The Low Down

A stand is the one accessory every keyboard needs and the one most people buy last, badly. The shapes all do the same job – hold a keyboard at a sensible height – but they differ in how much they wobble, whether you can get your knees under them, how many boards they take and how much they weigh in the car.

The shapes

X-frame: — Two legs crossed like a pair of scissors; squeeze a lever or push a locking disc to change the height. Cheapest, lightest and quickest to fold. The cross sits right where your knees go, so they are better for standing than sitting at, and the arms meet in the middle so a wide board can rock front to back.
Single vs double braced: — A single-braced X has one tube per side; a double-braced has two, side by side. Double bracing roughly doubles the load rating (30 kg → 60–100 kg), stiffens the stand against the keyboard swaying while you play, and adds a kilo or two. Get double for anything 61 keys and up.
Z-frame: — A Z-shaped side profile: base at the back, a column up, arms forward. Nothing under the front of the keyboard, so you can sit at it like a desk, and the flat base makes it very hard to tip. Heavier, more expensive and slower to set up than an X, but the stage-piano choice.
Table / four-leg: — Four legs, one at each corner, like a trestle table – K&M's 18810 and 18950, Roland's KS-13, the Nord stand. Very stable, easy to sit at, and the arms are far apart so an 88-note piano cannot rock. The bulkiest to transport, though several fold flat.
Column / spider: — One central post with arms sticking out (K&M Spider, STAY, Quiklok Monolith). Tiny footprint, nothing in the way of your legs, easy to add a second tier – but the price of that stiffness is aluminium engineering, and they cost accordingly.
Y-frame: — A single upright that splits into a Y – Quiklok's QLY-40. Like a column stand but in cheaper steel; legroom of a Z at nearer the price of an X.
A-frame rack / multi-tier: — A free-standing frame with several fixed shelves, for a studio wall of synths. Not something you fold; the tiers usually slope back so the upper boards are within reach.
Furniture stand: — The wooden (or matching-metal) stand a piano maker sells for one specific model: Roland KSC-72 for the FP-60, Yamaha L-515 for the P-515, Casio CS-68P for the PX-S range. Screws to the piano, usually takes the maker's three-pedal unit, looks like a piece of furniture. Only fits the model it is made for and does not fold.

The numbers that matter

Load rating: — The maximum weight the stand is designed to carry. A 25-key controller is 1 kg; a 61-key synth 5–8 kg; an 88-note stage piano 12–25 kg. Stands are rated far above that (50–130 kg) because the number is about stiffness, not collapse – a stand at half its rating still sways. Multi-tier stands quote a lower per-tier figure too.
Height range: — Most adjustable stands go from about 60 cm (seated, piano height is ~72 cm to the keys) to 95–100 cm (standing). Check the minimum if you sit, the maximum if you stand and are tall. Furniture and some Z-frames are fixed.
Support width and depth: — How far apart the arms can go and how deep they are. Arms wider than the keyboard's feet are useless; deep boards (stage pianos are 35–40 cm) need arms of at least 30 cm or they overhang. Rubber ends stop the keyboard sliding off.
Tiers: — How many keyboards the stand holds. Second tiers on X and Z stands are usually add-ons; column and A-frame stands come with them. An upper tier is rated for much less weight than the lower one.
Weight: — 3 kg for an aluminium X, 5–6 kg for a steel double-braced X, 10–13 kg for a Z or table stand. Matters only if you carry it; a heavy stand is a stable stand at home.

Which one do I need?

Home studio, one controller up to 61 keys: a double-braced X-frame. £40–80 buys a good one from K&M, Quiklok, Gravity or Hercules and it folds away in seconds.

Sitting at an 88-note stage piano: a Z-frame or table stand. Your knees will thank you, and a wide board stops rocking. Roland's KS-13 and K&M's 18810 fold; the Nord stand is the light option.

A digital piano that lives in one place: the maker's own furniture stand. It is the only thing that looks right, takes the matching pedal unit and never wobbles.

Two or more boards for gigs: a two-tier Z or column stand (Quiklok Z726, K&M Spider Pro, STAY) rather than bolting a second tier onto an X.

A studio with a lot of synths: an A-frame rack or Gravity's multi-stand, and accept it is furniture.

Stands rarely come with anything: bags, second tiers, laptop shelves and tablet arms are separate, and only fit the stand they were made for – they are listed on each stand's page here.

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