Bed Sizes
Over the years a number of standard bed sizes have been developed. Unfortunately they're not completely "standard"! As a result choosing and buying the best size for your bedroom can be confusing, as can buying the right sheets and other bedding for your chosen size of mattress. This can be especially important if you plan to buy bed linen etc online from another country.For a start the standards vary around the world. Not only are the names of bed sizes sometimes different but even beds and mattresses with the same name can have different measurements in different countries, as happens with British and American standards.
Even within a single country different manufacturers interpret the "standard" bed sizes differently. Some might shave a couple of inches off to reduce cost, others add a little for comfort. Those few inches can make a lot of difference.
Beds are usually labelled according to the dimensions of the mattress - the actual measurements of the bed itself might be a little wider and/or longer. Check this when planning you bedroom furniture layout, don't just rely on the mattress measurement. Obviously bed linen will be significantly larger than the standard mattress size and again some manufacturers are more generous than others.
The tables below give common interpretations of the "standard" bed sizes. Use these size charts as a guideline, but always check the exact dimensions before you buy. At the end of the day "standard" is best considered as a starting point, not a hard and fast rule.
There are two measurement charts on this page: US Bed Sizes and UK Bed Sizes.
US Bed & Mattress Sizes
|
UK Bed & Mattress SizesThe range of British bed sizes is smaller than that of the US - and British beds themselves are usually smaller then their US version with the same name.
|