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6 of the best bunk beds 2020
One of my unfulfilled life’s ambitions is to sleep on the top layer of a bunk bed.
I’ll admit that’s not a very impressive bucket list, but I spent many years banished to the bottom bunk with my brother enjoying the views from the top bunk. Still, it gave ample opportunity to lie in bed and kick his mattress from underneath.
This guide will just focus on simple two layer bunk beds. You can also get futon bunks (a fold out sofa on the bottom layer), cabin beds (a desk or cupboard underneath), triple sleeper bunk beds (a double bed underneath or three singles) and other options but I like to keep things simple.
One thing to consider is that bunk beds don't usually come with mattresses. Most take a normal size single mattress, but they need to be on the thin side so that you don't end up rolling over the guard rail on the top. Some thin bunk bed mattresses to consider include:
Anyway, here are six bunk beds which we think offer good value for money, get positive reviews or have won awards.
I’ll admit that’s not a very impressive bucket list, but I spent many years banished to the bottom bunk with my brother enjoying the views from the top bunk. Still, it gave ample opportunity to lie in bed and kick his mattress from underneath.
This guide will just focus on simple two layer bunk beds. You can also get futon bunks (a fold out sofa on the bottom layer), cabin beds (a desk or cupboard underneath), triple sleeper bunk beds (a double bed underneath or three singles) and other options but I like to keep things simple.
One thing to consider is that bunk beds don't usually come with mattresses. Most take a normal size single mattress, but they need to be on the thin side so that you don't end up rolling over the guard rail on the top. Some thin bunk bed mattresses to consider include:
- the Silentnight 3 Zone Memory Foam Mattress (18cm deep, about £120 in single) has won awards from expert testers. Silentnight also has a foam mattress specifically designed for bunk beds (14cm deep, £129).
- Simba Sleep scores 4.6/5 as a brand on TrustPilot and offers a mattress designed for bunk beds (16cm deep, £199)
- Happy Beds has several budget bunk bed mattresses, including some with pocket springs (e.g. Theo mattress, 15cm deep, £129)
- John Lewis & Partners sell a mattress designed for bunk beds which uses pocket springs, which are the higher quality way of making a sprung mattress (15cm deep, £250)
Anyway, here are six bunk beds which we think offer good value for money, get positive reviews or have won awards.
1. Happy Beds American Solid Pine Bunk BEd - £199
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Happy Beds is a budget mattress and bed seller which has a big range of bunk beds for children. The one which stands out for me is the American which gets decent reviews on both Amazon (4.4/5) and the Happy Beds website (4.5/5).
The American is made with pine, which is a softwood which is the cheaper option when making a bunk bed from wood (a hardwood like oak is the posher option but it costs a lot more). The American bunk bed is big enough for a standard sized single mattress and it also has the big advantage of splitting into two single beds. That gives you more options if the bunk beds are causing too many sibling arguments over who has the top bunk. It comes in white or a natural wood colour and has a 5 year guarantee if you buy it from Happy Beds. If you want more colour options, you can choose from grey, pink, blue or green in other Happy Beds bunk bed models. When you’re picking a mattress to go with a bunk bed, I would go with a pocket sprung or memory foam mattress rather than a cheap sprung mattress if you can afford the modest upgrade. Pocket springs are far superior to open coil springs which wobble like jelly. Memory foam is a popular alternative which has something of a hugging and sinking feeling but it offers a very good level of consistent support and is better for allergies to dust (you can read our comparison of memory foam and pocket springs if you're very bored). According to the Happy Beds website, the maximum weight is 15 stone (95 kg) on the bottom bunk and 12 st (76 kg) on the top bunk. Some reviews comment that it has lots of parts and took quite a long time to put together, and required two people. The Happy Beds brand scored 3.4/5 overall on TrustPilot when we checked. |
The Happy Beds American bunk bed is available in white or light wood colour
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2. Dreams Willow Fabric Bunk Bed - £329
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I like the look of this Willow fabric bunk bed from Dreams and it gets very good reviews from customers (4.9/5 at the time of writing). Several reviews comment on how easy it is to put together.
As you'll have noticed from the picture, the bottom mattress is closer to the floor than on some bunk beds so it's not as tall overall. If you're interested, this one is 135cm high compared to 160cm for the Happy Beds American or 175cm for the posh John Lewis & Partners Morgan bunk bed. However, according to my calculations it actually has a bigger gap between the bunks than the Happy Beds American (92.5cm, compared to 79cm). I realise this guide is getting a bit technical and boring but the gist of it is that you are less likely to bang your head whilst sat on the bed for storytime with the Dreams Willow bunk than with the Happy Beds American bunk bed. According to the website, the weight limit is 75kg per bunk, which is just under 12 stone. It only comes in one colour, although Happy Beds sell a similar bunk bed in 'oatmeal' which is a posh way of saying 'light brown'. On the downside, you can't split the Willow bunk bed into two single beds and you only get a one year warranty. |
The Dreams Willow bunk bed is closer to the floor than most
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3. John Lewis & Partners Morgan Story Time Bunk Bed - £599
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If you can afford the upgrade, I would take a look at the John Lewis & Partners Morgan Story Time Bunk Bed. They also sell a version with mattresses included.
It costs twice as much as some of the cheap bunk beds on this list, but it is made from oak rather than pine which is a notable improvement. Oak is a hardwood which is more durable than a softwood like pine. The slats are pine, but the rest is oak. At the time of writing, reviews for the Morgan bunk bed were outstanding at 4.7/5. It's got a bigger gap between the bunks than most children's bunk beds so that parents/grandparents don't need to crouch quite so unbearably whilst sitting on the bed and reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar for the 314th time. Overall, it's about 15cm taller than the Happy Beds American. As far as I can tell, you can't split the Morgan bunk beds into two separate single beds. If you want that option, take a look at the much cheaper bunk bed option from John Lewis & Partners which is the Wilton bunk bed (£249 when I checked). It's made from pine and isn't as tall as the Morgan bunk bed but you still get the John Lewis & Partners reputation. |
The Morgan bunk bed costs twice as much as some, because it uses better quality wood
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4. Julian Bowen/Happy Beds Domino Bunk Bed - £349
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This Julian Bowen bunk bed has a more modern look than the traditional bunk bed design and has the added advantage of some shelves.
From what I can tell, it is made from the same sort of wood boards that most flat pack furniture is made from rather than pine (the description calls it 'white effect foil'). It won't appeal to someone who likes the look and smell of a natural wood bunk bed but it will fit in well from most stuff from IKEA and similar places. The ladder glows in the dark to make it easier to find after a night-time toilet visit. It's got a gap of 80cm between the bunks, which is about the same as the Happy Beds American but 12cm less than the Dreams Willow Fabric Bunk. We've included it as it gets positive reviews of 4.5/5 on Amazon or 4.6/5 on Happy Beds (it seems to also go under the Happy Beds name but it uses the same image so is presumably identical). Julian Bowen has a very high score on TrustPilot, with an average of 4.7/5 when we checked. It comes with a 5 year guarantee if you buy it from Happy Beds. The maximum weight on this one is 15 stone (95kg) on the bottom bunk and 11 stone (70kg) on the bottom bunk, according to the website. |
This bunk bed comes with shelves and glow in the dark steps. Teddy bear not included.
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5. Argos Home Josie Bunk Bed/Argos Home Detachable bunk bed - £155/£200
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These two Argos bunk beds are worth a mention as they are hugely popular, with hundreds of positive reviews between them. They're also amongst the cheapest children's bunk beds we've found and offer a lot for the price tag.
Both bunk beds are made from pine, which is the cheaper type of wood which is commonly used for bunk beds. The designs and colour options are slightly different but the main difference is that the more expensive of the two can be separated into two single beds with a bit of tweaking, whereas the Josie bunk bed can't be safely separated. Another notable difference is that the more expensive bunk bed has a weight limit of 120kg (just under 19 stone) per bunk according to the website, whilst the cheaper bunk bed has a weight limit of 100kg (about 15 stone). Having said that, I'm not sure I'd want to be on the top level of a bunk bed lying on a 16cm thick mattress if I weighed nearly 19 stone... When I checked, the Argos Home Josie bunk bed was scoring 4.6/5 from customers whilst the Argos Home Detachable bunk bed was scoring 4.5/5. |
The Josie bunk bed comes in white or pine. It's cheap, but it can't be split into two singles...
...whereas this Argos bunk bed comes in grey or white can be split into two single beds.
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6. IKEA Svärta bunk bed - £150
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If you're after a cheap bunk bed, this IKEA Svärta bunk bed is one of the lowest priced options you'll find. It's got a metal frame and was getting reviews of 4.1/5 when we checked.
The weight limit is 100kg (15 stone). One plus side is that it recommends a mattress up to 22cm deep whereas some bunk beds limit you to a maximum of 15cm. As a result, you might be able to use a mattress you've already got rather buying new ones which are designed specifically for bunk beds. Coincidentally, Svärta is what my brother used to call me when we shared bunk beds, although that wasn't quite how he pronounced it. |
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