5 Best Day Beds in the UK 2024

There are various types of day bed but the best (in my view) are those which use a standard sized single mattress. That means you’ll have a decent choice of good value mattresses. Most day beds are metal or wood, but there are also some fabric daybeds and guest beds. Some just have one mattress whilst others have two mattresses thanks to a trundle which rolls out from underneath.

So what’s the difference between a day bed and a sofa bed? Generally speaking, a day bed doesn’t look much like a sofa but it is as comfortable as a ‘proper’ bed as you use a normal single mattress. Meanwhile, a sofa bed is OK for a night or two but compromises on sleeping comfort in an effort to actually look like a sofa. 

In case you’re wondering, the phrase ‘guest bed’ seems to vary depending on which website you look at. Day beds and sofa beds are usually considered types of guest bed.

We’ve picked out five of the best daybeds which all take a standard single mattress. We’ve chosen a range to show you the different types of day bed on the market. Choices were made by looking at customer reviews, specification, value for money and awards.


1. Eggree Metal Frame Day Bed – £78 (single metal daybed)

Roll up, bargain hunters! The cheapest type of day bed is usually these simple white bed frames and there’s a huge choice of them around.

We’ve picked out this cheap as chips Eggree day bed on Amazon, which was going for £89 when we checked. It comes in black or white, whereas most of these metal day beds are just available in white. As with the other daybeds on this list, it takes a standard sized single mattress.

It deserves inclusion in this daybeds guide thanks to its positive reviews and the fact that it’s about half the price of similar designs from big names. It was scoring 4.4/5 from more than 250 reviews when I checked, which is some going. 

Check out the rungs

One thing to keep in mind is that a cheap metal bed like this has thin metal rungs rather than wide, flat wooden flats. Several guides I’ve read say that thin metal rungs don’t work well with sprung mattresses. Some suggest that you could remedy this by putting a board across the rungs which should spread out the weight better.

If you like this style but want to buy a day bed from a brand name you might have heard of, have a look at the Versailles Day Bed from Julian Bowen (£250, five year guarantee) which gets positive reviews.

Pros: metal can be recycled, positive reviews, cheap

Cons: thin rungs rather than supportive slats, lightweight compared to more expensive metal bed, unknown brand

Our Value Rating: ***** (out of five, see foot of page for more on this)

Eggree metal frame day bed
This (very) cheap metal day bed gets good reviews from customers

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2. Kylie White Metal Day Bed – £349 (double day bed)

Another type of day bed is one of these metal ones which cleverly turns into a double mattress thanks to a second base hidden underneath. The second mattress either lives underneath or you can keep it out the way so that it looks like a normal day bed the rest of the time.

Again, there are plenty of similar day beds to choose from. This Dreams one, called Kylie, gets very good reviews of 4.8/5 from more than 70 reviews.

Several reviewers say that they found it easy to assemble, so it hopefully won’t lead to a falling out. This one only comes in white.

Concerns about the rungs

As with most metal beds, it comes with metal rungs rather than slats to support the mattress.

Some online guides suggest that wide wooden slats provide a better base for a mattress. It seems to be particularly important for mattresses with pocket springs as you’ll end up with some springs without much support underneath.

However, I’ve read guides which suggest a thin piece of wood will help overcome this as it will spread out the pressure on the mattress.

​It comes with a one year guarantee.

Pros: versatile use as single or double bed, respected seller

Cons: short guarantee length, only one colour, metal rungs rather than supportive slats

Our Value Rating: ***

Kylie metal bed by dreams
The Kylie day bed has a trundle underneath…
Metal bed with white frame by dreams
…so you can use it as a bed for two people

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3. Julian Bowen Tyler Day Bed – £344 (wooden daybed with trundle)

If you want a white wooden day bed with a pull out trundle, you’ve got a huge number of options. IKEA do a cleverly designed day bed called Hemnes but it doesn’t accommodate standard sized single mattresses, so we haven’t included it in this top five.

​A similar alternative is the Tyler Day Bed from Julian Bowen. It has a similar look but it uses a standard sized single mattress, which is a dealbreaker for me. It costs a little bit more but it gets positive reviews (4.9/5 when I checked, although there had only been about 30 reviews so far). There’s also a cheaper version without a trundle underneath.

It’s made from solid pine, which is a softwood which is often used in furniture. Hardwood furniture is stronger, but you’ll find the vast majority use either pine or mostly fibreboard. The IKEA Hemnes is mostly painted fibreboard with some pine. 

The Julian Bowen brand scores highly on TrustPilot with an average of 4.5/5 at the time of writing. 

One downside is that the beds can’t be raised to the same level. That means it can’t be used as a double.

Wooden beds like this have either solid slats or sprung slats which the mattress sits on. This one has solid slats which makes the mattress feel a little firmer. 

A similar alternative

A cheaper alternative is this Brooklyn day bed from Argos (£240). Customer reviews were averaging 4.7/5 at the time of writing (from 30+ reviews). The Brooklyn day bed also can’t be used as a double (i.e. you can’t raise the trundle up to the same level). However, each bed can cope with up to 120kg which is nearly 19 stone. It comes with a 2 year guarantee.

Pros: supportive slats, solid pine rather than fibreboard, extra year warranty than rivals, good weight limit, standard size mattress

Cons: extra bed is on a different level, fewer reviews to go on than rivals

Our value rating: ****

The Julian Bowen day bed uses standard sized single mattresses…
Argos Brooklyn day bed
…as does this cheaper alternative from Argos

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4. Holyrood Charcoal Grey Upholstered Day Bed – £299 (fabric day bed with trundle)

I reckon this Holyrood day bed at The Range is one of the more attractive daybeds you can buy in the UK. It looks a little more sofa-like than most day beds but still manages to have enough space for two standard sized mattresses (which you can add on to the order, or use your own). I also like it because the second mattress is neatly hidden rather than it being obvious that you have a spare mattress shoved underneath.

The bottom trundle layer slides out, although it doesn’t rise up to the same level as the top mattress so you can’t use it as a double bed unfortunately.

Bear in mind that the bottom mattress needs to be a lot thinner than the top one. If you buy it with the bundled mattress then it is a 12cm memory foam mattress, which is about half the depth of a standard mattress.

It has what’s called ‘sprung slats’ to support the mattress. That means it will feel slightly bouncier and softer than a daybed with solid/rigid slats.

Pros: sprung slats, attractive style which will fit well into a lounge, soft corners

Cons: second mattress is lower down, less well known brand, thin mattress on bottom

Our value rating: ***

Holyrood day bed
The Holyrood day bed at The Range looks a bit more like a sofa than most…
Holyrood day bed with trundle
…and it has space for a thin mattress hidden underneath

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5. The Cotswold Company Burford Painted Day Bed – £399 (single wooden day bed without trundle)

If you don’t need a second mattress then this simple wooden day bed from The Cotswold Company is a good option. 

As with all the others on this list, it is designed to take a standard sized single mattress. Customer reviews on the Cotswold Company website were averaging 5/5 with several people saying that it is sturdy.

It doesn’t have the storage of some day beds but I think it does a half decent impression of a sofa so wouldn’t look out of place in a lounge.

Good quality slats

This is another wooden day bed with solid slats (as opposed to sprung slats) which means it will add a bit of firmness to the overall feel. The main thing to look for when you’re buying a bed with slats is how far apart they are so that the mattress is supported and doesn’t get damaged. In this case, they appear to be wide slats with only small gaps between them.

The Cotswold Company, has a good reputation with an average score on TrustPilot of 4.6/5 after more than 17,000 reviews. The company’s head office is in, er, Norwich!

Pros: slatted base, positive reviews, nicely raised off the ground

Cons: relatively expensive, only one colour, no second mattress option

Our Value Rating: ***

Cotswold Company Burford Painted Day Bed
Customers reckon this Cotswold Company day bed is a sturdy option

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Our Value Rating: this is our expert view of how good value each product. It is intended as a guide. We look at the price alongside features, specification, construction materials, construction methods, customer reviews and brand reputation to achieve a rating. A five star rating is a product which we think offers exceptionally good value. Four stars is ‘very good value’ whilst three stars is ‘good value’ items. One star and two star items don’t generally get onto our guides, as we think they are only ‘reasonable value’ and ‘poor value’ items.