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If you’re buying a folding bed in the UK then it may well be made by a company called Jay Be. They’ve established a good reputation over many decades and have something called a Manufacturing Guild Mark. This is reserved for only a small number of British companies.
They have a big range with folding beds from as little as £50. If you can stretch the budget then you’ll get something which is a bit more substantial and doesn’t have such a thin mattress.
Decent folding beds are also offered by less well known brands. Some include a cover for hiding them away.
For our top 5 folding beds we looked at things like mattress depth, customer reviews, weight limit, brand reputation and value for money. We’ve also got guides to sofa beds and chair beds if you’re looking at the different options for occasional visitors.
Prices are for single folding beds. Review scores are correct at the time of typing.
1. Jay-Be Value Folding Bed – £59
Alright, so this isn’t the world’s most luxurious folding bed. However, it’s worth including as it’s hugely popular and gets positive reviews (4.5/5 from 4000+ reviews on Amazon).
You might also be looking to spend as little as possible if you only plan to use a folding bed for a couple of nights at Christmas each year. Or you might be looking for a simple camp bed rather than some great big folding bed which you’ll have to find space to store away.
It’s made by Yorkshire-based Jay-Be which is the biggest name in the folding bed market in the UK.
So, what do you get for £59?
Mattress depth
It’s got a 5cm deep mattress which is pretty thin by anyone’s standards. Most folding beds and sofa bed mattresses are about 10cm deep. ‘Proper’ mattresses are about 20-30cm deep. It’s about the same length as a normal sized single mattress but it’s 20cm narrower.
You get a lifetime guarantee with the frame, which is rather impressive. The official blurb says the single version is suitable for someone who weigh up to 18 stone, although they might struggle a bit with the narrow width.
You can also buy this folding bed in a small double size. At the time of writing, a small double was more than twice the price of a single. A couple might be better to get two singles and push them together.
Keyword analysis of the Amazon reviews provide some useful insight into what most customers think of the mattress. After 4000+ reviews, 126 people commented that the mattress was thin. Only 37 people called it ‘surprisingly comfortable’.
However, 268 people referred to it being ‘good value’, ‘value for money’ or ‘worth the money’. A further 140 people commented that it was ‘easy to store’.
Pros: it’s budget friendly, compact and easy to hide away. You also get a surprisingly high weight limit and a lifetime frame guarantee. Better yet, it’s an established brand and it’s had thousands of positive reviews.
Cons: it has a very thin mattress and it’s quite narrow
Our Value Rating: ***** (out of five, see details at bottom of page)
2. Jay-Be Jubilee Folding Guest Bed – (fibre, memory foam or pocket springs) – £150-£180
If you can afford the upgrade from the Jay Be Value folding bed, I’d take a look at the Jay Be Jubilee folding bed. It’s around the middle of their range in terms of price and specification.
If you go for a Jay-Be Jubilee folding bed, you can choose from three types of mattress:
- The Jubilee micro e-pocket folding mattress (single or small double) uses pocket springs, which is what most of us sleep on. It’s worth noting that the pocket springs are described as ‘micro’ because a folding bed is about half the depth of a normal mattress. They certainly aren’t on the same scale as usual pocket springs.
- The Jubilee memory e-fibre folding mattress (single or small double) uses memory foam, which is a popular alternative to pocket springs. Memory foam has a bit of a sinking and hugging feel which some people love. Memory foam can make you feel a bit warm but it is known for offering a consistent level of support.
- Meanwhile, the Jubilee e-fibre folding mattress (single or small double) doesn’t use foam or springs. Instead, it uses ‘sustainably sourced, recyclable materials’.
All of these fold up mattresses are the same depth (10cm). That’s about half the depth of a ‘normal’ mattress but twice the depth of the Value model (see #1). They all have sprung slats to support the mattress, which is what you get on most bedframes.
Choice of sizes
All three mattresses come in two sizes. The ‘single’ size is actually a few centimetres narrower than a standard mattress. However, it’s close enough that you could probably get away with using your fitted sheets.
The ‘small double’ is about 30cm wider than a standard single mattress and would be fine for a couple of guests for a few nights.
Each version of the Jay-Be Jubilee fold away bed has the same maximum weight, which is 120kg in single or 160kg for a small double. That means the larger model could cope with a couple who weigh about 12 stone each.
Reviews are very positive across various sites although the pocket version is just about in the lead on Amazon. The e-pocket scores 4.3/5 on Amazon after 600+ reviews whilst the e-fibre scores 4.1/5 from 1000+ reviews. The memory e-fibre scores 4.1/5 from 170+ reviews.
Whichever you choose, you’re buying from a brand with a Manufacturing Guild Mark. That’s a notable a sign of quality.
Pros: award winning brand and a mattress which is twice the depth of the value model. You also get a choice of mattress construction methods, a choice of sizes and terrific value for money.
Cons: not as compact as the value model and still has a relatively thin mattress. The single size is narrow.
Our Value Rating: *****
..and it folds up very neatly for storing away at the back of a cupboard
3. Milliard Diplomat Folding Bed – £195
The Milliard Diplomat is another foldable bed which gets impressive reviews from customers on Amazon. At the time of writing, it was achieving 4.7/5 from 300+ ratings.
It’s made from memory foam, which is a common alternative to the spring beds that most people sleep on. Memory foam can feel a little bit unusual at first and it can make you feel a bit warm. However, there’s a strong argument that it offers more consistent support than you get from some sprung mattresses. See our memory foam v pocket spring guide for more on this fascinating debate.
The mattress is a little deeper than most folding bed mattresses at about 12.5cm. Despite that, it’s only 36cm wide once folded up.
It is long enough that most adults won’t find their feet hanging off the end. However, it is 11cm narrower than a standard single.
Our keyword analysis of Amazon reviews found that 35 reviews mention positive key phrases related to value (‘value for money’ ‘great value’ ‘worth the money’). That’s about 10% of all the reviews, which is a high figure compared to other products. 75 reviews praised the product for its construction and day to day usage by using the phrases ‘easy to fold’ or ‘easy to assemble’.
Pros: slightly deeper mattress and the memory foam construction will be popular with some. It’s the same length as a single mattress
Cons: a less famous brand than Jay-Be and it’s narrower than a standard single mattress. There’s only one choice of sizes.
Our Value Rating: ***
4. Jay-be Crown Premier Folding Bed – £255
This Crown model is another Jay-Be folding bed but it’s quite different to the Jay-Be Jubilee mentioned earlier.
It’s popular with guest houses and hotels, although you won’t be obliged to open your spare room up to the public if you decide to buy one.
The main plus point is that it is significantly deeper than most folding beds at 18cm. Most single mattresses are about 20-25cm deep, so this isn’t far away. It can cope with up to 30 stone, whereas the Jubilee is limited to about 18 stone. Your guests might not weigh 30 stone, but it does suggest that it’s solidly built.
Construction method
It is made with open coil springs which are less supportive than pocket spring mattresses and are a cheaper alternative. The only real advantage of an open coil mattress is that you are saving the planet.
The reason is that recycling an open coil mattress is much easier than it is with a pocket sprung mattress. An open coil mattress (also called a ‘bonnell spring’ mattress) is made from one large piece of interconnected metal. A pocket spring has hundreds or thousands of tiny metal springs which are tucked into sealed cases. Companies who recycle mattresses have to remove each spring with a special machine or sometimes by hand, which makes it less cost effective.
This problem was highlight in a National Bed Federation study called the ‘End of Life Mattress Report’. It explained that only 19% of mattress materials are recycled in the UK as of 2019.
Back to this mattress and you’ll have noticed it is quite bulky. That makes it harder to hide out the way when your guests have gone home. According to my sums it is about 20cm wider than the folded-up Jubilee bed.
Size choices
It’s only available in a ‘single’ size, which is actually about 15cm narrower than a normal single mattress.
The other difference is that this one is supported with a different type of base. The JayBe Jubilee uses sprung slats, which is what most bed frames are made from. This one uses a mesh held on with springs.
Reviews on Amazon are slightly better than the Jay-Be Jubilee, with an average of 4.6/5 from 150+ reviewers.
Pros: significantly deeper mattress than other folding beds and the open coil springs are easier to recycle than most other materials. It’s got a high weight limit and sprung slats for support.
Cons: the open coil springs are less stable than foam. It’s relatively narrow and only comes in one size. You’ll find it’s bulkier than other folding beds.
Our Value Rating: ****
5. EvergreenWeb Folding Bed - £229
EvergreenWeb isn’t a name I’m familiar with. However, it’s got a couple of hundred positive reviews (mostly in Italian admittedly). Overall it scores 4.6/5 on Amazon.
It’s made from foam and is about 12cm deep, which is quite standard for a folding bed. Full size mattresses are usually about twice that (or more). However, there’s a limit to how thick you can make a folding mattress without it becoming very bulky for storage.
The bed is made in Italy and is the same length as a standard UK single mattress. However, it is 10cm narrower at 80cm wide. Once folded up, it is 35cm wide.
It’s got sprung wooden slats. Most bedframes either use solid slats, which feel firm or sprung slats which feel a bit bouncier and softer.
Pros: it’s a slightly deeper mattress than some rivals and it gets positive reviews
Cons: most reviews aren’t English and it’s an unknown brand in the UK. The sleeping surface is narrow and it’s relatively expensive
Our Value Rating: ***
This Italian folding bed has had dozens of good reviews
What does ‘Our Value Rating’ mean?
We rate each product we feature on a five star system for value. We look at the price of the product alongside rival products and we look at the specification, as well as factors such as warranty length and returns policies. Five star products are those that we think offer ‘exceptionally good value’. Four star products are ‘very good value’. Three star products are ‘good value’. Two star (‘reasonable value’) and one star (‘poor value’) products are unlikely to feature.
It’s worth saying that a three star product may well be a better product than a five star product but it might get a lower rating if it costs ten times the price.