All You Need to Know for Buying a Sleeper Sofa-Best Sleeper Sofa Buying Guide(2024) - August 2024

A sleeper sofa, also called a sofa bed, allows you to make any room a guest room or even your own bedroom if the space is limited, for example, in a studio apartment. Thus, this piece of furniture is more than useful than you could imagine and becomes one of the must-haves for a house.

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For buying a sleeper sofa, here are all the tips needed.

Before Purchasing a Sleeper Sofa

Maybe you have decided to get a sleeper sofa for your house as it is multifunctional and convenient especially when you have guests coming around or staying at your place. With a sleeper sofa, you don't need another bed to host guests. What's more, you can comfortably relax, watch TV or play games sitting on it.

An air mattress would seem less attractive compared to a sleeper sofa. To your surprise, more guests might come to your place to stay overnight if you have this piece of furniture at home! But before buying one, you need to go through the following things first.

Factors to be Considered when Buying a Sleeper Sofa

Space

You will find a versatile sleeper sofa surprisingly handy at your place, but when making the purchase, you need to find the right size sofa that fits into your home. For instance, after the sofa is opened up, there has to be enough room to allow people to walk around it without stubbing their toes against it.

Smaller Places: When the space is kind of limited, you might prefer a twin-size sofa bed that has a width of fewer than 5 feet, just perfect for one person to sleep in. For a twin-size sleeper, a matching mattress could be as wide as 39 inches. The width and length of his type of sleeper sofa are around 54 inches and 85 inches respectively when it's fully extended. These sofa beds are also called chair and a half beds or chair beds. Just because they are a bit smaller doesn't necessarily mean that they are cheaper. Their advantage is absolutely their suitability instead of their price.

Larger Places: If your place is rather large, then there will be enough space for a queen-size sleeper sofa which is available in various styles and fabrics. It is also easy to find your favorite mattress in different sizes.

For a queen-sized sleeper, three people can sit on it while two people will be able to comfortably sleep in it when it's opened up. The width of the whole sleeper sofa is around 84 inches from arm to arm and its length is approximately 90 inches long from the back to the end of the mattress when it's fully opened.

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Mattress Size for a Sleeper Sofa

There are different formats, like ottoman pull-outs and sectionals, and sizes for sleeper sofas. If you plan to use it every night, a full-size sofa bed will be the perfect choice even if your space is rather limited as it will be larger and can even provide a bed for two occasionally while a twin-sized sofa bed doesn't have enough space for everyday use.

Similar to an apartment sofa, a full-sized sleeper sofa is a bit smaller than an actual sofa but larger than a love seat, so you will find it a good option for smaller spaces or apartments.

However, remember that sofa beds usually have different depths depending on the back cushions' design and that the length of mattresses varies from 72" to 80" from head to toe.

Sofa Bed Mattress Type

Although a sleeper sofa is versatile, you need to think through whether its primary use would be as a sleeping surface or simply a sofa.

If your sleeper sofa will be used mainly as a bed, it is recommended to check the mattress type that comes with it. Nowadays, sofa bed mattresses are available in a larger variety of types than before, so you would easily find your preferred mattress type. A sofa mattress' standard height (or thickness) is 4.5 inches. Find out all the sleeper sofa mattress types available below:

• Latex: has a firm and hard feel and its materials are eco-friendly
• Traditional memory foam: great for pressure point relief but with a warmer sleep than gel
• Polyurethane foam: affordable with high-density foam, ideal for getting rid of the mechanism feel
• Gel memory foam: a cushiony, firm feel and ideal for every night use as it sleeps cooler than traditional memory foam
• Innerspring: made with traditional, standard coil and padding, great for sleeper sofas that are not frequently used
• Air over coil: also known as an air mattress or hybrid mattress, on top of coils, it has an inflatable air bladder to provide you a cozy, customized sleep, but it also requires extra maintenance with an air pump

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Other Factors

Purchasing a sofa bed is a big deal so you also need to take the following factors into consideration:

• Easy installation: The built-in mechanism of a high-quality sleeper sofa is generally better for users to open and close it easily. Before buying one in a store, you might want to try it out a few times just in case.
• Comfort: As a versatile piece of furniture, it should be comfortable in either way of use, so try it in both positions before buying.
• Mechanism: Remember to look out for anything that sticks out or makes you uncomfortable, although mechanisms today are much more comfortable with better springs, anti-tilt design, decking material, minimal bars, and out-of-the-way tubular legs.
• Sectional sofa beds: If you decide to purchase a sectional sleeper sofa, it's always important to check whether the mattress is a regular portion of the sofa or located in the chaise because the mattress size and storage depend on this.
• Armless, futon, trundle or folding sofa: An armless sofa, also called a click-clack sofa bed, is somewhat smaller; consider a futon if your budget is limited as it costs you less; a trundle sleeper is like a trundle bed; a folding foam mattress which is closer to the floor but doesn't have a mechanism.

Sleeper Sofa Types

Pull-out Couches

The pull-out couch, typically with an actual mattress, is the most popular type. It is easy to extend it to turn it into a bed, as you just need to take away the cushions and pull on a bar or handle to lift it out and fold down the sleeping bed. For some pull-out couches, you only have to push a button designed to open it up, and more expensive ones are designed with a power mechanism to do the job. There are small and large models for this type of sleeper sofas, which usually occupy more room after being fully extended.

Sectional Sleeper Sofas

If your home has a larger space, a sectional sleeper sofa will be a perfect choice. The types available are the foldout style or the pulling-out trundle bed type. Sectional sleeper sofas typically come with mattresses up to king-size. What's more, you can place its sleeper part in the chaise to make a smaller bed which is mostly twin-size.

Futon

Available in different sizes from twin to a queen, this type of sleeper sofa folds out flat and turns into a bed. Futons are generally made of metal, wood, or both. Mattresses for futons come in various thicknesses. For every night's use, a thicker mattress of at least 8 inches will be preferred.

Sofa Beds

Sofa beds simply fold down and transform into a place to sleep. The cushions you sit and lay your back on are the sleeping mattress, just like the futons. Besides, you don't have to remove a sofa bed's cushions and place them somewhere else, which is more convenient than the pull-out couches.

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Price

The price of a sleeper sofa depends on the ways it's manufactured, its brand, style, size, and materials and ranges from $600 up to $5,000. A small sleeper sofa costs approximately $600 to $1,000 and a queen-sized one or sectional sleeper costs the most. The price will be even higher if various features are added.

Holiday sales are always a smart way to save money as long as you are not in urgent need of a sleeper sofa. You can wait for holidays like Presidents Day, Memorial Day, and Labor Day, as well as special sales days such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday. But get your favorite sleeper sofa earlier because, naturally, other people might have the same idea in mind.

How to Pick Your Sleeper Sofa

When it comes to choosing a sleeper sofa out of all the choices available, it is important for you to pick out the one that fits your needs and taste the best and that's covered by your budget. Therefore, you need to think about these questions before buying a sleeper sofa:

The Way Your Sleeper Sofa Will Be Used

First of all, you should ask yourself, how will your sleeper sofa be used at your place primarily? Maybe you will want to mainly sit on it in the living room every day, then it has to be comfortable enough for a long time of sitting and fit in the style of the room. Or you might use it as a bed to host guests staying overnight or for a separate bed when a family member is sick. In that case, you should make sure that everyone can sleep comfortably on the mattress. If it is too hard, too soft, or has other problems, one might have trouble sleeping on it.

The Room's Size Where the Sleeper Sofa Will Be In

As mentioned above, you should consider the size of the room when making the choice. For starters, there needs to be enough space for the sleeper sofa to be opened up and still enough room for people to walk around. Generally, more family members mean more space needing to be left after the sleeper sofa is fully extended.

The Style of the Room

In order to have a harmonious style, a sleeper sofa should be able to fit in the room with a matching color or pattern. If you have trouble deciding on the color, a solid color sleeper sofa will be your pick as it fits in almost all kinds of styles. You can also add a few bright patterned pillows as a decoration.

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Where to Buy

Since a sleeper sofa costs quite a fortune, you should think twice before making the purchase. Most people would like to see it with their own eyes and feel it in a store.

Shopping In-Store

In-store shopping has the advantage of providing professional help from staff. When you are in a store trying to find the sleeper sofa you like, feel free to ask the salespeople for their advice and get into the details, such as the way a sleeper sofa is manufactured, the easy setup, and the comfortability of the cushion. Also, the UFAC (Upholstered Furniture Action Council) tag means that the sleeper sofa has been made in accordance with UFAC requirements.

Shopping Online

If you don't have a lot of time, purchasing a sleeper sofa online will save you the time of leaving your place and researching. Besides, the online products often provide more details like product information and reviews from other customers. After all, if you have already found your favorite sleeper sofa after looking around in-store, you can always check its price online to decide where to buy it.

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Where to Purchase a Sleeper Sofa

In most furniture stores, you can easily find a sleeper sofa for your place. Keep in mind to check out the delivery methods, retailer's reputation, and just in case, return policy. Think about everything thoroughly in order to choose a sleeper sofa with your preferred style, enough comfort, and affordability.

FAQ

• How to clean a sleeper sofa mattress?

The manufacturer label always tells you the necessary instructions for cleaning. Follow the tips to spot clean the mattress and fold it up after it is totally dried.

• How come my sleeper sofa doesn't fold back up?

A sleeper sofa might not fold back up for several reasons. Maybe there is something that has blocked the mechanisms, or if the mechanisms don't work properly because they are broken or loose. In this case, you might need to get a replacement part. Anyways, don't hesitate to ask for a professional to look into the issue, especially if the warranty hasn't expired yet.

• Can I use bed sheets for a sleeper sofa mattress?

In most cases, bedsheets are likely to bunch up or unable to stay in one place because a sleeper sofa mattress is usually less deep than a bed mattress. Therefore, when you buy a sleeper sofa, remember to get an additional set of matching sheets so that you or your guests can sleep comfortably.