Standard UK bed widths are 90cm for a single, 120cm for a small double, 135cm for a double, 150cm for a king size and 180cm for a super king size. In feet and inches that reads as 3ft, 4ft, 4ft 6in, 5ft and 6ft. There are two smaller sizes below those: a cot bed at around 70cm and a short single, also 90cm wide but shorter in length at 175cm.
Those five widths cover almost every bed sold in Britain. Anything described using a different name, including queen, olympic, Emperor or Continental, is either an imported size or a manufacturer’s own variation, so the centimetre measurement is always the figure to check before ordering a mattress or bedding.
A single at 90cm suits children, box rooms and bunk arrangements. It gives an adult enough room to sleep but not much room to move, which is why many people upgrade as soon as the space allows.
A small double at 120cm is the quiet problem solver of British bedrooms. It gives a single sleeper generous space and lets two people share for a night or two without demanding the floor area a full double needs. It is also known as a 3/4 bed.
A double at 135cm remains the most common size in UK homes. Two adults have 67.5cm each, which is less than a single bed’s width per person. It fits most main bedrooms with clearance on both sides.
A king size at 150cm is the size most couples move to when the room allows. The extra 15cm of width is noticeable, and king frames are also 200cm long rather than 190cm, which helps taller sleepers.
A super king at 180cm gives each person 90cm, the full width of a single bed. It needs a genuinely large room, but for light sleepers who are disturbed by movement, no other change makes as much difference. Our modern beds UK sale range covers all five widths in fabric, leather, wooden, metal and storage designs.
Widths get the attention, but length is where people are most often caught out. Singles, small doubles and doubles are all 190cm long. King and super king frames are 200cm long. That ten centimetre step is the reason a tall adult can feel cramped in a double yet comfortable in a king even though the width difference sounds like the bigger change.
As a rule of thumb, a bed should be around 10cm to 15cm longer than the tallest person using it. Anyone approaching six foot two should be looking at 200cm frames, and there are a few extra long options above that for taller households.
Measure the room at floor level, not at waist height, because skirting boards, radiators and pipe boxing all reduce the usable width. Write down the length and width, then mark the door swing and any window that needs to open inwards.
Next, subtract the clearances you need. Allow at least 60cm on any side you walk down, and 70cm at the foot of the bed if wardrobe doors or drawers open into that space. What remains is the width available for the bed. If the figure lands between two sizes, take the smaller one: a slightly smaller bed in a room that works beats a larger bed you have to edge around.
Then run the masking tape test. Mark the footprint on the floor, leave it for a day and walk the room as you normally would. It reveals awkward routes that a drawing never shows. Where the numbers are tight, storage inside the bed becomes the answer, and our range of modern ottoman beds UK sale keeps the same footprint while using the space beneath the mattress.
Fitted sheets follow the mattress width exactly, so buy them in the same size name as the bed. Duvets follow their own set of dimensions: a single duvet is 135cm by 200cm, a double is 200cm by 200cm, a king is 225cm by 220cm and a super king is 260cm by 220cm. Small double beds usually take a standard double duvet, since a 120cm size is rarely produced.
Two practical points are worth knowing. First, a deeper mattress needs a fitted sheet with a deeper skirt, so check the depth as well as the width if your mattress is over about 25cm. Second, couples who disagree about duvet weight can use two single duvets on a double or king bed, which works better than compromising on one.
When the room could take either size, think about how you sleep rather than how the numbers look. Restless sleepers, couples with different schedules and anyone who shares the bed with a dog benefit most from extra width. If you sleep still and value floor space, the smaller size is rarely a regret.
Consider the pieces the bed sits alongside too. A 150cm bed with two bedside cabinets needs about 250cm of wall. Drop to 135cm and the same wall gains breathing room, or you keep both cabinets in a narrower alcove. Slim designs help here, and our modern bedside cabinets UK range includes narrow widths intended for tighter walls.
Also think about the mattress. Wider mattresses are heavier to turn, which matters if you live alone or find lifting difficult. Zip and link options split a super king into two halves and solve both the turning and the access problem at once. Our mattresses UK sale range lists depth and size clearly for each model.
Width causes more delivery problems than any other measurement. Before ordering, measure the narrowest doorway on the route, the turn at the top of the stairs and the height of any low door frame. Compare those numbers against the packed carton dimensions rather than the assembled bed size.
Flat packed frames handle awkward routes easily. Divan bases in two halves are usually fine as well. The pieces to watch are single panel headboards and one piece ottoman bases, which cannot be reduced. If access is genuinely tight, a metal frame is often the simplest answer because it breaks down into slim sections. Our modern metal beds UK sale range packs down small for exactly this reason, and delivery is free to most UK mainland postcodes.
Alongside the five standard sizes you will sometimes see other names. Queen at 152cm is a North American and Australian size, very close to a UK king but not identical. Emperor beds are usually around 200cm wide, and Caesar or Super Emperor sizes go wider still. Continental European doubles are often 140cm rather than 135cm, and European kings can be 160cm or 180cm depending on the country.
The practical issue with all of these is bedding. A mattress a few centimetres wider than the British standard will still take a UK duvet, since duvets drape, but fitted sheets are cut precisely and will either strain at the corners or sit loose. If you buy an imported size, buy the sheets from the same source at the same time. For most British homes it is simpler to stay with a standard width and avoid the problem altogether.
Bed width does not just determine whether the bed fits; it sets the budget for everything else in the room. Once the bed is in place, count the remaining wall runs. A wardrobe needs around 60cm of depth plus door swing, a chest of drawers around 45cm, and a blanket box at the foot needs 40cm to 50cm of clearance in front of it before the route through the room becomes tight.
Where the numbers do not add up, look upwards rather than outwards. Tall narrow wardrobes use height instead of floor area, wall mounted lights remove the need for a wide cabinet top, and a mirror opposite the window makes a narrow room read wider than it is. Getting the bed width right first, then fitting the storage around it, produces a better room than choosing the largest bed and hoping the rest will follow.
135cm, or 4ft 6in. The mattress length is 190cm, the same as a single and a small double.
150cm wide and 200cm long. A super king is 180cm wide and also 200cm long.
A super king at 180cm gives each person 90cm, which matches the full width of a single bed.
At least 60cm on each side you use and around 70cm at the foot if drawers or wardrobe doors open into that space.
The standard sizes are consistent, but names like queen and Emperor are not, so always check the centimetre measurement before buying a mattress or bedding.
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