If you need a bed that a guest can sleep on properly for several nights, choose a double sofa bed with a sprung or foam mattress and a fold out metal frame. If you want something lower, lighter and more relaxed that gets converted often, or that suits a studio or a teenager’s room, a futon sofa bed is usually the better fit. The decision comes down to three things: how often the bed will be slept on, how much floor space you have when it is open, and what kind of sitting experience you want during the day.<\/p>\n
Both styles sit within our range of modern sofa beds UK<\/a> shoppers choose for spare rooms, flats and family homes, and both need to work alongside the rest of your seating, so it helps to see them in the context of our wider modern sofas UK sale<\/a> collection. Below, we look at how each one is built, how they feel to sit and sleep on, and which rooms and routines they suit.<\/p>\n A double sofa bed looks and behaves like a conventional upholstered sofa. It has a fixed frame, arms, a back and seat cushions. Hidden beneath the seat is a folding frame, usually steel, which carries a separate mattress. When you remove the seat cushions and pull the frame forward, it unfolds in two or three sections to create a bed.<\/p>\n Some designs use a click clack action instead, where the backrest drops flat to meet the seat and the upholstery itself becomes the sleeping surface. These are slimmer and simpler, though the sleeping area is formed by the seat and back cushions rather than a dedicated mattress.<\/p>\n The main appeal is that, closed, a double sofa bed is hard to tell apart from any other sofa. It can take its place in a living room with full arms, deep cushions and a proper upholstered finish, which matters if it will be the main seat in the room.<\/p>\n A futon sofa bed is built the other way round. The mattress is the sofa. A thick, flexible mattress rests on a frame, often wood or metal, that folds between an upright sofa position, a reclined lounging position and a flat bed. There is no separate mattress to store and nothing to unpack. You simply lower the frame.<\/p>\n Because the same mattress is used for sitting and sleeping, the sitting position tends to be firmer and lower than a traditional sofa. Futons often have no arms, or slim arms, which keeps them visually light and easy to move. They suit a relaxed, informal look and tend to work well in rooms where the furniture needs to be flexible.<\/p>\n For regular overnight guests, a double sofa bed with a dedicated mattress usually gives the more bedlike experience. The mattress has only one job, so it can be designed for sleep. Pocket sprung and memory foam options are common, and the frame keeps the surface level. If guests stay for a week at Christmas or for long weekends through the year, this is the route most people find more comfortable.<\/p>\n A futon mattress has to bend when the frame folds, which limits how much structure it can have. Good futon mattresses use layers of foam and wadding that give a firm, even surface. Some people prefer this firmness. Others find it too solid for more than a night or two. If you are unsure, consider who will sleep on it. Younger guests and those who like a firm surface often get on well with a futon. Older relatives or anyone with back concerns may be better served by a sprung or foam double.<\/p>\n It is worth looking at the modern mattresses UK<\/a> buyers compare for their main beds too, because the type of filling has as much influence on comfort as the sofa bed style itself. The same principles of support, depth and breathability apply on a smaller scale.<\/p>\n This is where the picture often reverses. A double sofa bed is designed first as a sofa. The seat cushions are proper sofa cushions, the back is supportive, and the arms give you somewhere to lean. If the piece will be the main sofa in a living room, used every evening, a double sofa bed is generally more comfortable to sit on.<\/p>\n A futon gives a lower, firmer seat with less sink. Some people find this easier to get up from, while others miss the softness of deep cushions. Futons can also be reclined part way, which makes them pleasant for reading or watching television with your feet up, though they rarely feel like a traditional lounge sofa.<\/p>\n Measure the room twice: once for the closed footprint and once for the open bed. A double sofa bed usually needs a clear run in front of it so the frame can extend. A futon tends to open flat in place, extending forward by the depth of the reclined back, so the open footprint can be more predictable.<\/p>\nHow a Double Sofa Bed Works<\/h3>\n
How a Futon Sofa Bed Works<\/h3>\n
Comfort for Sleeping<\/h3>\n
Comfort for Sitting<\/h3>\n
Space When Open and Closed<\/h3>\n