Best Rollaway Beds and Folding Bed Reviews

Not all beds need to be stationary. Living situations change all the time and it doesn’t always make sense to have a full room dedicated to a single bed, especially on the off chance a guest might stay over for the night. Thankfully, there are plenty of other sleep solutions out there to keep pace with our wacky modern world. There’s no need to depend on a traditional (and space consuming) bed for occasional guests, certainly not with all of the wonderful rollaway beds on the market.

That’s right, rollaway beds. You’ve seen them in hospitals and hotels. You may have even slept on them and chances are, you weren’t particularly fond of the experience. The fact is that rollaway beds have improved dramatically over the years. They’re no longer the last-resort sleeping choice that is favored only under desperate circumstances. They can be comfortable and satisfying beds even though they fold up. The challenge is finding the right rollaway bed that still feels wonderful once you unfold it.

Thankfully, you’ve come to the right place. At The Sleep Judge, we’ve done the research and sampled all of the finest rollaway beds on the market. Now the time has come for us to pass our knowledge on to you, dear reader. Below you’ll find our list of the five finest rollaway beds available. Below that, you’ll find a buyer’s guide filled with helpful tips that will ensure that you get the rollaway bed you deserve. All you need to do is keep your eyes glued to this page and scroll away. Everything you could possibly want to know about rollaway beds is about to be revealed!

Best Rated Rollaway Bed Reviews

Rollaway Bed Buyer’s Guide

When we think of a bed, we normally imagine a hefty, static, four legged wooden platform upon which a mattress and some pillows have been placed. But this traditional visualization of a bed is expensive, unfeasible and sometimes downright impossible to realize in modern homes (especially in urban settings). Few people can depend on having the space for a traditional full-size bed in their homes, especially if the bed in question is supposed to be an extra sleeping option for guests.

Fortunately, innovation in technology over the last century has led to the development of a portable, compact and affordable alternative to conventional stationary furniture: the rollaway bed. These cheap articles of furniture can be assembled/collapsed and transported on the fly, so you’re able make the best use of the limited space available to you in your home.

As is the case with most cheap products, the market is flooded with them. There are so many different varieties that making the right pick can be a challenge if you don’t know what to look for. If you’re in such a pickle, you can count on this guide that I’ve written about choosing the best rollaway beds. This is what to look for in a rollaway bed and it’s important to have some level of expertise on these projects before heading out into the wild to find one. Uncomfortable rollaway beds that will break down after a few nights’ sleep are a dime a dozen. You have to dig to find the best ones and after finishing this guide, you’ll know exactly what to look for to ensure that you bring home the finest rollaway bed on the market.

What Is A Rollaway Bed?

Folding rollaway beds (also called foldaway beds in some cases) consist of a sturdy metal (or sometimes wooden) frame that can be folded in half for easy storage. A folding mattress accompanies the frame (or can be purchased to match the specifications of the bed later on).

Caster wheels are incorporated into the frame so that when it is folded, the wheels facilitate in moving the bed from storage to bedroom e.g. when a guest calls up to your home. You’ve seen them before: these beds are quite common in the hospitality industry.

Advantages Of A Rollaway Bed

Affordability:
A stationary bed doesn’t come cheap and while alternatives such as sofa beds do exist, for some of us going through tough times, even those may not be affordable.

Given their relatively simple metal construction, foldaway beds can be purchased for a fraction of the cost of a conventional bed. They may not be the idea sleep solution, but they’re certainly better than sleeping on the floor and will get you out of a jam.

Portability And Compaction:

Foldaway beds can weigh as little as under 30 lbs., and since they come with casters, moving them around the house at will doesn’t require much effort. This can be convenient if you’re short on living space and can’t have a permanent bed for accommodating visitors.

In fact, if you own a big car, you could take your folding guest bed out on trips where you intend to stay away from home overnight. That sure beats sleeping on the floor, hands down! It is also useful for those who use their bedroom space for a different purpose during the day, and need a rapidly deployable bed during the night.

Another situation would be when you often move houses and can’t afford to have heavy furniture moved constantly.

Drawbacks Of A Rollaway Bed

Unaesthetic:
Unless you’ve opted for a pricier cabinet style foldaway, your typical folding bed won’t offer much in terms of aesthetic appeal or personality to add to your interior décor.

Durability:
It is elementary physics that motion leads to friction, which in turn leads to wear and tear. There is plenty of that happening when you open and close (and move) a foldaway, so no matter how strongly built the frame is, it won’t last as long as a static bed (unless you use it as such).

The standard rollaway consists of a tubular/angle steel frame with a mattress platform comprised of polypropylene, wire spring mesh or slats. Both foam and innerspring mattresses work with this type of rollaway.

Cabinet

Designed to resemble a cupboard or trunk (complete with faux doors and drawers!) when in its collapsed form, the cabinet rollaway hides the mattress and the bed frame inside itself until needed. The platform is folded out of one of the panels of the cabinet, and may require you to rotate it a bit (fairly easy since it also comes with standard casters).

The mattress may be an innerspring or even a futon style bed. Headboards and footboards may also be present in the pricier models.

Ottoman

This type of folding bed has a metal frame much like the standard variety, but instead of folding in half, it folds in thirds to transform into an ottoman. Naturally, you’ll need to throw on a cover to call it a proper ottoman.

Some ottoman style rollaway beds come as boxes out of which you pull out the sleeping platform; these bear more similarity to bed cots than twin sized beds.

Important Considerations

— Durability

The weakest part of rollaway beds is the pivot upon which they fold – the strongest materials for these joints are steel and wood, with the latter offering better durability but at a steeper price. For the rest of the frame, steel (or aluminum) offers better portability whereas wood offers superior robustness.

Keep in mind that metal frames, especially cheap ones, may develop creaking noises that become especially apparent when the bed is used for more “athletic” activities than sleep. Ultimately, it boils down to how much you’re willing to spend – regardless of the frame material, the cheaper the product, the shorter it will last.

— Size

Folding beds are available in twin, full and queen sizes, with twin being the most prevalent and queen being the least. Queen size beds will accommodate two people but will be more expensive and less portable, whereas twin beds will more accurately show you the defining traits of rollaways, i.e. convenient storage and movement, light weight and affordability.

— Mattress

Rollaway beds are available both with mattress and without. Choosing between these two options is a matter of considering your budget and how much time you want to spend in the market: a rollaway that comes without a mattress is going to cost you less, but it will also compel you to search for a compatible mattress separately afterwards.

On the other hand, getting a bed that comes with its own mattress might cost you extra, but it will also spare you the trouble of additional market hunting. It all depends on what you can afford and what you value the most

Foldaway beds can be used with innerspring, polyurethane foam, and memory foam mattresses. Innersprings offer firm, bouncy support; polyfoam offers a balance between conformity and springiness; and memory foam offers plush, conforming support. If you’re looking for the perfect mattress to fit seamlessly into your sofa bed, check out our article on the best sofa bed mattresses.

Regardless of the type you go with, make sure the mattress is fully compatible with the folding mechanism of your bed, or it won’t be long before it is broken along its middle!

Conclusion

It should now be evident to you that there is considerable variety in what rollaway beds have to offer. Some are targeted towards occasional usage while others have been made to withstand years of continuous use. Some are designed with portability in mind, while others envision more fixed applications. Some cater to those who are extremely budget-focused, while others offer a modicum of luxury. There is clearly a rollaway bed out there for any sleeper or circumstance!

In other words, choosing the best product is all about knowing what your intended application and budget is. With that said, my pick for the best folding bed is the Milliard Diplomat Folding Bed. It sports a comfortable 4” memory foam mattress and hardy angled steel frame that folds and unfolds with remarkable ease, thereby fulfilling the core criteria of a foldaway.

While it is a little heavier than others due to its sturdy, metal frame, it’s easy to move around thanks to the large wheels that accompany it. In other words, it can be used occasionally for entertaining guests as well as continuously for your personal needs. The soft, contouring support it offers is undoubtedly the icing on the cake, perfect for the side sleepers out there. This support is rare in foldaway bedding and is the creme-de-la-creme of rollaway beds; you simply won’t find a better bed on four wheels out there.

(Please note that this bed isn’t designed to be extensively carried around in your car for camping trips and the like. If your rollaway bed needs are of such a nature, you may want to consider the lighter products that I’ve covered. They’ll be a far better fit for your needs.)

Recent Updates

January 24, 2022: JAY-BE Hospitality Bed has been removed due to unavailability, replaced with the popular Leisuit Rollaway Guest Bed Cot.

January 7, 2022: Replaced Smile Back Rollaway Beds with Mattress for Adults with Foxemart Folding Bed with Mattress due to product unavailability. 

May 20, 2021: Replaced Milliard Premium Folding Bed with Milliard Diplomat Folding Bed/Rollaway Guest Bed due to popularity. Replaced Zinus Sleep Master Resort Folding Bed with Karcog Folding Bed, Rollaway Bed with Mattress due to product unavailability. Replaced Zinus Sleep Master Weekender Elite with the Smile Back Rollaway Bed with Mattress for Adults due to product unavailability. Updated warranty of LUCID Rollaway Guest Bed from 25 years to 10 years as per manufacturer website.