The best full beds are great for smaller rooms. Nearly all the most popular beds have a full-size option, meaning you’ve got a lot of beds to sort through. When recommending beds to people, I break things down into four chunks of information that help me match them with a bed. It’s a good idea to do the same for yourself.
Read more: 7 Things to Know Before Shopping for a Bed
Feel
What do you want your bed to feel like? It’s the most basic question I ask, though it’s one of the most important. If you’re a pillow top lover like me, you’ll probably want to avoid dense memory foam options like Tempur-Pedic. However, if you love the feeling of your bed slowly conforming to your bed, you’ll love Tempur-Pedic or Nectar. Or maybe you like a neutral mixed foam feel, like Brooklyn Bedding.
Deciding what you want your bed to feel like will help you eliminate a lot of beds right up front.
Sleeping position
Your sleeping position will determine how firm you want your mattress to be. Remember that firmness is a spectrum, so just because your sleeping position matches you with a firm bed doesn’t mean you need to go for the top of the range. Your personal preference is the other part of choosing your firmness. Still, using your sleeping position to get you in the right general direction is a good idea.
- Side sleepers need beds that give them plenty of cushion around their shoulders, hips and knees. If you’ve ever slept on a mattress that’s too firm, you know how quickly pressure points can develop. Side sleepers should stick with softer beds, medium and below.
- Stomach and back sleepers need a firmer mattress to make sure their spine stays in a neutral position. If it’s too soft, you’ll sink unevenly and could wake up with back pain. These folks want to aim for medium or higher. How firm you choose is based on your body and preferences.
- If you flip around in your sleep like a rotisserie chicken, then you’re a combination sleeper. You have the most room to choose from, though I recommend choosing your firmness based on the position you spend the most time in.
Body type
The next thing to consider is your weight. This will influence the firmness you choose and the construction. I recommend that heavier folks always go with a hybrid bed to ensure they get the most out of their bed. All-foam beds may sag over time. A durable coil layer offers support to you and the bed's structure.
Your body type is also going to influence how you experience a bed. Remember how I said our Mattress Smasher 9000 is programmed to the force of a 160-pound person? If you weigh more than that, the bed might feel a little softer because you put more pressure on the bed. If you weigh less, it will feel slightly firmer because you’re not pressing down on the bed as much. While it probably won’t drastically change the feeling, it’s something to remember.
Finally, I have to mention that women need to consider breast comfort when looking for a bed. I recommend stomach sleepers get firm mattresses for spinal support, although extremely firm beds can be painful across the chest for some. That’s not to say women can’t sleep on firm mattresses; it just might influence how firm they choose. In my experience, pillow tops, memory foam or padded covers can provide extra cushion to firm beds.
Price
Price is the final factor to consider when shopping for the best full beds. While the average online bed costs between $800 and $1,2000, there are beds at every budget level. Some cheap beds, like Allswell, are only a couple hundred dollars, while luxury beds cost well over $2,000.
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