How to Buy the Best Adjustable Bed
Elevate your sleeping experience.
With their impressive versatility of position, adjustable beds can be the perfect answer to almost anyone's specific sleeping needs. That said, adjustable beds aren't one size fits all – beyond basic adjustability, there are still many factors that must be considered when choosing the very best adjustable bed for you. In this guide, we'll walk you through what to look for when shopping for the best adjustable bed frame as well as the best mattress for an adjustable bed.
Adjustability Features of the Best Adjustable Beds
Adjustability is the name of the game when shopping for an adjustable bed. In order for you to be absolutely sure you are choosing the best adjustable bed for you, make sure it has the adjustable parts that are right for your body.
Head: Elevating your head while you sleep is excellent for keeping your airways clear and cutting down on snoring. If keeping your head elevated while you sleep, read, or watch TV is a must, shop for adjustable beds with head adjustability. Most adjustable beds have this feature as a default, but it won't hurt to filter your search by this feature to ensure all of your available options have it.
Foot: On the flip side, if you're interested in the benefits of elevating your feet while you sleep – improved blood flow, reduced inflammation and edema, relieved back pain, and more – shop for adjustable beds with this feature.
Height: Adjusting the height of your bed doesn't inherently come with any health benefits, but it can be an important move to change the aesthetic of your bed. Changing the height of your adjustable bed can also make getting in and out of bed much easier.
Combo: If you'd rather not shop for adjustability features separately, shop for them together! Combining adjustability features is the best way to make sure you can get the most out of your adjustable bed. The most common combination of features is head and foot adjustability together, but you can also find adjustable beds with all three: head, foot, and height adjustability.
Split: If you sleep with a partner who may not share the same sleeping preferences as you, an adjustable bed is still an option! Simply go with a split adjustable bed. Each half of the bed has its own controls and can move completely independently of the other half, allowing you and your partner to enjoy sleeping soundly according to each of your preferences. Split adjustable beds are available in queen, king, and California king sizes.
Best Adjustable Bed Position Presets
Adjustable bed presets have specific benefits associated with them. If you'd like to take advantage of those benefits, shop for adjustable beds with these presets included.
Zero-Gravity: The zero-gravity position was coined by NASA as a completely neutral body position that perfectly balances your weight – astronauts are actually placed in this position before they take off to space! In such a position, your head and legs are elevated just above your heart, which takes stress off of your entire body. This position is supposed to be one of the most relaxed positions your body can be in and has a multitude of benefits for your body and mind, including improved circulation, improved mood, alleviated back pain, and more.
Anti-Snore: An anti-snore preset on an adjustable bed elevates the head section of the bed just enough to open your nasal passageway and alleviate snoring. With such a feature, you won't have to fiddle with your controls in order to find the perfect snore-proof position. All you'll need to do is press a button!
Flat: With the press of your adjustable bed's flat button, the bed base will flatten out to become just like a nonadjustable one. This is a nice feature if you like the way a flat bed looks in your bedroom or if you frequently make your bed in the morning – it's easier to dress a flat bed than a positioned one.
Customizable: Want to save your own personalized presets? Opt for an adjustable bed with customizable presets to make your bed completely your own. The number of customizable presets varies from bed to bed, so be sure to read each product description carefully.
Best Adjustable Bed Power Types
An adjustable bed's power source is one of the most important factors to consider when choosing the best adjustable bed for you. It can impact the cost of the bed but also, more importantly, your comfort and ease when it comes time to change the position of the bed.
Full Electric: When you think of an adjustable bed, you're likely imagining a high-tech full-electric adjustable bed, on which every movable component can be controlled by buttons on a remote or control panel. These are the best adjustable beds for ease of use because you likely won't have to move at all to change the position of your bed. Thanks to their electric power source, full-electric adjustable beds can come with a wide range of other incredible features designed to make your life easier, including massage functionality, bluetooth compatibility, and under-bed lighting, to name just a few. These bed bases can be a little more expensive than their manual counterparts, but they truly are the best adjustable beds if you're interested in maximizing your bed's functionality and ease of use.
Semi-Electric: Semi-electric adjustable beds are most often found in hospitals but can certainly have their place in the home as well. On a semi-electric adjustable bed, the position of the head and feet is usually controlled by a remote or control panel, while the height of the bed itself is controlled by a manual crank. These adjustable beds are less expensive than full-electric adjustable beds, so opting for one could save you money if you aren't too concerned about its manual components.
Manual: As its name suggests, a manual adjustable bed is fully manual. To change a manual adjustable bed's position, you must physically move the hinged panels. These adjustable beds, though they are some of the least expensive adjustable beds available, are most often found in spas as massage tables rather than in homes.
Best Adjustable Bed Components & Features
The best adjustable beds come with a variety of additional components and features that can take your sleeping experience from great to out of this world.
Additional Components
Mattress Included: Save yourself the trouble of shopping for a separate mattress that is compatible with your adjustable bed by opting for an adjustable bed base that comes with an included mattress. If you go with this option, you'll know for sure that your mattress is best suited for its adjustable bed base.
Wireless Remote: Older adjustable bed models have built-in control panels or wired remotes that are inseparable from the bed base. Some of these controls require you to lean over or get out of bed to adjust your bed's position. Newer models come with wireless remote controls that allow you to adjust the position without moving a muscle.
Built-In Outlets: The best adjustable beds will improve your bedroom's utility in every way. Built-in outlets are invaluable on a bed. With such a feature, you can keep your alarm clock, your phone, your computer, and more of your essential electronic devices fully charged and within arm's reach.
Under-Bed Lighting: This gentle light feature, located subtly and out of sight under the bed base, will improve your visibility in the dark and give your adjustable bed a little aesthetic boost.
Additional Features
Massage Functionality: You might be asking yourself how an adjustable bed base can perform massage functionality through a thick mattress. The answer is resonant frequency: The adjustable bed base emits a resonant frequency that manipulates the mattress in such a way that it vibrates. This kind of massage vibration is excellent for relaxation and can improve your state of mind upon waking from sleep. Some adjustable beds with massage functionality allow you to control the vibration of the head and foot sections of your bed independently of each other for a more localized effect.
Wall-Hugger Technology: When the head section of a less modern adjustable bed is elevated, the user might find themselves struggling to reach objects on their nightstand that were within reach when the bed was fully reclined. Modern adjustable beds account for that forward movement that occurs when the head of the bed is elevated. As the head elevates, the bed base slides back so that the user is essentially in the same place they were, everything still within reach.
App/Bluetooth Technology: The best adjustable beds have evolved with the times to accommodate technological updates that will make your life that much easier. With an adjustable bed that has app or bluetooth compatibility, you won't need to worry about keeping a wireless remote close by or leaning over to press buttons on a control pad. All you need to adjust the position of your bed is your phone.
Backlit Remote: This feature may be simple, but it will make a massive difference when the sun goes down. An adjustable bed remote with backlit controls is easy to see and use no matter how dark it is. With a backlit remote, there's no need to turn on your bedroom light just to adjust the position of your bed.
Nap Timer: If you thought adjustable beds couldn't get more user friendly, buckle up. Adjustable beds with a nap timer will automatically change their position once the timer runs out to gently wake you at exactly the right time. This feature is absolutely amazing if you're prone to bad nap experiences – you'll no longer wake up from your nap feeling more tired than you were before.
Lumbar Support: If lumbar support (lower-back support) is a priority of yours, shop for adjustable beds that were designed with lumbar support in mind. This feature is especially important if you plan on spending a lot of time sitting up in your bed to read, watch TV, or do some work on your computer.
MicroHook Technology: Worried about your mattress sliding around as you adjust your bed? Opt for an adjustable bed with MicroHook technology. Its surface is covered in tiny, fabric-fastener-like hooks that will grip the mattress and prevent it from moving across the surface of the adjustable bed base, even when it's elevated at its highest.
Best Mattresses for Adjustable Beds
In order for a mattress to enjoy a long life atop an adjustable bed base, it must be equal parts flexible and durable. Most mattress types – memory foam, latex, hybrid – are compatible with an adjustable bed base, but there is one type to avoid completely: innerspring. Innerspring coils are not flexible enough to withstand frequent adjustments, especially to more extreme angles.
Memory Foam: For their flexibility, shape-conforming qualities, and durable support, memory foam mattresses are considered some of the best mattresses for adjustable beds. Ensure that your memory foam mattress doesn't retain too much heat by going with a breathable memory foam mattress infused with gel or cooling technology.
Latex: Another serious contender for best mattress for an adjustable bed is a latex mattress – they are flexible but supportive, even more so than memory foam mattresses. Latex mattresses can be a little stiffer than memory foam, though, so it's a good idea to opt for a slightly thinner mattress if you're going with latex.
Hybrid: You might not expect hybrid mattresses to work well on an adjustable bed base because of their coils, but indeed they do. This is because their coils are pocketed rather than open. Open coils like those inside of innerspring mattresses are interconnected, which makes them too stiff and inflexible to withstand constant adjustment. Pocket coils are individual components, so they can move about more freely and flexibly. A hybrid mattress's pocketed coils are also encased in layers of flexible and supportive foam which enhance the mattress's comfort and durability on an adjustable bed base.
Split: If you're interested in a split adjustable bed, you are going to need a split mattress to go with it! Split mattresses are available in queen, king, and California king sizes.
Adjustable-Bed-Compatible: Worried about making the wrong choice? Filter your search to include only mattresses deemed compatible with adjustable beds to take all the doubt out of your decision.
