Murphy Beds

Murphy beds and wall beds: what to check before you buy one

What you are actually buying. A Murphy bed is a bed and a cabinet in one piece. Closed, it reads as a wardrobe or a shallow storage unit; open, it is a full bed on a supported deck. That is why it does the job it does in a studio, a home office or a guest room: the room has one use during the day and another at night, without a bed permanently in the middle of it. Sizes here run twin, twin XL, full and queen.

Vertical or horizontal. A vertical wall bed folds down along its long axis, so it projects far into the room but stays narrow against the wall. A horizontal wall bed folds down sideways, which keeps the height low and the projection shorter, and that is the one to look at when a low or sloped ceiling rules out the vertical version. Both are represented here. Read the open and closed dimensions on the listing together, because the closed depth tells you how much wall the cabinet eats and the open length tells you how much floor you need to keep clear.

The mechanism. These beds are lifted by gas struts or a spring mechanism, sized so the bed comes down under control and lifts back without a fight. Listings describe features such as safety locks that hold the bed closed, anti-tip devices, automatic support legs that swing out as the bed lowers, and swivel wheels on the mobile cabinet models. Weight capacity is stated per model and covers the mattress plus sleepers. None of these beds needs a box spring, because the mattress sits on a built-in supported deck.

What the cabinet does the rest of the time. This is where the range separates. Some cabinets are plain and simply disappear against the wall. Others integrate a desk and bookshelf for a home office, side shelving towers, a wardrobe or closet section, drawers at the base, a vanity with a mirror, LED-lit shelves, a USB charging station or a power outlet. Cabinet doors range from plain fronts to rattan panels, louvered and geometric designs. Look at the layout drawing on the listing, since the same nominal size can be arranged very differently.

Mattress and installation. Mattress thickness is the specification people most often overlook: a wall bed folds around the mattress, so a mattress that is too deep will not close cleanly. Check the maximum thickness on the listing before pairing one with a mattress you already own, and favor a foam or hybrid mattress over a heavy innerspring where the listing suggests it. Installation means securing the cabinet to the wall, ideally into studs, and it is genuinely a two-person job given the size and weight of the panels. Each listing states what assembly involves.