No, you shouldn’t sleep on even the best air mattress as your main bed. Air mattresses are a good short-term solution when you need a comfortable place to sleep that’s not the ground or a couch, but they aren’t meant to be slept on every night. Air mattresses can lack proper support to keep your bestway air mattress spinal alignment over the long term and promote back pain. The epitome of a cheap air mattress, the Bestway air bed is compact, lightweight and relatively quick to inflate with its integrated pump. I also noted how easy or difficult it was to repack them back into the original storage bag.
We do wish that the carrying case included a handle to make it easier to transport around the house or in and out of the car while camping. Like other mattresses we tried, it did move an inch or two when we jumped on it during stability testing. We suspect that a grippier bottom or more flocking would help the mattress hold its position better. And with its weight capacity of 600 pounds, this is also a great option for couples.
It’s also available in a California King size if you’re looking for more room to spread out. The King Koil Luxury Air Mattress (20-inch) was comfortable to sleep on and, like our top pick, holds air overnight without needing to be re-inflated. This 19-inch-tall mattress comes in twin, twin XL, full, queen, and king sizes. And the SoundAsleep’s built-in pump was quieter than any other mattress motor we tried—this is a perk if you don’t want to wake sleeping children (or if you’re sensitive to noise).
We also love that the product has a built-in grab handle and comes with a travel bag, making it easy to take on the go. The mattress and pump would fit on a shelf or in a corner of your closet, and they are light enough to transport to a friend’s house or camping. Keep in mind that this air mattress is shorter than a twin-sized air mattress; it bestway twin air mattress measures 62 inches long when inflated, in comparison with the 75 inches that is standard for twin beds. So if you have taller kids coming over, you may need a twin option instead. For both comfort and convenience, you’ll an inflatable mattress that’s easy to set up, compact to carry and store and won’t leak air overnight while you’re using it.
Once I had a pretty good idea which ones were the finalists, I left those inflated for an additional 24 to 48 hours to see how long they held air. Besides all the official overnight tests, I also spent many hours lounging and napping on them with my 6-year-old child and husband when we got hit hard with COVID-19. Air mattresses are a great option for guests and short term use, but the reality is, they will never be as comfortable as a normal bed. Thankfully, there are a couple of tricks you can use to make your air mattress more comfortable. Intex has struck a compelling balance between price and value with the Comfort Plush Elevated Dura-Beam air mattress.
Air mattresses are traditionally convenient for camping when you don’t want to put your sleeping bag on the cold, hard ground — you could even throw one in a truck bed for sleeping under the stars. For example, the SereneLife Air Mattress, our “best splurge” pick, boasts a built-in frame, internal air pump, and adjustable firmness settings. Budget-friendly picks like the Coleman GuestRest Double High Air Mattress may not come with all the bells and whistles of premium models but will still do the trick.
But airtightness is tricky to judge — even after you inflate an air mattress — and may reveal itself only over time. Others will give you 90 days and throw in a few vinyl patches to cover up a puncture wound. Finding the best air mattress for you means balancing adequate back support, overall comfort and feeling at least somewhat secure that the whole thing isn’t going to deflate overnight.