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Air Mattress Guide

01Choosing an air mattressOverview

Best air mattresses: heights, sizes and built-in pumps compared

How to choose an air mattress: size, height, built-in or external pump, weight limit and warranty, with maker specs from Intex, SoundAsleep and King Koil.

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Air Mattress Guide editorial team
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5 min
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Inflated dark gray air mattress with a flocked velour top on a bedroom carpet
Photo: W.carter / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

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The best air mattress is the one whose size, height and pump fit how you will use it. For guests, choose a raised queen of 18 to 20 inches with a built-in pump. For camping, a lower bed or a sleeping pad. Then compare weight limits and warranties, which Intex lists for every series.

What matters when choosing

Five things decide whether an air mattress suits you, and all of them are on the maker’s product page:

  1. Size. Most follow standard bed sizes: a queen is 60 by 80 inches. Camping queens can be smaller.
  2. Height. From about 9 inches for camping beds to 20 inches for raised guest beds.
  3. Pump. Built-in electric, rechargeable, USB, battery or a separate pump.
  4. Weight limit. Intex rates its twins at 300 lb and its full, queen and king beds at 600 lb.
  5. Warranty. A signal of what the maker expects: Intex gives 90 days to 1 year depending on the series.

Queen air mattresses

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Air mattress types compared

Type Typical height (maker examples) Pump Best for
Camping air bed 9 in (SoundAsleep Camping queen) Rechargeable external Tents, car camping in mild weather
Mid-rise 10 to 12 in (Intex Dura-Beam Standard) Built-in, USB or external Kids’ sleepovers, occasional guests
Raised or double-high 18 to 20 in (Intex Deluxe and PremAire, SoundAsleep Dream, King Koil Luxury) Built-in electric Adult guests, several nights
Raised with pressure pump 19 in (SoundAsleep CloudNine queen) Primary plus secondary smart pump Long stays

Sizes

A twin is about 38 by 75 inches, a full 54 by 75, a queen 60 by 80 and a king 76 by 80, on the Sleep Foundation’s standard sizes. Air beds come close: Intex lists its 12 inch twin at 39 x 75 inches and its 12 inch queen at 60 x 80. The air mattress sizes guide has the full chart in inches and centimeters, including the safe-sleep rule for babies.

Height

A taller bed is easier to get in and out of, but takes longer to fill: Intex lists about 3 minutes for its 12 inch queen and about 4.5 minutes for its 20 inch Thermalux queen. The raised air mattress guide weighs the trade-offs.

Raised and double-high air mattresses

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Pumps

Every 18 and 20 inch bed on Intex’s Deluxe and PremAire series pages has a built-in electric pump, as do SoundAsleep’s Dream Series and King Koil’s Luxury line. A built-in pump saves carrying a separate pump but needs a backup plan if it fails; Intex says you can fill its beds through the 2-in-1 valve with a separate pump. The built-in pump guide explains the types, and the air mattress pump guide covers external pumps and valve fit.

Air mattresses with a built-in pump

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Which air mattress for which situation

A guest room used a few times a year. A raised queen with a built-in pump. It stores in a closet, fills in about 3 to 5 minutes on Intex’s figures, and sits near regular bed height. Keep a small external pump as a backup.

Family staying for a week. The same raised queen, or a bed with a pressure pump such as SoundAsleep’s CloudNine, which monitors air pressure in the background. Plan on topping up a new bed for its first few nights while the vinyl stretches.

Kids’ sleepovers. Twin beds at 10 to 12 inches. Intex rates its twins at 300 lb, so they are for one sleeper each.

Car camping. A lower camping bed with a rechargeable pump, plus insulation on top of it for cold nights.

Backpacking or cold ground. Not an air mattress at all: a sleeping pad with a tested R-value.

Brands covered

  • Intex publishes the most detailed specs: inflated size, height, weight limit and inflation time on each product page, plus an airbed FAQ that answers most owner questions. Its ranges run from Dura-Beam Standard (10 to 12 inches) to Deluxe and PremAire (18 to 20 inches).
  • SoundAsleep sells the Dream Series (19 inch queen, built-in pump, 40 internal air coils), the CloudNine with a secondary pressure pump, and a 9 inch Camping Series.
  • King Koil sells a Luxury line in twin, full, queen and California king, in 13, 16 and 20 inch heights with a built-in pump; its 20 inch queen is listed at 650 lb. The King Koil guide covers it.

Keeping an air mattress firm

A new bed that feels softer by morning is not always leaking. Intex says new vinyl stretches under body weight for the first few uses, and Intex’s and Outwell’s manuals both say the air inside contracts as it cools, which lowers the pressure. Top it up for the first few nights. If it still goes flat, the leak guide shows how to find a hole with soapy water and patch it.

Guest beds and camping

For visitors, the air mattress for guests guide covers setup and a guest-ready kit for holiday hosts. Bedding that stays on a tall bed needs deep pockets: see the sheets, toppers and frames guide. For tents and vehicles, the camping air mattress guide compares air beds with sleeping pads and cots.

Safety: never for babies

The CPSC warns never to place infants 15 months and younger to sleep on an inflatable air mattress, and a 2017 study in the American Journal of Public Health counted 108 infant deaths from 2004 to 2015, in 24 states, where an air mattress was the sleep place. Infants can suffocate on the bed or become trapped between the mattress and a wall or frame. Babies belong in a crib or play yard that meets current standards.

How to buy safely

Buy new from a seller with clear returns, and keep the receipt: Intex asks for proof of purchase and the item number for warranty claims. Check that the listing states the height and pump type as well as the size, then compare them with the maker page. A listing without a height or weight limit leaves you guessing.

Frequently asked questions

What should I look for in an air mattress?

Five things: the size against your room, the height (10 to 12 inches for camping and kids, 18 to 20 for guests), the pump type, the weight limit and the warranty. Every one of these is on the maker's product page.

What is the difference between an air bed and an air mattress?

Nothing, in practice. Makers use both names for the same inflatable PVC beds; Intex calls its range airbeds and air mattresses on the same pages.

How long does an air mattress last?

Makers signal their own expectations through the warranty: Intex gives 90 days on its Dura-Beam Standard beds, 180 days on Dura-Beam Plus and 1 year on Deluxe and PremAire. Care, the surface underneath and how often the bed is used all shorten or extend that.

Is it healthy to sleep on an air mattress?

An air mattress is made for temporary sleeping, such as guests and camping. We make no health claims; anyone with back pain or a medical condition should ask a clinician. Babies should never sleep on one.

Which air mattress brands are there?

The makers covered here are Intex, SoundAsleep and King Koil, with Coleman for camping pumps. Each publishes dimensions and pump details on its own product pages.

Filed under Choosing an air mattress

  1. Air mattress sizes: twin, full, queen and king dimensions

    Air mattress sizes in inches and centimeters, how they compare to standard beds, weight limits by size, and why an inflated bed may measure smaller.    Buying guide

  2. Air mattress with a built-in pump: how it works and what fails

    How built-in air mattress pumps work, plug-in versus rechargeable, how long inflation takes, firmness dials, and what to do when the pump stops working.    Buying guide

  3. King Koil air mattresses: sizes, heights and pumps explained

    What King Koil air mattresses offer: twin to California king sizes, heights up to 20 inches, a built-in pump and weight limits, plus what to check first.    Buying guide

  4. Raised air mattress: is a double-high bed worth it?

    Raised and double-high air mattresses compared by height, from 12 to 20 inches: easier to get in and out of, but slower to fill and harder to fit with sheets.    Answer