The 4 Best Air Mattresses We’ve Tested [CNET]

Article updated on August 14, 2024 at 1:15 PM PDT

Whether camping or hosting family, we found the best air mattresses you can count on for a comfortable night’s sleep.

Serta Raised Air Mattress

Best dual-pump air mattress

Our take – One of the most annoying things about air mattresses is that sometimes the mattress deflates during the night. The Serta Raised Air Mattress addresses this problem with its two-pump design. The large pump is used to fill the mattress, and a second pump works (quietly) during the night to keep the air pressure constant. In theory, this would keep your air bed fully inflated all night. Keep in mind that if you want the second pump to work, the mattress has to be plugged in all night, which is a drawback.

Beautyrest Hi Loft Air Mattress: The Beautyrest Hi Loft twin air mattress comes equipped with a plug-in electric pump that screws onto the mattress. Once attached, it inflates the mattress in about 2 minutes, although not as fully as I would’ve liked. Once it’s inflated, you need to quickly unscrew the pump and replace the valve cap. It’s not the most elegant solution.

The Beautyrest air mattress has the same pack-of-hot-dogs design as the Bestway air bed and the precarious feel of a pool float. (Many companies that make air mattresses also make inflatable pools and pool accessories. Go figure.) It lacks the stability of other air mattresses and I nearly tipped it over by lying too far to one side.

Keep in mind it may not be the best air mattress for you if you’re tall. Simmons lists its dimensions at 80 x 60 x 17 inches, but my measurements put it closer to 76 inches long, which means that anyone taller than 6 feet will likely hang off the end. The mattress is constructed from a softer type of vinyl than others, making it easier to roll up and fold into a compact shape for storage.

Bestway Air Mattress: The epitome of a cheap air mattress, the Bestway air bed is compact, lightweight and relatively quick to inflate with its integrated pump.

On the downside, this air mattress is only available in one size, and it’s not comfortable at all. It sits low to the ground at 12 inches high, and the pump isn’t powerful enough to inflate it fully, so it makes for a rather squishy ride. The tubular design gives it the look of a pack of hot dogs, and the one raised, horizontal hot dog that’s meant to approximate a pillow rest sets the mattress askew, which makes it more unstable.

The Bestway Air Bed has plenty of negative reviews on Walmart.com that cite slow air leaks, fast air leaks, burst seams, spontaneous bubbling and terrible customer service (as well as dozens of very positive reviews). Although Bestway’s comically vague manufacturer’s warranty doesn’t instill confidence, warranty isn’t a crucial consideration here given the price. Still, Walmart’s policy states that most products can be returned with their original packaging for a full refund within 90 days.

We tested the best mattresses the only way you can: by sleeping on them. We’ve taken the best air mattresses that are highly rated on Amazon and other major retail sites (including Target and Walmart) and put them through a battery of hands-on testing to see which might potentially offer comfortable sleep.

This included repeatedly inflating and deflating air beds, evaluating their durability and construction, and subjecting them to the rigors of camping and a series of acrobatically inclined children’s sleepovers to test them for comfort, air pressure and how puncture-resistant the air chamber is (after all, air leaks are counterproductive to a great night’s sleep). We also made sure to assess each air mattress on its price and reviews. We wanted to know if people experienced punctures or low leaks during use.

To narrow down the best mattress options, we confined testing for our buyer’s guide to queen-size mattress models and included comfort and price comparisons. CNET editors pick the products and services we write about based on editorial merit. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Read more on how we test mattresses.

There are a few general things to consider when shopping for the best air mattress.

Price

Price will be the primary criterion for most people searching for the best air mattress. You can get a queen-size bed for as little as $30, while the most expensive air mattresses can cost hundreds of dollars. A higher price doesn’t always mean a tall air bed, a better air mattress, better air pressure, a self-inflating mattress, a better sleeping surface, more comfort or a decent night’s sleep.

Inflation

The best air mattresses have a built-in electric pump that plugs into a wall socket. Some have a battery-powered external rechargeable pump, which usually runs on four D-cells. A few come with a manual hand pump. The plug-in pumps are usually powerful but heavy and loud. Battery-operated pumps are lighter and don’t require a wall socket but are typically less effective and less capable of fully inflating a mattress. A manual pump or a flat pump, on the other hand, can deliver a degree of firmness the others can’t match and need neither batteries nor outlet but will require a significant amount of physical labor to operate.

Size

Although most queen-size air mattress options measure approximately 60 inches wide and 80 inches long, height is both a variable and a selling point. It may be a primary consideration for older or disabled people who would have trouble getting on or off a bed that’s too low to the ground. Likewise, an overly mushy mattress will be harder to dismount.

Leakage

If you’ve ever tried to get a good night’s rest on a bad air mattress before, you know that the touchstone for quality is how reliably it holds air. Nearly every air mattress is beset by customer reviews complaining about air leaks. You can tell that this is an industry that’s familiar with these complaints: Every bed we tested was imprinted with disclaimers about how all air mattresses stretch when you inflate them and that you shouldn’t just assume that they’re leaking if they temporarily lose that initial level of firmness.

Yet many air mattresses, whether they’re stretched out or not, do leak during the night, even if you top them off. This mitigates the credibility of some manufacturers’ claims. Some beds are simply more durable and better constructed than others. Airtightness is tricky to judge, even after you inflate an air mattress, and may reveal itself only over time. As such, most manufacturers offer a one-year warranty or guarantee. A few extend that to two years. Others will give you 90 days and throw in a few vinyl patches to cover up a puncture wound.

Nothing is worse than dragging out your air mattress for a guest and then the next morning they wake on the ground. Holes are the death of air mattresses. Unfortunately, they happen all too often. The good news is that you can find and patch holes in air mattresses. Let’s go through how.

How to find a hole in an air mattress

1. Fully inflate the air mattress, try not to over-inflate it. Over-inflating an air mattress with a hole in it can make it larger.
2. Take a sponge or rag and apply soapy water across the surface of your air mattress. Make sure you get the seams.
3. Watch for places where bubbles grow, which can indicate a leak.
4. If there is no leak on the surface, move on to the sides and valve and finally the bottom of the air mattress.
5. When you locate the leak, mark it with a permanent marker.

How to patch an air mattress

Just because there is a hole in your air mattress, doesn’t mean that you have to buy a new one. There are air mattress patches you can use. If you’re looking to go down the DIY avenue, there are plenty of options. Start by deflating your air mattress and degreasing the area around the hole.

• Patch method: You can make an air mattress patch from any thin plastic, like a shower curtain or pool liner. Once you have your material, cut out a patch large enough to cover the puncture entirely, with an excess of about one inch on all sides. Then use a generous amount of glue to seal it to the air mattress. Press it tightly with your hand.
• Super glue: If you have a small hole along the seams, a good amount of super glue may be all you need to patch the hole. It’s best to do a couple of layers to make sure it completely covers the puncture.
• Duct tape: While it’s not a long-term solution, duct tape can help you repair an air mattress in a pinch. The adhesive on duct tape does generally lose its grip over time.

When shopping for the best mattress, always look at product and customer reviews. It’s beneficial to get the perspective of real customers and product reviewers who have physically slept on the air mattress because they can give more honest insight on whether it’s a good product.

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 for regular use. Air mattresses can lack proper support to keep your spinal alignment over the long term and promote back pain.

You can find air mattresses both online and in stores, it just depends on how you prefer to do your shopping. Amazon has some great options, but you can also check your local Walmart or REI.

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.

• Put your air mattress on a soft surface, like a carpet or rug.
• You can also put it on a box spring so it isn’t flat on the ground.
• Add a mattress topper or mattress pad. It adds a layer of comfort to the air mattress while taking away the rubbery feel of air mattresses.

How long your air mattress will last will depend on how much you use it. Regular and consistent use offers more opportunities for punctures or holes to develop in your mattress. Alternatively, if you use it only once a year, you can expect to hang on to it for a long time. You should expect to get at least two to five years out of a regularly used air mattress and up to 10 if you don’t use it often.

There’s nothing worse than an air mattress that deflates while you’re sleeping on it. A few things to keep in mind is that you don’t want to over-inflate your air mattress, which will put excess strain on the seams. You should also make sure to pay close attention to the weight limit of the air mattress. Finally, deflate the air mattress every morning after use.