UK Bed Size Preferences by Region (own order data)

Ask what the most popular bed size in the UK is and everyone gives you a confident answer. They just don't give you the same one. The National Bed Federation's research still has the standard double bed in front. Plenty of retailers will tell you the king size bed at 150cm x 200cm took over years ago.

We split a year of our own orders by delivery postcode to see what people actually buy. The answer is the single, which is not what anybody says. Here's the full picture, size by size and region by region.

Standard UK bed and mattress sizes

Length only changes once across the whole range. A single mattress is 90 x 190cm and a standard double bed is 135 x 190cm, so everything from small single up to double is 190cm long. Only the king size mattress and the super king mattress stretch to 200cm. Our UK bed and mattress size guide has room guidance for each one.

The other thing that table shows is how little room a double mattress gives two adults. At 67.5cm each, that's less personal sleeping space than a single bed. A king size mattress measures 150cm across, so it gives 75cm each, and a super king size bed gives 90cm each.

The most popular bed sizes nationally

Around half of all orders include a small bed of some sort. About six in ten include a bed of 4'6 or larger. Plenty include both, which is what you'd expect from people doing up a whole house rather than replacing one mattress.

Every bed size, region by region

*Northern Ireland is by far our smallest region, so treat that row as a curiosity rather than a finding.

What stands out

• The South West is the only region where the king beats the single, and it buys the most super kings too.
• The North East goes smallest across the board, with the lowest king figure and the highest small double figure in the country.
• The West Midlands buys the most singles and sits below average on every size from 4'6 up.
• Wales and the North East are the only places where the double leads the main bedroom, with Scotland close to an even split across all three.
• Yorkshire buys king hard but super king barely at all, which no other region does.

Why the single leads, and what it doesn't tell you

Single beds mostly go into rooms nobody sleeps in every night. Guest rooms, children's bedrooms, teenagers' rooms, new mattresses for bunk beds, and beds bought two and three at a time for guest houses and rentals. A household buys one main bed and can easily buy three small ones, so the single turns up in a lot of baskets without telling you much about how anyone sleeps.

Small singles go mostly to younger children, where a narrower bed leaves more floor space for everything else the room has to do. A small double at 120cm is the classic fix for a box room that won't take a proper double, or a guest bedroom doubling as an office.

What people buy for the main bedroom

Look only at beds of 4'6 and above and the king comes out on top, ahead of the super king, with the double last. That's worth sitting with, because the double is the size most UK bedrooms were built around and it now sits behind both bigger options.

No size owns a region. Every part of the country buys all three. The double holds up best in Wales, Scotland and the South West. The king is strongest in the South West, Yorkshire and the South East. The super king runs highest in the South West and Scotland.

Why people move up a size

Space per person. A double gives 67.5cm each, a king 75cm and a super king 90cm. Larger mattresses reduce disturbance from a partner moving in the night, which does more damage to sleep quality than most people realise because it wakes you just enough to matter without you remembering it.

Height. King and super king are the only standard UK dimensions at 200cm long, so they suit taller sleepers. A king works for most people up to around 6ft 2in.

Families. A super king is the usual choice for households who co-sleep, or who've accepted that small children and the dog end up in there anyway.

Storage. In compact bedrooms where the bed holds the spare bedding and the suitcases, an ottoman or drawer base changes the maths, because a bigger base means more usable storage underneath.

The same size, four different footprints

• Divan bases match the mattress exactly. A king size divan is 150cm wide and no more, so it's the most space efficient option for a tight room layout.
• Wooden and metal bed frames sit outside the mattress by 2cm to 5cm each side, so a king bed frame can measure nearer 160cm across.
• Upholstered beds vary most, because padded rails and a deep headboard add real depth. Check the frame measurements, not the size on the label.
• Ottoman bases match the mattress like a divan, but need clearance to open, which won't show on any dimensions chart.

UK, European and IKEA sizes are not the same

UK mattress sizes are typically 10cm shorter than European mattress sizes. A UK single, small double and double are all 190cm long, where European sized mattresses run to 200cm. They're generally wider too: a European double is 140cm against our 135cm, and a European king is 160cm against our 150cm. Only the super king matches at 180 x 200cm.

IKEA uses its own sizing system, which complicates compatibility further. Their double is 140 x 200cm and their king 160 x 200cm, so a UK mattress and an IKEA bed frame often don't fit together. Measure the inside of the frame before ordering. Same goes for fitted sheets, which won't sit right on a mattress 10cm off the size they were cut for.

Getting it up the stairs

Access stops more upgrades than room size does. If you want maximum space and you're going super king, a zip and link base turns a 6ft mattress into two 3ft halves, and there isn't much in a UK house that won't take two 3ft halves. Worth knowing before you rule a size out.

Choosing for your room, not your region

All of this is interesting and it's a rubbish reason to pick a bed size. Your room dimensions, your access and who's in the bed should decide it.

Measure the available space, then measure the route to the room, because it's the second one that goes wrong on delivery day. Leave about 60cm of clear floor space on both sides and at the foot. As a rough guide, average sized bedrooms take a double comfortably, a king size bed wants a room around 3.5m wide, and super kings belong in larger bedrooms and spacious master bedrooms at roughly 3.8m across.

And if there's two of you in a double and it feels tight, it is tight. 67.5cm each isn't much to sleep comfortably in. Equally, a small double in a room that could take a double is a compromise nobody asked you to make. Fit the bed to the room, not to what your region happens to buy.

Plenty of people don't need a new bed at all. If the frame is sound and it's the mattress that's gone, get a new mattress and keep your own bed.

How we worked this out

Every order placed between 1 January and 21 August 2026, sorted by the postcode each bed went to, using the twelve standard UK regions. Cancelled orders and accessory only orders are excluded. We count each order once per size it contains rather than counting every item, because a divan set arrives as a base, a headboard and a mattress and would otherwise record one bed three times. That's why the figures add up to more than 100%. Zip and link, extra length and European versions are folded back into the standard UK size they're based on.

This is one bed shop's orders rather than the whole UK market, and a delivery address only tells you where a bed went, not which room it ended up in.