How To Make Your Bed Higher: 7 Ways To Elevate Your Sleep

Key Takeaways

• Higher beds add more storage space, make it easier for taller folks to enter and exit, and can appear more luxurious.
• Easy Fixes: Use bed risers or caster wheels to lift your bed.
• Small Adjustments: Try a mattress topper or bed wedge to add an extra layer of comfort and elevation. 
• Larger investments: Swap your bed frame for a taller foundation, commit to an adjustable base, or buy a thicker mattress.

If you’re unhappy with the height of your bed, there are plenty of solutions that don’t require you to replace your entire sleep setup. Bed height seems like a small deal, but you might be surprised by the difference a few inches can make for your storage space, comfort, and style.

While there are several ways to increase bed height, upgrading your mattress foundation or bed frame raises your bed off the floor and gives your mattress the support it needs for your most restful sleep.

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Below, we’ll show you how to make your bed higher with various solutions, from bed risers to adjustable bases, while highlighting all the benefits of making your bed the perfect height for you.

1. Use Bed Risers 

Bed risers are the simplest, most cost-effective way to raise your bed frame. Bed risers are small support units, usually in the shape of rectangular or cylindrical blocks, that you place under each leg of your bed. 

Most bed risers add about three to eight inches to your bed height, but some have adjustable heights and can raise your bed by up to a foot. They’re also a great way to quickly increase the storage space under your bed. 

While many standard bed risers are black plastic squares, you can also find more aesthetic ones, like wood. Here’s an overview of common bed riser materials:

• Plastic: Many bed risers are made of heavy-duty plastic, like polypropylene. You’ll often see these available in black, but they’re sometimes available in brown, grey, and white. They can support up to around 1,300 pounds.
• Wood: Wood bed risers are a little more expensive but look more upscale and can support heavier loads (some up to 3,000 lbs).
• Metal: Metal ones, like aluminum, can hold even more weight (up to around 9,000 lbs), but they may require some assembly.

How To Use Bed Risers

Typical bed risers are designed to be easy to use with no complicated assembly. Different bed riser products will have different instructions, but in general, here’s how to use them:

1. Optional: Take the mattress off the bed to make things easier.
2. Lift a corner of the bed and place the riser under the leg. The riser usually has a recessed hole where you can securely place the leg of the bed. If you’re unsure how to lift a bed safely on your own, ask a friend for help. 
3. Repeat for the other three legs.

Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. 

Bed risers are versatile, so you should be able to use them on most bed frames. Just check the dimensions before you buy to make sure the legs of your bed frame will fit. 

2. Add a Mattress Topper

Need to know how to make a bed higher without risers? A mattress topper is a soft pad that provides an extra layer of comfort on top of your mattress. It can add a little height to your bed, but not much — usually around two to four inches. 

Just place it on top of your mattress and cover it with your fitted sheet, making your bed as normal. 

Mattress toppers can be nice cushioning options for older mattresses that are too stiff. However, they aren’t compatible with or necessary for certain mattresses. We don’t recommend using a topper for Purple mattresses, for example. Our GelFlex® Grid is designed with a hyper-elastic polymer that flexes under your hips and shoulders while maintaining support for your legs and back — no extra cushioning layer necessary.

3. Swap Your Bed Frame for a Foundation

A mattress foundation not only prevents sagging and wear and tear while increasing airflow, but also adds support and height to your mattress. The Purple Foundation is 17 inches tall, above industry average height, raising your mattress for easier access and greater comfort.

Mattress foundations raise beds higher than a bed frame might and tend to offer more support. A foundation serves as an alternative to a box spring for most mattresses. 

Box springs are meant to be paired with innerspring mattresses, not modern memory foam, latex, or Purple mattresses. Here are several different types of foundations that can add height to your bed:

• Bed slats
• Flat foundations
• Platform bases
• Adjustable bases

4. Try An Adjustable Base

An adjustable base is a bed base that can be height-adjusted with a remote control or app. With the push of a button, you can choose to automatically elevate or lower your head, feet, or both.

The benefits of an adjustable base include:

• Head elevation can reduce snoring and relieve congestion
• Raising the bed frame at the head can make it more comfortable to watch TV or work in bed
• Foot elevation can improve circulation
• Zero-gravity settings can reduce pressure on the legs and back

Adjustable bases may be an investment, but they are some of the most luxurious and convenient beds available. Many also come with extra features like under-bed lighting, USB ports, and adjustable leg heights. Purple’s tallest adjustable base, the Premium Plus Smart Base, has 12 inch legs for a total height of 15.7 inches to elevate your mattress and increase your comfort.

5. Use A Bed Wedge

Under-mattress bed wedges and bed wedge pillows can elevate one part of your bed, namely the head or food, to provide comfort or relief. Though this foam wedge doesn’t raise the whole setup, it serves as a nice mattress height booster for a targeted section of the bed. 

Some may find that elevating the head of their mattress with a bed wedge helps relieve acid reflux, back pain, and sleep apnea symptoms. Others enjoy bed wedges because they provide comfort for the shoulders, neck, and back.

You can put these wedges on top of, underneath, or at the foot of your mattress — it’s entirely up to you.

6. Add Wheels To Your Bed Frame

While foundations and bed wedges add height under your mattress, risers and wheels lift your bed frame higher off the floor. If you want a bed riser alternative that raises the height of your bed frame while also adding mobility, add caster wheels to your bed. 

Your bed frame likely has a slot where you can fit casters in. If not, you may need to screw the casters into the frame yourself. Choose ones with locking capability so your bed isn’t rolling around when you need it to be stationary. 

Learning how to raise a bed frame by installing wheels may take some time, but you’ll be able to move the bed at any moment’s notice once it’s done. This can make cleaning behind the bed and adjusting the room’s layout a breeze. 

7. Choose a Thicker Mattress

Some mattresses are thicker than others, and opting for a thicker one can increase your bed height by a few inches. Most mattresses are around 9 to 12 inches high, but you can opt for thicker ones. Thicker mattresses add extra layers of support and resist sagging. 

Purple’s thickest mattress, the Purple RejuvenatePremier™, sits at 18.5 inches. Not one but two layers of Purple’s innovative GelFlex® Grid Plus and five zones of responsive coil provide superior alignment and pressure relief.

Benefits of Elevating Your Bed

In case you’re still on the fence about raising the height of your bed, let’s talk about the benefits. Here’s a list of pros and cons to help you decide if a higher bed is for you:

Storage Space

As we’ve shown, raising your bed frame adds height and can increase the storage possibilities under your bed. This is especially helpful if you’re in an apartment, dorm, or guest room with small closets and limited storage space. 

Here are some items you might consider storing under your bed. These should be things you don’t need to access on a daily basis, like:

• Seasonal clothes like coats and scarves
• Shoes
• Seasonal decorations
• Extra linens
• Luggage
• Bulky bedding

Mobility

A higher bed can be more comfortable for taller people to get in and out of. Elderly people may also have trouble lifting and lowering themselves into a bed that sits too low to the ground. People with disabilities may also find that too-low beds are uncomfortable or difficult to get in and out of. 

With a bed that’s high enough for your height, you can sit and lean back into bed with little strain on your knees. 

Aesthetics

A higher bed is often an excellent choice for primary and guest bedrooms. If you have higher ceilings and a large room, a higher bed tends to match the space better than a lower bed might. A higher bed can also look more luxurious in a large space. 

Do You Sleep Better If Your Bed Is Higher?

If you’re wondering how to make your bed higher, you may also wonder whether the height adjustment will affect your sleep. But when it comes to bed height, there’s no science showing that a higher or lower bed helps you sleep better. It’s completely up to individual preference. 

Some people like the feeling of being closer to the floor in a low-to-the-ground bed, but others like the storage space afforded by a higher bed. In truth, mattress thickness is more likely to be a factor in sleep quality than bed height. 

Purple mattresses come in various thicknesses to suit different needs. No matter which thickness you choose, all Purple mattresses are comfortable, supportive options for better sleep. Our Rejuvenate Collection features layers like a zoned coil system and high-density GelFlex® Grid Plus that combine for maximum comfort.

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Get your best night’s sleep with the Rejuvenate Collection, featuring GelFlex® Grid Plus, quilted comfort, and advanced pressure relief.

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