An interesting phenomenon is occurring within households across America, whereas everyone once upgraded to queens (or kings) at some point, more and more adults are intentionally selecting single beds. Not because they have to. But because they want to.
It’s not about making do. It’s about reconsidering what a bedroom should be and how much space a bed requires. The preconceived notion that bigger is better is thrown out the window with observation of how most people live and sleep.
The Space Argument
Most bedrooms aren’t getting larger, but the sheer amount of items adults want to keep in a given bedroom is getting larger. A desk for at-home work, a chair for reading, a place to store out-of-season clothes, a spin bike, bookshelves. The list goes on and on.
When beds take up 60%-70% of bedroom square footage, everything else becomes a compromise, sideways walking through a crowded space, bumping knees into corners, or just never utilizing the room for anything other than sleeping. But the math makes sense for those living in small apartments on their own and repurposing spare bedrooms into functional spaces. When one looks at what a single mattress offers vs. how much space they use, the equation balances much more readily.
Moreover, it’s not a small difference, getting a single bed leaves room for a real work desk, legitimate reading chair or small couch. Suddenly, the bedroom becomes a space where one can spend time aside from merely sleeping. This counts for much more than people understand; when square footage is at a premium, it makes sense to utilize every inch possible for every purpose imaginable.
The Reality of Sleeping Alone
Not every adult shares a bed every night. Whether these people are single or simply work different schedules or just opt to sleep better without the snoring and fidgeting, the reality is that it makes sense for adults to have at least a queen bed.
Why? If someone is generally sleeping alone, the single bed has ample space to roll around, turn, and get comfortable without worrying about encroaching someone’s space. It merely adds more width for people who don’t use the space anyway. Furthermore, bigger beds come with bigger costs and bedding options, and laundry.
In fact, some couples even opt for two singles in the same room, a concept often found in Europe but almost revolutionary in America. Why? Better sleep quality overall, personal comfort without compromising on a shared mattress, and the added option for different bed styles (firmness) without debate. The Scandinavian sleep divorce sounds powerful, but it’s just practical.
The Financial Factor
Mattresses cost money. Bed frames cost money. Sheets, duvets, mattress protectors, everything adds up quickly as it is not just an initial investment, but an ongoing expense.
Between singles and larger models, the expense adds up quickly over time. Quality singles cost a fraction of cost as queens/kings, hundreds less per mattress at purchase alone. Add to that cheaper bedding options, less time spent in the laundry room washing duvet covers and sheets for money-sucking machines, and it becomes a simple choice for anyone budgeting their expenses where everyone counts over time.
When young adults are outfitting their first adult apartments or anyone who’s on a budget outfitting their apartment (or need their first decent mattress), going with a single frees up money to invest elsewhere on furniture that actually helps people’s lives out better.
Give me an adequate mattress and an adequate desk chair any day versus a massive bed and nowhere comfortable to sit throughout the day.
Making Space for Living
What’s surprising about this new trend in adult smaller beds is not that they’re smaller, but that these adults want their bedrooms to be more than just bedrooms. A single bed offers the opportunity that larger ones do not.
Guest bedrooms become usable offices. Teenagers can have their friends hang out in their room with space without it looking cramped. Studio apartments are no longer dominated by major pieces of furniture. Spare rooms can actually be spare rooms, useful and needing to be switched around without big efforts of moving furniture.
This means more today than ever before as room use transformed since 2020. Remote working changed how people operate within their apartments and houses; hobbies moved indoors; personal space became less of a luxury than a necessity. Thus, when bedrooms can become multifaceted rooms throughout the day, it’s worth its weight in gold.
The Comfort Issue
Of course, the last concern is whether singles are actually comfortable enough for adults to sleep on regularly, a fair question with a fair answer that’s dependent upon decent construction.
If someone has proper support in materials and construction quality, it will feel better than a cheap queen that sags in the middle because its owners thought they’d need something larger due to preconceived notions about adult size. Adults are not too grown up for single beds, they’ve merely been raised to think they should want something bigger.
In truth, movers move less than they think; unless two people are sleeping in a bed consistently, at all times during the night, extra width is largely wasted space filled with pillows and dirty laundry unless it’s only occupied by one person comfortably shifting positions.
It’s Worth It
A smaller bed does not mean settling; it means figuring out how best to function given limited space, where money could be spent elsewhere better and what truly creates quality of life better. More adults are realizing that bigger isn’t better, it’s just bigger, and when floor space could be used differently better, it makes more sense than arbitrary thinking about an adult-sized bed.
