The Best Air Mattresses of 2024

Quality air mattresses are a great solution when you need to offer guests a bed for the weekend, or if your own bed is temporarily unavailable. You might even use an air mattress for camping. You may associate air mattresses with a slow leak that leaves you on the floor by morning, but good ones quickly inflate and keep you comfortably supported through the night.

To find the best air mattress, we tested popular brands for weeks. Our favorite air mattress is the SoundAsleep Dream Series (available at Amazon) because its sleep surface was more like a real bed, and it stays inflated and doesn’t leave sleepers feeling stiff the next day.

Our top picks have a comfortable sleep surface, won't deflate noticeably overnight, boast internal pumps for easy inflation, and have airtight seams that keep the mattress from sagging or deflating under sleepers' weight.

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Other Air Mattresses We Tested

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How We Test Air Mattresses

The Tester

I’m Kim Porter, a freelance contributor at Reviewed. I've gone back and forth on whether to get an air mattress for guests or splurge on a dedicated guest bed, so I readily volunteered to find the most comfortable sleep surface that can also be rolled up and tucked away. (Plus, who doesn’t want an excuse to nap during work hours?)

The Tests

I spent six weeks testing and sleeping on air mattresses with my husband in our Boston apartment. In the first round of testing, I fully inflated and deflated each mattress, considered whether the air pump was loud enough to wake people, and checked whether fitted sheets fit the bed and stayed on. My husband and I also lounged or napped on the mattresses to evaluate comfort.

To test for durability, puncture resistance, and maneuverability, we dove on top of each mattress and pushed them across the floor. I topped off the air pressure, then distributed 200 pounds on each mattress to simulate a human (or maybe two small ones). None of the mattresses popped or snagged in my testing, but some deflated noticeably. Because air mattresses are designed for portability, I also folded them up, stuck them in their carrying cases, and lugged each to the car and back.

In my initial round of testing, I eliminated mattresses that didn't distribute weight evenly, were difficult to set up, or deflated. Only five models made it to the next round— the SoundAsleep, Coleman SupportRest, Insta-Bed, Enerplex, and King Koil—where we slept on them for two nights each. We used a complete sheet set, pillows, and a blanket to simulate our regular sleep experience.

One note: Air mattresses are typically made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and the air inside them gradually cools overnight. During my testing period, warm weather had yet to arrive in Boston, so the ever-present cool surface proved a distraction on nearly every mattress I tested. Some online reviewers said they bought mattress pads to protect against the cold, but I found sandwiching myself between blankets worked fine in a pinch.

What to Look for When Buying an Air Mattress

A Comfortable Sleeping Surface

Comfort is key anytime you’re talking about sleep, and it was the most important factor in our testing. Air mattresses aren't meant to permanently replace a traditional bed, but a good one should be comfortable enough to sleep on for a few nights. Look for a mattress that allows you to adjust the firmness level to your liking, and get into and out of bed without disturbing the person (or maybe pet) sleeping beside you.

Air Bed Chambers

Air mattresses’ comfort is affected by their internal coil system, which provides support and keeps your body aligned when you sleep. There are three main types: round coils, beam construction, and the hybrid coil-beam.

Round coils use internal, air-filled PVC cylinders to distribute your weight evenly and hold you in place. Cylindrical coils tend to be more responsive and conform to your body shape when you lie atop the mattress.

Beam construction, on the other hand, involves parallel chambers joined together with PVC strips. With beam construction, your body has to line up with the ridges to get proper support.

There are also hybrids, which often have coils in rows that can be interconnected, like beams. More than half of the mattresses we tested had hybrid coil-beam construction. Our top picks, the Coleman and SoundAsleep, are both coil construction, as is the Insta-Bed. The only mattress we tested that had beam construction alone was the Wey&Fly.

An Internal Electric Pump

Air mattresses with built-in electric pumps allow for inflation and deflation within minutes, and you don't have to keep track of extra parts as you do with external, manual pumps or battery powered pumps. The downside to an air mattress with a built-in pump is the noise. On all the mattresses we tested, the air pump was loud enough to wake someone (especially light sleepers) nearby.

A Sturdy Case

While the carrying case or storage bag is less important than the mattress itself, you'll still want something sturdy enough to carry approximately 20 pounds of folded mattress. You should feel balanced while carrying a full bag from one place to another without the handle digging into your hands or shoulder.

A Good Value

You don't want your guests sleeping on a leaky mattress that sinks into the floor by morning, but you also don't want to break the bank for something that may not see regular use.While your budget may vary, a good air mattress typically will cost between $80 and $120.

Air Mattress Warranty of at Least a Year

Look for a solid warranty when buying an air mattress. Air mattresses are made of durable materials, but can still snag on obstacles, and may gradually leak air. Sometimes air pumps go kaput after a few uses. These issues may take months, or multiple uses, to reveal themselves, which is beyond the scope of our tests.

However, most of the mattresses we tested come with a one-year warranty that covers manufacturer defects, and one even comes with a two-year warranty plus lifetime support. Hang on to your receipt and take pictures of any tears or major flaws, as you might need to submit these with a warranty claim. Check your credit card's terms and conditions, too. Some cards offer an extended warranty when you charge an item to that card.

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