What is a futon?

A futon is a space-saving new-style sofa-sleeper that can be a sofa by day, bed by night. Futons are versatile with many different styles and colors to choose from, yet ideal with functionality to allow for overnight guests or as a primary bed anywhere in your home. Comfort, simplicity and space-saving efficiency are qualities that appeal to young and old alike.

Why would I prefer a futon over a sofa, bed or sofa-sleeper?

A futon is all of these wrapped up into one! A futon can easily transform from bed to sofa and back again. It will, in most cases, take up less room than a sofa-sleeper and weighs much less so it will be easier to move as needed. A futon in its sofa position will take up less space than a bed for during the day but can convert easily into a bed for night. A futon is comfortable and versatile for all of its functional and aesthetic purposes.

How do I go about picking out a futon?

The best advice we can give is to start by picking out a frame type and size that you like and that will fit the space you have available. You must compare the dimensions of the frame to the available space of where you would like to place your futon. Your available space may determine what size or style of futon will work best for you. Please refer to types and sizes for more information.

After you have decided on what frame size and type will work best for you, then you must decide on a futon mattress. The size of the mattress will depend on the size of frame that you have decided on. The quality of mattress will depend on what type of use the futon will be getting and what your mattress preferences are. For example, if you will be using your futon in a primary bedroom for everyday sleep then you may want to look into an "ultimate" quality mattress that matches your sleep preference for a soft, medium, or firm mattress. If you will be using the futon in a guestroom for occasional company then perhaps a "standard" quality mattress will do. Please refer Choosing a Futon Mattress for more information.

The last step to picking out your new futon is to dress it up! This is when you can pick out a mattress cover and ensemble based on the mattress size and your personal dￃﾩcor. We have a wide selection of futon mattress covers with coordinating pillows, bolsters and accessories. Please refer to Choosing a Futon Cover for more information.

Futon Frame Terminology:

What is a back rest?

The back rest is the slat rack which the user leans back on when a futon is in the sitting, or sofa, position.

What is a seat rack?

The seat rack is the slat rack on which the user sits when a futon is in the sitting position.

What is a slat rack?

Slat racks are the platforms on which the futon rests for both convertible futon frames and stationary platform beds.

What is a tri-fold futon frame?

A convertible futon frame that utilizes three slat racks. The futon mattress can hang over the back of the frame, be folded under itself on the seat rack, or lay flat as a chaise lounge style seat. The tri-fold allows the futon mattress to fold twice along its usually shorter width. This is also referred to as an A-frame futon.

What is a wall-hugger?

A wall-hugger is a frame that can open to its bed position without moving the base of the frame away from the wall. We categorize wall-huggers by their tolerance. A zero tolerance wall-hugger can be placed directly against the wall and still not touch the wall when converting. Other wall-huggers must be placed a short distance from the wall. These are called two, three, four, etc. inch tolerance wall-huggers. A-frame, or tri-fold, futons would not be classified as wall-huggers. Bi-fold and Pullout futons can be wall-huggers but some may need to be pulled out from the wall slightly more than others.

How do I go about choosing a futon frame?

It is best to start out with measurements of the total space you have available for a futon. This will help you determine the type and size of futon or futon collection/group that you have room for. How much wall space do you have for a futon to go against? How far out from the wall can the futon extend when in the sofa position versus in the bed position?

Futon Frame Types:

What is a bi-fold futon frame?

The most common frame is called a bi-fold. This frame is the quickest and easiest frame to convert from sofa to bed, and back again. This frame has a seat rack & back rest that allow for only 1 fold in the mattress. They measure 75" inside the arms for a full size and 80" inside the arms for a queen. When opened as a bed, a full size measures 54" from the wall to the front of the frame, and a queen measures 60".

Bi-Fold Positions

What is a pull-out futon frame?

Futon pull out frames are perfect for small spaces. They offer the same sleeping size as the bi-fold frames, but you would sleep in a different direction than you would on a bi-fold, which allows the pull out frames to take up less space than the bi-folds. Some loveseats have a built in ottoman, kick out recliner piece, and others use a separate ottoman with legs that attach to the frame. This option is not difficult to convert but does require more work than the bi-fold frames.

Pull Out Positions

What is an A-frame futon?

The A-frame futon, or tri-fold style, drapes the futon mattress over the back of the frame or folded under itself on the seat rack while in sofa position. This option is good for small spaces because it folds the mattress in thirds the short way on the frame. Because the mattress needs to easily fold into thirds, a thinner mattress must be used. This option is more difficult to convert from sofa to bed than the bi-fold or pull out options because the frame will need to be pulled out away from the wall for bed position.

ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠA-Frame Positions

What are the different sizes of futon frames?

Twin Size - this size futon while in its bed position is similar to a twin size bed. A twin size futon is only available in Pullout or A-frame futons. In its chair position this will appear wider than a regular chair so that it can meet the dimensions of a twin size bed when in its bed position.

ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠ Twin size futons can come in pull out or A-frame types.

Chair Size w/ optional Ottoman - this is not as wide as the twin size futon because it is more based on a chair size. It has an optional ottoman that will usually sell separately and does not connect to the chair. The chair w/ optional ottoman is not recommended to comfortably sleep an adult. The chair size in bed position without the ottoman will be about 10 inches narrower and 20 inches shorter than the twin size in bed position. The ottoman is recommended as an accessory with the bi-fold full or queen futon frames.

ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠ Chair size futons come in bi-fold frames types.

Full Size - this is the standard size futon that looks most like a typical sofa. The "full" size refers to the size of the futon while in the bed position because it will resemble the size of a full size bed. The full size futon makes the best everyday sofa by comfortably seating 3 adults and sleeping 2 adults.

ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠ Full size futons can come in bi-fold, pull out or A-frame styles.

Queen Size - the queen size futon frame while in the bed position resembles the size of a queen size bed. This size increase from the full size causes the back seat of a bi-fold futon to stick up approximately 6 inches higher than the back seat cushion of a full size bi-fold. This higher back will alter the look and feel of the frame while in the sofa position. A queen size futon will comfortably sleep 2 adults and seat 3 adults.

ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠ Queen size futons can come in bi-fold, pull out or A-frame styles.

ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠ Bi-Fold Type Sizes ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠ Pull-out Type Sizes

What are the dimensions of the futon frames?

ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠBi-Fold Frame Dimensions ￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠￂﾠ Pull Out & A-Frame Dimensions

Bi-Fold Frame Type	A	B	C	D	E	F	Pull Out & A-Frame Types	A	B	C	D	E	F
Chair (inch)	28	34-41	34	36	21-27	54	Twin (inch)	39	44-50	33	43	22-26	74
Full (inch)	74	80-87	34	36	22-27	54	Full (inch)	54	59-65	33	43	22-26	74
Queen (inch)	79	85-92	38	39	22-27	58	Queen (inch)	60	65-71	37	43	22-26	78

How do I go about choosing a futon mattress?

Futon Mattress Terminology:

What is an innerspring futon mattress?

- futon mattress with an actual inner system of metal coils for added, durable support. Not recommended with futon frames that require the mattress to fold more than once. Highly recommended for bi-fold futons that will be the primary bed and for platform beds.

What is a cotton/poly fill futon mattress?

- mattresses that contain a cotton and polyester fill. These mattresses can develop a body impression which is natural for this type of fill. Cotton fabrics will allow the mattress to breathe, helping to adjust to weather and keep you cool in the summer and warm in the winter. A high fill of polyester will not allow the mattress to breathe as much as cotton and may hold in the heat during the summer and cold in winter.

What is the difference between soft, medium, and firm mattresses?

Soft - this is a mattress preference. A softer mattress will allow your body to sink into the mattress more because it has a higher content of cotton/poly fill and/or a less dense inner foam core. This would be the easiest to use on an A-frame, or tri-fold, futon because it will easily fold twice for the seated position.

Medium - this is a mattress preference. A medium mattress will allow your body to sink into the mattress some, but will offer a good amount of support. Its inner make up will have a more dense foam core and less cotton/poly fill around the foam than the soft mattress.

Firm - this is a mattress preference. A firm mattress will allow for complete body support with very little cotton/poly fill between the inner foam core and the mattress cover. A mattress filled with majority of dense foam core will allow for a firm mattress feel that will not let your body sink into it as much as a medium.

What is the difference between standard, deluxe, and ultimate mattresses?

Standard - this is a mattress quality term that we use. A standard quality mattress would be recommended for a futon that will not be getting everyday use. These are good mattresses but may not satisfy someone who is planning on using theirfuton as their everyday living room set or primary bed. These are usually not as thick as the deluxe and ultimate and can work better on an A-frame, or tri-fold, futon frame.

Deluxe - this is a mattress quality term that we use. A deluxe quality mattress would be highly recommended for the majority of futon users. This is a great quality mattress that will stand up to regular use of a futon and offer great support for sitting, sleeping and lounging on your new futon.

Ultimate - this is a mattress quality term that we use. An ultimate quality mattress is definitely recommended for all futons. This would probably end up being the most satisfying for a futon that would be used in an everyday living space or as a primary bed. Some of the ultimate mattresses are not recommended with A-frame, or tri-fold, futons because they cannot easily fold twice for the seated positions.

How do I go about choosing a futon cover?

This is where you get to dress up your new futon to make it fit your own personal style and dￃﾩcor. We have a vast variety of covers to choose from. They may vary in fabric content and care instructions. Please see the individual product pages for more information.

What is an accent pillow?

An accent pillow is a complimenting accessory to your futon ensemble. They can be the same fabric as your cover, a complimenting solid color, or a fun, wild color opposite the color of your cover. It all depends on your style and dￃﾩcor. They are usually square and can range from 16" x 16" to 20" x 20" with varying fabric content depending on the item chosen. Please see the individual product pages for more information.

What is a bolster pillow?

A bolster pillow is a complimenting accessory to your futon ensemble. They can be the same fabric as your cover, a complimenting solid color, or a fun, wild color opposite the color of your cover. It all depends on your style and dￃﾩcor. They are a cylindrical shape and can range from 6" diameter and 12" long to 9" diameter and 40" long. Please see the individual product pages for more information.

Are there accent tables available for my futon?

Most futon frames that have tables to match will have the tables offered before the final checkout procedure. If not found, try a quick search by the futon frame name or go to the accessories tab and view the accent tables.