Have you been losing sleep over whether you should put your mattress on the floor? Well, now you can kick back and relax because we’ve done all the research to help you put the matter to rest.

Read on for info and tips on hitting the hay without a bed frame, whether there are any health risks you should know about, and how to make yourself as comfortable as possible.

Should You Sleep on the Floor?

Mattresses are usually used with a quality bed frame to support them. However, some people prefer to place mattresses on the floor. Whether you’ll be as snug as a bug in a rug with your mattress on the floor depends on your sleeping style.

  • Side sleepers would need a soft to medium-firm mattress since placing a mattress on the floor and lying in this position can put extra pressure on the joints, hips and shoulders, making sleep uncomfortable.
  • Back and stomach sleepers might enjoy sleeping on the floor but on a medium-firm to firm mattress to prevent spinal misalignment.
  • Sleeping on the floor is also likely to be pleasant for people with back pain, poor circulation and edema since it offers the best support and improves blood flow. However, what might be tricky is the getting-up part.
  • Hot sleepers might also relish the experience of sleeping on the floor because it’s the coldest place in the room, giving those who tend to sweat two less degrees of heat.

Is Your Mattress Suitable for Floor Sleeping?

Does your mattress have any of the following features? If so, it might be compatible with simply being plopped onto the floor:

Read More: 10+ Hot Sleeper Solutions to Help You Stay Cool at Night

On the other hand, a memory foam mattress is definitely not suitable for the floor—the high-density foam isn’t breathable, and putting it on the ground would exacerbate that.

  • A thicker profile—to prevent additional stiffness from being closer to the hard floor, a high-profile mattress is preferable to a low-profile one.
  • An eco-friendly material—to allow better air circulation and breathability, lowering your chances of getting bed bugs as your bedfellows.
  • Having inner springs or open spaces and holes for better ventilation.

What to Do Before Placing a Mattress on the Floor

Another thing to consider is what kind of flooring you have in your bedroom. The most suitable materials for putting a mattress on the floor are tile and hardwood.

If you’ve decided to go this route, the steps to prepare the surface for it are:

Benefits of Sleeping on the Floor

Let’s take a quick look at what placing your mattress on the floor can do for you:

  • Clean the flooring surface with bleach and disinfectants to kill germs and bacteria.

To keep your floors clean and dust-free, consider our robot vacuum reviews for Australia and find the cleaner for your preferences.

  • Make sure not to place your mattress on or around humid areas which are prone to condensation (this can cause mold and mildew to develop).
  • If the floor doesn’t have a carpet, use a polythene or foam layering sheet to add insulation.
  • If your bed is still under warranty, make sure to check if putting it on the floor would void it.

Trundle beds can be an excellent solution if you live in a smaller place, and some of the best sofa beds work great as space savers.

  • Improve your mattress’s firmness
  • Save you space, making it ideal for tiny apartments and small bedrooms
  • Save you the money you’d spend on a bed frame
  • Help you with back pain, allowing better spinal alignment
  • Improve your overall blood circulation
  • Help you if you have edema
  • Lower your risk of scoliosis and sciatica
  • If you’re a hot sleeper, switching to a floor mattress for sleeping might help since colder air tends to drop lower to the ground

Disadvantages of Sleeping on the Floor

Now let’s go through the potential drawbacks:

What About a Specially Designed Mattress for the Floor?

A foldable floor mattress

Lightweight, portable, and much less expensive than standard ones, these tri-fold mattresses regularly come in smaller sizes (a queen-size is the biggest you’ll find).

  • Being closer to the floor makes it more likely for you to breathe in all the dust particles.
  • It requires more frequent cleaning.
  • Your bedding is always going to slip and touch the dusty floor.
  • You’d need to lift the mattress at least once a week and prop it up against the wall to combat humidity and allow better air circulation.
  • Being more exposed to dust mites and bed bugs might not be a good idea for people with allergies and asthma.
  • Moisture issues due to lack of ventilation can result in mold, mildew and bed bugs.
  • Snakes and small reptiles are very common Down Under, and them entering your house is highly probable. Sleeping on the floor can put you in danger, making you more prone to coming into contact with them.
  • The floor is the coldest area of the room, which can get tricky in winter.
  • All of these issues could void your mattress warranty.

Read more: How to clean a stained mattress?

Usually, they’re made of foam, and you may even find memory foam ones. An additional benefit is that almost every model of these can be folded up and used as a chair bed.

A roll up floor mattress

Also known as a Japanese bed, a roll-up mattress is more like an oversized mattress pad, and on the plus side, they can even serve as mattress toppers if you usually sleep on a bed and not the floor.

Wrapping It All Up

The bottom line is—putting your mattress on the floor isn’t suitable for every type of sleeper, and not every mattress type will help you get your beauty sleep without additional support.

It all depends on your particular situation and goals—whether it’s to alleviate a health issue or save some dough.

You can always go for a roll-up or foldable floor mattress to test it out first.

1. What to put under the mattress on the floor?

To prevent slipping and improve insulation, putting down a polythene or foam layer sheet is the best solution. If you use a rug, make sure it’s not made of latex or any natural organic material that can retain humidity.

2. Is it bad to put a mattress on the floor?

Though there are more cons, it can significantly help with certain health problems, such as blood circulation, swelling and back pain, so it might be worth a shot. However, keep in mind that if your mattress is still under warranty, putting it on the floor might void it.

3. Which type of mattress is best for the floor?

An innerspring mattress is the best regular type of mattress to place on the ground. However, there are specially designed mattresses for this purpose: the roll-up (Japanese tatami) or the foldable floor mattress.

4. Can you put a box spring on the floor?

You absolutely can. Moreover, it’s recommended for improving ventilation and airflow, preventing humidity and other health risks such as mold, dust and bed bugs.