Curated Finds for Summer | Sofa Beds
Hi Summer,
For your brief, I’ve focused on sofa beds that still feel like proper sofas first as you'll use it in your living room. In a compact one-bedroom flat, you'r right to prioritise a comfortable everyday sit, softer upholstery like chenille or velvet, and a bed mechanism that doesn’t make the sofa feel bulky.
I think best sofa beds should really earn their place in the room twice over, especially when they’re being used as the main sofa. I’ve also looked closely at seat depth and overall dimensions, because in a smaller living room those details can make a huge difference. Some of these are more compact and some a little more tailored, while others give you a deeper, more relaxed sit, so I’d think about which matters more day to day: saving floor space or having that slightly more loungey feel.
This is the one I can speak about most personally because I own it myself in the olive green. It’s slightly more classic in style than the other options, but for comfort and practicality I genuinely think it’s such a strong sofa bed for a smaller home. It measures with a 54cm seat depth, so it gives you a proper three-seater without taking up too much depth in the room. Opened as a bed, it becomes 190 x 142cm.
I must say, the chenille is soft, easy to live with and low maintenance, which makes it especially useful if you host often or have pets. The seat is on the firmer side, but that’s fairly typical for sofa beds, and I find the back cushions really supportive and nicely filled.
My only caveat is the seat depth. Even though I’m on the shorter side, I still find it a little shallow if I want to properly curl up. That said, for a compact room, that shallower profile is also part of why it works so well.
This is the more contemporary, generous option. It has a much softer, rounded silhouette and a 61cm seat depth, so compared with the Soho from Dusk it gives you a noticeably deeper sit. It also pulls out into a king-sized sleeping area, which is a big plus if guest comfort matters. The trade-off is scale. At 234cm wide x 104cm deep, it’s the largest of the options here, so for a very compact living room I’d definitely tape out the footprint first. West Elm rates the seat firmness at 4/5, so despite the deeper seat, it still has a fairly supportive feel.
I’d choose this one if you want the sofa to feel more relaxed and contemporary, and you have enough floor space to let it breathe.
This is the most streamlined, design-led direction. I like it if you want something that sits a little closer to the contemporary and Art Deco side of the brief, instead of looking like a conventional sofa bed. The shape feels cleaner and more tailored, so visually it should work well in a smaller room where you don’t want the sofa dominating the space. I’d use this as the style-first option in the edit, especially if you want something that feels a little more polished.
This is probably the strongest alternative if you want everyday sofa comfort without going as large as the Booker. It measures 218cm wide x 94cm deep, with a 61cm seat depth, so it still gives you that deeper, more relaxed sit while staying more compact overall.
The seat is rated medium, 3/5, and West Elm uses a double-stacked seat cushion with fibre-filled back cushions, which makes this feel much more like a proper everyday sofa instead of something designed primarily around the bed mechanism. It also pulls out into a king-sized sleeping area!
