Best Bed Frames, Expert-Tested and Reviewed (2025) 

DreamCloud’s Claremont Bed Frame earned respectable scores of 4s and above across the board, coming in at a 4.1/5 for overall score, which helped earn it the top spot on this list. My colleague Matt Schickling called this upholstered bed frame a “really good, stylish bed frame that seems pretty durable.” It’s available in two color options and is equipped with sturdy slats for a box-spring-free setup. However, the slats are easily removable, allowing you to insert an adjustable base inside the frame if you so choose. 

In addition to being my pick for the top frame, I also consider the Claremont as one of the best bed frames with a headboard included. Considering that you can bring this home for under $500 for a queen-size bed frame, we think you’re getting an excellent deal on a high-quality product. 

Once this bed arrived in our studio, Matt was able to set up and assemble this bed frame with relative ease to begin testing. It comes in two boxes, one for the base and the other for the headboard. Putting the two parts together was made simpler by the clear instructions and the  Allen wrench that was provided. 

“You had to unscrew the bolts a little bit with the Allen key to get the side boards to fit on cleanly, but ultimately they did easily,” Matt said. Fortunately, he was able to quickly screw the legs into the corners of the frame. Matt thought one person could get this entire job done, but it is easier with two and only took 20 minutes with the help of his testing partner, so he rated the assembly at 4.5/5.

When putting the frame into action, Matt thought that it “feels secure with one person on it.” He did note that if you moved particularly aggressively, there was a bit of wobbling. But this was remedied when he ensured all the bolts were tightened up. He also noticed some slipping and sliding on the hardwood floor, but it remained more stable on a rug or carpeted area. Matt noted that it was “pretty quiet,” and in turn recommended it for couples who don’t want distractions during sleep or sex.

As he moved around on the frame, Matt also found the materials used in its construction were “pretty sturdy,” and “of a good quality overall.” He noted that the headboard’s upholstery could show signs of wear and tear more quickly than wood or metal, especially if you have pets or children. And though the rest of the frame felt strongly supportive, he noted, “The slats are not as broad or sturdy as other beds we have tested.” For a sub-$500 price tag, though, it’s a level of craftsmanship that should hold up, as Matt gave the materials a 4/5 score

Alongside simple quality with a nice price, DreamCloud offers a 2-year warranty with this product. You also have 60 nights to try it out before returning, a rarity for most bed frames purchased online. “DreamCloud is known as a responsive brand,” Matt said, so you shouldn’t have any trouble contacting customer service for any concerns or to initiate a return.

If you’re looking for something with more added features, check out Silk & Snow’s Bed Frame with Storage.

Platform bed frames are great options if you don’t want to fork over the extra cash for a foundation or box spring. Most platform beds often have plenty of clearance underneath for extra storage, too. Nectar’s Bamboo Platform Bed Frame has all this and more. 

This wood platform bed frame features a no-tool setup with Japanese-style joinery that allows you to simply slot each piece together, eliminating all the hassle and resulting in a versatile, minimalist design. This is why our testers gave the assembly for this frame a perfect 5/5 rating, contributing to its overall score of 4.4/5.

Unboxing the components only took about 10 minutes, and with no tools or hardware to take stock of, Matt found the overall setup was simple. “Assembly was a breeze,” he said. It only took him and his testing partner 20 minutes to assemble this frame. He noted that one person could probably do it, but “it would be difficult to balance the legs as you’re slotting in the platform boards.” The slats were pre-assembled and were unfurled seamlessly onto the frame. 

The materials of these components are made of a solid wood that Matt called “sturdy and durable.” And though there weren’t any nuts or bolts, nothing slipped or slid out of place. “We moved the mattress from one location to another and everything stayed together well,” Matt said. The slats were also thick, which should help to keep your bed properly supported. He thought the frame as a whole should hold up for years, and gave the materials a score of 4.5/5.

The wood bed frame also held up well when Matt got on it. “I’m a heavy sleeper, and when I kind of ‘jumped’ in it, the frame did wobble a little, but not to the point of concern,” he said. However, he thought that this might not translate so well for sexually active couples, as the headboard might bang against the wall during any vigorous nightly activities. Other than that issue, though, the frame remained stable.

“The price is in-line with the quality,” Matt said about the frame on its own, as he thought the headboard was a harder bargain. “It’s only $100 less than the bed itself for the matching wood headboard,” he explained, which is the one we opted for. You can also purchase a more affordable fabric headboard with a $199 upcharge, or forgo a headboard entirely. But Matt thought the frame itself had great overall value, especially since it comes with a 2-year warranty and 60-night sleep trial. He gave the price a final score of 4/5.

Want an included headboard at a reasonable price? Take a look at DreamCloud’s Claremont frame.

Want to sleep like royalty on your king-sized bed? Look no further than Saatva’s Santorini Bed Frame. This brand provides luxury in all forms from beds to bases, and the Santorini frame exudes deceptively simple, regal elegance. 

I got to see this bad boy in our studio and was honestly awed by the level of craftsmanship. I gave it a volley of 4.5/5 scores in almost every category, including materials, assembly, and overall experience. I think its overall score of 4.4/5 is a bit modest, but perhaps I’m biased—I sleep on a Saatva mattress myself and can’t say enough nice things about this brand and its products.

If you’re worried about putting together a king-size frame, Saatva also offers in-home setup for select shoppers. However, our assembly team of two didn’t have any noticeable issues when putting it together. The headboard took an extra bit of finagling to slot into place, but the frame arrived with all the necessary tools and instructions to get it put together in just about 12 minutes. However, given the size of this frame, it would probably be a more difficult and lengthy effort for a single person. Once I evaluated all the notes, I settled on a 4.5/5 score for assembly.

During assembly, I noticed that the materials used in this frame’s construction were high-quality and comfortable. The upholstery feels soft to the touch, and the wooden bits of the frame look and feel rigid. The slats in the center are thick, evenly spaced, and unlikely to shift around when bearing the weight of your mattress. I rated the materials at a 4.5/5, as I expect this bed frame to last a long time.

Getting on the frame, I was able to move around without any wobbling. The only part that moved was the headboard, and I had to grab it and purposefully shake it to get it to wiggle. Otherwise, the frame remains steady and doesn’t make any noise, perfect for any nighttime dalliances. With its 4.5/5 experience score, I think it should be a great pick for shoppers looking for sleek stability.

The unfortunate downside to this product is the price. Saatva is a luxury brand, so it makes sense that things skew towards the higher end. Without the headboard, this bed retails at around $900, but the headboard nearly doubles it. The quality of the product definitely reflects the high price tag. Although I found the simple design elegant, I could see some folks might want more bang for their buck in the way of a flashier frame. I will note that this frame comes with a generous year-long trial and lifetime warranty, so it’s truly an investment piece.

Want something more affordable? Check out The Frame by Brooklyn Bedding.

If you feel like you’re always running out of storage and hate shoving things in bins under your bed, you might want to invest in a bed frame that not only looks good but serves a purpose. Storage bed frames allow you to keep all the clutter out of sight while maintaining a sleek, put-together design. That’s the case for Silk & Snow’s Bed Frame with Storage. 

This frame has a deep drawer that pulls out at the foot of the bed, blending in seamlessly with the upholstered sides. My fellow tester Cait Giddings felt the frame was “extremely secure,” and gave it a 4/5 for materials and a 4.5/5 for her overall experience.

Cait thought the frame was well-made overall. “The cover fabric feels pretty smooth and high-quality — not ratty or cheap,” she said. The base doesn’t seem like it will show signs of wear very quickly.” The storage compartment is located in the footboard, pulled out by a fabric handle. It’s built to look like any other side of the frame, so when tucked away, it looks like a regular upholstered frame. 

She did notice that the drawer didn’t close as smoothly as she would like, sometimes getting caught when you pulled it out. “Nor does it seem like you could store much inside there before it became too weighed down,” she added. This is why she docked a point in the materials department.

Getting onto the bed on top of the frame, though, Cait didn’t have any concerns with its stability. “I bounced a bit on the mattress and it didn’t feel like the frame would shift or break beneath me—it felt pretty rock-solid,” she said. She also didn’t notice any creaking from her zealous movements, so it should work great for sexually active folks wanting to focus on the main event, or any light sleepers who are easily awoken by noise.

This frame comes in at $700 for a queen, but sales can often bring it closer to $500. “It seems pretty high-quality to me for the price,” Cait said. She also called the company policies “excellent,” drawing attention to the free shipping, month-long trial, and 5-year warranty that come with this frame. Price and customer service therefore earned 4/5 scores.

The main issue with this frame reared its head in the assembly. The frame didn’t come with instructions, so the team had to reference a picture of the assembled frame to figure out where to start. “That said, the assemblers said it was intuitive once they started going,” Cait explained. They used a power drill to speed along the process, which took about 35 minutes. Although this isn’t horrible, the average Joe might struggle, especially if their order comes sans instructions as well.

With all that we encountered during the somewhat lengthy setup, Cait also would’ve appreciated the option of professional setup at an additional cost, especially since they forgot the instructions for us. 

Want easier assembly? Check out the Nectar Bamboo Platform Frame. 

Queen mattresses are the most popular size of mattress. They are valued for their comfort for couples and solo sleepers alike. If you’re looking to add a simplistic but modern bed frame to your queen bedroom set, you might like Helix’s Madison Bed Frame. 

This wooden bed frame is easily assembled without the use of any tools, and features wooden slats so you can set your mattress right on top once it’s all put together. My colleague Kayla Godfrey called it “a no frills bed frame” that minimalists should love. After it was put together and run through our performance tests, Kayla gave it perfect scores in assembly and experience, helping to tally up to its final score of 4.4/5. 

After unboxing the frame, Kayla had no trouble getting started. The bed is easy to install and put together without tools. “The bed took a total of 9 minutes to build, and the instructions weren’t even necessary to read. It was so easy!” Kayla said. The feet and side rails easily slid into their proper places, locking together. She had to lay out each slat, but this extra labor wasn’t enough to lower her perfect score for assembly overall.

Kayla thought that every part of the frame felt “really solid and nice.” Each component had some heft to it, and she thought the Birch wood coloring was beautiful. She noted that the slats gave her some pause. “They aren’t connected via any piece of material,” she explained. “I’m worried they will shift more with this construction.” Rather than clicking into place or being screwed in, these are simply laid over the gap in the center of the frame. She did knock off a point for this, giving the materials category a score of 4/5.

After setting a mattress on top of the frame, Kayla hopped on to see how it held up. Typical movements like rolling around didn’t yield any noticeable noise. When Kayla bounced aggressively on the bed, however, she could hear the slats jostling underneath the mattress. “However, this was aggressively trying to get it to make noise,” she said, “so for most sleepers this shouldn’t be an issue.” Again, it wasn’t enough to deter her from giving another perfect score for her experience.

Kayla did have some qualms about the price, which she rated at 3/5. “I would give this a 4 if it was $100 less,” she said, finding the $700+ price tag a little pricey for the simple design. She felt that the materials were sturdy, but personally, “I wouldn’t want to pay more than $500 for a queen platform.” Even with the frame’s 30-night trial and generous 5-year warranty, she recommended waiting for a sale or using a coupon.

Looking for more frills? Try an adjustable frame like the Saatva Adjustable Base Plus.

Looking to elevate your sleep experience? Adjustable bases and frames are a great way to level up an already comfortable setup. Our chief medical advisor Dr. Raj Dasgupta recommends these bases for certain shoppers. “Adjustable bases are great for older adults, those with pain concerns, or folks who like to read or watch TV in bed, looking to reduce strain on the spine,” he said. They offer features like massage, individual head and foot positioning, and pre-set positions like zero-gravity and anti-snore. 

Saatva’s Adjustable Base Plus checks all these boxes and more. My colleague Marten Carlson tried this frame and had an overwhelmingly positive experience, leading us to award this bed a 4.5/5 overall score.

The adjustable base arrived nearly intact and ready for use. As Marten put it, “It’s basically already built for you.” You just have to get it out of the box, flip it over, screw in the legs, and then flip it back upright to plug it in. While Marten thought the process was simple, he notes that this base is very heavy and wouldn’t recommend setting it up on your own. He had to call a coworker for help. Thus, the frame earned a 4/5 for assembly. 

The base’s frame is made of steel, while the platform on top is made of fabric-covered foam. A metal retaining bar at the edge keeps your bed from sliding off. The legs are made from plastic, which can seem like a downside in terms of durability, but this is so they can easily be adjusted for height. You can even unscrew them for what’s called “zero clearance,” where the base can be placed directly on top of an already built platform frame or box spring. With all this in mind, we rated the materials at 4.5/5. 

The Saatva Adjustable Base Plus has many features we could expound upon for ages. Marten’s favorite was the massage. “I enjoyed the wave function, and the targeted head and foot area massage was strong enough for me to feel it through the thick Saatva Latex Hybrid mattress,” he said. He also found adjusting the frame to be relatively easy with the wireless remote. He also thought it kept quiet, saying it “didn’t have that kind of screeching sound I’ve heard with other models.”

Another feature Marten liked was the bed’s wall-hugging ability. This is a measure of how far your adjustable base comes away from the wall when you’re using it. If you elevate the head on some bases, you end up being pushed away from the wall, possibly out of reach of your nightstand. This isn’t the case with the Saatva. “The entire base moves back towards the wall as the head area goes up, so you’re staying in line with your bedroom furniture.”

Unfortunately, this base doesn’t come with a sleep trial, so there isn’t an option to return it. Since it costs nearly $1,600 for a queen-size, it may be a risk for some folks who like to try before they buy. Still, it is backed up by a generous 25-year warranty, should anything go awry—and as an owner of a Saatva mattress myself, I have nothing but good things to say about the brand’s customer service.

Want a sleep trial with your Saatva bed frame? Take a look at Saatva’s Santorini Platform Frame instead. You can also read more about this frame in our Saatva Adjustable Base Plus review.

Maybe you’re not after high-end bed frames or remote-controlled bases, but just a base that keeps your mattress off the ground without breaking the bank. Brooklyn Bedding, known for its affordable yet high-quality products, has a frame for you. 

Simply named “The Frame,” this metal bed frame is made from reclaimed U.S. railroad tracks, keeping things durable despite its sub-$200 price tag. It also features tool-free, click-in assembly. With this in mind, it’s unsurprising that the frame earned two perfect scores in the price and assembly categories, leading to an overall score of 4.4/5.

According to my colleague Kayla Godfrey, this bed frame only took a mere five minutes to install. “The rails didn’t need any assembly and came ready to put together,” she said, calling it a “very easy design overall!” Even with the perfect score it earned in assembly, I’ll note that this frame requires a foundation or box spring for proper use, so make sure that you have both on hand to be prepared for setup. 

Kayla noted that the bed frame was basic, and the lack of box spring, foundation, or headboard led her to knock a few points off in terms of materials. However, it still held up against force. When our team moved the frame around the studio or simply shook it, it didn’t make any noise. “The metal does not clang or shift and feels really solid,” Kayla said. 

How sturdy the frame itself feels in use may also depend on whatever foundation you use with it, but you have plenty of leeway; Brooklyn Bedding notes this frame can support up to 2,500 pounds, plenty of room for any foundation and mattress, plus the folks on top. 

Where this bed really stands out, obviously, is the price. A queen-size frame costs only $175, with sales bringing it down to about $130. It’s also backed by a fairly generous 3-year warranty and 30-day return policy. It’s difficult to find a heavy-duty frame that doesn’t break the $500 mark, but if you choose the Frame, you may have to purchase a box spring or headboard if you don’t have one on hand. Still, as Kayla said, “I think this is a great price for someone just looking for a way to elevate their bed off the ground and be able to install and break down quickly.” 

Want a base that doesn’t need a foundation? Check out the Helix Madison Bed Frame.