What is a rolled mattress?

As explained above, rolled mattresses are exactly the same as normal mattresses but they are rolled up and put in a box before being delivered to your door. All you have to do is carry the easy-to-transport box to the room of your choice,  take your mattress out of the box, put it on your bed and let it expand - simple!

There are many different names for roll-up mattresses, so you may have heard any of the following to describe them:

• Bed-in-a-box mattress
• Mattress in a box
• Rolled mattress
• Vacuum-packed mattress
• Pre-rolled mattress
• Roll-out mattress
• Compressed mattress
• Expanding mattress
• Ready-rolled mattress

All of these names just refer to a mattress that arrives pre-packaged in a box.

What is the difference between rolled and flat mattresses?

The only difference between bed-in-a-box mattresses and traditional flat mattresses is that bed-in-a-box mattresses come pre-rolled and packaged in a box.

Rolled mattresses have the same 7-year life span as standard mattresses. There is a common misconception that most roll-up mattresses contain only foam, but this is not the case. Whether you prefer pocket springs or natural fillings in your mattress, there is a rolled option to cater for your needs.

Shop all rolled mattresses now

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Are roll-up mattresses good?

Roll-up mattresses are a great option to consider when looking for a new mattress, especially if you’re looking to have your mattress delivered or if you’re moving house. Below we explain their main benefits. Rolled mattresses are:

• Easier to move to your room of choice
• Perfect if you live in a flat or building where access is limited
• More eco-friendly as we can fit more mattresses into each delivery, reducing your carbon footprint
• Often more affordable 
• Able to be stored for up to three months, which is great if you need to store a new mattress while moving house

You should remember that when you first unroll a bed-in-a-box mattress, it may have a slightly synthetic smell. This is just because the smell of the fire retardant substance that all mattresses contain has built up in the vacuum sealed packaging. This will wear off within two days, but airing out your mattress in a bedroom with the window open can help speed up this process.

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How do they put a mattress in a box?

Here’s how manufacturers manage to get full sizes mattresses into a box. The mattress is:

1. Initially constructed the same as a flat mattress
2. Placed in a protective bag
3. Flattened in a compression machine
4. Vacuum packed and heat sealed
5. Rolled using a tumbler and sealed again
6. Placed in a box ready to be delivered to your door

Airpsrung have made this handy video to show you how their process works:

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How to open a rolled up mattress

Rolled up mattresses are super easy to set up! Here’s how to unpack your mattress from its box:

1. Take the mattress out of the box
2. Place it on your bed
3. Open up the packaging
4. Unroll the mattress
5. Leave the mattress for as long as possible to expand - we recommend leaving it for 8 hours if possible
6. Once fully expanded, your mattress is ready to sleep on!

Here’s a quick video from Silentnight showing how to open your bed-in-a-box mattress:

How long should you leave a rolled mattress before you sleep on it?

You should not sleep on your bed-in-a-box mattress straight away.

Almost all roll-up mattresses will expand within the first 1 to 2 hours of being unrolled; however, they usually take up to 8 hours to be fully ready to sleep on.

In some circumstances, some mattresses can take up to 24 hours to regain their original shape. You should always check the manufacturer’s guidance for how long to leave your rolled mattress before sleeping on it.

Leaving your mattress for the recommended time allows the comfort fillings and support systems to expand and settle. If you sleep on your brand new roll-up mattress before it’s suitable for use, you risk damaging the fillings inside, which could impact the look and feel of the mattress.

How long can you leave a mattress in a box?

You can leave your mattress-in-a-box for up to three months, but we recommend unrolling them within the first few weeks of being delivered so that your mattress is as comfortable and supportive as possible.

This just eliminates the potential for any fillings, foam or springs inside to become misshapen or damaged.

This guidance can change between mattress brands, so you should check the manufacturer's care guide to see how long you can leave your mattress in its box for.

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Can you re-pack a mattress in a box?

No, you cannot re-roll a mattress in a box, they are designed to be unrolled only once.

Attempting to re-roll any kind of mattress can severely damage the fillings and will change the look and feel of your mattress. When roll-up mattresses are made, they are specially designed to be rolled and packaged by machines to be unrolled only once in their lifetime.

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Which mattresses come rolled up?

Almost every type of mattress you can think of is available as a rolled mattress, so you don’t have to worry about not being able to find a mattress that suits your preferences.

The following mattress types have rolled options for you to browse:

• Memory foam
• Pocket sprung
• Orthopaedic
• Standard sprung
• Gel foam
• Natural fillings
• Reflex foam
• Pillow top
• Single-sided
• Hypoallergenic
• Kids

We also sell roll-up mattresses in all UK standard sizes and European sizes, so you can be sure we have a mattress to fit your bed.

Whether you prefer a standard flat mattress or would like to try out a rolled mattress, we have plenty of options for you to choose from, no matter what you decide.

Browse all of our rolled up mattresses

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Roll-up mattress FAQs

We realise that you may have many more questions about roll-up mattresses, so here we’ve answered as many as possible for you:

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The best bed-in-a-box mattresses

Here are our best-selling rolled mattresses and our strong customer favourites! All of our bed-in-a-box mattresses are available with a free 60-Night Sleep Trial and Free Next Day Delivery.

Here’s what one happy customer had to say about the Luna 1000:

The description of the matress isn't hype, it really is as good as described. It's worth every penny that I spent on it. I often used to wake up because I was in pain during the night, and so far after about a month using it, that hasn't happened. I absolutely love it.

Susan

Here’s what one customer had to say about the Horizon Odyssey:

I love this mattress. Very comfortable to sleep on. We have never bought a mattress online without having seen or felt it. Bit risky but we are pleased. Its certainly good value for money.

Esther

Here’s what one customer had to say about the SleepSoul Cloud:

I'm not exaggerating when I say that this is one of the best things I've ever purchased… This mattress has that high-end hotel bed feel, is incredibly supportive and divine.

Amy

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We hope we’ve been able to answer your questions about everything to do with roll-up mattresses! If you still have unanswered questions, feel free to get in touch with our helpful Customer Service team who can give you all the information you need.

Why not check out our collection of roll-up mattresses and find the perfect one for you today? It can be with you as soon as tomorrow with our Free Next Day Delivery.