# Hidden bed, hideaway bed, closet bed: which product do you actually mean?

Hidden bed, hideaway bed, closet bed, couch with hidden bed, fold up bed into wall. What each phrase actually means and which one to buy for a Utah room.

Source: https://beehive-wallbeds.pages.dev/hidden-bed/

People in Utah search for hidden beds a few hundred times a month, and the phrase covers at least four different pieces of furniture. Some are real wood cabinets with a 12 inch mattress. Some are couches with a folding pad inside. Here is what each phrase means, which product it points to, and which room it belongs in.

## The phrases and what they point to

What people type What it usually means Real bed or furniture?
hidden bed, hideaway bed Either a wall bed or a sofa bed, depending on who is selling Both, check which
wall mounted bed, fold up bed into wall A murphy bed, anchored to studs or concrete Real bed, full mattress
couch with hidden bed, sofa with hidden bed A sofa bed with the mattress inside the seat Furniture, thin mattress
sofa with wall bed A murphy bed cabinet with a sofa built in front of it Real bed, full mattress
closet bed, murphy closet A murphy bed built into a closet opening Real bed, full mattress
hideaway bed cabinet, murphy bed chest A cabinet chest bed, freestanding, mattress pulls out Real bed, thinner tri-fold mattress
pull down beds for small rooms A vertical or horizontal murphy bed Real bed, full mattress

## The cabinet beds: real wood, real mattress

**Wall mounted bed, fold up bed into wall, pull down bed.** These all describe the classic [wall bed](/wall-beds/). The cabinet anchors to the wall, the bed pivots down on pistons, and the mattress is a normal 10 to 12 inch one you would sleep on every night. A queen cabinet is about 65 inches wide and 87 to 90 inches tall closed. Built locally in real wood or plywood, the 2026 ladder puts one at $4,400 to $6,500 installed.

**Sofa with wall bed.** The sofa sits against the cabinet face and the bed folds down over it, so the sofa never moves and the room reads as a living room by day. This is the product people want when they type couch with hidden bed, and it is the one that sleeps well. Details on the [murphy bed with sofa](/murphy-bed-with-sofa/) page.

**Closet bed.** A murphy bed sized to an existing closet. The closet doors stay, the rod and shelf come out, and the bed lives behind the doors. It only works if the opening clears the cabinet width, 45 inches for a twin up to 65 for a queen, and the ceiling inside the closet is tall enough to tip the cabinet up during install.

**Hideaway bed cabinet, murphy bed chest.** The one hidden bed that needs no anchoring. The chest is about 40 inches tall and 64 inches wide for a queen, and the mattress unfolds out of it to about 80 inches. The mattress is a tri-fold, so it is thinner than a wall bed mattress. Real-wood versions run $1,400 to $2,800. Full page: [cabinet bed](/cabinet-bed/).

## The sofa beds: furniture first, bed second

A couch with a hidden bed is a sofa with a metal frame and a 4 to 5 inch mattress folded inside the seat. It costs less than a cabinet bed, it is sold at every furniture store in Salt Lake and Orem, and it works for a kid's sleepover. For an adult guest staying three nights, or a parent visiting for two weeks, it is the thing they will complain about on the drive home. If the room has to sleep adults more than a handful of nights a year, a wall bed with a sofa is the better spend.

## Which one for which room

- **Living room in a condo, no spare bedroom.** Sofa with wall bed. Full mattress, sofa stays.
- **Home office that hosts guests.** Vertical wall bed, or a [murphy bed with desk](/murphy-bed-with-desk/) if the desk is the point.
- **Basement with a 7 foot 6 inch ceiling.** A [horizontal murphy bed](/horizontal-murphy-bed/). Pull down beds for small rooms almost always means horizontal once the ceiling is measured.
- **Rental or a room you will reconfigure.** A cabinet chest bed, because it moves with you.
- **A closet you do not use.** A closet bed, if the opening is wide enough.
- **Kid's room, occasional sleepover.** A sofa bed is fine here. Save the money.

## What we do with this

We design and sell the cabinet versions: wall beds, sofa wall beds, desk beds and cabinet beds, built to order in Utah and installed by partner crews. We do not sell sofa beds. If a sofa bed is the right answer for your room we will say so on the design visit, which is free.

Send the room to the [estimate form](/estimate/), tell us who sleeps there and how often, and we reply the same business day with the honest pick.

## Questions people ask

**What is a hidden bed?**

Any bed that disappears when you are not sleeping on it. In practice the phrase covers two different products, a wall bed that folds up into a cabinet and a sofa bed that folds into a couch. The wall bed has a real mattress, the sofa bed has a thin one.

**Is a couch with a hidden bed the same as a murphy bed with a sofa?**

No. A couch with a hidden bed is a sofa bed, with the mattress folded inside the seat. A murphy bed with a sofa is a wall cabinet with a sofa in front of it, and the bed folds down over the sofa. The second one sleeps like a normal bed.

**What is a closet bed?**

Usually a murphy bed built into a closet opening, so the closet doors hide the cabinet. It works when the closet is at least as wide as the bed cabinet and deep enough for the closed bed, about 16 to 18 inches.

**Can a hidden bed be freestanding?**

A cabinet chest bed is. It is about 40 inches tall, the mattress pulls out of it, and nothing attaches to the wall. Every other hidden bed with a full-thickness mattress anchors to the wall for safety.

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Beehive Wall Beds: Custom murphy beds, designed in your home, along the Wasatch Front. Design and sales company; beds built by Utah craftsmen and installed by partner crews. Free in-home design visits. hello@beehivewallbeds.com