Depending on your tolerance, some level of clutter in the home is acceptable.
Coffee table books and candles in the living room, novelty salt and pepper mills on the dining table. Decorative vases in the hallway and travel souvenirs punctuating bookcases. They all make a home feel comfortable and lived-in. They’re soothing, welcoming additions that convey character, helping you put your stamp on the place you call home.
Then there’s clutter of the other kind. Kids' toys, shoes spilling into the hall and baskets upon baskets of laundry screaming to be put away into already-at-capacity cupboards and drawers. It's this flavour of clutter that can wreck the good vibes of a home. If left to fester, it quickly becomes overwhelming. Instead of being relaxing, home triggers a cluster headache. That’s why, whether your home is large or small, decent storage is essential.
While you can put up shelves for baskets and cram in more cupboards, the smart way to magic up storage when space isn’t on your side is to make bigger pieces of furniture - the sofa, the bed, the ottoman - work harder by choosing models that include hidden compartments. This way you’re erasing clutter without allowing storage to encroach on precious space.
Beds are perfect for this. The large frames hold a bounty of storage potential under the mattress and slats, which bags of vacuum-packed apparel, towels and bedding can be slid into. The better option? A storage bed.
The best storage bed designs cleverly combine style and on-point aesthetics with form, functionality and discreet extra compartments.
There are ottoman beds which feature gas-lift hydraulics to help you lift the base and reveal the chasm of space underneath. These are elite storage beds, making full use of a space that would otherwise be dead (save, perhaps, for a few dust bunnies).
Divan styles with pull-out drawers are an alternative, allowing you to organise each space for all treasures you don't want on show all the time - think seasonal decor, books and guest bed linen. Some beds incorporate shelves - hidden or prominent to make a feature of them - meaning your latest page-turner is too far from your reach.
If you like the idea of multi-use furniture plus an easy storage solution, we've rounded up the best storage beds below.
Many cost a little more than a standard bed frame, but for the space-saving benefits they offer, we reckon they're worth the extra cash.
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DUSK Middleton Ottoman Storage Bed
With a beautiful tall buttoned headboard and cream upholstery, this bed looks straight out of a country B&B. Lift the slatted base at the end, though, and you'll find a cavernous storage space, split horizontally to help you section your non-essentials. The design, which will require some assembly, is offered in double, king and superking sizes.
Buy now £359.00, DUSK
Furniture123 Cream Fabric Double Ottoman Bed with Legs - Amara
Looking straight out of a country B&B, this upholstered bed frame comes complete with a buttoned Chesterfield headboard, making it look far more expensive than the ticket price.
Also available in green, grey, black and navy blue options, the design features an end lift to access the storage space underneath, supporting up to 55kg when open which should be enough to bear the weight of most mattresses.
Finished with a set of dark wood legs, the midcentury look promises to make the perfect focal point in any bedroom.
Buy now £399.97, Furniture123
Copenhagen Upholstered Ottoman TV Bed - Shell
Offering an elegant take on the TV bed, this design from Time4Sleep is another space-saver. It features ottoman storage beneath the sprung slatted base (with three times more storage space than a traditional drawer divan) plus space for a TV measuring a max of 42 inches at the foot, easily lifted up and down with the help of a remote control.
There’s even a shelf in the base of the bed to store gaming consoles.
Buy now £749.00, Time4Sleep
Divan Base Direct Signature Ottoman Storage End Lift Divan Bed Base
Combine a divan base with an ottoman-style opening and what do you get? One hardworking bed frame that gives you plenty of storage too. A headboard and mattresses can be added onto the base purchase, allowing you to get everything you need in one go, or you can forgo the extras if you already have the other bedding bits in place.
Made from white wood and boasting an end lift, the under-bed storage is divided into two compartments, making it easier to organise your things. The frame is finished with upholstery which comes in various colours to suit your space.
Buy now £299.95, Divan Base Direct
Home Treats Upholstered Bed Single
An ottoman-style bed makes a fantastic addition to spare rooms, giving you space to store extra duvets and bedclothes, preventing wardrobes from looking overstuffed.
This bed, finished with pale grey-coloured linen, lifts to reveal a swathe of space under the strong spun wooden slats. Putting the bed together is a self-assembly job, so one to crack out the toolbox for.
Buy now £189.99, Amazon
Wade Logan Asbed Murphy Bed
Going from a blank cupboard with doors to a bed with space for a UK double mattress, this folding design is perfect for multifunctional rooms, studio flats and spare rooms. It features a silent operating system helped with a pneumatic mechanism and there are straps to hold the duvet in place so you don't have to worry about storage.
The mattress is not included, and if you're buying one, it should be no thicker than 20cm and lighter than 18kg, otherwise, you might find it challenging to fold the bed away. When unfolded, the under-bed space measures 25cm high, giving your guest somewhere to tuck away their bags.
Comes with a one-year warranty.
Buy now £959.99, Wayfair
Furniture Village Javier Ottoman Bed Frame
If you're spending more time than ever at home, and you're tired of the acceleration of wear and tear on furniture like beds, sofas and dining tables, it's time to secure yourself an upgrade for less. Swap your tired pieces for brand-new items at Furniture Village, which often sees markdowns in its sales. Case in point, this Javier Ottoman Bed Frame which comes with extra storage under the base and has £350 currently swiped off its RRP.
Buy now £1049.00, Furniture Village
Highgrove Sanctum Nature 2000 2 Drawer Divan Set with Harding Headboard
Highgrove delivers all the sumptuousness with modest storage in this divan set which comes with a matching headboard. The base features sprung edges to offer heightened levels of support and you can choose from a medley of storage drawers to make the best use of the dead space under the design.
It comes in myriad earthy tones as well as pops of yellow for those who want to add a splash of colour to their bedroom sanctuary.
Buy now £1899.00, Furniture Village
Presto pine storage bed with hinged bed base
Channel a modern rustic vibe with this pine storage bed with a difference. Extra storage comes in the form of stylish compartments all around the bed frame, which you can actually use to stylishly display your homewares, from books to plants and jewellery boxes. Thought that was good? There’s more. The head end also lifts up to reveal a large storage area below, too. It’s a bed meets a bookcase meets a cupboard - and we’re on board.
Buy now £525.00, La Redoute
Silentnight Middleton Double 2 Drawer Divan Bed - Blue
Add a stylish touch to your bedroom with a divan in royal blue velvet. The case comes with two drawers to pack away extra bedding, towels, off-season clothes, festival clothes and whatever other clutter you want out of sight. This purchase includes both a mattress and a headboard, making it astonishingly good value for money. A four-drawer version is available for an additional cost.
Comes with a five-year manufacturer’s guarantee.
Buy now £709.00, Argos
Silentnight Toulouse Single 2 Drawer Divan Set - Sandstone
Dimensions: W90 x L190 x H105cm
So often, single beds are designed for children, but Silentnight pulls it out of the design bag with this design that is so chic it wouldn’t look amiss in a hotel room. The slimline base and beech legs offer elegance, while the upholstered headboard with border detail gives it wide appeal. Two side drawers covered in matching fabric make the whole thing appear seamless while offering plenty of extra storage space.
Buy now £280.00, Argos
Wade Logan Badrig European Double (140 X 200Cm) Murphy Bed
Some wall beds can look overbearing when closed, thanks to their tall stature. This design reveals a bed from a horizontal position, flipping out a double bed supported by a slatted metal base. Duvet straps keep fresh bedding in situ, so once you've made up a new bed, it will stay pristine until someone comes to stay. For safety reasons, this bed (and all frames like this) should be fixed to the wall. However, a fixing kit is not supplied as what you need will differ depending on different wall surfaces.
Available in a choice of grey, oak, white and white gloss colours.
Buy now £949.99, Wayfair
LTGB Double Bed with Storage
If your reading list is taking over your bedside table, this design will help. The double-sized pine bed incorporates shelving into the headboard, offering plenty of space to keep your reads and other trinkets. For even more storage, it comes with an underbed drawer which sits on wheels, allowing access quickly. It only takes up the lower underbed area, so you can put vacuum-sealed bags in the remaining space.
Buy now £199.00, Amazon
