Short answer. An Irish double bed is 135 × 190 cm (4 ft 6 × 6 ft 3), the most popular size in Ireland. A small double is 120 × 190 cm (4 ft × 6 ft 3), a single 90 × 190 cm (3 ft × 6 ft 3), a king 150 × 200 cm (5 ft × 6 ft 6) and a super king 180 × 200 cm (6 ft × 6 ft 6). Up to the double, beds are 190 cm long; the king and super king are 200 cm. Irish and UK sizes are the same. Leave about 60 to 80 cm beside the bed on each side you get in from, and 50 to 70 cm at the foot.
Irish bed and mattress sizes
| Bed | Size in cm | Size in feet and inches | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single | 90 × 190 | 3 ft × 6 ft 3 | The "3ft bed" |
| Small double | 120 × 190 | 4 ft × 6 ft 3 | Also called a "4ft bed" or a "three-quarter bed" |
| Double | 135 × 190 | 4 ft 6 × 6 ft 3 | The most popular size in Ireland, the "4ft6" |
| King | 150 × 200 | 5 ft × 6 ft 6 | The "5ft bed": 15 cm wider and 10 cm longer than a double |
| Super king | 180 × 200 | 6 ft × 6 ft 6 | The width of two singles |
Irish shops and IKEA Ireland list these same five sizes. A double is "4 ft 6", which is exactly 137 cm, so some makers list 137 × 190 and others 135 × 190. Check the centimetres on the label before you buy a mattress for an old frame.
Small double vs double: how much bed each of you gets
- Small double: 60 cm each. Fine for one adult, snug for two.
- Double: 67.5 cm each, three quarters of a single bed's width.
- King: 75 cm each.
- Super king: 90 cm each, a whole single bed per person.
If you share a double and wake each other up, the king is the next step up: 15 cm wider and 10 cm longer.
The room each bed needs
The bed and its walkways alone, with the head against a wall. From a small double up, the bed has a walkway on both sides; a single goes against a side wall with one walkway. "Snug" is 60 cm beside the bed and 50 cm at the foot; "comfortable" is 80 cm and 70 cm.
| Bed | Snug | Comfortable |
|---|---|---|
| Single | 1.50 × 2.40 m (4 ft 11 × 7 ft 10) | 1.70 × 2.60 m (5 ft 7 × 8 ft 6) |
| Small double | 2.40 × 2.40 m (7 ft 10 × 7 ft 10) | 2.80 × 2.60 m (9 ft 2 × 8 ft 6) |
| Double | 2.55 × 2.40 m (8 ft 4 × 7 ft 10) | 2.95 × 2.60 m (9 ft 8 × 8 ft 6) |
| King | 2.70 × 2.50 m (8 ft 10 × 8 ft 2) | 3.10 × 2.70 m (10 ft 2 × 8 ft 10) |
| Super king | 3.00 × 2.50 m (9 ft 10 × 8 ft 2) | 3.40 × 2.70 m (11 ft 2 × 8 ft 10) |
A wardrobe needs its own depth plus room to open its doors, and the bedroom door needs room to swing. A room that just fits the bed on paper is often a squeeze in real life.
Traps with Irish sizes
- IKEA and European sizes. IKEA Ireland's own size guide lists the Irish sizes and says it does not stock European mattress sizes. DFI Beds still warns that some IKEA beds use European sizing: a 90 × 200 single or a 140 × 200 double. An Irish mattress in a 140 × 200 frame is 5 cm too narrow and 10 cm too short. IKEA's king and super king match the Irish sizes.
- There is no Irish queen. "Queen" is a North American size, 152 × 203 cm, close to an Irish king. If a shop in Ireland sells a "queen", ask for the centimetres.
- An Irish king is not a US king. A US king is 193 × 203 cm, 43 cm wider.
- UK beds fit. Irish and UK sizes are the same, so a UK double mattress fits an Irish double frame.
- Small double or double. The only difference is 15 cm of width; both are 190 cm long. A small double mattress in a double frame leaves a gap.
How to measure
- The mattress, not the frame. Irish sizes are mattress sizes. Measure the old mattress's width and length if you are replacing one.
- The frame's inside, if the frame stays: from rail to rail and from headboard to footboard.
- The room, wall to wall at floor level, and where the radiator, the window and the door sit.
- The way in. A super king base often comes in two halves; a king or super king mattress has to bend round the stairs. See our guide "Will it fit through the door?".
Common mistakes
- Buying by the name. "Queen", "king" and "double" mean different sizes in Ireland, the US and Europe. Buy by the centimetres.
- Forgetting the frame. A headboard and a chunky frame can add 10 to 20 cm to the length.
- Measuring the room empty. The wardrobe doors, the bedside lockers and the door swing all take the space the bed seemed to have.
See the bed in your own room
In Flatwalk you draw or photograph your home's plan and walk through it in 3D. Beds from real shops stand at their true size, so you can see whether a king leaves room for the wardrobe door, and the tape measure reads any gap in centimetres or in feet and inches.
What it does not do: Flatwalk does not choose a bed for you, and your plan is only as accurate as the measurements you give it. Measure the real room with a tape measure.
Also for Ireland: door widths.
What Flatwalk does that older planners skip
Lights
Add ceiling lights, lamps and LED strips and see each room in the evening, not only by day.
Your home in its town
Enter your address and the street and buildings around you appear in 3D, wherever the map has them.
Sun for your address
See where the sun falls on any date and at any hour, before a new piece spends all summer in it.
One piece, in your own room
Through the live camera or in a photo of the room, stand it on your own floor at its true size before you buy.
Detail
Doors, radiators, kitchens, wardrobes and bathrooms built piece by piece, so new furniture sits against what is really there.
Made for a thumb
Tap a piece and its choices appear: move it, turn it, swap it for another.
Swipe for more. Every picture is the app itself.
One home, free
Most people plan one home. For that, Flatwalk costs nothing: no time-limited trial and no card needed. Drawing your home, furniture at its true size, the tape measure, lights, sun and walking are all part of it, and each AI tool comes with one free try. A membership is for people who want more homes or more AI.
Questions people ask
What is the double bed size in cm? 135 × 190 cm in Ireland, sold as 4 ft 6 × 6 ft 3. Some makers list 137 × 190 cm, the exact conversion of 4 ft 6.
What is the small double bed size? 120 × 190 cm (4 ft × 6 ft 3): 15 cm narrower than a double and the same length.
What is the king size bed size in cm? 150 × 200 cm (5 ft × 6 ft 6). It is smaller than a US king, which is 193 × 203 cm.
What size is a 5ft bed? A 5ft bed is a king: 150 × 200 cm. A 6ft bed is a super king, 180 × 200 cm.
What size room do you need for a double bed? For the bed and walkways alone, about 2.55 × 2.40 m (8 ft 4 × 7 ft 10) with 60 cm on each side and 50 cm at the foot. A wardrobe and the door swing need more space on top of that.
Flatwalk lets you place real beds at their true size in a 3D plan of your own home, free for one home. It is coming soon to Google Play; join the waiting list at flatwalk.app.
Join the waiting list