Will it fit through the door and up the stairs?
The bed fits the room. Now make sure it fits the way in.
Short answer: before delivery, measure every doorway, hallway turn and stair landing on the way to the bedroom.[1 · Oct 29, 2026] Make sure the bedroom door frame is wide and tall enough for the bed.[2 · Oct 29, 2026] If a one-piece foundation won't make a tight staircase, split foundations in two halves can.[1 3 · Oct 29, 2026] A boxed mattress avoids most of the problem.[1 · Oct 29, 2026]
What to measure
- Doorways: width and height of the opening at its narrowest point, including the bedroom door.[1 2 · Oct 29, 2026]
- Hallway turns and stair landings: along with doorways, these are where mattresses get stuck.[1 · Oct 29, 2026] Measure the width of the stairs and of every landing where the path turns.
- The piece itself: width, length and thickness of the mattress, the foundation and any headboard.
What your house is likely to have
The 2021 International Residential Code, a model building code that local governments can adopt for houses, sets a minimum size for only one exit door per home: 32 in of clear width and 78 in of clear height. Other doors, including bedroom doors, don't have to meet it.[4 2nd-hand · Oct 29, 2026] It asks for stairways at least 36 in wide above the handrail, with 6′8″ of headroom.[4 2nd-hand · Oct 29, 2026] Older homes and local rules differ, so measure. Don't assume.
Carried on edge: the numbers that matter
A mattress or foundation usually goes through a door on its long edge. The thickness passes through the door's width, and the mattress width has to clear the door's height.
| Size | Width (must clear door height on edge) | Length (has to swing through turns) |
|---|---|---|
| Twin | 38 in | 75 in |
| Twin XL | 38 in | 80 in |
| Full | 54 in | 75 in |
| Queen | 60 in | 80 in |
| King | 76 in | 80 in |
| California king | 72 in | 84 in |
Sizes from a sleep-research site's mattress size guide.[5 · Oct 29, 2026] Example (our arithmetic): a 76 in wide king foundation on edge leaves only 2 in under a 78 in tall opening, before any trim or a dolly.[4 2nd-hand 5 · Oct 29, 2026]
Tight stairs? Your options
- Split foundation: two halves (for a queen, two 30 × 80 in pieces) that each go up on their own.[1 · Oct 29, 2026] Some king and California king foundations ship split for this reason, with no change in feel.[3 · Oct 29, 2026]
- Bed in a box: the mattress arrives compressed in a box about the size of a mini-fridge, though it can weigh up to 139 lb.[6 · Oct 29, 2026] See our bed-in-a-box guide.
- Platform or slatted frame: no box spring or foundation needed, so there is one less rigid piece to carry.[1 · Oct 29, 2026]
Can a hybrid or innerspring mattress be folded to get it around a tight turn? Unverified. We couldn't confirm a reliable source for this yet. Ask the retailer before you try, since bending can damage some mattresses.
Before delivery day
- Clear the path and take down pictures or anything hanging in narrow halls.
- Line up a helper for boxed deliveries.[6 · Oct 29, 2026]
- If you're paying for in-home setup, ask whether it includes taking away the old mattress. Some services do.[6 · Oct 29, 2026]
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Sources: 1. Casper, Queen size bed dimensions: size, room fit, and how it compares. 2. Sleep Foundation, King size bed dimensions. 3. Saatva help, What are the dimensions of the Saatva foundation?. 4. Montana Department of Labor & Industry, 2021 IRC means of egress training slides (PDF) (second-hand summary of the International Residential Code). 5. Sleep Foundation, Mattress sizes and dimensions guide. 6. Casper, How do Casper mattresses ship?. Checked Oct 29, 2026. Trademarks belong to their owners; figures are restated in our own words and tables, not reproduced.