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If you feel bad about making guests sleep on couches or cushions on the floor, it could be time to upgrade the situation. An air mattress or airbed is a versatile and convenient solution for temporary sleeping arrangements, and sometimes even long-term ones. They can be easily and quickly inflated and deflated, making them the perfect place to rest for late-arriving guests, impromptu movie nights, or comfy camping trips.
Air mattresses and airbeds have come a long way in recent years, with many different types, sizes, and price ranges. One place to find a variety of options for a good night’s sleep is at Big Lots. This guide will talk you through whether it’s worth getting an air mattress from Big Lots, as well as what to consider when you’re choosing one.
Best Big Lots Air Mattresses
Not that it needs an introduction, but Big Lots is known for being a popular discount retailer, with closeout buys and unexpected prices, items and brands. It’s no surprise that they also carry home products such as airbeds, air mattresses and frames.
Big Lots has a few air mattresses in its inventory, but as of time of publication and due to their popularity, many of them are sold out. Currently, there are two in-stock options on their site — let’s take a closer look.
18” Sealy Tritech Queen Inflatable Air Mattress
At 18” tall, the Sealy Tritech would be the perfect choice if you weren’t going to raise the air mattress off the floor. Made from durable PVC, it is engineered for minimal air loss, improved stretch resistance and features internal polyester mesh, and PVC beams for durability and support. It has a built-in electric pump which can inflate the whole mattress in four minutes, making it perfect for last minute sleeping arrangements. The sleeping surface has a flocked texture with Sealy’s Ultra Fresh antimicrobial treatment, and raised frame around the edges to prevent rolling off in the night.
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10” Bestway Queen Soft Top Indoor Airbed
If you still want comfort, but don’t need to raise your guests too high, the 10” Bestway would be a perfect compromise. The slightly more compact air mattress is ideal for taking on vacations, whether camping or to stay with friends and family. Its built-in AC pump inflates and deflates the sturdy coil beam construction for stress-free sleep. The sleeping surface is a flocked soft top, ideal for cozy nights wherever you’re staying. At 10 feet tall, the Bestway can also easily be used on an air mattress base for extra support and comfort.
While these two are definitely great quality air mattresses, we can’t help but think that shopping for one on Big Lots is limited. Particularly as their competitive pricing means they’re out of stock of a lot of their inventory. However, if they have the specific airbed or mattress that you’ve decided to buy and it’s in stock, their prices are hard to beat.
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Pros and Cons of Buying a Big Lots Air Mattress
There are some definite upsides to buying an air mattress from Big Lots. This includes:
- Good prices
- Some in-store availability
- High-quality products
That said, though, you’ll want to be aware of the limitations, as well. These are the cons of buying an air mattress from Big Lots:
- Limited selection
- Many are out of stock
- Free shipping only after hitting a threshold
The biggest factor for us, with this particular choice, is the limited inventory for air mattresses at Big Lots. While the ones they do sell are good quality and value for money, your choice is restricted if you don’t want either of their two current in-stock offerings. Ultimately, when it comes down to making a choice, you need to pick the one that means you can sleep easily (and comfortably) all night long.
Best Amazon Air Mattresses
We know that Big Lots isn’t the only place to buy air mattresses, these days it can be hard to research a product without looking at Amazon. However, we took out some of the hard work of wading through pages and pages of different types of near-identical models and put together this list of the Best Air Mattresses of 2021. It features many of our favorites including the 20” tall King Koil and 16” tall EZ Inflate. However one mattress not included on that list is EnerPlex, which we’ll include below, too:
King Koil Elevated Air Mattress with Quilted Top
Uniquely, the mattress includes air filled coils, that inflate within the bed and provide additional support and prevent sinking. Reviewers rave about the built-in air pump that inflates and deflates in less than two minutes. Meant to withstand the test of time and keep up with your lifestyle, the PVC construction is durable, waterproof and skid resistant for a sound sleep.
King Koil is the only air mattress manufacturer endorsed by the International Chiropractors Association to help promote proper spinal alignment. This also includes a 1-year warranty from the manufacturer.
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EZ Inflate Luxury Double High Air Mattress
The EZ Inflate air mattress is uniquely designed to maximize sleeping space. This queen-size inflatable mattress offers a full 60-b-8-inch sleeping space, not inclusive of the rounded edges. Interior coil beam technology provides a firm, supportive sleeping surface and the built-in pump makes it easy to inflate and deflate the mattress in just a few minutes.
Customers love the convenience of the built-in pump and found the flocked material lining the top of the mattress was soft, quiet, and comfortable. The flocked material also helps prevent sheets and bedding from sliding off the mattress.
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EnerPlex Queen Air Mattress
The built-in pump allows fast inflation and deflation, so you can achieve your desired level of firmness in minutes. It’s also waterproof, which makes it easy to maintain. As with previous examples, this mattress has a carrying bag included.
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With so many great mattresses on the market from many different retailers these days, it can be overwhelming which to choose. The main thing to bear in mind is that you’re shopping for something you need. At the end of the day, it needs to fit your lifestyle and preferences. So when you’re looking at an air mattress, there are a few things to consider.
- What are you mainly going to use it for? Traveling, for guests, or while remodeling? This can inform your choice with how heavy it is, how easy it is to inflate and deflate, and what size you need.
- Where are you mainly going to use it? If you want something just for camping, then a lighter and more compact one would suit your needs. If it’s just for use for your family over the holidays, a deluxe, comfortable one would be best.
Pros and Cons of Buying an Amazon Air Mattress
Once you know what you want the air mattress to do, you’ll be able to decide which ones are right or wrong with more confidence.
Some of the pros of buying an air mattress from Amazon include:
- Fast online shipping
- Vast online selection
- Easy returns on select products
In addition, some of the cons of buying an air mattress from Amazon that you’ll want to consider are:
- Higher price point on quality brands
- No in-store options
- Varying degrees of quality across the site
Bottom Line
Buying an air mattress from Big Lots can be an easy way to save money on your purchase, but you’ll have to buy when the time is right — the selection is fairly limited right now. In any event, it’s a good idea to shop around and compare options and prices before making a decision altogether.
