Under-Bed Storage: How Much Space You Need, With Real Boxes and Beds Measured
Short answer
Measure from the floor to the lowest part of the bed frame, slats and center legs included. IKEA’s bed frames leave 7⅞ inches (SONGESAND, GULLABERG, KLEPPSTAD, VEVELSTAD), 8¼ (MALM) or 10¼ (VIHALS), and its under-bed boxes are 7 to 7⅞ inches tall, so most fit with less than an inch to spare. Then check the floor: a box comes out sideways, so a 24¾-inch-deep box needs 24¾ inches of clear floor beside the bed.
7⅞″
under most IKEA frames
7–7⅞″
under-bed box heights
24¾″
floor to pull out a deep box
Contents
How much space is under a bed?
It depends on the frame, and the number to check is the lowest point: the slats, a center support leg or a bracket can hang lower than the side rails. IKEA lists the “height under furniture” for its frames:
| Bed frame | Space under it |
|---|---|
| IKEA SONGESAND (full), GULLABERG, KLEPPSTAD, VEVELSTAD (queen) | 7⅞″ |
| IKEA MALM (queen) | 8¼″ |
| IKEA VIHALS (queen) | 10¼″ |
A taller frame leaves more room, and it also raises the mattress: our bed height guide has frame and mattress heights. Boxes sold as a set with one bed, such as the MALM, SONGESAND, GULLABERG and VIHALS boxes, are sized for that frame; for any other bed, measure.
Under-bed box sizes
These are IKEA’s under-bed boxes, lowest first. The last column is the room left under a 7⅞-inch frame:
| Box | Width × depth × height | Spare under 7⅞″ |
|---|---|---|
| IKEA SAMLA (15 gallon) | 30¾×22×7″ | ⅞″ |
| IKEA GÖRSNYGG | 22×19×7″ | ⅞″ |
| IKEA VARDÖ | 25⅝×27½×7⅛″ | ¾″ |
| IKEA SKUBB | 35½×20¾×7½″ | ⅜″ |
| IKEA PÄRKLA | 21¾×19¼×7½″ | ⅜″ |
| IKEA GULLABERG (set of 2) | 37×24¾×7½″ each | ⅜″ |
| IKEA FÅGELFJÄLLET (set of 2) | 39⅝×24¾×7⅞″ each | none |
A box with no room to spare will scrape, or catch on a center support. If your frame has 8 inches or less, a 7-inch box is the safe choice.
Leave floor to pull them out
An under-bed box comes out sideways, so it needs as much clear floor beside the bed as it is deep. In a 10-foot-wide room, a queen frame leaves 28 inches on each side, and a 24¾-inch GULLABERG box takes all but 3¼ of them while it’s out:
- A nightstand blocks the head end of that side, so put the boxes toward the foot.
- Long and shallow works better beside a tight bed: a SKUBB is 35½ inches long but only 20¾ deep, so placed lengthwise along the bed it needs 20¾ inches to come out.
- At the foot of the bed, a box slides out into the walkway, which our Bedroom Solver keeps at 22 to 30 inches. Our guide to room size for a queen bed has the clearances.
Storage bed or boxes?
A storage bed builds the drawers in. Drawer beds still need floor beside the bed to open; a lift-up bed doesn’t, because you raise the mattress instead.
| Bed (queen) | Storage inside | Opens |
|---|---|---|
| IKEA BRIMNES with storage | drawers 37⅜×21¼×7⅞″ inside | sideways |
| IKEA MALM high, 2 storage boxes | boxes 38⅝×23¼×5⅞″ inside, on castors | sideways |
| IKEA TONSTAD with storage | drawers 28⅜×22⅞×5⅛″ inside | sideways |
| IKEA MALM storage bed | one space 79⅞×60¼×10⅝″ under the base | lifts up |
The lift-up MALM holds the most and suits a bed pushed against walls, but you have to lift the mattress to reach anything. Drawers are easier to use every day, and a drawer bed is the better choice when one side of the bed has the floor to open them. Our bed frame sizes guide has the footprint of each frame.
Free tool
Measure the floor beside your bed and the Clearance Checker shows whether you can still walk past, and open drawers, once the boxes are out.
Questions people ask
How much space do you need under a bed for storage?
At least the height of the box, plus a little room so it doesn’t scrape: IKEA’s under-bed boxes are 7 to 7⅞ inches tall, so about 8 inches. Measure to the lowest point of the frame, including slats and center legs.
How tall are under-bed storage boxes?
IKEA’s run from 7 inches (SAMLA, GÖRSNYGG) to 7⅞ (FÅGELFJÄLLET). Boxes sold for one bed frame are made to fit that frame.
How much space is under an IKEA bed?
7⅞ inches under the SONGESAND, GULLABERG, KLEPPSTAD and VEVELSTAD, 8¼ under the MALM and 10¼ under the VIHALS, as IKEA lists them.
Is a storage bed better than under-bed boxes?
In a tight room, a lift-up storage bed needs no floor beside the bed, and holds more: the MALM storage bed has 79⅞ by 60¼ by 10⅝ inches under its base. Drawers and boxes are easier to reach but need floor as deep as they are to come out.
How deep are under-bed storage boxes?
Most are 19 to 25 inches deep: 19 for the GÖRSNYGG, 20¾ for the SKUBB, 24¾ for the GULLABERG. The VARDÖ is 27½. That depth is the floor you need beside the bed.
Sources
- Under-bed storage (IKEA US): product pages for the SAMLA, GÖRSNYGG, VARDÖ, SKUBB, PÄRKLA, GULLABERG, VIHALS and FÅGELFJÄLLET boxes, with outside and inside sizes
- Bed frames (IKEA US): “height under furniture” for the SONGESAND, GULLABERG, KLEPPSTAD, VEVELSTAD, MALM and VIHALS frames; drawer and box sizes for the BRIMNES, MALM high with storage boxes and TONSTAD beds; the inside of the MALM storage bed
- Nest In Small Bedroom Solver: 64 × 84″ queen frame, 22–30″ beside and past the bed at its three clearance settings