IKEA HEMNES Daybed Review: Is It Worth It After 4 Years?

When I first started writing this IKEA HEMNES daybed review, we had owned it for around two years. I took all the photos, drafted a few headings and then apparently abandoned it in WordPress.

Four years after buying it, I’m quite glad I did.

The daybed has since survived 2 house moves, several changes to our home and is now being used in Daisy’s nursery. I’ve slept on it, used it as a sofa, filled every drawer and pulled it out into a double bed enough times to give a much more honest review than I could have done when it was still relatively new.

The quick answer is that it has been one of our most versatile furniture purchases. The frame has held up brilliantly, the storage is genuinely useful and it has adapted as our lives have changed.

However, there are a few things worth knowing about the mattresses and how comfortable it is for regular adult sleeping.

IKEA HEMNES daybed review: the quick verdict

The IKEA HEMNES daybed is a good choice for a spare room, child’s bedroom or any space that needs to work in more than one way.

It gives you:

• A sofa-style daybed
• A single sleeping space
• A pull-out double bed
• Three large storage drawers

Four years later, ours is still in very good condition and I would buy it again for the same purpose.

Its biggest strength is versatility. Its biggest weakness is that the standard daybed set-up is not something I personally find supportive enough for regular adult sleeping.

Best for: spare rooms, children’s bedrooms, occasional guests and smaller multipurpose rooms.

Less suited to: anyone primarily looking for an everyday adult bed without investing in a more supportive mattress set-up.

Why we bought the IKEA HEMNES daybed

The room originally contained a basic grey click-clack sofa bed. It technically gave us somewhere for a guest to sleep, but that was about all it added to the room.

I wanted to turn the space into somewhere warmer and more inviting: part dressing room, part reading space and part guest bedroom.

The HEMNES daybed appealed because it didn’t look like a traditional sofa bed. The panelled frame felt more like a proper piece of bedroom furniture, while the pull-out base meant we wouldn’t lose the option of having a double bed.

The three drawers were another big selling point. Storage always seems to disappear quickly in our house, so having a bed that could hold spare bedding, clothes and cushions made far more sense than leaving the space underneath unused.

Our room makeover before and after

Replacing the old sofa bed made a much bigger difference to the room than I expected. The HEMNES filled the wall without making the room feel cluttered, and its white frame worked well with the built-in cupboards and shelving.

Once I added a throw, cushions and a few warmer accessories, the room finally felt intentional rather than like somewhere we had placed furniture we didn’t know what to do with.

Over time, I collected different cushions, throws, side tables and small decorative pieces to soften the bed and make it feel more like a sofa during the day. Most of the pieces weren’t expensive. It was the mixture of textures and muted colours that made the biggest difference.

What do you get with the IKEA HEMNES daybed?

At the time of updating this review in July 2026, IKEA lists the white HEMNES daybed frame at £329, with the mattresses and bedding sold separately. A bundle containing the frame and two ÅFJÄLL mattresses is currently listed at £499. Prices may change, so it is worth checking before buying.

The assembled frame measures:

• 209cm long
• 89cm wide
• 83cm high
• 160cm wide when fully extended

The sleeping area is 80 x 200cm when closed and 160 x 200cm when opened into a double bed.

It is a substantial piece of furniture, so checking the measurements properly is important. It may look relatively compact in styled photographs, but you also need enough clear floor space in front to open both the drawers and the pull-out bed.

How much storage does the IKEA HEMNES daybed have?

The storage is one of the best features.

There are three deep drawers running underneath the bed. When we first had it in the spare room, I used them for clothes, spare bedding, blankets and some of the cushions that weren’t always on display.

They hold far more than they appear to from the outside. Unlike smaller under-bed boxes, the full depth of the drawers makes it possible to store bulky items such as duvets and pillows.

The drawers have also remained easy to open and close after four years. We haven’t experienced problems with them dropping, sticking or coming away from the runners.

The only practical limitation is that they need plenty of clearance. A stool, rug or pile of toys directly in front of the bed quickly becomes annoying when you are trying to reach something.

Now that the daybed is in Daisy’s nursery, the storage feels even more useful. Children seem to arrive with an endless supply of bedding, blankets, sleeping bags and clothes, so having three large drawers already built into the room has saved us from adding another chest of drawers.

Is the IKEA HEMNES daybed comfortable?

As a sofa, we have always found the HEMNES comfortable, although the seat is deeper and higher than a standard sofa. A few large cushions are needed behind you to make it properly supportive, but once styled, it creates a cosy place to read or relax.

It also works well as an occasional guest bed. The two 80 x 200cm mattresses sit side by side when the frame is extended, creating a generous double sleeping space. The join between the mattresses can be noticeable, but a topper helps create a softer, more even surface.

For regular adult sleeping, my experience has been more mixed. I recently spent several nights on it while settling Daisy in her nursery and found it increasingly uncomfortable for my back. A topper made it softer, but not necessarily more supportive.

For occasional nights, guests or a child’s bedroom, I think it is perfectly comfortable. For everyday adult use, I would pay close attention to the mattress choice rather than relying on the standard set-up alone.

How I made the HEMNES daybed look more like a sofa

The biggest styling lesson was that the daybed needs more cushions than you expect.

Because it is so deep, a couple of ordinary scatter cushions tend to disappear against the back. Larger square cushions create a supportive base, with smaller textured cushions layered in front.

I used a mixture of cream, green, blush and rust tones, along with a dark green throw over the mattresses. The throw helped protect the bedding and made the daybed feel less like a bed sitting in the middle of the room.

A small tray also gave me somewhere to keep a drink, candle or headphones without needing another large piece of furniture.

There were probably too many cushions at some points, but the room felt cosy, and that was what I wanted from it.

Is the IKEA HEMNES daybed easy to build?

The IKEA HEMNES daybed isn’t difficult to build, but it is more time-consuming than a standard bed because you’re assembling the main frame, pull-out base and three storage drawers.

The instructions were clear, and none of the individual stages felt particularly complicated. The drawers and extending section were the fiddliest parts, mainly because everything needed to line up properly for the bed to pull out smoothly.

I’d allow several hours, or most of a day if you’re taking your time. It is possible to build alone, but having two people makes the longer frame sections much easier to position and hold in place.

Once assembled, it feels solid and sturdy. Ours has survived four years of regular use and being moved into Daisy’s nursery without needing any repairs. I would recommend building it in the room where it will stay, though, as it becomes very large and heavy once complete.

Overall, it was a manageable IKEA build rather than a particularly frustrating one — just not a quick job.

Four years later: the daybed is now in Daisy’s nursery

The biggest test of whether a piece of furniture was worth buying is often whether it still has a purpose when life looks completely different.

When we created the original room, Daisy wasn’t part of the picture. Four years later, the HEMNES has moved into her nursery.

It has given us somewhere to sit during the day, somewhere for me to lie down while she naps and an extra sleeping space when settling her in the cot hasn’t gone to plan. On difficult nights, being able to sleep in the same room without bringing her into our bedroom has been incredibly useful.

Those nights also showed me the limitations of the daybed as an adult bed. It has done exactly what we needed it to do, but sleeping on it regularly was hard on my back and isn’t something I would want to continue long term.

Eventually, the daybed may become Daisy’s own bed with the room adapted appropriately for her age. For now, it continues to work as a sofa, occasional bed for me, a nap space for Daisy and much-needed nursery storage.

It doesn’t look exactly as it did in the original photographs. The room is less carefully styled, and some of the decorative cushions have made way for the reality of having a baby.

It is arguably more useful now than it was when it looked perfect.

IKEA HEMNES daybed pros and cons

What I like

• It combines seating, sleeping space and storage.
• The three drawers are genuinely large.
• It opens into a spacious double bed.
• The traditional design hasn’t dated.
• Ours is still in very good condition after four years.
• It has adapted from a spare-room sofa to nursery furniture.
• The pull-out mechanism is simple to use.
• It works particularly well in a multipurpose room.

What I would change

• The mattresses are an additional cost.
• Mattress choice has a significant effect on comfort.
• I haven’t found it supportive enough for prolonged adult sleeping.
• It needs several cushions to feel comfortable as a sofa.
• The frame is large and heavy once assembled.
• You need clear floor space to open the drawers and extend the bed.
• Two stacked mattresses make the seat relatively high.

Was the IKEA HEMNES daybed worth the money?

For us, yes.

It wasn’t the cheapest option when we bought it, but it has lasted for four years and served several different purposes. We haven’t needed to replace it as the room changed from a dressing room and guest space into Daisy’s nursery.

That adaptability is where its value lies.

If I only needed a straightforward single bed, I would probably choose something simpler and spend more on the mattress. If I needed furniture for a small room that had to provide storage, seating and an occasional double bed, I would buy the HEMNES again.

It has never been perfect for every purpose. It has, however, been useful through several different versions of our home, which feels more valuable than buying something that only worked in the original room.