Under £400 gets you a proper storage bed, not a compromise. Every bed here is one we sell, in stock, and under four hundred pounds including the frame.
What it won't get you is a full-height high sleeper with a sofa bed underneath. That's roughly a £700 product. Everything else is on the table.
Best for a small room: Summit Metal High Sleeper, £289.99
The cheapest way to get a bed off the floor and reclaim the space underneath. Metal frame, clean lines, and enough clearance below for a desk or a chest of drawers you already own.
If your problem is floor space and your budget is tight, this does more than anything else on the list. For children aged 6 and over.
The same frame in a lower height is the Harley Mid Sleeper, also £289.99, which suits younger children.
Best for gaming: Jax Gaming High Sleeper, £399.99
A full-width desk underneath, deep enough for a monitor rather than just a laptop. Most beds at this price give you a token desk; this one gives you a workstation.
Three colours, and it's the bed we'd point at for a child who games or is about to start secondary school.
Best for two children: Pippa Detachable Bunk with Trundle, £399.99
Sleeps three under four hundred pounds, which is unusual. Two bunks plus a pull-out trundle underneath.
It also detaches into two separate single beds, so when the children want their own rooms you haven't wasted the money. That's the feature worth paying for at this price.
You'll need three mattresses, and the trundle takes a shallower one, usually around 10cm.
Best for a younger child: Nyla Cashmere Low Bunk, £379.99
Solid pine in a warm Cashmere finish that works in a nursery and still looks right at ten. Low enough for a smaller room and a lower ceiling.
The top bunk is still 6+, as with any bunk bed. The bottom bunk suits younger children.
Best cabin beds: Navigator and Voyager, £349.00
Cabin beds put drawers and cupboards directly into the bed frame, so one piece of furniture replaces two. They sit lower than a mid sleeper, which makes them a sensible choice from about four.
- Navigator Cabin Bed, White
- Navigator Cabin Bed, Grey
- Voyager Low Cabin Bed — the lowest of the three
Best single with drawers: Enzo Single Storage Bed, £299.00
A normal-height single bed with drawers underneath. No ladder, no height, no fuss.
Worth considering if a raised bed isn't right for your child, or if the ceiling won't take one. It's also the bed that lasts longest, since nobody outgrows wanting a normal bed.
Also worth a look
- Chloe Cabin Bed, £399.99 — cabin bed with a fuller storage arrangement
- Stacker Bed, £349.00 — simple, solid, drawers underneath
- Sleep Daybed, £399.00 — sofa by day, bed by night
- Dream Double Storage Bed, £389.00 — a double with storage, for a teenager
- Most Double Storage Bed, £399.00
- Solis White Small Double Ottoman Bed, £399.00 — the whole base lifts, so you get the full footprint as storage
What to check before you buy at this price
Three things separate a good budget bed from a frustrating one.
Drawer runners. Cheap beds use plastic runners that stick within a year. Ours use proper runners, but it's the thing to ask about wherever you buy.
Slat count and spacing. More slats, closer together, means better mattress support and a mattress that lasts longer. Widely spaced slats are where cheap beds save money.
Whether it detaches or converts. A bunk that splits into two singles, or a bed that takes a trundle later, costs the same today and saves you a purchase in three years.
Don't forget the mattress
The bed price rarely includes one, and it's the thing that ruins a budget.
On any raised bed, check the maximum mattress depth, usually 15 or 16cm. Most high-street singles are 20cm or deeper, which reduces the guard rail clearance and stops it working properly.
Our bunk bed mattresses are built at 15cm for exactly this reason, and start well under £200.
A bunk needs two. A bunk with a trundle needs three, and the trundle usually takes a shallower one again.
Common questions
Can you get a decent kids' bed with storage under £400?
Yes, and plenty of them. Cabin beds, mid sleepers, high sleepers, detachable bunks and singles with drawers all sit under that figure. What you won't get under £400 is a full-height high sleeper with a sofa bed underneath.
What's the cheapest way to get storage into a small bedroom?
A metal high sleeper at around £290, if your child is 6 or over and the ceiling allows it. You get the entire floor area under the bed back.
Is a cheaper bed less safe?
Not if it meets the standard. Every raised bed we sell is built to BS EN 747 regardless of price. What you're paying more for further up the range is materials, finish and features, not safety.
Are mattresses included?
No, and that's true almost everywhere. Budget for one or two on top of the bed price.
Which bed lasts longest?
A detachable bunk or a standard single with storage. Both are still useful when the child is fifteen, which most themed and novelty beds aren't.
Still deciding what type of bed? Read our kids' bed buying guide, or browse all beds with storage.
