You’ve seen the classic Murphy bed in movies. Someone pulls a handle, a massive slab of wood falls from the ceiling, and—usually—somebody gets flattened or the bed snaps back into the wall like a cartoon trap. Those are vertical Murphy beds. They’re fine, but they require high ceilings and a huge amount of "runway" space in the middle of your floor.
Enter the murphy bed side open (also known as a horizontal Murphy bed).
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Honestly, it’s the underdog of the furniture world. Instead of the bed standing tall like a wardrobe, it sits long and low like a sideboard or a credenza. When you open it, the mattress pivots out from the long side. It’s a total game-changer for weirdly shaped rooms, but most people don't even know it's an option until they're staring at a ceiling fan that's exactly three inches too low for a standard wall bed.
The Low Ceiling Savior
The biggest reason people hunt down a murphy bed side open is the vertical clearance. If you’re trying to turn a basement, an attic, or a room with a "popcorn" ceiling and a hanging light fixture into a guest suite, a vertical bed is your enemy.
Standard vertical queen beds need about 87 to 90 inches of height just to clear the cabinet. If you have 8-foot ceilings, you’re basically scraping the paint every time you pull the thing down. A horizontal, side-opening queen bed? It usually only stands about 64 to 70 inches tall. You could literally put it under a window or a set of floating shelves and still have room to breathe.
It’s basically the only way to get a real mattress into a room with a 7-foot ceiling without it feeling like a coffin.
Why The "Side Open" Geometry Actually Works
Let’s talk about "projection." This is the distance the bed sticks out into the room when it's fully open.
- Vertical Queen: Projects about 85 to 90 inches from the wall.
- Side Open Queen: Projects about 65 to 68 inches.
That’s a massive difference. If your room is narrow—like a long, skinny home office—a vertical bed will hit the opposite wall before it even lays flat. The side-open model keeps the footprint tight. You lose more wall width (the "long" way), but you gain a ton of floor space.
It makes the room feel less crowded. You're not shimmying around the foot of the bed like a cat. Because the bed opens sideways, the "entrance" to the bed is usually from the side rather than the foot, which is actually how most people prefer to crawl into bed anyway.
A Quick Reality Check on Dimensions
| Mattress Size | Cabinet Height (Approx.) | Wall Width Required | Floor Projection |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twin | 45" | 80" | 44" |
| Full | 62" | 80" | 58" |
| Queen | 68" | 85" | 66" |
Note: These are estimates. Brands like Bestar or Wilding Wallbeds will vary by an inch or two based on their specific molding and piston housing.
The "Senior and Kid" Factor
There’s a safety and accessibility angle here that’s kinda overlooked. Because a murphy bed side open is lower to the ground, the center of gravity is much lower.
If you have an elderly parent staying over, they aren't reaching up high to grab a handle and "fighting" the weight of a vertical mattress. The arc of the swing is smaller. For kids' rooms, it’s even better. A kid can actually reach the handle to close their own bed in the morning (if you’re lucky enough to have a kid who makes their bed).
Also, because it’s shorter, you don't have that "looming" feeling of a 7-foot tall monolith in the corner of the room. It looks like a nice piece of cabinetry. You can put a TV on top of it. You can put plants on it. It’s functional furniture even when it’s closed.
Installation: Don't Wing This
I’ve seen enough "DIY Murphy Bed" fail videos to know that people underestimate the tension involved. These things use either heavy-duty springs or gas pistons (the same tech that keeps your car's trunk open).
If you're installing a murphy bed side open, you must find the studs. Most of these units require 3 to 4 points of contact with structural wall members. If you try to toggle-bolt this into just drywall, the first time you pull the bed down, the whole cabinet is going to come crashing onto your head.
Pro Tip: If your floor has thick baseboards, you'll probably need to notch the back of the cabinet or remove the baseboard entirely so the bed sits flush against the wall. Any gap between the cabinet and the wall puts extra torque on the mounting screws. That’s how accidents happen.
The Downsides Nobody Mentions
It’s not all sunshine and extra floor space. There are two big "gotchas" with the side-open layout.
- The "Wall Hog" Effect: Since the bed is mounted sideways, it takes up a huge stretch of your wall. A Queen side-opener needs about 7 to 8 feet of uninterrupted wall space. If you have a door on one side and a closet on the other, you might not have enough "runway" along the wall to fit it.
- The "Cuddle" Problem: In a vertical Murphy bed, both people can get out of the bed from their respective sides. In a side-open Murphy bed, one person is usually pinned against the wall. If you’re sleeping solo, it’s a non-issue. If you’re a couple, someone is going to be climbing over someone else for a 3 AM bathroom run.
Choosing the Right Mechanism
You’ll generally see two types of hardware: Piston vs. Spring.
- Pistons: These are smooth and usually come with a lifetime warranty. They’re "set and forget." However, if a piston fails, you usually have to replace the whole strut.
- Springs: These are old-school but reliable. You can adjust the tension by adding or removing springs. The downside? They can sometimes squeak over time, and they require a bit more muscle to move.
Brands like Lori Beds actually do away with the metal mechanisms entirely, using a rocking wood design. It’s cheaper and looks great, but keep in mind you’re doing 100% of the lifting yourself. There’s no "helper" spring to catch the weight.
Practical Next Steps for Your Space
If you’re leaning toward the side-opening route, here is how to actually pull the trigger without regretting it:
Measure your "Projection Zone" first. Don't just measure the wall. Tape out 68 inches from the wall onto your carpet. Can you still walk past it? If there’s a desk or a dresser in that zone, it has to move every single night. That gets old fast.
Check your mattress thickness. Most side-open Murphy beds have a strict 10-inch or 12-inch limit. If you have a giant pillow-top mattress with a 15-inch profile, the bed won't close. You'll be left with a bed that sticks out 4 inches from the wall, looking like a broken closet.
Decide on the "Top-of-Cabinet" use. Since the unit is only 5 feet tall, the top is prime real estate. If you plan to put a TV there, make sure you have an outlet nearby that won't be blocked by the bed frame itself.
Honestly, for most modern apartments or finished basements, the side-open layout is the smarter play. It’s discreet, it’s safer for kids, and it doesn't make a room feel like it's being "swallowed" by a giant cabinet. Just make sure you’ve got the wall width to handle it.