The Best Bunk Bed Stores

Tuesday, January 19th

2021 Bunk Bed Store Reviews

Wayfair

• Cost: From $124 to $20,970
• Return Policy: 30 days on unassembled items in original packaging

If you want the best selection of bunk beds and loft beds on an easy-to-shop website, plus customer perks like free shipping and a friendly customer service team, Wayfair should be your first choice.

Wayfair's online store couldn't be any simpler to use when looking for the right bunk bed. Even though they truly offer "a zillion things home", you can use these intuitive dropdown filters to narrow down the more than 1,700 bunks and lofts they carry:

• Bed Size: Complete with images so you can picture what they look like, you can select from among twin, extra-long twin, full, twin-over-twin, twin-over-full, and full-over-full configurations. Note: Wayfair does offer twin- and full-over-queen options, but they're not specifically listed in the dropdown filters.
• Features: Here, select from any options you'd like, such as guardrails, solid wood construction, built-in storage, trundle bed, bookcase, made in USA, tents, slides, and more.
• Material: Wood, upholstered, metal, or plastic
• Color: You may not have a preference, but if you're looking to color-coordinate, you'll have 19 different options in this dropdown.
• Wood Tone: 8 different options, with thumbnail images to help you distinguish among them.

If that's not enough, click on the See All Filters button. You'll have the ability to also specify the bed size, bunk configuration, bed design, style, theme, dimensions, type of wood, and many other criteria.

Wayfair's selection absolutely runs the gamut in terms of budget and features. On the highest end, you'll find the Harriet Bee twin-over-full bunk bed in the Dillon style, coming in at an impressive $20,970.33 (don't forget those 33 cents!). Amazingly, when we clicked on the bed for more details, it was being offered at a discount of 96% - $829.99. We're not sure of the reason for the huge markdown, but given that most of the other Harriet Bee models were in the $700-$1200 range, it may have been a pricing error to begin with.

If you're looking for a sturdy, higher-end bunk/loft bed, Wayfair's next option would be in the Brayden Studio Gautreau line. With an upper bunk accessed by stairs, and a convertible lower bunk that goes from futon to bed - and a trundle for even more sleeping accommodations - this model was offered for just under $5,500 when we shopped the site.

On the budget end of the spectrum, you'll find plenty of affordable options. The Viv + Rae and Zoomie Kids brands both have loft and twin-over-twin/full bunk beds for under $150. And, just because they're affordable doesn't mean they're junk: each of those have hundreds of customer reviews averaging more than 4 out of 5 stars.

Whether you're looking for a sturdy, heirloom piece to be passed down from your children to their own kids someday, or a quick fix for a dorm room, all bunk beds and loft beds have free shipping. Some even offer free two-day delivery; you'll find those clearly indicated as you browse.

Wayfair's return policy is comparable with most highly-rated furniture stores: 30 days on all unassembled bunk beds and loft beds in their original packaging. One extra perk: if you opt to return your bunk bed for store credit instead of a refund, Wayfair will pick up the tab on the return shipping costs. That's a definite plus if you're just not happy with the particular bed you chose and want to try something else (or maybe shop for other home items instead).

Wide selection, competitive pricing, free returns with no restocking fees, and an easy-to-use website - for all of these reasons and more, Wayfair leads the pack when it comes to bunk bed retailers, and they earn our highest rating.

Target

• Cost: From $135 to $2,101
• Return Policy: Within 90 days of the ship date, either to a Target store or via UPS

Target: the little-bit-of-everything store we all know and love. You probably won't see any set up in-store, but bunk beds and loft beds are easily found in their online shop. (And, shopping online might save you from the phenomenon we're all familiar with: going in for Just One Thing and coming out with a whole cartful of stuff you didn't know you needed but had to have, especially those clearance items on the endcaps!)

First, all of the lofts and bunks they offer come with the same perks as any other Target order: 5% off if you use your REDcard, free shipping (since they're all at least $35), and their generous return policy: 90 days from the date it ships. You can return it to any Target store or ship it back to the designated address for returns of online orders. Their policy also says that some large items like furniture might be eligible for pickup by Target's return carrier; you'll need to call their toll-free number and provide your order information to find out for sure.

Typically, the return policy applies to unopened items, and that's a safe bet for bunk beds: but knowing how customer-centric their representatives are, we think it's possible that even something as big as a loft or bunk bed could be returned in-store even if it had been opened. Of course, if you've damaged it when setting it up, that probably wouldn't apply.

The Target website is vey easy to navigate. They display large pictures of each bunk bed they offer, and give you a different view of the bunk bed if you hover over the picture. On the left is a large variety of search options which let you narrow down your search, including:

• Color
• Price
• Bed Size
• Decor Style
• Shipping & Pickup
• Finish
• Brand
• Guest Rating
• Deals
• FPO/APO
• Character
• Theme
• Gender

As you find models that you like, you'll find much more detailed information on the individual product pages. The main page shows a basic thumbnail image of just the bunk bed or loft bed but hovering over that image gives you an idea of what it would look like in a bedroom: bedding, accessories, and so on.

You won't find the flowery descriptions of the bunk beds, like you might at a store that specializes in furniture. You will find detailed information about dimensions, materials, and assembly, and the Q&A section is especially helpful for anything that might not be answered elsewhere.

We also found a cool feature called GiftNow. Let's say you want to send a bunk bed across the country to your grandkids, but you're not sure what color or what features they'd need. When you use the GiftNow feature, the recipient gets an email notifying them of the gift - and they also have the opportunity to make any adjustments to color, size and style before it ships. That email notification can be scheduled for any future date within the next 12 months, if you like to shop early and know that your gift-giving is taken care of.

If you want an idea of how your loft or bunk bed has worked out for other Target customers, scroll down the page on any individual bunk bed. We especially liked being able to see photos of how the beds looked in real bedrooms, not just the staged photos from the manufacturers. Target customers are known for being brutally honest in their reviews - and we appreciate that Target is known for publishing them all, even if they're not favorable.

Target measures up easily with other retailers of bunk beds. The only drawback we found is that there are no options for white glove delivery: in other words, having someone that brings the boxes into your home and assembles the furniture where you want it. But, buying your bunk or loft bed through Target might save you enough money that you can hire someone to do it for you.

Target offers a pleasant shopping experience, customer-friendly perks, and a good variety of basic loft and bunk beds. We recommend that you browse their site to see if there's a bunk bed that meets your needs.

Walmart

• Cost: From $119 to $1,623
• Return Policy: 90 days on most orders

What can't you buy at Walmart? Well, when shopping their online site, you'll have a hard time finding something that's not available there - and bunk beds are no exception. With just over 80 styles including lofts and under-bed futons, Walmart may surprise you.

Their navigation is actually better than some of their competitors, even those that specialize in furniture. You can use the left side of the page to narrow down what they sell, according to these criteria:

• Height
• Finish
• Brand
• Width
• Price
• Length
• Gender
• Material
• Maximum User Weight
• Headboard Style
• Bed Style
• Customer Rating
• Lifestage
• Bed Size
• Special Offers
• Shipping & Pickup: 2-day shipping, Ship to home, Free In-Store Pickup + Discount, and Free Pickup

When you choose a model that interests you, you can see more details. We recommend that you scroll down to see dimensions and other specifications, as well as customer reviews. Your shipping options will be displayed right underneath the price; we were impressed that even on a large item like a bunk bed, we could get delivery to our home for less than $20, or pick up in-store for free. (Of course, picking it up ourselves would also mean we'd need the car/truck space to get it home.)

Many of the bunk beds listed by Walmart specifically mention that they're sold and shipped by a third-party provider - many of whom you'll find in this review. You'll want to check and see if, at the time of your purchase, the bunk bed you want is a better deal if you buy directly from that retailer instead of going through Walmart. Also, since at least one of those third-party stores didn't rank well in our review, it's worth considering whether or not you want to buy from them, even through the Walmart site.

That could be important when it comes to returns. Unless it is specifically fulfilled by Walmart, you'll be at the mercy of the third-party seller's terms and conditions. We had a hard time tracking down Walmart's actual return policy on their site, but historically they've allowed returns in-store and by mail within 90 days of purchase.

While Walmart may not be a glamorous place to buy a bunk bed, their selection is good and their prices are usually lower than the competition. Plus, with so many brick-and-mortar locations for easy pickup and returns on online orders, this store could be perfect for those who need a bed sooner rather than later.

Pottery Barn Kids

• Cost: From $999 to $3,545
• Return Policy: 30 days from delivery, must be returned via UPS and not to a retail location

Pottery Barn Kids: the name is synonymous with style, beauty, and design, with their products featured in numerous magazines, TV shows, and more. Their in-house design specialists can even consult with you over the phone or in your home, to help create the bedroom of your child's dreams.

Naturally, it's not a bedroom without a bed, and Pottery Barn Kids has just over two dozen styles of bunk beds and loft beds. The site doesn't have options for easily sorting through what PBK offers, but with such a small selection it won't take long to quickly browse their bunks and lofts. (We highly recommend that you hold your mouse over each image: that's when you can see how each model looks when fully equipped with a colorful bedspread and pillows, and surrounded by matching furniture and accessories.)

We weren't blown away by the selection at Pottery Barn Kids: competitors sell very similar models at much lower prices, and PBK doesn't have the ultra-sturdy bunk beds and lofts you find at other stores. Of course, part of what you're getting is the cachet of having a Pottery Barn bedroom - where you can make your child's room look just like the images on the PBK site, which is really appealing to some parents.

Signing up for Pottery Barn Kids' email list can get you a savings of 15%; look for the code in your inbox after you register. At the time of our visit, there was also a Friends & Family promotion in effect, with a discount code at the top of the page. Although that promotion offered free shipping, furniture was excluded: but we still saved 20% on the bunk bed in our cart.

Unlike most stores that offer bunk beds, Pottery Barn Kids doesn't offer free shipping on any of them. Your shipping fees will depend on the address where your order will be delivered. We were quoted an unlimited flat rate, premium in-home delivery fee of $229: no matter how much furniture was in our order, we would only pay that amount, and it would be brought into the desired rooms, unpacked, assembled, and the packaging taken away by the delivery person. Your delivery timeframe also depends on your location; our selection was on backorder and wouldn't be shipped for almost two weeks.

Pottery Barn Kids will probably be the best fit for customers who want a certain look for their child's bedroom - and who would appreciate the one-stop shopping that allows them to furnish and decorate the entire room with a degree of flair and style. But, for shoppers looking for a broad range of options, or who aren't really interested in the brand, PBK isn't going to be at the top of their list for bunk beds.

Kids Furniture Warehouse

• Cost: From $241 to $4,199
• Return Policy: 30 days from delivery on new, unopened items
  35% restocking fee on returns of assembled items

Kids Furniture Warehouse is based in Florida, with retail locations in Tampa and Orlando in addition to their full-service online store. They offer a wide variety of bunk beds and loft beds, with shipping/delivery throughout the continental United States. Included among their more than 50 brands are Allen House, Ashley Furniture, Discovery World Furniture, and Magnussen Home.

You won't find the smoothest shopping experience when looking for bunk and loft beds at Kids Furniture Warehouse. There's no option to display all available beds, so you'll need to choose a specific style - like twin-over-futon or bunk beds with stairs. And, if you prefer a loft bed, you'll find those on separate pages too.

Once you've selected the category of bunk bed that you want to browse, it's easy to see all of the available furniture that KFW carries. Click on a model that interests you: you'll find photos of multiple angles, a helpful description and list of product features, and coordinating items at the bottom in case you want to add a matching dresser, desk, or other furniture. You'll also need to click on the dropdown boxes for options specific to the bunk bed you're considering: slat safety panels, touch-up kits, metal center support rails, trundles and drawers are some of the possibilities your bed may include.

And, if product dimensions matter - if you have a tight space or a very specific location where your bunk bed or loft bed will be set up - you can find all of the measurements in a dropdown under the "Add to Cart" button.

Prices at Kids Furniture Warehouse are competitive, and made even more so by their customer-friendly guarantee. However, KFW doesn't specify the terms of that guarantee (e.g. does it apply before placing an order? After? How should a customer go about asking for a price match?).

Unless you live in Central Florida - and can then opt for free pick-up, $49 local delivery, or $109 for delivery and set-up - your shipping costs will be a flat $298 on all orders of 60+ lbs. There's no option for delivery with assembly outside of Kids Furniture Warehouse's local area. This delivery will be curbside-only, which means you'll need to be home when it arrives and have people who can unload it from the truck into your home.

The return policy at this store is fairly standard: 30 days for a full refund on any new, unopened items. If you decide you want to return a bunk bed you've already set up, you'll need to contact KFW and make the request. If they accept your return, expect a restocking fee of 35%.

Kids Furniture Warehouse has a decent reputation, as shown by an "A+" rating with the Better Business Bureau. The majority of their customers have good things to say, especially about the quality of the furniture itself - no particleboard or cheap veneers here. The one common complaint is usually delivery: orders didn't come when expected, and sometimes the store itself wasn't sure if an order had been shipped or delivered. Keep that in mind, especially if you need your bunk beds in a hurry.

Overall, Kids Furniture Warehouse is a good place to get a quality bunk bed. While their online shopping experience could be a lot more streamlined and intuitive, their broad selection and pricing make them a retailer to consider when shopping for a bunk bed or loft bed.

Cymax

• Cost: From $201 to $2,568
• Return Policy: 30 days on unassembled beds
  Restocking fees up to 20%

When you first start shopping for a bunk bed on the Cymax site, you might wonder if you're in the wrong place - since it says Cymax Business at the top. Despite the focus on offering furnishings for businesses, Cymax does sell over 1,000 bunk beds and loft beds from brands like NE Kids, Coaster, and Furniture of America.

Finding those beds takes more effort than most of Cymax's competitors' sites. Even if you go directly to the Beds category, there's no way to filter the available products just by bunk or loft styles. Instead, you'll probably need to enter "bunk" or "loft" into the search bar and go from there.

As you browse through the available styles of bunk and loft beds, you'll see customer reviews that can give you an idea of what other people have thought - but, we discovered in the fine print that those reviews usually apply to the entire brand, not the specific model we were considering. There were also very limited images of each bed; usually, you'd expect to see multiple angles, so that you can check out any features like built-in desks, drawers, and stairs, but each bed we looked at had just one image shown more than once.

Cymax doesn't stand out when it comes to prices. We found several bunk beds offered at lower prices on other sites. For example, we looked at a twin loft bed made by NE Kids that Cymax sold for $1375, indicating that it was a 30% savings over regular retail pricing. But, we found that same model on more than one competitor site for that same price with no indicated discount, and for under $1300 at another online store. We'd love to see Cymax offer a price match guarantee to ensure that their customers are getting the best price on their bunk beds and loft beds.

Delivery is free on all bunk and loft beds sold by Cymax, which is a nice plus. On the other hand, there aren't always options for upgraded delivery - so you'll need to make sure you have a way of getting the furniture from curbside into your home and into the room where your bunk bed will be assembled. This varies from bed to bed; one large, wood loft style we considered only had standard home delivery, while a smaller (and presumably much easier to assemble) metal frame loft bed had the options of $49.99 "room of choice" home delivery or $69.99 inside delivery & packaging removal.

Generally speaking, Cymax is a reputable store: accreditation and an "A+" rating at the BBB are good indicators that they're doing well at keeping their customers happy. But, compared with other retailers of bunk beds, Cymax makes it much harder to find what you're looking for at the best price.

Lowe's

• Cost: From $424 to $1,440
• Return Policy: 90 days on new, unused products

We all love Lowe's for our home improvement needs. From hammers to hanging plants, Lowe's has it all, and their online store makes it that much easier to get to work. But, how does this DIY-lover's paradise measure up when shopping for bunk beds?

Regrettably, the answer is "not very well". At the time of our review, Lowe's only carried 20 options: 6 twin-over-twin, 7 twin-over-full, 2 twin-over-queen, and 5 loft styles. And, each of those were extremely limited in terms of upgrades or extras: no possibility of adding a trundle, set of drawers, or brand-coordinated chests of drawers or desks.

Very few of the bunk and loft beds sold by Lowe's had customer reviews; the ones that did only had a single review. The product descriptions and images don't give you much information either, so we recommend that you click on the Specifications section. There, you'll find extensive details about the type of wood and finish, whether or not you'll need a bunkie board, along with all of the measurements you may need to decide if the bed will fit where you want it to go.

On the positive side, all of the bunk beds sold by Lowe's ship for free. If you're in a bigger hurry, you may be able to order online and pick up your furniture at the store on the same day - just be sure your desired location is entered at the top of the site, and you'll be able to see which models are available for pickup.

Lowe's return policy is more generous than some: if your bunk or loft bed is still new/unused, you have 90 days to return it. The site doesn't specify how return shipping works if you choose not to take it to a local store for your return, so you'll want to check to see if your package included a prepaid return slip.

Lowe's is a great place to shop for most home needs, but their selection of loft and bunk beds is underwhelming at best. You'll find a much better selection at the higher-ranked stores in our review.

Hayneedle

• Cost: From $114 to $3,269
• Return Policy: 30 days for new, unused beds

Although Hayneedle started as an outdoor living store in 2002, they now offer over 3,000 brands within the home furnishings and decor marketplace. With headquarters in Nebraska and fulfillment centers in California and Ohio, and a partnership with Walmart, Hayneedle will probably be popping up on your radar at some point if they haven't already.

At first, Hayneedle was very promising with respect to bunk beds and loft beds. The site is easy to use, with 670 different beds to choose from and handy filtering options on the left side of the page: you can narrow down the possibilities according to the size of the bed, the material, desired features like bookshelves and storage drawers, color/finish, and more. Even scrolling through the thumbnails, you'll have no problem seeing which beds have options for color and configuration, and which ones already have customer ratings you can read to further guide your decision making.

But, once we'd selected a bunk bed that interested us, things started to get less clear. First, the bed we chose had free shipping - great! - but we wouldn't be able to have it delivered for almost two months. There was a link that said, "Upgrade to get it sooner", but that didn't take us to anywhere that offered a faster delivery. There were options for room-of-choice delivery for $99, and white glove delivery/installation for $149, but all of those still had a two-month delivery window. Plus, that installation/setup is "limited to assembly actions that can be performed without the use of tools", which may not be terribly useful when putting together something as large as a bunk bed or loft bed.

Some of the information we would expect to see about a bunk bed was also missing. For example, when we looked at the Fireside Lodge Cedar Log Bunk, a customer had asked about the weight limit for the queen-over-queen style. The response? "There are no specific weight capacity for this bunk bed." We doubt that the bed could support two very large adults on the top - and most competitor sites spell those kinds of details out clearly.

What about the company's reputation? Although Hayneedle had an "A+" rating and accreditation with the BBB at the time of our review, customer complaints paint a very different story. We found dozens of reviews from the last few months alone that give the retailer the lowest rating possible. Why? Frequent comments include "furniture arrived damaged and Hayneedle wouldn't give me a refund", "orders cancelled repeatedly with no explanation", and "items arrived with missing parts - Hayneedle couldn't ship replacement parts, only an entirely new item and I had to ship the original back".

In fact, it was challenging to find customers who had positive things to say about their experience with Hayneedle, especially when ordering larger items like furniture. Almost every single review said that the furniture was damaged; positive comments were limited to those who ordered smaller items, or who were able to get a satisfactory resolution when they received furniture that was broken, scratched, or missing parts.

Hayneedle has a lot of competition in the bunk bed market, and despite a good track record with the BBB, the most recent customer experiences say you'll get a better night's sleep shopping elsewhere.

Rooms To Go

• Cost: From $299 to $1,750
• Return Policy: Must be initiated within 48 hours of delivery

Rooms To Go has likely popped up on your TV and radio, featuring one-stop shopping for furnishing any room in your home. The Rooms To Go Kids site has what you'll need for your girl's or boy's bedroom, along with themes geared towards teens. There are just over 80 choices specifically for loft beds and bunk beds.

Many of the loft beds offered by Rooms To Go are tent-style: in other words, they look like a fort, cabin, or castle, with the bed on top and attachments hanging down to give the entire piece of furniture a playhouse-like feel. Other styles are available, including the traditional twin-over-twin and more unique combinations like a twin-over-full loft with steps and a dresser.

Finding what you want isn't incredibly intuitive on the Rooms To Go site. Sorting options on the left of the main Bunk Beds page only include the finish and the size, and then results can be arranged by price, featured styles, name or best-sellers. But, somehow when we started clicking around, we wound up on a page where there were more sorting choices in the navigation - which should also have been shown on the main page for bunk beds.

And, even once you choose a bunk bed that looks like a good fit for your needs, you won't find much detail on the product page. Dimensions? Just height, width, length. Weight limits? No. Recommended ceiling clearance? No. The only helpful information is whether or not it will require a bunkie board to support the mattress. But, even that's not consistent: when we toggled between a white and a taffy finish for the same model of bunk bed, one clearly said that a bunkie was required and listed it for purchase, while the other mentioned that it was necessary in one of the bullet points without having it there as an add-on to our order.

Rooms To Go has a limited delivery range: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi, Texas, Virginia and Kentucky are the only locations where delivery is available statewide. Additional parts of Oklahoma, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Louisiana and Washington, DC are also eligible, but not the entire state.

Delivery charges depend on what you buy and where it's delivered. For delivery of just a bunk bed or loft bed in the zip code we checked, we'd pay a delivery/set-up fee of $89.99. For a bunk/loft and one or more additional items, like a dresser or bookcase, the fee increases to $139.99.

Rooms To Go has the worst return policy of any bunk bed retailer we reviewed: you only have 48 hours from when your furniture is delivered to request a return. You'll be responsible for return shipping costs via UPS only. And don't think it'll be any better if you buy from a showroom: there are no returns accepted once your purchase has been delivered.

Frankly, we're not sure how Rooms To Go has an "A+" rating and accreditation with the BBB. Almost every single customer review we found said that the delivery experience was beyond nightmarish, with damages to both the furniture itself and the customers' homes, improperly assembled products, and a "not my problem" attitude from customer service representatives.

Given that the Better Business Bureau seems to be the only place for anything positive about Rooms To Go, we suggest that you consider another one of the more customer-friendly bunk bed stores in our review.