Top 12 Popular Box Spring Alternatives to Save Time and Money

Are you in the market looking to buy a quality mattress and wondering whether you need a box spring? Before you go further, let me break it to you, you don’t need a box spring, and it might not be the best solution for you.

After using the box spring for some time, I felt back pains, which led me to research whether or not it was the mattress and the box spring causing the problems. The outcome? My box spring was the problem. Therefore, I came up with box spring alternatives that I have found helpful.

What is a Box Spring and the Purpose of a Box Spring?

Simply put, a box spring is a wooden frame with a cloth covering, and within it, there are springs. The box spring is mostly used as a bed base. Folks have used box springs as foundations for their mattresses for extensive periods.

Why Do We Need a Box Spring to be a Foundation?

A spring box is primarily placed to achieve a space between the bedroom floor and the mattress, aiming to keep the mattress away from dirt.

The efficiency of box springs has made them a popular way to lay a foundation for a mattress. The box spring can effectively keep the mattress away from dirt, such as dust, human hair, or food crumbs. Besides, the box spring will keep your mattress from sagging because it will absorb and distribute your weight across the entire mattress while getting on or off the bed.

If a box spring is not the ideal solution for you, you don’t have to worry because there are box spring alternative ideas you can work with to perfection. One such alternative is using under mattress slats.

Top 12 Box Spring Alternatives Ideas for You

1. Under Mattress Slats

In comparison to box springs and mattresses, slats are thinner and lighter. If you have your mattress’s durability in your mind, it’s always good to work with slats. The durability of the box spring is unmatched, and it will be sturdier compared to slats.

Depending on what you’re looking for, under mattress slats can be a great alternative to a box spring. They cost much less, and you can install them easily. Another upside of working with other bed slats is that they are lighter but still durable.

2. Putting the Mattress Directly on the Floor

A flat floor can be a great and supportive foundation for your mattress. You don’t have to stress yourself about doing it; all it takes is to put the mattress on a flat floor surface literally. The flatness of the floor is ideal for offering firm support.

You need to consider this alternative to box spring because of its many health benefits. Other than increased blood circulation throughout the body, this DIY box spring idea effectively improves posture. By putting your mattress directly on the floor, you are effectively waving goodbye to backache problems.

Some of the benefits that come with putting your mattress directly on the floor include

• It’s cost-effective
• It’s an effective solution to hot sleeping due to the natural coldness of the floor
• It’s healthy because it puts the spine in its natural position when you are sleeping.

Despite many benefits, putting your mattress directly on the floor comes with the disadvantage of risking your health due to microorganisms’ exposure. It also puts you at risk of having a mattress with poor air circulation, and if you’re a side sleeper, it puts you at risk of backaches.

3. Milk Crate Bed Case

This DIY box spring alternative is what you might be looking for if you love making your stuff. All it takes is salvaging milk crates and arranging them to form a bed base. You can add to the beauty by painting them, and you can spread a plywood sheet to increase its longevity.

It has the advantage of being an effective way to reuse milk crates that could be otherwise thrown away. One advantage that it has over box spring is that it is cheaper.

This DIY alternative before box spring is not a solution for heavy sleepers, and it’s not flexible because it does not have the springs better known as the box springs.

4. Platform Bed

As an alternative to box spring, platform beds are superior. They come as a bed frame with their mechanism to support the bed, which is usually wooden slats. They are designed as a solid unit raised above the ground, and the slats are meant to provide circulation and aeration for the mattress.

Platform beds are particularly superior to box springs, but the biggest turn off is their huge price tag. The advantages of this alternative to box springs include;

• They eliminate the need to buy spring friends
• They give your bedroom the contemporary and conventional look
• They provide more storage because you can make use of the space underneath the bed
• They intensify air circulation to the mattress.

On the downside, platform beds have disadvantages such as;

• They are expensive and not easily affordable
• For people that are suffering from joint pains, it cannot be a great alternative considering how low they can be
• It might lead to hip pain for people who prefer sleeping on their sides.

5. Adjustable Bed

With lifestyle changes, you find yourself feeling like going to bed and reading there or watching your favorite TV show from the comfort of your bed. Do you know what you need to have the best experience here? An adjustable bed. These beds are made of multiple hinges, and you can adjust them to suit your current need.

If you’re thinking of sleeping in a position where you have improved blood circulation, or you like to sleep with your head raised in a given position or your feet at a given angle of elevation, then an adjustable bed is just the thing for you.

As an alternative to box spring, it is unparalleled. You can use this bed and adjust it to whatever position you need at whatever time you need and all at your convenience.

Adjustable beds have the benefits of

• Being able to be modified to suit your lifestyle needs
• They can be adjusted to blow away the risk of acid reflux in people with GERD disease
• They improve the quality of sleep by improving blood circulation.

The disadvantages that come with adjustable beds are

• • They are notoriously expensive
  • In case they develop a mechanical failure, it immediately becomes you serious
  • After purchasing the bed, you need to buy a compatible mattress.

6. Memory Foam Mattress

Whereas box spring bases give more bounce than memory foam beds, memory foam mattress responsiveness is far superior. This makes them a great alternative for box springs when distributing your body weight and shape across the mattress.

As an alternative to box springs memory, foam mattresses are rather soft options, but one thing about them is that they will give you an awesome sleeping experience thanks to their ability to offer a cuddle feel. Some of the advantages they have include the material they are made up of and the ability to relieve body pain due to their cushioning effect.
The demerits of memory foam mattresses include;

• They are exorbitantly expensive
• For sensitive people, they are the best option because of the chemical order that they give
• The ability to retain body heat may make them hot during sleep.

7. Hybrid Mattress

If the spring box alternative of memory foam mattresses is not what you’re looking for, let me tell you about another alternative. I’m talking about the hybrid mattress. These mattresses are designed in such a way that they combine what’s best about memory foam mattresses with an innerspring system to become an option that’s more firm.

The gelling agent found within the cover of hybrid mattresses makes them ideal for air circulation. Memory foam mattresses effectively deal with back and joint pains, all thanks to the sturdiness they get from their innerspring system. On the downside, hybrid mattresses are expensive, and their weight is substantial.

8. Wood Slat Foundation

Compared to box spring, this is an option that cups with numerous benefits, one of them being cost. Generally, wood slats are less expensive compared to box springs. Another advantage they hold of a box spring is that in case they are broken, you can replace them cheaply. You can make them yourself at home.

In as much as wood slab foundations offer a durable and cheap alternative to box spring in both maintenance and installation, they do not give more height to your bed. Wood slat foundations come with the benefits of;

• They increase the longevity of your mattress
• They can increase your storage space because you can explore it under the bed
• They improve aeration, and air circulation is a sure way to deal with night sweats
• Their prices are affordable, and you can acquire them easily.

Wood slat foundations also come with their fair share of disadvantages such as;

• With time, the slats bend and become saggy
• When you’re buying them, you have to make sure that they perfectly fit your bed otherwise there will be a problem
• In case the sleeper is in the mattress and is heavy, then they can easily break.

9. DIY Box Spring Alternatives

You can use all the above-mentioned box spring alternatives if you have to replace your box spring. Although they are good alternatives, they might leave a huge dent in your wallet. How can you effectively replace your box spring while scaling down the cost and still maintaining the comfort you need when you sleep?

How about if I tell you that you can build your bed base and don’t have to buy one from the market? You can save a coin, and a good one at that, if you choose to build your bed base. You can also recycle milk crates that have been used and disposed of to create an effective box spring alternative.

Another DIY box spring alternative can be using cardboard to build your bed base. Though cardboard might not sound like an ideal material to create a bed base that can carry you and the mattress, if you arrange them in spades, they can be what you need to create your box spring alternative.

If you can access concrete cinder blocks, then that’s another DIY box spring alternative for you. Once you arrange them, you should look for plywood and put it underneath the mattress to avoid putting cinder blocks in the middle. Please give it a coat of paint that matches your room’s color, and you have yourself a perfect DIY box spring alternative.

10. Innerspring Mattress

This alternative effectively does away with the need for a box spring, considering that they are structured, so they have a spring coil system infused in the mattress. Innerspring mattresses are the perfect alternatives to spring boxes because they give you the same function while doing away with the cost and the need to buy an additional bed base.

They come with the advantages of

• Longevity
• They do not sit and sulk when on exertion of body weight
• The presence of coils within them gives them superior aeration.

The downside of these mattresses is that

• Some sleepers might find them extremely rigid
• The rigidity is a recipe for the development of joint pains for inside sleepers
• With time, the innerspring system becomes cranky and can make a lot of noise.

11. Box Spring Alternative IKEA

IKEA is an online store that specializes in selling mattress bases. Here, you can get numerous mattress bases at friendly prices. At IKEA, you can buy mattress bases of different sizes and different materials akin to those mentioned above.

Box spring alternative queens such as slatted mattress base for bed frames are abundant at the IKEA store. If you’re looking at where to get quality bed bases alternatives to box springs, then IKEA is the store to check. You will not be disappointed.

12. Milkcrate Bed Base

If you want a bed base on a budget, this is an excellent idea for a box spring alternative. A milkcrate bed base won’t cost much, and it will serve its intended purpose. Get milk crates thrown out and stack them up to form a base for your mattress. Word of advice: Do not do more than two stacks high! I went three up and had an accidental fall in the middle of the night.

13. Nothing Box Spring Alternative

You read that right. Nothing! You sometimes don’t need a bed base alternative to the box spring.

Conclusion

As we conclude our look into mattress and box spring alternatives, one thing is clear! You don’t need to use a spring box as your bed base necessarily. There are alternatives, as evidenced in the article. You can also decide to do it yourself and create an awesome bed base without spending a coin or visiting the market.

Do you have a question or a comment concerning the subject of alternatives to springboks when it comes to bed bases? Feel free to drop a comment or a suggestion or a question!