The 5 Best Places To Order A Comfortable New Short RV Queen Mattress
(Camp Addict does NOT accept payment from any company to review or endorse their products.)
By Kelly Beasley
RVing is a popular recreational activity in the USA.
But I think we can agree that sleeping on a cruddy mattress every night spoils your adventure.
You're probably in the market to get a new RV short queen mattress to replace the sad sack of a bed that came with your rig.
If your old mattress is about 60 x 75 inches, you have a short queen mattress. Regular queen mattresses are about 5 inches longer.
Then where can you get this RV short queen or RV queen mattress?
You probably have so many questions about it, and we have all your answers right here.
What Dimensions Make It A "Short Queen" Mattress?
The short queen size mattress or "RV Queen" is arguably the most common RV-sized mattress around (Lucky for you!).
Its dimensions are usually 5 inches shorter than a regular queen mattress.
They do this to save space in an RV. You only use the bed at night, and there's a lot to put inside a camper for day use!
Here is what constitutes an RV short queen bed:
RV Short Queen (inches) = 60W x 75L
That's it! If that's the size in your RV and it's the size of the platform your bed sits on, that's what you should get to replace it.
But wait...
The 5 Best Places To Buy A Short Queen Mattress
There are a few places from which we recommend buying a short queen mattress.
The chosen are known for customization, good to great customer support, good prices, and NOT bottom-of-the-rung quality.
In order from our favorite to least favorite:
On top of selling short queens, Tochta and Mattress Insider both offer custom sized and shaped mattresses.
Brooklyn Bedding makes great beds, but they don't offer custom sizes.
Amazon (and Walmart) has some short queen mattresses, but good luck searching for the RV queen short size. You may filter for that size, but they seem to show you lots of listings that aren't in short queen.
Lastly, Camping World offers very few queen size camper mattress options on their site.
Tochta, Brooklyn Bedding, and Mattress Insider are the best for quality, customer support, customization, and selection.
The last three are best for price and toppers.
Can You Put A Regular Mattress In An RV?
A common question many new RV owners as is: "Can I put a regular mattress in my RV??"
Yes, IF...
You CAN, but only if you have the bed platform size to support it.
Yes, some motorhomes and travel trailers come with regular-sized mattresses in them.
If that's your situation, then you certainly can replace yours with the same regular-sized mattress.
Regular Foam Mattress Hack
OR, (hack!) if your existing mattress is foam and it's too large, you can cut it to fit.
It's true!
Many people employ this method, and it works just fine.
One More Possible Hack
When the room allows, other folks get a regular-sized queen mattress and let the end hang over the edge of the bed platform.
It only needs to support your feet, so it does work. Just be careful if you go to sit on the end of the bed!
Potential Problems
However, do this using your judgment and at your own risk.
Just make SURE that getting a longer mattress won't interfere with anything, especially with a RV pop out coming in.
You should also be aware of the thickness of the original mattress VS. the thickness of the one with which you want to replace it.
Thickness is another instance of something that can disallow the new queen-sized camper mattress to fit.
It might be a shelf in the way, and it might be the slide hitting it (or other).
Look around and assess the area before you bother dragging a mattress out and into your RV.
Are RV Mattresses Different Than Regular Mattresses?
There's nothing 'special' or different about the build or structure of these two mattress types.
The only difference is the size and sometimes the shape.
If you have a regular mattress that fits in your RV bed platform and you want to use it, go for it!
It should work as long as you can get it through the door and onto the platform.
Will Regular Queen Sheets Fit a Short Queen Mattress?
Sure, regular camper sheets will fit on a short queen mattress, but a little persuasion will be necessary for them to fit well.
It's the fitted sheet that is the issue. It's a little too long.
That said, you can tighten it up using one of these two solutions:
- If you can work a sewing machine or just a thread and needle, you can cut the end to fit better. Re-sew it up or add more elastic to the ends.
- This one is the easier solution. You can use sheet straps on the undersides of the corners to keep the fitted sheet taught and in place.
Keep in mind- you might not need a solution at all.
If your queen sheets are for a thin mattress, the mattress in your RV is thick, AND the fitted sheet has very tight elastic, it might fit just fine.
Basically, where there's a will, there's a way! If you have a set of sheets that are too large buy you still want to use them, you can make it work.
Otherwise, just buy camper queen sheets made to fit your best RV mattress short queen.
What Kinds Of Materials Do They Make Short Queen Mattresses With?
You can find any size RV mattress in any material from which regular beds are made.
This includes:
- Polyurethane foam mattress (learn more)
- Latex mattress (learn more)
- Synthetic latex mattress (learn more)
- Innerspring mattress (learn more)
- Memory foam mattress (learn more)
- Gel memory foam mattress (learn more)
What's The Difference Between A Short Queen And A Standard Queen?
The only difference between a short queen and a standard queen is about five inches of length.
Here are the dimensions of both for reference:
- Standard Queen: 60 x 80 inches
- RV Short Queen: 60 x 75 inches
That's it!
Not much of a difference, but in the tiny confines of an RV, those five inches are priceless.
How Much Do Short Queen RV Mattresses Cost?
Just like any mattress, manufacturers of short queen RV mattresses charge different prices for different materials and qualities in their products.
They also charge according to their RV mattress sizes. An RV bunk bed will cost less than king size RV mattresses, for example.
Low Quality
The cheapest ones are naturally not going to be very comfortable and probably won't last long.
These are typically made only from polyurethane foam (the same material most couch cushions are made with).
The thicker you get it, the better because it's squishy and not very supportive. It won't hold up as long as the other materials recommended on this page.
This mattress costs around $200-$500.
Middle Quality
The middle of the barrel mattresses are made from multiple decent materials and can be pretty comfortable.
This includes memory foam, gel memory foam, synthetic latex, and innerspring mattresses. Expect to pay somewhere from $500-$1200 for this medium to good mattress quality.
Highest Quality
The upper end of mattresses will have less cheap foam (Poly foam) and more of the luxury materials such as natural latex, excellent gel memory foam, and sometimes innersprings mixed with a good foam on top (known as a short queen hybrid mattress).
You can pay anywhere from $1200-$3000+ for these materials to buy the best RV mattresses.
Other Considerations
Keep in mind that most foam mattresses have many foam layers in them. They do this to make them as comfortable and as affordable as possible.
For example, an all-latex mattress wouldn't be comfortable.
Instead, it would be cumbersome, and it's the most expensive material, so you'd have a somewhat uncomfortable, heavy, costly mattress.
Therefore, they use latex IN the mattress and other layers such as poly foam and maybe a memory foam to make beds comfortable and affordable.
Therefore, pay attention to all of the materials the mattress is made of.
Where Is A Short Queen Mattress Used?
Short queen mattresses (RV queen) exist for use in recreational vehicles.
That said, if you have a bedroom in your house where you need a little extra walking room, you can get this size as long as you have a bed frame that matches it.
But generally, short queens are made for motorhomes, travel trailers, fifth wheels, and vans.
Where Can You Buy Short Queen Sheets?
While you certainly can make regular sheets work on a short queen mattress, did you know you can buy sheets made just for this size?
You certainly can!
We share our top picks for where to buy on our RV short queen sheets page.
Where Can You Buy A Short Queen Topper?
If the comfort of your camper mattress is less than acceptable and you don't want to buy a whole new one, try a camper queen mattress topper.
It can make a workable or even excellent upgrade to your RV bed.
Great Topper Hack!
And if you can't find one that is just the right size, cut it with scissors or a knife to get rid of the excess width or end.
You may have to cut open the cover then re-sew it back on if it has a sewn cover.
Marshall and Kelly both made a topper purchase before replacing their original RV mattresses.
They were both pretty happy with that solution until they each finally got a camper mattress replacement.
Where Can You Get a Custom-Sized RV Mattress?
Let's say you have a short queen with weird angles or rounded edges, or even a corner cut rv mattress. How would you find a replacement?
Luckily, it's not hard to find at all.
Two companies specialize in custom RV mattresses:
The custom mattress cost is middle-of-the-road, between about $450 for the cheapest and about $1400 for the highest quality.
Both are high-quality mattress makers offering excellent durability and using premium materials.
They make some of the best RV mattresses around if you ask us.
Custom Corners
The custom corners are only about $15 to $30 for each custom cut, depending on which company you use.
Offered are rounded corners, angles, and notch.
Split Firm Options
With the Tochta 'Divini' mattress, you can even order it with different firm options on each side so you and your partner can each sleep comfortably. (Couples RV mattress)
Stomach sleepers and side sleepers no longer have to compromise on RV mattress firmness.
Who Makes The Best RV Short Queen Mattress?
It is our opinion that we can't name the best RV short queen mattress.
Why?
Because 'best' is a very subjective opinion.
That said, we can offer up who we (through experience) believe to be the best MAKER of RV mattresses.
Best RV Queen Mattress Maker
There are many reasons why our favorite mattress maker is:
Why? First, they have fantastic customer support, which we value highly.
They also have fair prices and a variety of price and size options.
Kelly's Favorite Mattress Of All Time:
Kelly believes one of their mattresses to be the most comfortable RV queen mattresses, or ANY mattress for that matter, that she's ever slept on.
And that award goes to the Tochta Utopia mattress.
The company is top-notch regarding materials used, customer service, credibility, and they use Certi-PUR Certified foam in their beds.
Their foam mattresses are incredibly comfortable, and they offer different sizes, including bunk mattresses, twin XL, or ANY size you need, as they offer custom sizes.
They even have a mattress that offers different firmness levels on each side.
Lastly, they can make you a folding, or 'hinged' mattress if needed.
Another Very Viable Option (Aka, Marshall's Favorite)
Marshall happens to very much like the Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid mattress, which is an innerspring mattress with a foam top layer. (Kelly's favorite above is a 100% short queen memory foam mattress.)
If you don't like the idea of having a mattress made out of just foam, then we highly recommend that you check out what Brooklyn Bedding has to offer. They have three separate innerspring hybrid mattress offerings.
Can You Get A Short Queen RV Mattress That Has Split Side Firmness Customization?
Speaking of Tochta, yes, they offer split-side firmness customization when you order their Divini model.
With the Divini, your queen short mattress can satisfy both you and your partner.
No more painful pressure points for one of you. Now you can both be happy!
What RV Types Have Short Queen Mattresses?
You can find a short queen camper mattress in any type of RV, even in smaller rigs.
It's the most common size mattress found in RVs.
That said, they may be a bit more common in smaller RVs, such as 26 foot and under travel trailers, smaller fifth wheels, and motorhomes under 35 feet in length. In other words, recreational vehicles where interior space is really limited.
Vans are less likely to have a short queen. They tend to have custom sizes that don't quite match the camper queen size.
You might even find a full-size RV queen bed in larger RVs (or larger). But it's the smaller ones that tend to have the shorter queen size.
Considerations When Choosing a Short Queen Mattress.
A new mattress is a pretty significant investment for most people.
Don't take choosing your new RV mattress short queen lightly.
- Frequency of Use: The most significant factor to consider is how often you use your RV and how long you intend to keep it. If you don't go out often and don't plan to keep it long, you might get away with a cheaper mattress. If you use it often and plan to keep it for a long time, then consider getting a good-quality mattress that will withstand that much use for years to come.
- Firmness: Most manufacturers offer various firmness levels. The best RV queen mattress for you is the one you are most comfortable sleeping in (duh!). If you like it firm at home, you're going to want it firm when on vacation.
- Material: You know what you like. Get that. If you DON'T, we suggest you go to a local mattress store and spend time trying out new things. Get on a foam mattress. Get on an innerspring with a foam top (hybrid mattress). Try it all, so you know what you do and don't like.
- Shape: If you have an odd-shaped mattress, you need to replace it with an odd-shaped mattress (custom mattress), though in some circumstances, you can get away with just using a regular-shaped mattress. This limits where you can buy from, as only a few makers offer custom RV mattresses. (Mattress Insider and Tochta.)
Can You Get A Hinged Mattress In Short Queen?
Yes, you can get a short queen hinged mattress!
Lucky for you, Tochta offers this feature. This kind of mattress is often found in a popup camper.
There are other instances when a hinged mattress is needed, so yes, you can get a hinged bed in an RV queen size.
Conclusion
The camper short queen mattress is very similar to a regular mattress. The only difference is that, on average, it is 5 inches shorter.
If you want to replace your short queen mattress for RV use, you can. There are only a few things to consider, but it's not rocket science.
Figure out what kind of mattress you like. Do you prefer foam comfort layers, innerspring coils, or perhaps a gel memory foam?
Next, decide how often you'll use it and for how many years. This will determine the quality in which you choose to invest.
Once you know this, go to our recommendations for places that sell short queen mattresses and find the best one for your needs.
A stock RV mattress can leave you with aches and pains. Find the best RV mattress for you, so you get the pressure relief you need with your new RV queen short mattress.
Author: Kelly Beasley
I dedicated myself to living the full-time RV life for over 6.5 years, immersing myself in the unique quirks and joys of the boondocking lifestyle and gaining a wealth of knowledge and experience along the way. In December 2020, my business partner and I made the transition to part-time RVing, but in January 2023, we hit the road once again, this time in our trusty vans. My mission is to help others embrace the RVing lifestyle with confidence and excitement, armed with the knowledge and resources needed to make the most of their adventures. I believe that the more you know, the more you can truly appreciate and enjoy the freedom and flexibility of the open road.