6 Best Car Air Mattresses of 2023

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The coziest beds whether you're in a small backseat or an SUV.

Car camping has increasingly become one of the most popular ways to get in better touch with nature. In fact, more than half of Americans who camp do so in a vehicle, according to The Dyrt's 2023 Camping Report. Car camping eliminates the need to pitch a tent or sleep on the ground, yet still allows you a similar experience of sleeping under the stars — plus, staying self-contained in your car means you can quickly pick up and go off to your next destination.

To make the most of car camping, though, you'll need a good car air mattress. Unlike a traditional air mattress, a car air mattress needs to fit around the nooks and crannies of your vehicle to lay flat, can't inflate too high off the ground, should be easy to store and durable to resist puncturing.

The experts and product testers at the Good Housekeeping Institute have evaluated thousands of products to find the best travel gear and top camping gear for more than two decades, looking at everything from travel backpacks to car vacuums and camping tents. We coupled this expertise with independent editorial research to compile a list of the best car mattresses and comfortable sleeping pads designed specifically to fit the interior of a car.

Our picks are from highly-rated brands with a special mind to getting the best sleep in the tightest of quarters in a variety of styles and for various uses. Read on to find what to look for when choosing one for your vehicle and why you should trust our recommendations.

Designed with rugged road travel in mind, the Umbrauto Car Air Mattress is made of both thick PVC material and extra-thick fabric on the bottom to prevent tears, yet covered in a soft flocked material for a comfier feel. Its folding sides make for a customizable fit in most cars and it has built-in air pillows, so it's easy to pack into your car without dealing with a ton of accessories.

We like that this air mattress is divided into a 60/40 split, allowing you to only inflate the half of your choice, depending on if you’re traveling solo or putting on or two seats down. It's one of the few air mattresses that uses an auxiliary power outlet-specific plug for the included pump, which also has a long 10-foot cord for easy inflation and deflation. It, unfortunately, doesn't come with a storage bag, but it's still easy to fold up and store in the back of your vehicle for easy access.

With three distinct inflatable compartments and flexible ribs, this inexpensive car air mattress can fit in the trunk or even the backseat of most MPVs, SUVs and saloon cars for a comfortable snooze. When fully inflated with the included pump, it creates a Queen-sized mattress that can fit two adults and maybe even a third little one. We love that you can opt to fill two of the compartments to use it as a twin sized mattress in the middle seats.

It has a soft-touch top, but you may want to line it with a blanket or sleeping bag for more comfort. The brand claims it's tear-resistant so it can be used for camping outdoors, but you’ll still want to be careful of any sharp stones and the like to prevent accidental damage.

The T-shaped design of this car air mattress allows it to fit and work with a variety of makes and models from Crossovers to Jeep Wranglers. This means it will hug around your car's wheel wells for a good fit in the rear cargo area so you won't deal with awkward bumps or tight squeezes.

Some users report that there can be minor gapping, but that can be easily fixed by playing with the seat positions or stuffing blankets along the sides. It's made with ruggedness in mind, using a heavy-duty PVC material and a flocked-top surface for a softer feel. Inflation and deflation is easy, too, thanks to the built-in pump.

Luno makes high-quality car air mattresses with your vehicle in mind for the best fit possible fit on the road. Options for sizing are completely customizable down the make, model and year of your car for 1,800 different vehicles, which ensures that it will almost definitely lie flat in the back with no fuss or insures it will fit smaller vehicles.

The Luno Air Mattress 2.0 is uniquely designed with two folding sides that offer plenty of functionality like adjustable firmness depending on how much you fill it and the option to inflate just one side, so you don't have to unpack the entire car during solo travel. Two inflatable "feet" fill in the gap between the front and back seats for the most snug fit possible. It can easily inflate or deflate in a matter of minutes using the included pump and it packs down small enough to fit in a carry-on bag.

If you hate dealing with a pump to inflate your mattress, this self-inflating option takes care of the hard work for you. It uses a Proprietary Flow Core system to quickly inflate and deflate, though you may need to fiddle with the included pump sack for more or less air to best fit your comfort.

The NEMO Roamer Sleeping Pad is designed with camping in mind and gives you a solid four inches of lift between you and the floor of your vehicle, which means it won't make you feel too crammed into the backseat area. While it doesn't offer curves designed specifically for cars, the 78-inch by 52-inch mattress can easily fit in the back of most large vehicles, but you should measure your car first to be safe. When not in use, just roll it up to deflate and pack it up tightly.

This thick sleeping pad paired with a sleeping bag may do the trick to keep you cozy in your car. Weighing less than a pound, it gives you three inches of lift from your car floor. With four size options (small, regular, regular wide and large), you have a few choices to best fit your make and model — just be sure to measure ahead of time, since some reviewers said the pad is a bit too long for some car models. It's also ideal for over packers or light travelers, as it can pack up to the size of a water bottle, says the brand, so you can tuck it in between road trip snacks and bags.

Our editors scoured the market to find the best car air mattresses and tapped the expert scientists at the Good Housekeeping Institute (who have years of testing air mattresses) for insight on what may make a good car mattress based on their years of experience in the field. When choosing car air mattresses, we considered factors such as:

✔️ Inflation mechanism: Blowing up air mattresses can be a tedious task, especially when you’re limited to a campsite or just a car. We looked at models that were self inflated, had a battery powered pump or a pump that can be powered by an auxiliary power outlet.

✔️ Dimensions: Larger air mattresses may not fit in the rear or middle seat of a car. We chose models no longer than 75 inches in length and 55 inches in width, which is about the size of an average SUVs rear and cargo space when the middle row is pushed down.

✔️ Durability: We prioritized air mattresses made of durable PVC material to help avoid any potential nicks from sharp rocks and debris brought in from outside or any sharp edges in cars' construction.

✔️ Comfort: For optimal comfort in a small space, we looked at car air mattresses that had enough thickness and would resist deflation throughout the night.

Selecting a car air mattress is a bit different than looking for a traditional air mattress—namely the shape and kind of car you're working with. Here are a few factors to think about when shopping for an air mattress for your car:

✔️ Pump: Most car air mattresses need to use a pump, and some have them built-in for easier storage. If you opt for something more similar to a camping sleep pad, there are self inflating options as well.

✔️ Inflation time: Thinner mattresses should be able to inflate and deflate in just a few minutes. Look at specific times from the manufacturer.

✔️ Height: With the limited height of your car, you’re also going to need a mattress with a lower profile than a traditional air mattress so as to not bump your head. Most car air mattresses won't be thicker than 7 inches but double-check to be sure.

✔️ Functionality: Most car air mattresses are designed with a T-shape to fit around the wheel well of a vehicle. However, shorter rectangular air mattresses should also be able to fit in the rear of a car. For more customizability, some will offer different chambers to inflate, which will also allow you to fold it around certain shapes or place it in the middle row as well.

✔️ Fabric: Car air mattresses should be especially durable, so choose one that is made of PVC, a thick synthetic polymer of plastic that is less likely to tear easily. You can determine how thick it will be by checking the denier (the fiber thickness) of the fabric. Anything with 100 deniers or higher is considered to be heavy-duty. Also, look for a soft top layer of flocked material, which feels velvety to the touch rather than hard slippery plastic. This is especially important for some car air mattresses that are oddly shaped, which may make it difficult to use a top sheet.

The Good Housekeeping Institute has been testing consumer products that make life easier for more than 100 years. This roundup was written by contributing writer Courtney Campbell, a longtime product reviewer, who selected products based on hours of research and also worked under the guidance of the GH Institute Textiles Lab.

Courtney (she/hers) has spent the past 5 years testing everything from reusable straws to standing desks to homemade kombucha kits. A longtime reviewer, deals hunter, and lifestyle writer, she currently heads up the American Kennel Club's product review site Retrievest and previously worked as the Shopping Editor for USA Today's Reviewed. Additionally, she has covered design and lifestyle trends for Apartment Therapy, Domino, SELF, and more. A graduate of Elon University, she loves telling everyone about what race she's planning on running next while raving about her favorite running headphones (they’re bone conducting!).

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