Despite my home's tight square footage, I entertain a lot of overnight guests, from visiting friends to monthlong family stays. I've long been on the lookout for additional sleeping arrangements that could work with my small space rather than interrupt it, which is where the Article Riley Sofa Bed came in.
Like many others, I have always associated sleeper sofas and futons with squeaky constructions and uncomfortable nights spent with couch hardware jabbing my sides. That's why this sofa bed seemed too good to be true: an 84-inch block-frame sofa with a memory foam mattress. I put it to the test over the last few months, sitting, sleeping, and welcoming guests (and my dogs) to try it out. I'm happy to report positive results.
If you, too, are looking for a tight-space solution for overnight guests and visitors, I've broken down why Article's Riley Sofa Bed is worth considering. At $2,300, it's a bit of an investment compared to other options we've tried, but with Article being one of the best furniture stores, its quality and comfort pay off if you can afford the splurge.
At just 84 inches long, the Article Riley Sofa Bed offers incredible value for its size. Its queen-sized memory foam mattress easily unfurls from under its cushions. It's also built very durably, with a frame and performance fabric that surpassed our expectations in testing.
- Small footprint
- Super-comfy bed
- Durable enough for pets and kids
- Firmer cushions
- No headrest
- Short 1-year warranty
Design and customizations
Article offers over 30 sofa beds from love seats to storage sectionals. The Riley is available as an 84-inch sofa or a sectional with a storage chaise. The latter is the most space-efficient and still offers a queen-size memory foam mattress when unfurled. Its simple, blocky design can easily fit in with many different interior design themes, whether your home is modern, traditional, or a little mix of everything. It's not a statement piece but rather a utilitarian one that can work with your vision. Its frame is made with solid pine and plywood with a steel mechanism for the bed, and the cushions are filled with foam and polyester fiber. If you find you don't need a sofa bed, the Riley is also available as a sofa, loveseat, and a storage sofa, where the seat cushion lifts up to reveal hidden storage.
Article offers the Riley Sofa in eight fabric choices and three velvets, most of which are performance options that offer more durability and stain resistance. Just two colors were stocked to ship, while the others are made to order and take six to eight weeks. Article also boasts a special stain-repellant finish plus higher abrasion resistance testing for its fabrics — an exciting feature for pet owners like myself. For this review, I tested the Riley with the sofa configuration, upholstered with the Napa Quartz performance fabric.
Delivery and setup
Scheduling delivery was painless and simple, taking only two weeks before arriving at my doorstep with two delivery people. It didn't take long before I could sit back and enjoy the couch — within 15 minutes, they had placed it in my living room, removed all of the packing debris, and seen themselves out.
Despite their speed, bringing in the couch seemed difficult, involving some heavy lifting and maneuvering that I would struggle with personally. Aside from arranging the cushions, no assembly was required. If you're not an especially strong person or you have a tiny doorway like I do, you may want to take advantage of Article's White Glove delivery for an extra $199, like I did. Otherwise, shipping costs are $49 to your front door, or in-room delivery is $119.
Comfort
The first time I collapsed into the Riley Sofa, I knew it would be a perfect fit for our household. Not too plush nor too firm, it's an excellent choice for gaming, eating snacks, and lounging without losing your phone or TV remote in the cushions. Its 23-inch seat depth is great for getting comfortable without getting sucked in.
The backrest is a little low for my preference. The lack of a headrest means that without an additional pillow, you can't fully relax without your head lolling off the couch. This lends to the couch's neat and tidy appearance but also detracts from its comfiness. This isn't a problem if you adapt a typical hunched gaming or eating stance while sitting, but when leaning back to enjoy a movie, an additional pillow is a must.
Sleeping on the Article Riley
Converting the sofa from couch to bed is as simple as removing the cushions and extending the frame. It's a painless experience, making it easy to collapse and expand the bed as guests go about the day and then settle in for the night.
I never knew a sofa bed could be comfortable until I slept on the Riley. Its custom 4.5-inch memory foam mattress is thin yet plush, and its frame offers good bounce. It lacks any of the uncomfortable jabs and rigidity that came with the cheap futons from my college days spent at friends' apartments. Though it doesn't hold a candle to my cooling mattress in terms of heat dispersion, its thin bed cools pretty quickly and doesn't retain much heat. During my three-night sleeping test on the Riley, I sometimes found myself forgetting that I was sleeping on a pull-out sofa bed.
However, as impressed as I was with it, it's not a perfect replacement for a typical mattress and bed. Its bounce can be too much for some sleepers, especially if you're easily awakened by a partner's movement. The motion isolation is poor, as is the edge support. Sitting on the joint where the bed folds also caused it to dip — not enough to force the bed to fold on its own, but enough to knock over a soda can perched on the edge.
That said, the bed hidden within the couch is a solid sleep companion that far outperforms alternatives like cheap futons, inflatable mattresses, or folding cots.
Durability
Though I've only had it for four months, I have put this sofa through the wringer. I have three dogs: two 65-pound German Shepherds and one 15-pound chihuahua mix, all three of which love to lounge and play on the Riley. Our household does daily durability testing, involving one of the Shepherds jumping in circles and the chihuahua mix speeding through the fabric rub test by digging her little paws through the cushions. It's a routine I wouldn't expect any sofa to hold up to, yet the Riley shows no signs of wear on the fabric and doesn't creak or wiggle in the slightest.
I've also had my fair share of stain scares on the fabric, between mysterious wet spots and muddy paws. Thanks to the tight weave of the fabric and the stain-resistant coating, everything has come off with ease. The worst smudge just needed a little scrubbing with a towel before wiping off completely, leaving no signs to show it had ever been there.
Cons to consider
While this sofa is the perfect fit for my household, the aspects that make it so ideal may make it the exact wrong fit for others. If you're a lounger who loves a plush sit, I cannot emphasize enough that the Riley is not for you. Its firm support is welcoming, but not overly so, and if you like to relax by leaning your head against the sofa, I found its lower back design and lack of headrest could eventually cause neck pain. You might want to consider something like the curvaceous and cushy Vati Sofa Bed from Article instead, which is also filled with duck feathers as well as high density foam for a plusher feel. It's also about $500 cheaper, but even smaller, measuring just 80 inches.
Additionally, its small footprint means that at most three people can sit on it at a time, and even then, you'd be rubbing elbows. Tall users may not love the short 84-inch length either, since it can't accommodate them horizontally without curling up.
Lastly, while Article does offer a 30-day return window if you don't love the sofa, you'll still be on the hook for return shipping costs. The brand also offers a one-year warranty on defects in materials or workmanship, but that's short compared to brands like Interior Define, which offer a 10-year warranty, or West Elm, which gives you the option to purchase an extended warranty
What are the alternatives?
Luckily, there are several great options if you're looking for a different kind of sleeper sofa. Another space-friendly alternative is the Koala, available in twin, full, and queen sizes, which offers super-firm support and unfurls into a bed using the cushions rather than a separate mattress. It's also about $400 cheaper, making it a more budget-friendly option, too. Read our Koala sofa bed review.
If you have more square footage to spare in your home, you may want to consider something like the Coddle Switch, which features a collapsing backrest that turns the entire couch into a sleeping surface for two. Alternatively, you could opt for a slightly pricier but trendier brand like Joybird, which offers a variety of styles and colorways to fit your living room. They also deliver with white glove assembly. Read our Joybird sleeper sofa review.
The bottom line
If you can afford to shell out on a sofa that will serve you and your guests well, the Article Riley is an excellent investment. It lives up to the brand's durability promises while expanding into a super-cozy bed that won't have you tossing and turning all night. The sofa's design may be too simple for those seeking a statement piece of furniture, but thanks to its minimalist silhouette and features, it can easily fit in with a variety of home styles. It's firm, but not overly so, making it a good seating addition to small homes where you'll want to kick up your feet to chat or eat without sinking in so deeply you need to hoist yourself back up.
More Article sleeper sofas to consider
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