Comparing a Eastern King Bed with a California King Bed

The bed is perhaps the piece of furniture that is most used in everybody's home. Ideally, everyone is spending 8 hours of their day--or one-third of their life--on the bed. Usually, beds are made up of a box spring that is elevated from the floor by a frame and then topped with a mattress. Beds usually have such pieces such as sideboards, headboards, side tables and footboards. There are, however, beds that do not have all of these features. Most beds will have sheets, a bed cover, pillows, and blankets which complete the ensemble, however.

Eastern King
An Eastern king bed is also known as a regular king. Kin-size beds are 76 inches wide and 84 inches long. These are the widest beds available commercially

California King
The California king is the longest bed commercially manufactured. Its dimensions are 84 inches in length by 72 inches wide. This bed is mainly sold in the western region of the United States. The California king is also known as Western King.

Considerations
When you are trying to decide which variety of king-size bed is best for you, consider the size of the beds. The sheer bulk of the beds makes them difficult to move into rooms, so be sure you measure the doorways and rooms through which you will have to be moving the bed into your home. If you foresee this being a problem, look into using a split-box-spring arrangement (or go without a box spring) so that you do not have the extreme width of a king-size box spring.

Preventions and Solutions
To decide which king-size bed option is best for you, it might be a good idea to go to the store and try out lying down on a bed with your sleeping partner. This way you can tell how much room each of you would like and if a particular bed size fits both of your needs. Be sure to factor in movements such as twisting, turning, sitting up to read and lying down to sleep.

Custom-sized Beds
If you determine that neither the Eastern or Western King beds are the best options for your sleeping needs, there is also the option to buy a customized king-size bed. These sizes of beds are more expensive because they are made uniquely for you and to fit your needs. It will also require that you spend extra money to buy sheets and blankets that fit the bed properly. Some companies also make larger than average beds on a regular basis, such as the "Extreme Ultra King." This bed is huge, measuring over 10 feet by 10 feet. It does, however, cost over $20,000 to purchase, and that's before you even buy the bedding.

The Better Sleep Council: What Size Mattress is Best?
Dimensions Guide: California King Dimensions
Dimensions Guide: Twin Bed Dimensions