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Discontinued Coleman has replaced the Quickbed I tested with an updated design that I haven’t bought or tested, so the buttons on this page go to the current version rather than the exact one in this review. Everything I measured here is the model I owned. If you want a budget air mattress today I’d get the Intex Classic Downy instead, because it costs less and it beat the Quickbed in almost every test. All 10 are compared in my Best Camping Mattresses for Couples.

See the 14 tests

1. In the box
2. Thickness
3. Dimensions
4. Flocked top
5. Bounciness
6. Baffles
7. Valve
8. Inflation
9. Deflation
10. Portability
11. Insulation
12. Tent sizing
13. Materials
14. Air retention
15. Pros, cons, recommendations
16. Bonus: Must Read!

In the Box

I bought the Quickbed from Amazon. Here’s what came in the box:

• The Coleman Quickbed
• Instructions
• Warranty information

Thickness

• Thickness 8.0in

Fully inflated, my body never touched the ground on my back, stomach or side. I couldn’t feel it leaning on an elbow or sitting down either.

Dimensions

• Length 73.0in
• Width 53.0in
• Also comes in “Queen” 73.0 x 58.0instill smaller than a real Queen

That’s slightly under a Full size. Fine for the two of us, but not spacious.

Flocked Top

The soft plush top is comfortable, and it quiets the mattress down when I toss and turn.

Bounciness

There’s a fair bit of bouncing through the night, especially with another person sharing it. Definitely one of my bouncier 2-person mattresses.

Baffles

The baffles are thick and stick out. Inflated firm, they pressed into some parts of my body and not others, and I struggled to find a comfortable position.

It’s not the most comfortable when it’s super firm, but it’s not bad slightly softer.

Valve

• Valve Rubbery plastic, 2-way opening
• Position Along the side, roughly flush
• 1-way valve None
• Firmness adjustment Difficultthe 2-way opening dumps a lot of air at once

With no 1-way valve, air escapes when you pull the pump out. When deflating I sometimes found the valve sealed shut against the yellow post while I was squeezing air out.

I also don’t like having to push and pull the valve repeatedly. It looks like it’ll wear out faster than a screw-on Boston valve.

Inflation

Pull the cap open, pull the valve off the inner yellow post, then insert the pump. With a generic pump from my other mattresses it took just under 3 minutes.

Note Press the valve in before you switch the pump off, or air escapes. Sometimes it leaked before I could seal it against the yellow post.

Deflation

Pull the cap open, pull the valve, and let the air out. I fold it in thirds, push the air out with my body weight, then fold it in thirds again.

• Pushing the air out 1 min 30 s
• Folding and packing away 30 s
• Total 2 min

Portability

• Packed size 21.0 x 14.0 x 5.0in
• Weight 7.6lbs
• Pump None
• Stuff sack None

Insulation

• R-value None
• Seasons Summer only

It’s also far too heavy for backpacking, so this is a car-camping mattress.

Tent Sizing

In my Coleman 2-Person Sundome there’s a sliver of space for gear at the sides, but not much.

Livable space is decent, with enough room to sit up and crouch.

Inflating it in there was a pain. I was squashed between the mattress and the tent, and then had to squeeze out of the corner afterwards.

In my Coleman 4-Person Dome there’s no room for a second one, but a single Quickbed leaves plenty of space for gear and livable space.

Materials

• Material PVCby feel and smell, and it isn’t stated
• Top Flocked, velvety
• Bottom Plasticky

It smells out of the box, but the smell fades after a few days of use.

Air Retention

Air retention isn’t the best. After one night with another person on it (300+ pounds together) it had lost 10-15% of its air by morning. Later nights lost about 5% each.

That’s not stretching. I’d used it plenty before the test, and it’s not temperature, because I ran the test indoors.

I’d top it off before bed, though I never had to worry about waking up on the ground.

Pros, Cons, Recommendations

Would I recommend the Coleman Quickbed?

Pretty affordable

The price is honestly the only thing on this list, and it is genuinely cheap.

Not the most comfortable

The baffles are pronounced when it’s firm, and there’s a fair bit of bouncing.

No 1-way valve

Air escapes when you pull the pump out, and I couldn’t make small firmness adjustments at all.

Made of PVC

PVC is naturally heavy, doesn’t pack down small, and smells for the first few days.

Air retention isn’t great

It lost 10-15% of its air on the first night. To be fair, I never had to worry about ending up on the ground.

Bonus: Must Read!

Every figure above is from my own testing. Measured by hand, bought with my own money.