Guide
Side Lift Ottoman Beds: How They Open, and When One Beats an End Lift
A side lift ottoman bed is one whose base is hinged along one long side and rises from the other, so you open it standing beside the bed rather than at its foot. Choose one when the foot of your bed is against a wall, a radiator or a wardrobe. Five of the ottoman beds we sell open from the side: the Pimlico, from £229, the Brompton, from £299, the Mayfair, from £729, and two TV beds, the Alana and the Clara, from £1,029. The figures on this page are the makers' own, checked on 21 October 2026 and updated on 24 October 2026.
What a side lift ottoman bed is
Every ottoman bed works the same way: the base, the platform the mattress lies on, is hinged along one edge and held up by gas struts. You lift the free edge, the base rises with the mattress still on it, and the space underneath is one storage well the size of the bed. Our guide Are ottoman beds good? covers the pros and cons of the whole type.
What changes between models is where the hinge sits.
- An end lift ottoman is hinged at the head end. The base rises at the foot, and you open it standing at the foot of the bed.
- A side lift ottoman, also sold as a side opening ottoman, is hinged along one long side. The base rises along the other long side, and you open it standing beside the bed.
In both cases the base and the mattress rise inside the frame's own footprint. The bed does not need extra width or length to open. What it needs is clear floor for you to stand on, on the side that opens.
On 17 October 2026, of the 43 ottoman beds we sell, 24 said end lift, 2 said side lift and 17 did not say which way they open. If a listing does not say, assume end lift, and ask before you order if the foot of your bed will not be free.
End lift or side lift: the room decides
The bed does not decide this for you. Look at where the bed will stand and which of its edges will have floor in front of it.
| Opening | Hinge | Where you stand to open it | Floor that must be clear | Choose it when |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| End lift | At the head end | At the foot of the bed | In front of the foot end | The foot of the bed faces open floor, as in most UK bedrooms |
| Side lift | Along one long side | Beside the bed, on the opening side | Along one long side | The foot is against a wall, a radiator, a wardrobe or a window seat, and one long side is free |
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A side lift suits a bed pushed lengthways into a box room, a bed whose foot sits under a window with a radiator beneath it, and a bed in a loft room where the foot end runs into the slope of the roof. An end lift suits almost everything else, which is why most ottoman beds are built that way.
If you are not sure the bed will fit at all, our page Will a king size bed fit my room? gives the floor space each UK size needs, and the UK bed sizes chart has every size in cm, feet and inches.
Left or right: which side does it open?
A side lift base is built to rise from one long side, so the question is whether that is the left or the right side as you lie in the bed. The maker of the Mayfair lists it as left or right opening. The maker of the Pimlico does not say which side it opens from, and we do not print what a maker has not published.
Before you order any side lift ottoman, decide which long side of the bed will have clear floor, then check the listing or ask the seller which way the base rises. Turning the bed round is not a fix: it puts the headboard at the wrong end of the room.
The side lift ottoman beds we sell
| Pimlico | Mayfair | Brompton | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sizes | Single, small double, double, king | Double, king | Double, king |
| Fabric | Grey or natural hopsack | Light grey or dark grey fabric | Soft grey velvet |
| Headboard height | 84 cm | 121 cm | 100 cm |
| King, outside size | 166 cm wide x 211 cm long | 168 cm wide x 220 cm long | 162 cm wide x 214 cm long |
| Assembled weight, king | 46.1 kg | Not published | 64.2 kg |
| Storage depth | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Gas strut rating | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Opens from | The side; left or right not stated | The side, left or right according to the maker | The side, left or right, chosen at assembly |
| Price | £229 to £289 | £729 to £769 | £299 to £329 |
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The Pimlico is the one for most rooms that need a side lift. It comes in single, small double, double and king, in grey or natural hopsack, and its headboard is a low 84 cm, so it fits under most windows. Its maker publishes the outside size of the assembled frame: 166 x 211 cm in king, 46.1 kg; 151 x 201 cm in double, 42.7 kg. In king it costs £289, the same as the Camden, our end lift velvet king, so you pay nothing extra for the side opening.
The Mayfair is the taller, padded option, in double or king, in light or dark grey fabric. Its maker gives the king outside size, 168 x 220 cm with a 121 cm headboard, and lists the base as lifting from the left or the right. It does not publish the frame's weight, the storage depth or the strut rating.
The Brompton is in soft grey velvet, double or king, with a 100 cm headboard. Its maker publishes the outside size, 162 x 214 cm in king, 64.2 kg, and colour-coded holes let you build the base to open from the left or the right. It does not publish the storage depth or the strut rating.
Two TV beds also open from the side, the Alana and the Clara, from £1,029, with a TV lift in the footboard: see Are TV beds worth it?
Of all these, only the Clara is made in super king. Otherwise, if you need 180 x 200 cm, you are choosing an end lift: see super king ottoman beds.
What the struts need from you
Gas struts do most of the lifting on any ottoman bed, side lift or end lift. They are sized for the base plus a mattress within a weight band, which is why the base should always be lifted with the mattress on it. Lifted bare, a base can spring up hard and look faulty when it is not. Our guide to ottoman bed gas struts explains the figure printed on each strut and what to do when a base will not stay up.
None of our side lift makers publishes a strut rating, so we do not print one. Only Julian Bowen gives a mattress limit, for the two TV beds: 20 cm deep at most, and 45 kg on the Clara. If your mattress is a deep, heavy hybrid, ask the seller for the strut figure before you buy any ottoman, whichever way it opens.
Assembly is the same job as for an end lift, with the struts fitted last: see how to put an ottoman bed together.
Side lift ottoman or divan with drawers?
Both need one long side of the bed clear. The difference is what you get for it. A side lift ottoman gives you one space the size of the bed, reached by lifting the whole base, and suits bulky, seasonal things: suitcases, spare bedding, winter coats. A divan with drawers gives you two or four smaller spaces, reached from the side without lifting anything, and suits things you need every week. Our guide What is a divan bed? compares the two in detail, and storage beds lists both types in every size.
Which one we would choose
For a small room, a bed under a window, or a budget: the Pimlico, £259 in small double and £289 in king, in grey or natural. For a taller padded headboard and a bigger budget: the Mayfair, £729 in double and £769 in king. If the foot of your bed is free after all, an end lift gives you far more choice: 24 of our 43 ottoman beds say so, from £259 in king.
Now pick the frame
The side lift ottoman beds are the Pimlico, the Brompton and the Mayfair, plus the Alana and Clara TV beds. The full ranges, end lift included, are in king size ottoman beds, super king ottoman beds, double ottoman beds, small double ottoman beds and single ottoman beds.
Prices and figures checked on 21 October 2026; side lift beds updated on 24 October 2026.