Markets
Bedding for the United States: Twin, Full, Queen, King and California King
US bedding is built around six mattress sizes: Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King and California King, all named and specified in inches. A US retail set is usually a flat sheet, a fitted sheet and pillowcases, with a comforter or a duvet cover on top, which is close to the opposite of the duvet-led set the UK expects. The dimensions below are the reference points major US retailers sell to, given in centimetres with inches in brackets. Confirm them against your buyer's own specification before ordering, because they are settled market conventions rather than one fixed standard.
This guide goes deeper on the US than a cross-market overview can. For how the US compares with the UK, Europe and Australia in one table, see the combined bed linen sizes guide.
Six sizes, and the two names that catch importers
Four of the six are familiar: Twin, Full, Queen and King. Two are US-specific and trip up first-time suppliers. Twin XL is a Twin at Queen length, 97 x 203 cm (38 x 80 in), and is the standard size in college dormitories, so a range aimed at that channel has to carry it. California King is not a bigger King; it is narrower and longer than a standard King, 183 x 213 cm (72 x 84 in) against 193 x 203 cm (76 x 80 in). King and California King sheets are not interchangeable in either direction, which is the single most common US sizing complaint at retail.
One more you will meet is the Split King, two Twin XL mattresses on an adjustable base. It is sold as a pair of Twin XL fitted sheets with King-width top bedding, not as a new cut.
US mattress sizes
These are the mattress footprints US linen is cut for. Confirm against your buyer's retail standard, as premium and specialty lines vary.
| Name | Metric | Inches |
|---|---|---|
| Twin | 97 x 191 cm | 38 x 75 in |
| Twin XL | 97 x 203 cm | 38 x 80 in |
| Full (Double) | 137 x 191 cm | 54 x 75 in |
| Queen | 152 x 203 cm | 60 x 80 in |
| King | 193 x 203 cm | 76 x 80 in |
| California King | 183 x 213 cm | 72 x 84 in |
Queen is the volume size in the US, the one most brands sample first. Note the length step: Twin and Full stop at 191 cm, while Twin XL, Queen and King run to 203 cm and California King to 213 cm. A pattern set built for a Full will fall short on a Queen.
A US set is led by the flat sheet
The biggest difference from the UK is the product mix, not any single dimension. US households sleep between a flat sheet and a fitted sheet and use the top layer, comforter or duvet cover, as a cover rather than as bedding they climb inside. So a US bedding set is typically a flat sheet, a fitted sheet and two pillowcases, and a flat sheet is a core line item, not the secondary product it is in Britain. If your range was built around a UK-style fitted-sheet-and-duvet-cover set, expect to add flat sheets to sell it into the US.
Comforter or duvet cover: confirm which the buyer means
This is where a brief goes wrong most often. A comforter is a filled top quilt used as it comes, with no separate insert. A duvet cover is an empty shell for a separate duvet or comforter, and in the US it is a growing but still secondary category. If a US buyer says "duvet" they may mean either, so pin down whether you are quoting a filled comforter or an empty cover before you sample. The two are made differently and priced differently, and a filled comforter carries fill decisions that stay with the buyer's market rather than with us.
Flat sheet sizes
A flat sheet is much larger than the mattress because it drapes each side, tucks under and folds back at the top. US retailers do not agree on one figure, and today's sizes run larger than the older textbook conventions because mattresses have deepened. The range column is what major US retailers currently sell; the last column is our standard US schedule, which we confirm against your specification.
| Name | Range at major US retailers | Our standard |
|---|---|---|
| Twin | 168 to 188 x 244 to 267 cm (66 to 74 x 96 to 105 in) | 168 x 241 cm (66 x 95 in) |
| Full | 206 to 244 x 244 to 267 cm (81 to 96 x 96 to 105 in) | 218 x 254 cm (86 x 100 in) |
| Queen | 234 to 244 x 259 to 274 cm (92 to 96 x 102 to 108 in) | 244 x 274 cm (96 x 108 in) |
| King | 274 to 284 x 259 to 274 cm (108 to 112 x 102 to 108 in) | 284 x 274 cm (112 x 108 in) |
| California King | 274 x 267 to 284 cm (108 x 105 to 112 in) | On request |
Treat these as conventions. A deeper mattress or a longer tuck moves them, so the figure that governs the order is the finished size on your own specification.
Fitted sheets: deep pockets are the US default
A fitted sheet has three dimensions, and the third, the pocket depth, matters more in the US than anywhere else. US mattresses run thick: pillow-top and hybrid builds of 33 to 43 cm (13 to 17 in) are ordinary at retail, so a standard pocket that suits a slim mattress will pull off the corners. Deep pocket is the common US retail default rather than an upgrade.
| Fits a mattress up to | Where it is specified | |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | about 30 cm (12 in) | Slim and older mattresses |
| Deep | about 38 to 41 cm (15 to 16 in) | The common US retail default |
| Extra deep | 46 cm and above (18 in +) | Pillow-top and hybrid mattresses |
The classes are trade conventions, not fixed standards, and makers draw the edges differently, so state the finished pocket depth in centimetres on the tech pack rather than the word "deep". All-round elastic holds a deep pocket on a thick mattress far better than corner-only elastic and costs very little more. Our standard US fitted sheet has a full elastic perimeter and a 38 cm (15 in) pocket, which fits mattresses up to about 36 cm (14 in) deep.
Pillowcase sizes
US pillowcases are open-ended cases, shorter and squatter than a UK housewife because US pillows are shaped differently. Standard and Queen pillows are close in size, so the two cases are often sold interchangeably; King is the longer case for King and California King beds.
| Style | Metric | Inches |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 51 x 66 cm | 20 x 26 in |
| Queen | 51 x 76 cm | 20 x 30 in |
| King | 51 x 92 cm | 20 x 36 in |
Some retailers add a flap or a gusset, and shams, the decorative fronting pillow covers, are a separate line from sleeping pillowcases. Decide early which your set includes, because each adds to the piece count and the price. Our standard US sets carry 51 x 76 cm (20 x 30 in) pillowcases on Twin, 53 x 81 cm (21 x 32 in) on Full and Queen, and 53 x 102 cm (21 x 40 in) on King.
Duvet cover sizes
Duvet covers do not follow the mattress footprint; they are sized to drape. US retail sells them in three sizes, not six: Twin covers Twin XL, Full and Queen share one cover, and King covers California King. Comforters sit close to these sizes, but their finished size moves with the fill and loft, which stay with the buyer.
| Name | Range at major US retailers | Our standard |
|---|---|---|
| Twin / Twin XL | 168 to 178 x 234 to 239 cm (66 to 70 x 92 to 94 in) | 173 x 229 cm (68 x 90 in) |
| Full / Queen | 224 to 234 x 229 to 244 cm (88 to 92 x 90 to 96 in) | 229 x 229 cm (90 x 90 in) |
| King / California King | 269 to 279 x 234 to 244 cm (106 to 110 x 92 to 96 in) | 264 x 229 cm (104 x 90 in) King; California King on request |
Whatever the format, specify the closure on a duvet cover as well as the size: buttons, ties, a zip or a hidden placket each change the making and the cost.
What this means for your order
- Structure the set for the US. Flat sheet, fitted sheet and pillowcases, with a comforter or duvet cover on top. Add the flat sheet if your range came from a UK brief.
- Decide comforter against duvet cover before sampling. They are different products with different sizes and costs, and the word "duvet" alone will not settle it.
- Default to a deep pocket. US mattresses are thick, so quote the finished pocket depth rather than leaving it to the factory.
- Keep King and California King apart. They are not interchangeable, and mislabelling one for the other is the classic US return.
- Plan the size run. A private-label order is often set per quality and per colourway rather than per size, so a single minimum, from 100 pieces for woven bed linen, can be split across Twin through California King instead of forcing a full minimum for each size.
King and California King flat sheets at 274 to 284 cm wide would carry a centre seam on a narrow loom. Cloth woven in widths to 136 inches lets those runs be made seamless, which US buyers usually expect at the King sizes. Every bed linen piece and set is on our bed linen page; send the finished dimensions your retailer works to and we sample from those.
Common questions
Are King and California King sheets interchangeable?
No. A standard King is wider and shorter, 193 x 203 cm (76 x 80 in), while a California King is narrower and longer, 183 x 213 cm (72 x 84 in). King fitted sheets are too wide and too short for a California King, and the reverse leaves a King bed with loose corners.
What is Twin XL and do I need it?
Twin XL is a Twin at Queen length, 97 x 203 cm (38 x 80 in). It is the standard dormitory size and the building block of a Split King on an adjustable base, so a range selling into those channels has to carry it; a general retail range may not.
Should I quote a comforter or a duvet cover for a US buyer?
Confirm which they mean. A comforter is a filled top quilt used as it comes; a duvet cover is an empty shell for a separate insert. Both are common in the US, they are sized and made differently, and "duvet" in a US brief can mean either.
Do US sets need a flat sheet?
Usually yes. US bedding is built around a flat sheet and a fitted sheet, with the comforter or cover on top, so the flat sheet is a core line rather than the optional item it is in the UK.