About California King Mattresses
The California king mattress is a tricky mattress upgrade. It’s 84 inches long, which is four inches longer than the king mattress! However, it’s also 72 inches wide, which is four inches shorter than the king mattress. All in all, the surface area of the Cali king is actually slightly less than that of the king. So is this truly an upgrade?
Not really. The Cali king, also called the western king, is in truth just the counterpart of the regular king, which is also known as the eastern king. If you see a website saying that the Cali king is the “biggest of the bunch,” you know they’ve not done their research. They’re just different! It all comes down to what fits in your bedroom, and what you fit on the best. Both are great for master bedrooms.
California King Mattress Dimensions
Imperial Measurements
In inches, a California king mattress is 72″ x 84″ – a surface area of 6,048 square inches.
In feet, a California king mattress is 6 ft x 7 ft – a surface area of 42 square feet.
Metric Measurements
In centimeters, a California king mattress is 183 cm x 213 cm – a surface area of about 39,019 sq. cm.
In meters, a California king mattress is 1.83 m x 2.13 m – a surface area of 3.9 sq. m.
Mattress Thickness
Even though this bed may be extra big in a lot of other ways, a California king mattress is generally about the same thickness as other mattresses – about 8-13 inches deep, or about 20-33 cm deep.
California King Mattress Size Chart
If you find yourself needing to deal with a lot of California king sized mattresses, print out this chart!
More About California King Mattresses
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room first – the idea that the differing sizes of east kings and west kings imply that easterners are shorter and wider while westerners are taller and thinner. (And what does it say about those in the midwest – that they’re featureless? It’s practically heartland erasure.) I don’t know who came up with these systems, but I’m sure they at least didn’t mean any offense here. Let’s just move past it.
For real, California king mattresses are great for tall people. Really tall people. If your toes keep sticking out even on an eastern king, you should try out a Cali king! It may just be your lifesaver. Of course, it’s also great if you have kids or pets that will be sleeping or hanging out in this bed with you as well.
Don’t forget, there’s also a similar upgrade to the queen mattress, the California queen!
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