We just purchased the Castro ottoman. We are having a guest this weekend and I expect she'll be very comfortable. It was delivered fully assembled and seems very sturdy.

My best (and already owned) guest bed is my 3 seater Karlstad sofa from Ikea. Remove back cushions. Cover with fitted sheet. Add pillows and down comforter. Voila! A perfect guest bed for 1.

We have a pullout sofa in our den, but it's comfort level is, quite frankly, low. Our sectional sofa, on the other hand, is wide and cushy and comfy, so most overnight guests end up sleeping there!!! Unless privacy is needed, then they sleep in the den! ;)

In my opinion, air mattresses are the best small space sleeping solution for overnight guests.

I second E53. Air mattresses are cheap, fit in a closet, easy to set up wherever, and comfortable.
That said, I have slept on the Penney's Sleeper Chair and it was comfy.

Another great option for space-saving extra sleeping areas is the Byers of Maine Easy Cot, perhaps coupled with a Therm-A-Rest Dreamtime XL sleeping pad (about $250 combined cost).

I used this combo for a week-long camping excursion, and I slept as well, if not better, on it than I did on my latex mattress at home.

E53 and MCROSS: Agree on the air mattress. My sister has a queen size one and it rolls up into a large shopping bag and away in the closet it goes after use. The ones listed above are just for one...I usually have 2+ guest.

Here's a solution for REALLY small spaces, though it only works for an overnight or weekend stay, at most: My boyfriend's brother used to live in a ~150 square foot studio in Manhattan. He kept a folding cot with a thin foam mattress under his bed. When a guest came, he gave them his bed (with clean linens, of course) and he slept on the cot.

Between my Ikea Ektorp 2+2 (each side is about the same as a twin bed) and my queen air mattress I can host 4 guests with no difficulty.

My sofa was $200 on Craigslist and the (admittedly deluxe) air mattress was $80—together priced well below most of the options listed.

I've slept on the IKEA chair in vacation rentals. Got a decent night's sleep. The chair looks better with the optional cover that hides the futonness of the design.

I have the JCP Sleeper and its great. Not luxury, but perfectly comfortable for a couple nights. I added a thick mattress pad and it helps quite a bit with comfort.

THANK YOU for posting this. I have been looking for this kind of guest bed exactly (a chair size sleeper) for months and was having tons of trouble finding an affordable, comfortable option that also looked nice.

One request, though, any chance you could make the links pop out in a new window? I always find it hard to navigate back to your site after clicking links in posts. It would be super helpful!

@ FARISMMA, if you have a 3 button or a scroll wheel mouse try clicking down with that scroll wheel or the center mouse button.

I really am considering that ottoman.

Inflatable mattress here too. I actually have two queens. They work out well, though require some furniture movement when both are being used.

The fold up small enough to fit in the top of the kitchen cabinets.

Target has some great and actually very modern looking sleeper sofas. I have one called a Thompson and it was only around $200. Not bad!

I don't get the air mattress recommendations(?) I've been through two NOT inexpensive ones. I/we generally give up our bed to the overnight or weekend guest & sleep on the air mattress ourselves if the sofa is needed for a child. Both of us can sleep on anything and through anything but these things are a nightmare. I would NEVER expect a guest to sleep on one. Horrors. WhileweI don't have overnight guests all that often, neither of the two purchased lasted longer than two or three visits. I originally bought them due to limited storage space but it makes me ill when I consider the $ that went down the drain. Might as well have set fire to those dollars. Never again. I'll MAKE space for a couple ottomans or we'll sleep on the floor where I'd get a better night's sleep!

@DISCERNING are you filling them too much or too little?

I slept on one for 3 months and while it wasn't the best mattress in the world, it was comfortable.

The first one I got was the Aero brand, which is very expensive. I was upset when the cats destroyed it pretty quickly and I had to buy another as I had a guest over. Now I get the Coleman brand. They are really cheap and last a few visits before the cats get them. They cost around $40 as I already have the pump and honestly, at that price I could just buy a new one for each guest.

I also have nice guest bedding - proper pillows, duvets, high thread count sheets etc, which helps with overall comfort.

I too think airbeds are the best option for small space...and I really mean "small places." If I had a guest room I be overjoyed and would probably never call my home a "small space". My airbed is a double in size and blows up to full height. When I first moved I used it for 3 months, no prob. It does however take up the whole living room/common space, so guest have to quickly put it away when they wake up.

I hated the air bed I've slept on. It leaked and by the middle of the night we were rolling into a hole in the middle.

I am so excited about the Castro ottoman! How clever is that?? This is my happy moment for today :D

If your space cannot accommodate more chairs, consider replacing your current coffee table with a ottoman. Not just any ottoman, mind you, but one that pops into a twin bed. Like this one from Ginny'sL http://www.ginnys.com/Furniture/Chairs-and-Ottomans/Sleeper-Ottoman.pro?fpi=10421&catCd=JW

Its only $199.95 & available in 4 colors!

I'm getting 2! One to put in my office/she cave & one for the living room.

Second the "air mattresses suck". First of all, you're on the floor level. Most places have a cold floors. Second, they squeak and if there's two of you, bounce.

And smell bad.

And usually deflate during the night.

That being said, we have a PS couch sized. We got the nicer mattress for it. Works great. Looks ok, ours has a black & white pinstripe.

That Ikea chair is surprisingly comfortable--I slept on the couch version for a week at a beach rental and had no complaints.

I wish that furniture designers would take a cue from motorhome and trailer designers, finding ways to fold guest beds into everyday furniture so we could keep our office spaces but accommodate couples when they come. In these vehicles, the dinette almost always converts to a bed--the wall-mounted table swings down to lie flush with the benches. I imagine that shelving, desks, and other staples of home offices or dens could be configured to become a queen-sized platform.