Have you looked at jc Penney? They actually have a decent selection for near-ikea prices:
http://www.jcpenney.com/dotcom/for-the-home/departments/furniture/living-room-furniture/sofas/cat.jump?id=cat100250026&deptId=dept20000011&subcatId=cat100240019&N=4294965996

Also, when we were looking at Macy's for sofas, they mentioned that a lot of their sofas come as sleepers if you just ask.

Love your blog!

I would personally get an aerobed. You can get a top of the line queen one for around $200 and it's always good to have with guests in a future house.

we had the ektorp in our last house and i was told it was not too comfortable... it was ok. i laid on it once. ;)
we have used an aerobed and those are good for kids, but i find that i hate sleeping on them. those are my only bits of advice!

My pal got a Jennifer Convertible, and while it wasn't the greatest, it served her very well (as her primary bed, actually). I think they have a good selection, and they might be better quality than Ikea.

After reading all about sofabeds, I went with an ikea one and really really regretted it. We sold it about 6 months after buying it for a $400 loss - not too bad, but I promised myself I wouldn't buy ikea sofas again (love some of their stuff). Futons aren't bad - but the sofa use of them is pretty bad.

The best sofabed we ever had we bought on Craigslist - a leather sofabed from either pottery barn or crate and barrel. It was 9 years old when we bought it, but super comfortable and the sofa was comfy too. I was sad when we re-sold it and regret it hugely.

I say look for a nice one on craigslist.

We had great luck with Macy's clearance room ;)

I would check out Home Decorators. All of their upholstered seating is 20% off right now. I've never purchased a sofabed from them, but I do have one of their chairs and I love it! They also usually have helpful reviews.

Check out Wayfair - there are some good options (more options of the futon'esque sleeper that look more like an actual sofa) and they ship free!
http://www.wayfair.com/Guildcraft-Penthouse-Sleeper-Sofa-664K-GUL1184.html

Also, this is a good one from Pier 1 that you could use a 20% off coupon on (they send them out on a regular basis):
http://www.pier1.com/Alton-Sleeper-Sofa---Ecru/2588979,default,pd.html

good luck!
gina @ ourcraftycasa.blogspot.com

What about an air mattress? My husband and I were also considering a futon for our son's room for when someone comes to stay. None of them (we wanted cheap) were comfy. We went with an air mattress and it's nice b/c you can easily break it down if you want more space. Good luck!

We have the Ektorp pull-out. Pulled out it's pretty small - about 2 inches narrower than a full sized bed. I find that it's sufficient enough for a very cozy couple (i.e. - small couple OR newlywed types) or just a singleton traveling alone. I probably wouldn't recommend people sleeping in it who are used to sleeping in a King or Queen on a regular basis.

As far as comfort - I'm a big believer that guests probably shouldn't be TOO comfortable. I mean, you don't want them to stay forever! Haha! In all seriousness, I've had no complaints, though I have slept on an Ektorp that's a little older and VERY "broken in" and I admit it's not the most comfortable, but it's fine for a weekend stopover.

Hope this helps!

I think you should carefully consider your budget on this. A sofa bed should be a little more of an investment piece, if you ask me. 90% of them are horribly uncomfortable - and especially with a little one you'll want your guests (presumably often family) to want to come back again to stay and help out! We had really good luck with our Rowe Furniture sofa bed. You can find a queen size bed with a very sleek couch - plus tons of fabric options to boot. We upgraded to the memory foam mattress for the pull-out and have received endless compliments on its comfort. http://www.rowefurniture.com/collections/sleep-sofas.html

I don't know how much space you have and it might be too steep for your price range (I think it's gone up in price since we bought it), but we have the IKEA Manstad: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80198974/#/90198978 and we love it. The chaise has storage so you can keep the linens for that bed right in the chair or you could use it for extra office supplies. The bed pulls out from a drawer beneath the couch and makes a bed a little larger than a double sized bed (it's a little annoying we have to use queen sheets to make the bed). Every guest who has slept on it though has commented on how comfortable it is (we usually add a feather mattress to make it extra cozy). We have another sofa bed in the house and while guests don't complain -- clearly the manstad is the preferred bed when guests have a choice.

I was thinking of getting Karlstad sofa bed but when I was at the store I found it really uncomfortable. I also discovered I while I like the look of the Karlstad it's not comfy (even the regular one), to me.

I like the gray contemporary one. I mean, if you don't end up going with the red white and blue one ;)

We have the Karlstad sectional, and it's super comfy! It's actually like two twin beds when you take the back cushions off so that's our guest solution right now. I can't speak to the comfyness of the bed part though. We sold my old Ikea Malm bed (which we had intended to use as a guest bed) and said if any guests ever come and need a full sized bed, we'll get one of those nice full-height queen air mattresses.

my sister has the ikea classic and it lasted ten years! was a very comfortable bed, although a bit small.

I have been eyeing IKEA sofas for a while---seems like people are pleased with them. I don't have any advice--but I am just here to fully support you purchasing that red, white and blue sofa. Amazing. You could start a new trend.

My suggestion: don't do it! Kidding--sort of. We bought one about 6 years ago and spent WAY too much money on it--it even had a name-brand mattress inside and was really comfortable. When shopping, a salesperson actually tried to talk us out of spending the extra money on the sofabed and tried to get us to purchase the same model without the bed inside. He told us, "Everyone thinks they need a sofabed for guests, but in reality no one ever wants to sleep on one." We didn't listen to him and went ahead and bought it. Guess what--it has been slept on a grand total of....ONCE. We have had plenty of overnight guests, but they have preferred to sleep just on the couch itself, or on an inflatable air mattress. There is such a stigma with sofabeds for some reason. And it really is comfortable. Just my two cents! Good luck!!

I would seriously consider an Aero bed. We slept on one last weekend and it was pretty comfortable. Not too awkward to get in and out of. However if you are looking for a guest bed for older guests (ie parents, out-laws etc) shop around until you find one you feel comfortable on. Any chance of getting a double bed and making it a day bed/pounder when not in use?

I second the aero bed comment! I currently have a double thick queen blow up mattress (although it's a cheaper brand) that I use in my home office when I need to sleep extra people. I used one for my bed my last semester of law school and it was SO comfortable! Way more comfortable than any futon or sofa sleeper I've ever slept on.. and it's not super low to the ground for the older folks. And cheap :) And doesn't take up extra room in the oficina when I don't need it :)

I 4th the Aerobed! We got a deluxe queen for the grannies to use when they come visit the twins. I add a down topper under the sheet which keeps it nice and warm. Everyone who has slept on it loves it. It folds right back up into its box and sits in the closet until the next visitor comes. We have had it for six years with no problems at all. Hands down, it is the best $200 bucks we could have spent. (with 20% off at BB&B)
http://www.aerobed.com/Premier-Air-Bed-with-Built-In-Pump-Queen-P1954C40.aspx

I would either invest in something you'll use for the long term, or get an aerobed. We have a raised one and it's quite comfortable. My neighbors have one that has a headboard! Buying a large piece of furniture for a short term solution is not a great way to spend money. An aerobed is something you'll have for a long time since it takes up no space.

I had the ones without arms that I used as a couch and sofa bed and it was so uncomfortable to sit on. Also having no headrest was a pain as the pillows would always fall off! Id definately go with one of the more arm styled couches, I think they look a lot nicer and they dont even look like beds! Happy shopping :)

I'm in the same boat- we are converting one of our home offices into an extra sitting room/guest room. I have found a lot of sites to be really expensive, but Target has had some cute stuff. Only problem is you have no idea what it's like until you order it because they don't carry it in stores. Excited to see what you choose!

Alyssa
www.ruffleandcurl.com

I really like sofabed.The most useful of all dual purpose pieces of furniture, it almost instantly turns the sitting room into another comfortable bedroom with just a few adjustments.Read more

Why not check out eBay for some second-hand deals? I find that there is often an oversupply of sofas / sofabeds on eBay so they usually go for rock bottom prices. Obviously they don't ship well though so you've got to filter the results by location.

Great asnwers here. I am looking for a sofa bed too.

Hey! Thanks for putting this out there...I am on the hunt for a sofa bed too. I hadn't heard of Rowe furniture but it turns out we have one nearby. thanks!!

Go for the Hemnes daybed. It has storage, it is chic and it is super comfy!