Most headboards are designed to bolt onto a bed frame, but plenty of people end up hanging them on the wall instead. Sometimes it is because the frame has no bracket holes. Sometimes it is because the headboard is oversized and would look wrong floating on frame legs. And increasingly it is because the bed is on an adjustable base, which has no headboard attachment point at all.
Wall-mounting is straightforward, and it solves two problems at once: the headboard stops moving with the bed, and the banging noise against the wall stops with it. Here is how to do it properly.
Before you start: is your headboard a candidate?
Not every headboard is meant to hang. Check three things.
- Weight and construction. Upholstered panels and solid wood headboards hang well. Very heavy carved or stone-inlaid pieces may exceed what standard hardware is rated for, and those belong on a frame.
- The back of the panel. You need a solid rail or a continuous frame across the back to screw into. A thin fiberboard back with nothing behind it will not hold a cleat.
- Legs. Many headboards have legs that extend below the panel. If yours does, either remove them, or plan for the mounting height so the legs sit hidden behind the mattress rather than hanging in the open.
Step 1: Work out the mounting height
This is the step people get wrong, and it is hard to undo once you have drilled.
Measure from the floor to the top of your mattress with all bedding on it. That is your baseline. A headboard should overlap the top of the mattress by several inches so no gap shows and pillows do not slide behind it. Add roughly four to six inches of overlap to your mattress height, and that gives you the bottom edge of the headboard. The top of the headboard then lands wherever the panel's own height puts it.
Two things change that number. A thick pillow-top mattress on a tall foundation sits much higher than a low-profile foam bed on a platform, so measure your actual bed rather than assuming a standard. And if you are on an adjustable base, measure with the head section flat, then check that the raised position does not push your pillows above the panel. Our guide to how tall a bed should be covers the height question in more detail.
Tape a paper outline of the headboard to the wall at your intended height and live with it for a day. It costs nothing and it catches mistakes.
Step 2: Find the studs
A headboard hangs from the studs, not from the drywall. Run an electronic stud finder along the wall at your mounting height and mark both edges of each stud, then mark the center. In most homes studs sit sixteen inches apart on center, though older Los Angeles construction is less consistent and twenty-four inch spacing turns up regularly.
Aim to catch at least two studs. For a king-width panel, three is better. If your studs do not line up with the mounting points on the back of the headboard, screw a horizontal length of lumber into the studs first and mount the headboard hardware to that backer board instead.
Before you drill, think about what is inside the wall. Bedroom walls behind the bed are usually clean, but outlets and switches mean wiring is running somewhere nearby. Stay clear of the vertical zone directly above and below any outlet.
Step 3: Choose your hardware
There are three common approaches.
- French cleat. Two matching strips of wood or metal cut at a matching angle, one screwed to the wall, one to the back of the headboard, hooked together. This is the strongest and cleanest option, it holds the panel flat to the wall, and it lets you lift the headboard off later. It is the right choice for anything heavy.
- Heavy-duty D-rings and lag screws. Rings on the back of the headboard, lag screws or heavy hooks in the studs. Simple and quick, well suited to lighter upholstered panels. Use two mounting points minimum and check that the rings are rated well above the headboard's actual weight.
- Manufacturer wall brackets. Some headboards ship with a wall-mount kit. If yours did, use it, and follow the supplied spacing rather than improvising.
Whatever you use, buy hardware rated for meaningfully more weight than the headboard. The load is not just the panel. It is the panel plus a person leaning back against it while reading.
Step 4: Mount it
- Mark your stud centers at the mounting height and check the line with a spirit level. A headboard that is out by a quarter inch reads as crooked from across the room.
- Drill pilot holes into the studs. Pilot holes matter: driving a lag screw straight into a stud can split it.
- Fix the wall-side hardware, cleat or brackets, and level it again before you tighten everything down.
- Attach the matching hardware to the back of the headboard, measuring carefully so the two halves meet at the height you planned.
- Lift the headboard into place with a second person. Upholstered panels are awkward rather than heavy, and a helper prevents scuffed fabric and scraped paint.
- Push the bed back into position and check the gap. You want the mattress close to the panel but not pressing on it.
Plaster, brick and concrete walls
Older Los Angeles homes often have lath and plaster rather than drywall, and mid-century apartments sometimes have concrete or masonry behind a thin finish. Plaster is brittle, so drill slowly with a masonry bit on a low setting and expect to hit wood lath rather than a modern stud. For brick or concrete, switch to a hammer drill and use sleeve or wedge anchors rated for the load. Standard drywall anchors are not an option for a headboard on any wall type. They will pull out.
Frequently asked questions
Can any headboard be wall mounted?
Most can, but not all. The panel needs a solid backing to screw into and a weight within what your hardware and wall can carry. Headboards with integrated storage, very heavy solid pieces, and thin hollow-core panels are the usual exceptions. If the back is unbraced fiberboard, mount a backer rail across it first or leave it on the frame.
How do I secure a headboard to the wall without drilling into studs?
You should not. Drywall anchors, adhesive strips and toggle bolts alone are not adequate for a load that gets leaned on nightly. If the studs genuinely do not line up, screw a horizontal backer board into the studs you can reach and mount the headboard to that.
How high should a wall mounted headboard be?
Set the bottom edge roughly four to six inches below the top of your made bed so no gap shows. Measure your own mattress and foundation stack rather than using a generic number, because bed heights vary by nearly a foot between a low platform setup and a tall pillow-top on a box spring.
How do I stop my headboard from hitting the wall?
Mounting it to the wall is the permanent fix, since the panel no longer travels with the frame. If you would rather keep it on the bed, add felt or rubber bumpers to the back of the headboard and check the frame itself, because a loose frame is often the real source of the movement. See our guide to fixing a squeaky bed frame.
Is it better to attach a headboard to the bed frame or the wall?
Frame mounting is easier to reverse and moves with the bed, which renters often prefer. Wall mounting looks cleaner, eliminates noise, and is the only option with most adjustable bases. If your frame has bracket holes and you move often, use them. Our guide to attaching a headboard to a bed frame covers that route.
How wide should the headboard be?
Match the mattress width or go slightly wider. A headboard narrower than the mattress looks like a mistake. Check our bed frame size chart for the standard widths by mattress size.
Setting up the rest of the bed
A headboard is the easy part. The mattress under it is what you actually sleep on. If yours is due for replacement, take our sleep quiz or come lie on a few options at one of our five Los Angeles showrooms. We deliver same day across most of the metro, and our crews can set up the frame and foundation while they are there.
