Twice as many British couples sleep apart
Sleeping arrangements are not just about children. In a 2020 UK survey, 15% of adult couples living together said they slept separately, either in separate beds or separate rooms. In 2009, the figure was 7%. Among couples with two children, it was just 8% in 2020. These figures come from different surveys, each asking the question in its own way.
What this means
- The question of who sleeps in the bed also extends to adults and pets.
- Sleeping separately has become more common among couples in the UK.
- Couples with children are less likely to sleep separately than couples without children.
- Across two different Danish surveys, more dog owners said their dog slept in their bed than parents said their children did, even among parents of 3-4-year-olds. However, the surveys did not ask the same people.
- The proportion of dog owners who have their dog in their bed varies greatly depending on how the question is asked, ranging from 14% to 78% in the surveys we found.
In Denmark, 44% of dog owners let their dog sleep in their bed, and 55% of cat owners let their cat do the same (Dyson 2022). For comparison: 13% of 1,012 parents with children aged 0-17 living at home typically share a bed with at least one child (YouGov for Bolius, surveyed 6-9 December 2019); 23% of parents of 3- to 4-year-olds (separate data cut cited by Sovende Børn, group sizes not reported).
Couples sleeping separately in the UK
Percentage of couples living together who sleep separately.
Age may play a part: 23% of those aged over 55 slept separately.
Source: YouGov for National Bed Federation 2020; Sleep Council 2009.
You may use the graphic under these terms. The measurements the figures are based on belong to those who produced them.
Other surveys
Four surveys, each asking the question in a different way. They cannot be compared directly.
have chosen to sleep in a different bed or room for their partner's sake (AASM 2025)
of couples permanently sleep apart because of snoring and restlessness (ResMed 2025, survey across multiple countries)
of couples who live together sleep apart (YouGov for the National Bed Federation 2020)
of couples sleep in separate beds (t-online 2023, unreliable source)
Source: AASM 2025; ResMed 2025, survey across multiple countries; YouGov for the National Bed Federation 2020; t-online 2023, unreliable source.
You may use the graphic under these terms. The measurements the figures are based on belong to those who produced them.
Dogs and cats share the bed in many Danish homes
Four Danish figures from two different surveys. Dog and cat owners were surveyed for Dyson in 2022. The figures for parents come from YouGov for Bolius (surveyed from 6 to 9 December 2019): 1,012 parents with children aged 0-17 living at home, plus a separate data extract for parents of 3-4-year-olds. The surveys did not involve the same people, so the figures cannot be compared directly.
Source: Dyson 2022; YouGov for Bolius, December 2019; Separate data cut from the same survey, cited by Sovende Børn.
You may use the graphic under these terms. The measurements the figures are based on belong to those who produced them.
What research tells us about adults
Two findings on adults sharing a bed.
mere drømmesøvn (REM-søvn), når par sov sammen. Målt på 12 par i et søvnlaboratorium i Kiel.
StudyFolk synes selv, de sover bedre, når de deler seng med partneren, selv om målingerne viser lidt dårligere søvn.
StudySource: Drews et al. 2020 (Kiel); Andre et al. 2021.
You may use the graphic under these terms. The studies the figures are based on belong to the researchers.
Dogs and cats in bed: surveys from 9 countries
Percentage of dog and cat owners who have their pet in bed. Each survey phrases the question differently, for example, “lets their dog sleep in the bed”, “every night” or “occasionally”. Each figure is therefore shown alongside the wording of the question, and the figures cannot be combined into a single ranking.
Denmark
Norway
United Kingdom
Germany
France
Spain
USA
Source: Dyson 2022; Agria 2023, 810 owners; Agria 2024, 611 owners; Rover 2024, 1,000 owners; Petplan, year not stated; YouGov 2025; Whiskas 2025, 1,000 owners; YouGov for Galaxus; Rover 2025, 1,000 owners; Houzz 2015; APPA 2023-24; Houzz 2024; Purina 2019; Budget Direct 2024.
You may use the graphic under these terms. The measurements the figures are based on belong to those who produced them.
How we calculated it
Sleeping separately, also known as a sleep divorce, means here that a couple sleeps in separate beds or separate rooms. The surveys phrase their questions differently: AASM, the US sleep physicians, asks whether people have chosen to sleep elsewhere for their partner’s sake; ResMed, in a survey spanning multiple countries, asks whether people always sleep separately because of snoring and restlessness; the UK survey asks couples who live together; and the German figure comes from a dating site and is uncertain.
Pets: Several of the figures come from companies with a commercial interest, including Dyson, Agria, Rover, Petplan, Whiskas and Purina, and are based on online surveys. Each survey phrases the question differently, so the figures cannot be combined into a single ranking. The Canadian figure measures sleeping with a pet every night, but not necessarily in the same bed. We do not compare the pet figures with surveys involving babies.
Figures for parents: 13% of 1,012 parents with children aged 0-17 living at home typically share a bed with at least one child (YouGov for Bolius, surveyed 6-9 December 2019); 23% of parents of 3- to 4-year-olds (separate data cut cited by Sovende Børn, group sizes not reported). The figure of 13% covers parents of children of all ages from 0 to 17, so parents of teenagers bring the figure down. No survey has asked the same people about both pets and children.