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How to Build a Headboard

Home/Resources/Furniture & Decor/Building a Headboard
DH
Written & researched by Derek Holt Home & Appliances Editor
Updated August 2026
Three-quarter view of a person arranging cushions on a sofa in a styled living room, in soft overcast light

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Building a headboard is a beginner-friendly weekend project, about 3 to 6 hours, and an upholstered version costs $40 to $80 versus several hundred to buy. You need a saw, a staple gun and basic hardware; no permit or pro is involved. The build is easy, especially the upholstered style where fabric hides every imperfection. The parts that matter are sizing it to your mattress and mounting it securely to the frame or wall so it does not shift every time someone leans back.

DIY Headboard — Rustic Headboard Tutorial — The Home Depot

Step-by-step: an upholstered headboard

  1. Size it to the bed. Match the mattress width or add 2 to 4 inches each side, and plan 24 to 30 inches of height above the mattress. Write your panel size.
  2. Cut the plywood. Cut 3/4-inch plywood to the finished size. A straight factory edge helps, so have the panel cut at the store if you lack a track saw.
  3. Glue on foam. Adhere 1 to 2-inch upholstery foam to the front of the panel with spray adhesive, trimming it flush to the edges.
  4. Add batting. Lay batting over the foam, wrap it around to the back, and staple, pulling gently to round the edges.
  5. Wrap the fabric. Center the fabric, then staple it to the back, working opposite sides alternately and keeping even tension. Fold clean corners and staple tight.
  6. Build the mount. Attach legs drilled for your bed frame's headboard brackets, or fasten a French cleat half to the back for a wall mount.
  7. Mount it. Bolt the legs to the frame slots at your chosen height, or hook the cleat onto its wall-mounted mate over a stud.
  8. Level and secure. Confirm it is level and does not rock, tightening bolts or seating the cleat fully.
Three-quarter view of a person arranging cushions on a sofa in a styled living room, in soft early-morning light

Tools and materials

You need a saw, staple gun, drill/driver, plywood, foam, batting, fabric and mounting hardware. A headboard sets the tone for the whole bedroom, so its fabric and scale should relate to the other soft seating in the room, such as a chair from our accent chair picks that echoes the headboard fabric. If you are wall-mounting the headboard on a cleat, that is the same technique behind the floating storage in our bookshelf and shelving roundup.

Close-up detail of the material being worked in a furniture & decor project, in warm evening lamplight

Mistakes that show

Over-the-shoulder view of a person arranging cushions on a sofa in a styled living room, in warm evening lamplight

Notes and safety

This is safe, low-risk DIY. The cautions are standard: keep fingers clear of the staple gun, ventilate when using spray adhesive on foam, and if you wall-mount rather than frame-mount, reach a stud so the headboard cannot pull loose. There is no code or permit for a headboard. The only real risk is to the fabric budget if a first wrap goes lumpy, which working slowly and alternating sides prevents.

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More from this hub: Furniture & Decor · Reupholster a dining chair · Build a floating nightstand · Hang a heavy mirror · Best accent chairs · How we rank

Straight Answers

Frequently Asked

How wide should a headboard be?

Match the headboard width to the mattress or go slightly wider. A headboard that equals the mattress width looks built-in and tidy, while going 2 to 4 inches wider on each side gives a more substantial, upholstered-look presence. Standard mattress widths are 39 inches for a twin, 54 for a full, 60 for a queen and 76 for a king, so build to those or add the overhang you want. Building it narrower than the mattress looks undersized and leaves the pillows spilling past the edges, which reads as a mistake.

How tall should a headboard be?

Most headboards stand 14 to 24 inches above the top of the mattress, with 24 to 30 inches above the mattress being common for a statement piece. Measured from the floor, that puts the top of a typical headboard around 48 inches. Taller headboards feel grand and suit high ceilings; shorter ones feel modern and understated. If you like to sit up and read in bed, build it tall enough to lean against comfortably, at least to the shoulders of someone sitting up against the pillows.

How do you attach a headboard to a bed frame?

Most metal bed frames have pre-drilled headboard brackets with vertical slots. Build legs or a mounting strip on the back of your headboard, line the bolt holes up with the frame slots, and bolt them with the frame's hardware, adjusting the slot height so the headboard sits at your chosen level. If your frame lacks brackets, you can mount the headboard directly to the wall on a French cleat instead, which also stops it from shifting and works with a bed that has no frame attachment points.

Is it cheaper to build a headboard than buy one?

Usually yes, often dramatically. A simple upholstered plywood headboard can be built for $40 to $80 in a queen size, versus a few hundred for a comparable store piece, and a wood-slat or plank headboard runs similar. The savings grow with size and quality, since a king upholstered headboard retails high but costs about the same modest sum in materials. You also get exactly the size, height, fabric and finish you want, which is the real reason many people build rather than buy.

What is the easiest headboard for a beginner to build?

An upholstered plywood headboard is the most forgiving first build. You cut a sheet of 3/4-inch plywood to size, glue on foam, wrap it with batting and fabric, staple the back, and mount it, with no fine joinery required. There is no visible woodworking to get perfect, since fabric hides everything, and a slightly imperfect cut disappears under the padding. A wood-slat headboard is next easiest but demands straighter cuts and a finish, so start upholstered if you are new to building.