Attachable Vs. Detachable Cushions: Which One Is Right For You?

If you hear somebody ask “What’s the difference between attachable vs. detachable cushions?” It may seem like a bit of a silly question. You may think to yourself, this seems self-explanatory. One cushion is attached, and the other can be detached to or from the furniture.

While that is certainly the main and clear difference between attachable and detachable cushions, there are many other factors that make not only the cushions but the furniture different as well.

So what are these differences? Which type of cushion is best for your living space’s furniture?

At La-Z-Boy San Antonio, we have been designing furniture for half a century, and we have learned a thing or two about the differences between attachable vs. detachable cushions.

Let’s explore the many differences between attachable vs. detachable cushions!

In this article...

• Attached Cushions
• Pros & Cons of Attached Cushions
• Detachable Cushions
• Pros & Cons of Detachable Cushions
• Which Cushion Type Is Right For You?
• What’s Next?

Attached Cushions

To put it simply, attached cushions are as they sound: they are attached to the frame of the furniture. If you look at the top of the cushions from a bird's-eye view, you will notice that the cushions are sewn onto the cushions so they do not move when someone sits down or gets up.

These types of cushions are the right choice for somebody who does not want to have to reposition the cushions frequently. For example, if you have a dog or cat with a toy that frequently rolls under the sofa, you may have to lift the sofa from up underneath the back frame. If you have attached cushions, they will not fall onto the floor like detachable cushions will, keeping your sofa cushions firmly in place.

That being said, there are certain furniture types that have tighter back cushions than others. Some furniture types will have loose cushioning, allowing more slack and movement to cushions.

If you are interested in getting fitted for your La-Z-Boy furniture, you can set up an appointment with one of our designers. 

Pros & Cons of Attached Cushions

As with every piece of furniture and its details and features, there are advantages and disadvantages to having furniture with attached cushions. Let’s look through some pros and cons of having furniture with attached cushions.

Pros

Cushion Upkeep

Since the attached cushions are sewn onto the furniture frame, there will be less upkeep required with the attached cushions.

As we discussed above, you can move, lift, and tilt your furniture without having the cushions lose their proper position on your furniture. This will cause less of a burden on you and eliminate the prospect of constantly re-positioning your cushions.

Along with the convenience of not having to constantly re-position, Attached cushions also do not need to be fluffed up every time somebody sits down on the furniture. This, again, will eliminate the burden that detached cushions present.

Cost

You may be wondering if one costs more than the other. Oddly enough, furniture with attached cushions generally costs less than furniture with detached cushions.

Furniture with attached cushions actually requires less fabric than furniture with detached cushions. As a result, manufacturers will not need as much time to design and won’t need to build a wall of fabric over the front of the furniture frame. Instead, they will simply connect the frame’s fabric to the cushion’s fabric, requiring less fabric than furniture with detachable cushions.

The cost of attached vs. detached cushions will ultimately be dependent on the manufacturer, the furniture retailer you shop with, and the quality of the furniture.

Cons

Replaceability

If you are wondering how to fix the ripped couch cushions that are attached, please understand that this is a lengthy and costly process.

As convenient as it is to not have to constantly re-position your cushions with attached cushions, attached cushions are far harder to replace than detached cushions.

If you have restless children or pets, they may be very rough on furniture and might accidentally rip the cushion from the frame itself. If that happens, you will have to call your retailer and the repair may take up to months.

Since cushions tend to sag over time, you may be wondering how to fix a sagging couch with attached cushions. While you can still chop and fluff the cushions up to the best of your ability, since you cannot pick the cushions up off the furniture itself to move the insides up, it is much harder to prevent sagging with attached cushions.

Cushion Cleaning

Generally speaking, attached cushions are harder to clean than detached cushions are. Since you cannot physically remove the cushions from the furniture, cleaning the backs and undersides of attached cushions is much more difficult.

Some attached cushions do have a zipper where you can remove the cushion itself from the sleeve, which will make it easier to clean, and also make it less likely to damage the cushion itself. However, not every piece of furniture with attached cushions offers zippers on their cushions, so be sure to specify that in your decision-making process if that is a priority for you.

Detachable Cushions

Detachable cushions are cushions that are not sewn into the furniture frame and are loose and moveable as a result. These cushions can be easily moved simply by lifting or sliding.

Furniture with detachable cushions is guaranteed to move more than attached cushions when somebody sits down or gets up off the furniture. Detachable cushions are the right fit for somebody who prefers to fluff and clean their cushions easily and does not mind them moving or repositioning every time somebody sits down.

Pros & Cons of Detachable Cushions

As we did with the attached cushions, let’s go into a brief list of the pros and cons of detachable cushions.

Pros

Cushion Cleaning

As we discussed earlier, detachable cushions are easier to clean than attachable cushions.

Since you can remove detachable cushions from the furniture frame itself, you can flip and move the cushions to clean more surface area than you can with attached cushions. This makes it far easier to clean the entire cushion and even reach into the nooks and crannies of the frame itself.

Replaceability & Repair

Since detachable cushions are not sewn into the furniture frame itself, they are far easier to replace and repair than attached cushions. If you have a cushion that wears down, you can replace the cushion itself rather than having to take the entire furniture piece to the retailer to re-sew the cushion back into the frame.

As opposed to fluffing an attached cushion, you can also easily fluff and reposition a detachable cushion to adjust its look and feel.

Cons

Wear & Tear

If you are looking for a sofa with detachable cushions, it is important to note that detachable cushions do experience wear and tear easier and faster than attached cushions do. Since they are not sewn into the frame, they do not have the support of attachable cushions and thus are less durable than attached cushions.

Cost

As we discussed in the attachable cushions pros section, furniture with detachable cushions is typically more costly than furniture with attached cushions. Since the manufacturer needs to use more fabric to cover the frame and the backs and undersides of the cushions, detachable cushions take more time and fabric than attachable cushions.

If you'd like to hear more about the pros and cons of detachable cushions, feel free to set up an appointment with an in-store designer to answer any questions you have.