The beanbag glossary

An XXL beanbag (also called a giant beanbag, oversized beanbag, or adult beanbag) is a beanbag chair with a seating diameter of roughly 5 to 8 feet. Unlike a traditional single-seat beanbag, an XXL beanbag is designed for 2 or more adults to share at the same time, which is why it is often bought as the main seat in a living room or family room.

The Cosac comes in 3 XXL sizes: 5ft (fits 1 to 2 people, $249), 6ft (fits 2 to 3 people, $299), and 7ft (fits 3 to 4 people, $399). All are round, pre-filled, and ship ready to sit on.

Shredded memory foam is memory foam (viscoelastic polyurethane foam) that has been mechanically cut into small irregular pieces, typically ranging from half an inch to two inches across. When used as a beanbag filling, the shredded pieces move around each other to conform to the sitter's body, then recover their shape once the sitter gets up.

Compared to EPS beads, shredded memory foam is denser, more durable, and retains its loft for years without needing refills. It is the filling used in premium beanbags like The Cosac, Lovesac (Durafoam), and Chill Sack.

EPS beads (expanded polystyrene beads) are small, round, hollow polystyrene pellets. They are the filling used in most budget beanbags, including entry-level Big Joe, Yogibo, and Fatboy products, because they are cheap to produce, very lightweight, and easy to pack.

The trade-off is longevity. Under regular sitting load, EPS beads collapse and compress, so a bead-filled beanbag can lose 20 to 40 percent of its original loft within 12 to 18 months of daily use. This is why most EPS-filled beanbags require refill bags (around $50 to $80 each) every 1 to 2 years to restore the shape.

CertiPUR-US is an independent nonprofit certification program administered by the Alliance for Flexible Polyurethane Foam. Foam that carries the CertiPUR-US mark has been independently tested and verified to meet standards for content, emissions (VOCs), and durability.

CertiPUR-US certified foam is made without ozone depleters, PBDE flame retardants, mercury, lead or other heavy metals, formaldehyde, and phthalates regulated by the CPSC. The certification is the same one used on most premium memory foam mattresses sold in the United States.

The Cosac uses CertiPUR-US certified shredded memory foam as its filling. Most budget beanbags using EPS beads or low-density polyfoam are not CertiPUR-US certified.

Dual-bag construction means the beanbag is built as two separate, layered bags instead of one. An inner liner (usually a simple synthetic fabric) holds the filling in place. An outer cover (the visible fabric layer) zips over the inner bag and can be removed for cleaning.

The practical benefit is that you can unzip and wash the cover without the filling spilling out. If the cover ever wears through, you can replace just the cover instead of the entire beanbag. All Cosac sizes use dual-bag construction with a lock-style inner zipper and a heavy-duty outer zipper.

Sherpa fleece is a synthetic fabric (typically 100 percent polyester) woven and brushed to imitate the look and feel of sheep's wool. The surface has a thick, fluffy, curled pile that is soft to the touch and retains warmth.

As a beanbag cover, sherpa fleece is plusher than microsuede, comfort suede, or standard polyester blends. It is the cover fabric used on The Cosac and on the premium tier of Lovesac's fabric lineup. Most Cosac owners describe the cover texture as closer to a down comforter than to a traditional beanbag fabric.

Memory foam is a type of viscoelastic polyurethane foam originally developed by NASA in the 1960s. It has the unusual property of softening in response to body heat and pressure, so it molds closely to whatever is pressing on it, then slowly rebounds to its original shape once the pressure is removed.

In mattresses, memory foam is used as solid blocks or layers. In beanbags, it is typically shredded into small pieces so it can move and conform inside the bag. Both uses rely on the same viscoelastic behavior.

Durafoam is the branded name that Lovesac uses for the shredded polyurethane foam filling inside its Sac products. It is a blend of shredded foam pieces designed to hold its shape over years of use and come with a lifetime insert warranty from Lovesac.

Materially, Durafoam is in the same broad category as the shredded memory foam used in Cosac, Chill Sack, and Ultimate Sack. The main differences across brands are foam density, piece size, the presence (or absence) of memory foam specifically, and certification status.

Loft refers to the vertical height a beanbag holds when it is empty and sitting on the floor. A fully lofted bag looks round and puffy and gives you a high, buoyant sit. A flattened bag looks deflated and gives you a low, hard sit because the fill has compressed.

Loft is the single best indicator of beanbag health. A beanbag that has lost most of its loft has lost most of its useful life, regardless of how the cover looks. EPS beads and low-density polyfoam lose loft quickly. CertiPUR-US shredded memory foam holds its loft for years.

An inner bag (sometimes called a liner) is the interior fabric bag that holds the filling in a dual-bag beanbag. It is usually made of a simple synthetic fabric with a zipper that locks shut. The outer cover then zips on around the inner bag.

Because the inner bag contains the filling on its own, you can unzip and wash the outer cover (or replace it entirely) without the filling spilling out. Cosac sells replacement inner bags and replacement covers separately for customers who want to extend the life of a single beanbag over many years.

Polyurethane foam is a synthetic plastic foam made by reacting polyols with diisocyanates. It is the most common foam in upholstered furniture, mattresses, and cushions.

Memory foam is a specific viscoelastic subcategory of polyurethane foam. Most premium shredded foam beanbag fillings (including CertiPUR-US certified shredded memory foam and Lovesac's Durafoam) are polyurethane-based.

A bean bag refill is a separately sold bag of filling (EPS beads, shredded foam, or shredded memory foam) used to top up a beanbag that has lost its loft. Refills are most common with EPS bead beanbags like Yogibo, where annual refills (around $50 to $80 each) are expected as part of normal ownership.

Shredded memory foam beanbags rarely need refills because the fill does not compress the same way. The Cosac sells a shredded memory foam refill for customers who ever want to top up or restore an older bag.

Micro-beads are very small expanded polystyrene or plastic pellets, typically 1 to 3 millimeters in diameter. They flow almost like a liquid inside a stretchy cover, which is why micro-bead beanbags like Yogibo Max and Moon Pod feel smooth and conforming rather than chunky.

Micro-beads compress faster than full-sized EPS beads under regular use, which is why micro-bead beanbags often require annual refill bags to hold their shape. The Cosac does not use micro-beads.

Comfort Suede is a branded polyester microsuede fabric used most commonly on Big Joe beanbag products. It has a smooth, slightly brushed texture that mimics suede leather and comes in a wide range of colors.

Compared to sherpa fleece, comfort suede is thinner and less plush, but it is easier to wipe clean and tends to be more stain-resistant to liquid spills. It is a budget-friendly cover fabric, which is why it shows up across the Big Joe lineup at mass retailers.

A bean bag chair is a fabric-covered seat filled with loose material that conforms to the sitter's body. The original beanbag (the Sacco, designed in Italy in 1969) used dried beans, which is where the name comes from. Modern beanbags use expanded polystyrene beads, shredded polyurethane foam, or shredded memory foam instead.

Beanbags range from small personal chairs (2 to 4 feet) to XXL shared seats (5 to 8 feet). The shape, fill type, and cover material are the three variables that most define how any given beanbag will feel and age.