I currently use air mattresses for car camping with the kids.  I have 4 so if 1 deflates or a big temp change there’s always another layer in the middle of the night.

But do camping cots justify the huge price increase?  The cost of the cot and the pad is pretty big for a family.  I definitely like from the simplicity sense since I’m always doing the set up and take down.

Anyone have any insight or recommendations of brands?

All I’ve done for the last 30 years is cots in camp.  A light backpacking pad on top and good night.

Got decent service out of a old GI one, but it was a little short.

Got 20 years out of a slumberjack XL, finally ripped the top out this year.

Trying a go cot too.  They may work well for you seeing as you need 4.  They pack small and are lighter.  Not my preferred cot due to the height, they are low.
A bit of a pain to assemble till you get the hang of it.

The good ones all seem to be 100$+.   The go cot is US made, and the chicom version is not much cheaper.  

I spend 30-50 nights in the field and gave up on ground sleeping.

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I picked up this one last year. Full folder, no ends to fuck with. As far as the pad I use an old piece of eggshell foam/mattress topper. I’ve also slept on it without, it’s more of a comfort/insulation thing.

ALPHA CAMP Oversized Camping Cot  https://a.co/d/9vzIIty

A cot and a 4" self inflating pad is a HUGE increase in comfort.

I use a cot almost identical to this one.

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B078X14RC6/

Have you looked at these?  We use them for surf fishing trips.  Tent cot

Sets up in just a couple of minutes and takes up very little space when folded. If the ground is wet you can use it in the truck bed.

Had been using self inflating sleeping mats the last 10 yrs. They suck, even the high end ones. Last spring I decided to fork out the money and got the whole family 4 Helinox Cote One at $350 each. Used it for 3 camping trips so far and all I can say is they were worth every penny. They feel like sleeping on air. No more felling found bumps and uneven terrain. Lighter and easier to pack than 4 sleeping mats. Makes us want to go camping more now.

We even use it for when we have guess over and they all love it. I set it up in my back yard for naps all the time now.

Tossed my 4 REI self inflating sleeping mats in the trash. I’m never going back to sleeping mats again.

Also check out Go Kots.

https://go-kot.com

Made in the USA. Only recently discovered them. If I had known about them prior to buying  the Helinox Cots I would have giving them a try. They’ve been making camping cots since 1978. The only down side I can see when comparing to the Helinox is weight. 10lbs vs. 4.5lbs. Not a big deal if you are car camping. Well, maybe if you are dealing with 4 10lbs cots vs 4 4.5lbs cots.

I have transitioned from tent camping to trailer camping, so carrying a cot is not as big of a deal as when I was humping it.    I had used a GI cot to start, and it worked OK, but then I got a civilian cot and OMG the difference is insane.  Yes, you want a civilian cot.  If you have to carry it its worth it to buy the lighter ones, but the generic ones work just fine if you don't have to carry them.

Push your hand against the ground.  Note the amount of give

Try that with a cot.

Notice some difference?

I have the long one.  Well made and sturdy and I sleep well on it.  I just prefer a taller cot in camp.

Camp rite roll a cot is what you seek

I've been using a Slumberjack XL for years. It makes for a very comfortable night's sleep. The extra height off the ground is also nice to sit on as well as for storage space underneath. Ground camping nearly made me quit. Cots have made it enjoyable now for years.

Cots all the way.  Air mattresses suck compared to a good cot.  I have Coleman cots and like them.  I added a 3 inch foam mattress and we sleep in comfort.  In cold weather, there's no comparison.  Air mattresses are COLD in the winter.

We got nice cots 2 years ago. Never looked back. Take into account cots are drafty in winter, insulate accordingly and you'll be fine

I've never tried a cot... how are they for side sleeping? Seems like there would be no give and it would suck vs an air matress...

The biggest benefit is from the foam pad.  A thick, firm foam pad is comfortable and warm.

I've been using A Coleman Camping Cot, with a foam pad on top, it's comfortable & I haven't been able to destroy it over the last 3 years.

And a cot isn't cold in the winter?

Not as cold as an air mattress on the ground, trust me in this.

A cot without anything insulating you….sure it’s cold. But, in my post I also said I have a 3 inch foam pad. 3 inches of foam below you is an excellent insulator. Sleeping on an air mattress is like sleeping on an ice cube in the winter. Even a military isomat on the ground is warmer than an air mattress in the cold.

Put a folded rectangle sleeping bag under you and there’s your padding. Go with a good foam pad and it’s even better.

Stick to the ground

My damn pillow just falls off the cot all night and it isn't warmer.

Only the feet of the cot touch the ground compared to the entire bottom of the air matress.
There are however insulated self inflating mattresses.
I assume from his comments about layers and deflating OP is using the blow up kind.

One thing to consider is the size of your tent.
Cots sit higher and tent walls often slope.
I've seen guys with cots pressing into the sides of their tent.
When I got my wife a cot, I had to use a larger tent than we had been using. The one I wanted was long.
When I decided to get myself I had tu buy a larger tent.
I got mine from REI. Their latest version comparable to ours is the kingdom cot 3.
They're big and pack big.

When the wife doesn't go I use an ALPS lightweight cot. It breaks down pretty small.

A lot better than a pad or air mattress in my experience.
Naturally I haven't tried ever model.
The inflatables have always been cheap. So maybe a more expensive one would be better.
I only have the lightweight thermarest models.
Ridgerest.

Same here.   I will never go back to an air mattress.

Slept on cots for 20+ years; air matress is where it is, especially since they're often longer than cots.

Don't buy cheap "air mattresses" made for indoor use for house guests?

It all depends on the pad. My 2.5” thick Thermarest NeoAir XTherm winter air mattress is so warm that in temps above freezing it’s uncomfortably warm if I don’t unzip my sleeping bag halfway. My NEMO Tensor starts getting uncomfortably chilly at about freezing, but at 3” thick it’s super comfortable even on rocky, stony ground.

If you are using some air mattress designed for indoor use ... why yes, that's going to be cold ... it doesn't have baffling designed to reduce air convection at large temperature differentials.

Any 4" self inflating (mostly foam core) camping pad I can think of is going to have an R value in excess of 6, and that's enough for winter use.

My Thermarest X-Therm is roughly 2.5" thick when inflated, no foam insulation at all, and it has an R-Value greater than 6.5.  Sufficient for ground contact in CONUS winters.  I have weeks on this thing up in NH/VT in the middle of winter; perfectly comfortable.  It rolls up to the size of a 1L bottle.  And it's quite comfortable.  

A 4" car-camping self-inflating mattress will edge out my X-Therm in comfort in regards to: skin contact comfort, space, side sleep pressure points, and noise.  But, a 4" self-inflating pad is going to roll up to a size of 25L or more.  A couple L here, a couple L there, that adds up with more people, longer road trips, etc.

That’s nice…..but a cot will still beat it for comfort. If weight is a concern, cots are out. That’s a given. I’ve spent many nights sleeping in cold temps on nothing more than a thin foam isomat and managed to sleep just fine. But, if I have a choice of sleeping on the ground or sleeping on a cot, I’ll take the cot every time. And a cot, with the right insulation, will be warmer than sleeping on the best backpacking pad on the market.

OP is car camping. Weight isn’t a concern. A cot is the best way for him to go.

An XTherm is what $170-190? A typical cot ranges from $40-80. I have the Coleman Packaway cots. Oversized cot but super comfortable and lightning fast to set up. Usual price is $80 but on sale on Amazon now for $62. I like my foam pads but a cheap folded rectangle sleeping bag under you and a good sleeping bag to sleep in of the appropriate temp rating and you’ll sleep quite warm and comfortable.

We even use our cots when the grandkids come over. We set them up in the basement and everyone has a bed to sleep on.

Thermarest makes excellent products and I used one for years…actually wore it out. Don’t remember the model but it wasn’t cheap. For backpacking they are excellent. When weight isn’t a concern, cot 100% of the time.

OP here is the one I have. Highly recommended. The only minor negative I have for it….it’s oversized. Makes it even more comfortable but can make for tight sleeping in a smaller tent.

https://www.amazon.com/Coleman-2000020273-Pack-Away-Camping-Cot/dp/B0043AK0O4

We have a clip in tent for our 10x10 pop up canopy and it’s great for tent camping in. Fast set up and takedown and lots of room. Straight walls so no issues with rubbing your cot or head or feet on the walls. Definitely won’t be backpacking in it though.

A wall tent is awesome for sleeping on a cot in but most take a fair amount of time to set up.

I will take a pad on the ground over a cot ANY DAY for comfort. If I’m car camping I’d bring one of those 8” thick air mattresses over a cot, but on the rare occasions I car camp I use my backpacking gear but bring a heavier, more roomy tent. The only advantage a cot has is it can’t get punctured in the middle of the night, but in hundreds of nights on pads I’ve had it happen 2 or 3 times. It’s a non-issue.

My wife picked up a couple of those folding camping cots a few years ago.  I'm NEVER sleeping on my sleeping pad straight on the ground ever again. Those cots are so much better that being on the ground....even with my expensive Big Agnes sleeping pad....a cot is the way to go (as long as you don't have to pack it in for miles).

I’d never carry a cot into the field, but if there’s room on the truck for it, why not?

Always put your isomat on it if the temperature is below you sweating while sitting still.

The cot isn’t just about sleeping comfort, it’s about the campsite as a whole. IMO it makes a dramatic difference in housekeeping and sanitation. Much easier (and safer) to dress yourself, give storage space underneath, keeps your sleeping system clean and dry during the day, helps keep bugs off you, all that good stuff.

I use the same cot. On top I generally roll out a Midway shooting mat, then a Thermarest Z-rest pad, and top it off with a wool blanket folded in half lengthwise. The blanket provides not only insulation but breathability compared with just a foam pad.

Edit: Another nice thing about a cot is that you can shove stuff underneath to get it out of the way, conserving floor space in a tent or small cabin.