Comparing domestic tanning beds with commercial tanning beds boils down to three main factors: (a) pricing (b) durability (c) speed. But, the main reason that so many people are opting to buy their own tanning bed is that they can achieve a golden glow in their own time, and in the comfort of their own homes.

For millions of people globally, visiting a tanning salon is a recurring and costly exercise. Furthermore, the entire time that it takes to travel to and from a tanning salon, then getting undressed and then redressed, can easily cut into your day. This makes a trip to a tanning salon an exercise that really needs to be planned way ahead of time. And in a lot of cases, a tanning solarium will never have any availability when you want it, because most people will want to visit at the more desirable times of the day, like lunch time on work days.

For these reasons, people are seeking alternatives to tanning salons. People just want practicality - they don't want to be scheduling their whole week around a few trips to the tanning solarium. Those that want a consistent tan are now starting to get the picture that if there was a tanning alternate choice that could be performed at home, they would have a lot more spare time in their schedules.

Trying to save time is just one reason for seeking an alternative - another reason is the cost of tanning salons. Each time you visit a tanning salon, you will expect to pay in the ballpark of $15-$30. If you start to compute the cost of each tanning salon visit, and then factor in the preparation time to get there, to undress, go through your tanning session, then redress and get back home or to work, there is definitely a lot of unproductive time and effort. And as the old saying goes, 'time is money'.

Privacy is yet another reason that people will opt to buy their own tanning bed for use at home. To get the best tanning results, you will need to be almost naked, although some people opt to be completely naked. Most people will avoid derobing at a tanning solarium because of our primal tendency for personal privacy. So with a home tanning solution, you get the best of both worlds... a full-bodied golden tan, and the freedom to do it on your time, and with as little or as much clothing as you prefer.

But we do need to have regard for the cost of the at-home replacement, and we also need to bear in mind the quality of the machinery. It is easy to assume that having your own tanning bed at home is going to be the perfect solution now that we have demonstrated that it will be so a lot more convenient, and that we won't be wasting so much time and money traveling to and from our local tanning salon. The simple fact is that buying your own tanning bed is not a cheap exercise. You need to make sure that such an investment is for the long term.

The home tanning bed is a lot lower in price than the commercial tanning bed because it is constructed in a more economical manner. The typical at-home tanning bed would be used once a day, maybe twice a day, whereas in a salon the average bed may be used more than 20 times daily. It's like comparing a budget iron with a professional steam iron. One costs less and is less durable, the other costs more but will last a lot longer.

A home tanning bed will naturally be less susceptible to the rigors of a commercial tanning bed, but they are certainly capable of providing a golden tan - precisely the same as you would get from a tanning solarium. Both domestic and commercial tanning beds use the same types of lamps, so you will get the same tanning experience.

But commercial tanning beds are far more well-built and efficient. Like we said above, the common bed in a tanning solarium could be used more than 20 times a day, so the architecture of commercial tanning beds needs to be congruous with such high usage. Furthermore, a commercial bed will more than likely have far more lamps in it than a domestic tanning bed. A lot of home beds have around 16 lamps, whereas a commercial tanning bed can be fitted with sometimes 40 or more. This allows a commercial bed to perform it's task of 'tanning' a whole lot quicker.

Home tanning is an extensive market, and tanning beds/booths are finding their way into more and more homes across the USA. From as little as $50-$60 each month, you can get yourself a top-quality full size home tanning bed - that's less costly than 2 visits to most local tanning solariums - and you can use yours in the comfort and easiness of your own home.