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How to choose a mattress (updated 2021)
Here’s my simple guide to the confusing question of how to choose a mattress.
I reckon you can come to a conclusion in four steps:
That's it.
So here goes - strap yourself in, this is going to be an exciting ride (Ed: calm down, you’re overselling this).
I reckon you can come to a conclusion in four steps:
- Figure out whether you need a soft, medium or firm mattress (or something in between such as medium-firm)
- Decide whether you want springs or foam (more on that fascinating debate later, please control your excitement)
- Read some reviews
- Buy online or try some out in a shop
That's it.
So here goes - strap yourself in, this is going to be an exciting ride (Ed: calm down, you’re overselling this).
How to choose a mattress part 1: choose a soft, medium or firm mattress
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Whatever your mattress is made from, you’ll need to pick one which is the right firmness for you.
Don’t believe the old myth that a rock hard mattress from a prison cell is perfect for a bad back. Experts like the Sleep Council say that what you need is a ‘supportive’ mattress which matches your weight, build and sleeping position. Some rough guidelines which I've summarised after reading dozens of sleep-inducing articles online:
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Soft, medium or firm? Pick a supportive mattress for your weight
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The idea is to combine these two factors to decide how firm a mattress you need. For example, a very light person who sleeps on their side will probably want a soft mattress whilst a very heavy person who sleeps on their back will want a firm mattress.
You will be slightly irritated when I tell you that there’s no industry-wide standard for measuring firmness. So, one company’s firm mattress could be the same as another company’s medium tension mattress.
Posh brands John Lewis & Partners and Vispring both provide clearer guidance than most about choosing firmness, but it's worth noting that there's some inconsistency in what firmness they recommend.
John Lewis & Partners say that from their range of mattresses:
Meanwhile, I've found some guidance which says that Vispring's soft mattresses are suitable for anyone up to 11 stone, with medium mattresses for 11-16 stone, firm for 16-20 stone and very firm for 20 stone plus.
So, whilst the guidance is roughly the same, Vispring recommends that a 10 stone person should buy a soft mattress whilst John Lewis & Partners recommends a 10 stone person should buy a medium firmness mattress.
And then there's the issue of a couple sharing a bed who are completely different weights. There are a few mattress brands which offer 'split tension' or 'dual tension' mattresses or you can buy a 'zip link' mattress which is two mattresses stuck together, but both options bump up the price.
Anyway, don't let this confusion get you down. Keep reading and it will become a little clearer, hopefully.
You will be slightly irritated when I tell you that there’s no industry-wide standard for measuring firmness. So, one company’s firm mattress could be the same as another company’s medium tension mattress.
Posh brands John Lewis & Partners and Vispring both provide clearer guidance than most about choosing firmness, but it's worth noting that there's some inconsistency in what firmness they recommend.
John Lewis & Partners say that from their range of mattresses:
- a soft mattress is 'suitable for bodyweights up to 8 stone'
- a medium mattress is 'suitable for bodyweights of 8-16 stone'
- a firm mattress is 'optimum comfort for bodyweights over 16 stone'.
Meanwhile, I've found some guidance which says that Vispring's soft mattresses are suitable for anyone up to 11 stone, with medium mattresses for 11-16 stone, firm for 16-20 stone and very firm for 20 stone plus.
So, whilst the guidance is roughly the same, Vispring recommends that a 10 stone person should buy a soft mattress whilst John Lewis & Partners recommends a 10 stone person should buy a medium firmness mattress.
And then there's the issue of a couple sharing a bed who are completely different weights. There are a few mattress brands which offer 'split tension' or 'dual tension' mattresses or you can buy a 'zip link' mattress which is two mattresses stuck together, but both options bump up the price.
Anyway, don't let this confusion get you down. Keep reading and it will become a little clearer, hopefully.
How to choose a mattress part 2: springs or foam?
If you’re a normal person, you probably don’t know whether you prefer a sprung mattress or a foam based mattress. You probably last bought a mattress 10 years ago and were bored to tears at the time by the salesperson’s technical discussions of the inner workings of 27 different white rectangles.
There are lots of different types of mattresses, but most people in the UK pick from one of these two.
a) A pocket sprung mattress – this is what most of us are used to. The springs give a bouncy feel and the good ones use breathable natural materials like wool for a bit of comfort. The cheaper alternative is ‘open coil’ springs but these are not great.
b) A foam mattress – these can provide very good consistent support and don’t gather dust like a pocket sprung mattress.
There are lots of different types of mattresses, but most people in the UK pick from one of these two.
a) A pocket sprung mattress – this is what most of us are used to. The springs give a bouncy feel and the good ones use breathable natural materials like wool for a bit of comfort. The cheaper alternative is ‘open coil’ springs but these are not great.
b) A foam mattress – these can provide very good consistent support and don’t gather dust like a pocket sprung mattress.
If you’re a traditionalist who would write a letter to Radio 4 if The Archers theme tune changed tempo then you will probably want to stick with a pocket sprung mattress. Highly-rated pocket spring brands include:
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Sleepeezee is a mid-priced pocket sprung mattress brand
Silentnight is a big name mattress maker with award winning products
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However, if you’re open to fancy new stuff then take a look at mattresses which use foam. Many of them get much better reviews and have won more awards than traditionally made pocket sprung mattresses.
Some foam mattresses have a top layer of memory foam, which is a material which tends to give a 'hugging' support – popular brands include:
Some foam mattresses have a top layer of memory foam, which is a material which tends to give a 'hugging' support – popular brands include:
(Prices are for double mattresses and are correct at the time of typing) |
Nectar Sleep's mattress offers a whole year to try it out at home
Tempur is probably the most famous memory foam mattress brand in the world
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Other highly-rated foam mattresses such as Emma or Casper don’t have such a sinking feeling because the top layer is a type of foam which bounces back more (the memory foam is buried deeper so you still get the support).
You’ll also see some foam mattresses called ‘hybrid’ mattresses because they use both springs and foam (e.g. OTTY, Simba).
Lots of foam mattresses arrive squashed up in a box, so are called a ‘bed in a box’. The advantage is that they can be delivered easily and it reduces storage costs.
You’ll also see some foam mattresses called ‘hybrid’ mattresses because they use both springs and foam (e.g. OTTY, Simba).
Lots of foam mattresses arrive squashed up in a box, so are called a ‘bed in a box’. The advantage is that they can be delivered easily and it reduces storage costs.
How to choose a mattress part 3: read some reviews
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Personally, I spend a lot of time looking at customer review scores. I’m less interested in individual whinges about something arriving a day late, but I do like to look at overall scores for brands and mattresses based on thousands of reviews.
There are a few different review websites, but I personally like TrustPilot as they tend to have a good number of reviews for most brands. I spent a happy hour looking up all the scores I could find for mattress brands on TrustPilot. Some brands weren’t on there, but here’s the list as of January 2021. I’ve split them into pocket sprung and foam brands, or where a brand sells both in a good number then I have included them in both lists. |
Brook + Wilde gets very good reviews on TrustPilot
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Pocket sprung mattress brands:
Foam mattress brands:
A few other things worth mentioning... I couldn’t find several well known brands such as pocket spring brands Vispring, Rest Assured and Slumberland. Also, Dunlopillo scores very highly but they make luxurious latex mattresses. Latex is a natural material which is good for mattresses, but they are £1000+ so outside of most people’s budget (see our Dunlopillo guide). Also, some companies like IKEA sell mattresses but that's only a fraction of what they offer, so the review score would be a bit misleading and so it hasn't been included.
Please note that things like guarantee length mentioned above are only correct at the time of writing. Also, the firmness rating for some mattresses varies depending on which guide you read. I've taken the general consensus from several reviews or taken the official rating from the manufacturer but please do your own research before making a purchase.
- Sleepeezee - 4.2/5 (a mid-priced brand which has a Royal Warrant, 60 night trial so you can swap it if you don’t like it)
- DreamCloud - 4.2/5 (luxury hybrid brand, combines foam and springs, 365 night trial, 'forever' warranty)
- Silentnight - 4.2/5 (mid-priced brand with lots of choice)
- Sealy - 3.2/5 (mid-priced brand which is owned by Silentnight. The Sofia model has won awards)
- Happy Beds - 3.2/5 (budget brand with a good size range)
- Harrison Spinks (luxury UK brand which makes mattresses for the John Lewis & Partners Natural Collection as well as under its own name) - 3/5
- Hypnos Beds - 2.9/5 (mostly higher priced mattresses with a Royal Warrant. Premier Inn use this brand in all their hotels)
Foam mattress brands:
- Ergoflex - 4.7/5 (mid-priced, medium/firm, long established memory foam mattress brand, 30 day trial, 10 year guarantee)
- Brook + Wilde - 4.6/5 (mid-priced UK brand offering soft, medium , firm and extra firm mattresses, 100 night trial)
- Dormeo - 4.6/5 (mid and luxury priced, makes some clever mattresses using spring shaped foam)
- Emma Mattress - 4.6/5 (mid-priced, home trial and 10 year guarantee)
- OTTY - 4.5/5 (mid-priced, 100 night trial, 10 year guarantee)
- Eve Sleep - 4.5/5 (mid-priced, 100 night trial, 10 year guarantee)
- Simba Sleep - 4.5/5 (mid-priced, 200 night trial, 10 year guarantee)
- Nectar Sleep - 4.3/5 (mid-priced, medium/firm, 365 night trial and ‘forever’ guarantee, both of which are joint longest in the industry that we know of)
- Casper - 4.3/5 (mid-priced, 60 night trial so you can swap it for another mattress, 10 year guarantee)
- Silentnight - 4.2/5 (massive brand which sells some cheap memory foam as well as a mid priced bed in a box mattress called Studio)
- Tempur - 3.7/5 (luxury, most famous mattress foam brand with historic links to NASA, various firmness levels)
- Mammoth - 3.2/5 (mid to luxury priced, 'medical grade foam', 10 year guarantee)
- Happy Beds - 3.2/5 (budget memory foam, 5 year guarantee)
A few other things worth mentioning... I couldn’t find several well known brands such as pocket spring brands Vispring, Rest Assured and Slumberland. Also, Dunlopillo scores very highly but they make luxurious latex mattresses. Latex is a natural material which is good for mattresses, but they are £1000+ so outside of most people’s budget (see our Dunlopillo guide). Also, some companies like IKEA sell mattresses but that's only a fraction of what they offer, so the review score would be a bit misleading and so it hasn't been included.
Please note that things like guarantee length mentioned above are only correct at the time of writing. Also, the firmness rating for some mattresses varies depending on which guide you read. I've taken the general consensus from several reviews or taken the official rating from the manufacturer but please do your own research before making a purchase.
How to choose a mattress part 4: visit a store or take out a home trial
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Once you’ve narrowed it to a couple of brands and figured out the firmness you need, your best option is to head to a shop or buy one with a home trial.
Of course, you can just buy one online and hope for the best but there is a lot to be said for being able to try a mattress before you are completely committed. As I said earlier, there is inconsistency in what it means when a company calls a mattress ‘firm’ or ‘medium’ so it’s a bit of a gamble if you can't try it out. My assumption is that it’s less of a problem if you are buying the same brand that you already own. |
Emma is a bed in a box with a home trial period
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If you decide to head for a shop, there are plenty to choose from including Dreams, Furniture Village, Bensons for Beds, IKEA or John Lewis & Partners or there are plenty of good independent bed shops which know what they are talking about (just Google 'bed shops' and click on the map).
The other option is a mattress with a free trial. You’ll find these are more commonly available with foam mattresses (‘bed in a box’ mattresses) rather than traditional pocket sprung mattresses.
Some offer a trial period of 30 days or nights (e.g. Ergoflex) whilst others offer 60 days (e.g. Sleepeezee), 100/200 days (e.g. Eve Sleep, Simba Sleep, Emma Mattress) or 365 nights (Nectar Sleep, DreamCloud). I reckon you get a good idea about a mattress after a couple of weeks, but that’s just my experience, that’s not based on any in-depth study I’ve carried out.
Have a proper read of the terms and conditions with free home trial mattresses, and some reviews too as customers will tell you how easy it was to return a mattress.
Crucially, some home trials will give you a full refund and pick the mattress up for you (e.g. Nectar Sleep, Simba). Other home trials such as Sleepeezee and Silentnight Studio will only let you swap the mattress for another by the same brand.
The other option is a mattress with a free trial. You’ll find these are more commonly available with foam mattresses (‘bed in a box’ mattresses) rather than traditional pocket sprung mattresses.
Some offer a trial period of 30 days or nights (e.g. Ergoflex) whilst others offer 60 days (e.g. Sleepeezee), 100/200 days (e.g. Eve Sleep, Simba Sleep, Emma Mattress) or 365 nights (Nectar Sleep, DreamCloud). I reckon you get a good idea about a mattress after a couple of weeks, but that’s just my experience, that’s not based on any in-depth study I’ve carried out.
Have a proper read of the terms and conditions with free home trial mattresses, and some reviews too as customers will tell you how easy it was to return a mattress.
Crucially, some home trials will give you a full refund and pick the mattress up for you (e.g. Nectar Sleep, Simba). Other home trials such as Sleepeezee and Silentnight Studio will only let you swap the mattress for another by the same brand.
