Read This Before You Buy A Mattress

How to Find the Best Mattress for a Guest Room

Should You Flip Your Mattress?

When the top and bottom layers are the same, a mattress can be flipped, extending its life. Some traditional companies, like Shifman, still make them this way. But most mattresses today have only one comfort layer, so flipping won’t work. Be sure to ask what the maker recommends.

Mattress Store Smarts

It’s always a good idea to try before you buy. But forget speed dating around the showroom. This is a once-every-10-years purchase, so take your time.

Ignore the hype: Retail-store sales are so common that the list price is often meaningless. Don’t be afraid to haggle. Another challenge: The same mattress may be tweaked and sold under a different name in a different store. Yes, this is done to stymie comparison shopping. Feel them out: Get a sense of the sales staff, advises The Mattress Underground, a consumer watchdog group. Salespeople should be ready to talk specifics, from the density of the foam and the nature of the springs to the fiber content of the topping and ticking. Pack your own pillow—and a timer: Wear a comfy outfit, like workout clothes, kick off your shoes, relax in sleep mode, and give yourself at least 15 minutes on the mattress, shifting positions. Are your hips and shoulders aligned and well-cushioned? You should feel like you’re floating. Two more tests: Pressure points like shoulders should sink in while being supported by the core layer, keeping your spine straight. Place one hand under your waist; it should be tough to slide it out. If you jump when your partner plops down on the edge, ask to see a more stable mattress.

Consider Your Body Type

Sleep style is important, but so is your physique.

Big and heavy

You need extra support from the core, especially if you sleep on your back. Curvy bodies, heavy or light, need a thicker, softer comfort layer.

Thin and bony

Look for a softer, thinner comfort layer so you don’t float too high over the support layer. If you are a stomach sleeper, slightly firmer will do, and if you are a side sleeper, be sure to look for something soft and cushy to cradle your pressure points.

Latex, Foam, or Both?

Mad scientists are cooking up fresh latex and foam formulas and sandwiching them in artful new ways so that a mattress can omit springs altogether.

Natural latex, made from rubber-tree sap, is prized for its resilience and durability and is a good choice for the comfort layer. There are two ways it is molded, called Dunlop and Talalay, but more important is to test it for a buoyant, not bouncy, feel. Foams are typically made from petroleum, though alternatives like soybean and other vegetable oils are increasingly going into the mix. Some makers also add gel. Latex-foam blends are common because all-rubber latex is expensive. Don’t assume a “natural latex” label means 100 percent rubber. Memory foam responds to body heat and weight by “melting” around pressure points (while remaining firm, for better support, deeper down). It has its fans, partly because it doesn’t jiggle, though others find its slow response to changes in sleep position and “sleeping hot” a problem. Innovative foams are rated for such things as their ILD (indentation load deflection) and open vs. closed cells, but never mind: Manufacturers do the thinking so you won’t have to, and what’s key is your comfort. (Note: Old-school springs are said to be better for, ahem, romance.)

Consider the Safety

Look at the label to see whether the materials used in the mattress meet independent organizations’ standards. CertiPUR-US certifications mean the foam in the mattress has been tested for formaldehyde and other chemicals. For latex, there are Global Organic standards. Bear in mind that both of these apply to components used to make mattresses, not for the mattress as a whole. If you’re concerned about the safety of the materials used in your mattress, check out our round-up of the best organic mattresses, that feature all-natural materials without any harmful chemicals or metals.

Innersprings vs Hybrids

Mattresses are made with a softer top, or comfort layer, and a denser middle core, or support layer, which traditionally holds steel springs. Watch out for springs that allow motion transfer from one side of the bed to the other, a.k.a. “partner disruption.” Lower-gauge springs offer the most support, so they may be best for folks who are big and heavy. Thinner, higher-gauge springs can be more responsive, or springier. But when talk turns to coil counts and springs that are “oven-baked,” “tempered,” or made of titanium, keep in mind that what matters is how your body responds when you give the mattress a whirl: The goal is to feel both supported and cushioned. It’s best to have springs encased in separate pockets, or even “socks,” as seen in this sample from Room & Board, so they can flex separately to respond to shifting positions and provide support where it’s needed. More and more, mattresses combine innersprings and latex or memory foam, with springs at the core and a soft top layer to cushion joints.

3 Things to Remember When Mattress Shopping

Ways to Customize Your Mattress

Like so many things these days, mattresses can be adjusted to suit just you.

Split the difference: If you and your partner can’t agree, pay a little more and order a mattress that’s half firm and half less so. Pump it up: One maker, Select Comfort, uses side-by-side air pockets and an electric pump to allow separate adjustments in firmness in its Sleep Number beds. Its new smartphone app will monitor your sleep, helpful if you want to tweak the setting. Fill out a form: New online company Helix will customize a foam-and-microcoil mattress based on your age, height, weight, and favored sleeping position. Over time the company’s Netflixesque questionnaire and algorithm should become ever keener. Till then, there’s a comfort guarantee. Chemical-Free, Fire Resistant Options: Used to be that mattresses met fire-safety standards by blending scary chemicals into the flammable foam. But starting in 2007, manufacturers shifted to thin barriers made from fire-resistant natural or synthetic fibers, so if you’re buying a new mattress, you can rest easier. Natural remedies: Some fibers, such as wool (shown), sisal, and thistle, keep you cool while also providing fire resistance.

Read the fine print

Before you commit, pin down any delivery costs, and ask if the dealer will also whisk away your old mattress. Most mattresses come with a friendly-sounding policy on returns, or a so-called comfort guarantee. But read carefully: You may have only one month to exercise this option, and you may have to pay for shipping or a restocking fee even if you do return the mattress within the set time. Long-term warranties (typically 10 to 20 years) guard against lumps, sags, and trenches—but with certain conditions.

The warranty may apply only if you use a certain foundation. You may not get a full refund. And a lump or other problem may not qualify as a defect if it’s deemed too small. You may need your original receipt—and the “Do Not Remove” tag that comes with the mattress, which could contain key product information. For instance, to exercise IKEA’s generous 25-year warranty, you have to bring the receipt—and the mattress—back to the store.

Online Options

Web-based companies like Leesa and Casper offer one-style-fits-all mattresses made with foam or latex and foam. You save money because there’s no store overhead, and because a no-springs slab can be vacuum-packed, rolled up like a rug, and delivered in a box, like Tuft & Needle’s, above. If you don’t like it, you get a full refund. Online dealer Saatva has risen to the challenge with discounted innersprings and more choices, plus a 75-day comfort guarantee and classic “white glove delivery,” which entails a nonrefundable fee of about $100. If you’re looking to dodge the pushy salesmen, but are overwhelmed with the amount of online mattress options, narrow down your search with our round-up of the best mattresses in a box.

Additions to Your Mattress

Add a base

Traditional mattresses are designed to lie on a stiff wire foundation, which acts as a shock absorber, extending the mattress’s life. Many of today’s models do fine on slats, platforms, and boxes covered with foam and fabric. Ask what the mattress maker recommends; the long-term warranty may depend on using a certain base. That doesn’t mean you have to buy them as a set. Flexible bases, like Sleep Number’s, here, can elevate your head, knees, and feet and turn your bed into a chaise longue. Sleeping with a snorer? Sleep Number’s remote control allows you to raise your partner’s head.

Use a topper

Integrated pillow tops are giving way to free-floating toppers that are purchased separately. While they can be pricey, they are a way to experiment with new-age options like gel honeycombs (IntelliBed) or plastic yarn spun into washable springy slabs (Airweave). Note: You still need a good-quality support layer underneath.

Find the right pillow

Now that you’ve found a mattress that keeps your spine aligned, don’t forget the supporting player: a pillow that will continue that alignment by keeping cricks out of your neck. Unfortunately, pillows generally don’t come with comfort guarantees, and it may take a few tries to get the combination of softness and support that’s right for you. Now all you need is the perfect set of sheets.

Mattress Care and Maintenance

Humans throw off dead skin cells and bodily fluids, and if over time all that weren’t weighty enough, dust and dust mites pile in too, never mind pollen and bacteria—and could that possibly be pet fur joining the party? Vacuuming a mattress every couple of months and using a case or cover can help keep it in fighting trim.

How to care for your mattress