Casper vs Leesa vs Tuft?

July 19, 2017 11:32 AM

So I'm in the market for a new mattress, and my online research is starting to make my head spin. I discovered I'm less interested in looking at pictures of different kinds of foam and more interested in informal polling of strangers. I should say that I prefer a softer bed and am about 110 pounds. I don't have an issue with sleeping "hot," and it will only be me sleeping in the bed. Would love to hear what you sleep on and how much you love it!
posted by madonna of the unloved to Grab Bag (35 answers total)

I love my mattress a lot. I got it from Costco. It cost 650 bucks.

There a few things that I really liked about buying a mattress from Costco:

1) There were only about 4 or 5 options that fell within my budget and preference range, which significantly reduced the head-spinning peril of choice.

2) Costco has one of the world's best return policies--I've had my mattress for several years but I could probably return it even now if I wanted to. This combined with #1 allowed me to sidestep the mountain of mattress sales bullshit that's out there and make a decision in literally about 10 minutes.

3) It arrived at my apartment and was put directly into my bedroom by nice people for no extra cost. (You can buy it online, you don't have to live near a Costco, you just need a Costco membership.)
posted by phunniemee at 11:45 AM on July 19, 2017 [3 favorites]

We just did the same research as you, which really was overwhelming (foam is foam!), and ended up going with Tuft & Needle, which comes in at a bit of a cheaper price point than Casper and Leesa. It's a great mattress, but it's true that it takes time for your body to get used to it if you're going from a traditional mattress/box spring combo. I also do find it hot, particularly in the summer, but not so much that it's a nuisance.

Just remember to get a platform bed frame for it. Nothing is worse than using the wrong frame with a foam mattress.
posted by Miss T.Horn at 11:59 AM on July 19, 2017

I found Casper so firm that my fingers went numb while sleeping. This only otherwise happens to me if I sleep on the floor/a thin camping pad.
posted by slateyness at 12:07 PM on July 19, 2017

I have an older traditional spring mattress from a mattress factory. After a few years, the pillowtop padding deteriorated, causing a sag in the mattress. So I took a razor knife and cut it off. But the springs without padding were a wee bit too firm, so I tried a gelfoam memory foam topper. That didn't work for me: as an active sleeper, I felt 'trapped' by the foam, plus it was way too hot in the summer months.

I've now got a talalay latex topper. I can't say enough good things about latex. It's resilient, so I can move around easily. It sleeps cool. Best part is the fast recovery time for your body impression - you roll over, and the latex foam almost immediately springs back to level.

Latex costs more than memory foam, but it will last much longer - depending on the type of latex, you can get up to 20-30 years useful life from it. So -- if you haven't tested a latex mattress yet, give it a go, see how it feels for you.
posted by Lunaloon at 12:10 PM on July 19, 2017

I got this mattress off Amazon in 2011 and topped it with this bamboo topper last year when my husband complained about being too hot (we lived in the deep south at the time) and it is SO COMFORTABLE. Not too hard or too soft. And total price tag was about $600.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 12:13 PM on July 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

I just got a memory foam mattress (the 12 inch green tea) from zinus last friday and it feels like a nice big marshmallow, soft but I'm not melting into it. Obviously I can't speak for longevity yet but Zinus seems to run a lot cheaper than casper/leesa/tuft (and with some googling you can get a coupon too) which the price was my major deciding point. The frame I got from them is nice too. In case you needed more brands to make your head spin :p
posted by Orca at 12:18 PM on July 19, 2017

I got the Leesa since it seemed like it may be softer than others based on reviews (I'm a side sleeper) and I still got a softer foam topper to make it work. These companies all have generous no-rick return periods that last close to 3 months, so it's not a disaster if you decided that the one you chose isn't working for you.
posted by quince at 12:25 PM on July 19, 2017 [1 favorite]

We got a Tuft & Needle about 3-4 years ago, and still absolutely LOVE it. There were fewer options for mail-order high-quality foam mattresses then, so the choice was simpler.

If something happened to ruin our T&N, though, I'd immediately buy another one from them without any hesitation at all.
posted by uberchet at 12:36 PM on July 19, 2017

We love our Tuft & Needle, purchased around the same time as chet.
posted by aspersioncast at 12:50 PM on July 19, 2017

Still loving our Tuft & Needle after about 3 years of use. Other brands weren't available then so can't really compare, but it replaced a DWR Sonno memory-foam number (which was fantastic, btw, but $$$ at the time). One annoying thing about our T&N is that there are no handles or edging so trying to move it at all is harder than expected. And unlike the Casper, you can't remove the outer casing to clean up any spots easily.
posted by homesickness at 12:56 PM on July 19, 2017

We bought a Leesa based on the Sweethome review and love, love, love it.
posted by nerdfish at 1:02 PM on July 19, 2017

We have had a Leesa for about six months and are really happy with it. We probably saw it on Sweethome as well (most of our house is furnished with their recommendations...)
posted by cpatterson at 1:04 PM on July 19, 2017

we have a Leesa and we are happy with it
posted by supermedusa at 1:08 PM on July 19, 2017

I went with the Leesa specifically to get a softer bed and have been pleased with it. My girlfriend at the time historically did not like soft beds but liked it, saying that it was the only soft(er) mattress she'd slept on that didn't give her back pain.
posted by Candleman at 1:21 PM on July 19, 2017

I've had my Tuft & Needle mattress for about 7 months now and absolutely LOVE it. It's a nice mix of firm and soft, I think... the foam that makes up the majority of mattress is firm, but the 2-3 inches of top foam is soooo squishy and cloud-like. I have a king (I share it with a big dog) and can actually balance a glass of water on it because when my dog jumps on/off, my side of the mattress doesn't even wiggle.
posted by schroedingersgirl at 1:21 PM on July 19, 2017

I basically follow sweethome's advice for everything these days so bought a Leesa for my son. It has only been a day, but I'm very pleased so far! We unrolled it and he slept on it an hour later - I laid down with him as well and it was very comfortable.
posted by valeries at 1:30 PM on July 19, 2017

I've had a Tuft and Needle for two years. Three of them, actually; a thick twin for my kid, a thin twin (which I think they don't carry any more, which sucks) for the guest bed, and a thick king for us. It's not good for my back. We're saving up for something else because whenever I sleep on another bed, my back feels better. Funny enough, no issues with the guest bed. I think my back needs something firmer, and the thin mattress works. Wish I could buy a thin king.
posted by Pacrand at 1:40 PM on July 19, 2017

I adore my Tuft & Needle! Have had it for a year and a half. Big big big fan.
posted by firei at 2:18 PM on July 19, 2017

I have a Casper and I love it! It's firm but plenty soft. Make sure to look online for a promo code, whichever mattress you do decide to get. I think every podcast in existence has a Casper promo code floating around...
posted by little king trashmouth at 2:25 PM on July 19, 2017

I too prefer a softer bed and had an old pillow top I loved. I looked at all these and read the reviews at Sleepopolis and was totally overwhelmed too. I ended up with Brooklyn Bedding's BestMattressEver and it's been perfect for me. I was worried that many of the options mentioned by others would be too firm for me and, at the time I was shopping, the Brooklyn Bedding mattress seemed like the only option in its category that had something like a pillowtop. Good luck!
posted by kittydelsol at 2:55 PM on July 19, 2017

I have had a Leesa and the Helix, and I found the Helix to be a little softer. The Leesa is pretty soft and acceptable, but the Helix was a better balance of good pillowy squish and bounce imo. If you aren't concerned about sleeping hot, a topper can for sure add a little softness too! It bugs me a little, in that it's noticeably hotter, but adds that pillow feeling.
posted by zinful at 2:58 PM on July 19, 2017

I had a Tuft and Needle a few years ago. It was fine but not great. I recently tried Casper and returned it. Too soft and splashy, so I returned it. Don't over think this. Pick one and return it if you don't like it. They all take returns.

For what it's worth, I now have a Saatva, which was the only one of these modern mail order/sane return policy mattress vendors that I could find that sells sprung mattresses rather than foam. It's available in 3 softness options.
posted by caek at 3:16 PM on July 19, 2017 [2 favorites]

We got a Leesa about a year or so ago, and overall really like it. It is maybe a tad softer than I would prefer but that probably makes it better from your point of view. :)
posted by rainbowbrite at 3:33 PM on July 19, 2017

I'm in the same boat as the poster. I'm thinking I might go with Leesa's springy brother, the Sapira. Why? Well, I'm a bigger guy and I'm thinking the hybrid with foam and springs might be better than all foam.

Any bigger people out there with recommendations?
posted by Fortran at 3:38 PM on July 19, 2017

We are about 2 months with a Leesa and I have to say, mattress firmness must be a really, REALLY subjective thing because it's the firmest mattress either of us have ever slept on. That being said, we like it, but for the first week we both felt like we were sleeping on the floor. Still considering returning because I am a stomach sleeper and I'm getting some upper back pain from the Leesa.
posted by raspberrE at 6:45 PM on July 19, 2017

Yeah softness is very subjective. I have a T&N that I got almost a year ago and I *love* it. Don't know that I've slept on a bed I liked more. It feels plenty squishy to me but other people find the brand a bit on the firm side. My thinking was : they're one of the cheapest of this new class of mattress companies, they're a bit less gimmicky (no sales/coupons/promos--just a fair selling price for everyone) and returned mattresses are donated to charity. I say get a T&N and if you're not totally satisfied return and try one of the pricier brands. But there's a good chance you'll be totally satisfied with what is, incidentally, also one of the cheapest options.
posted by pdq at 6:56 PM on July 19, 2017

I've sung the praises of Costco's Novaform mattress here before; I cannot compare it to the other brands mentioned, as this is my first experience with a foam-based mattress but I am NEVER. GOING. BACK. to traditional spring mattresses.

After using the same spring mattress for 10 years, it came time to get a new one, and after a bit of research (mostly here on AskMe), my head was also spinning with foam mattress options, so I feel you. I read many Mefi threads on foam mattresses and people's enthusiasm won me over. Basically we got tired of dithering and decided to just pull the trigger and buy from Costco, largely for the reasons phunniemee cites (above). We live within a 20 minute drive of Costco, so it was easy to pick one up ourselves - although we weren't entirely sure it would fit in our Ford Focus hatchback, it did - just about - in its boxed, compact form. When you get it home you receive *very specific* instructions about opening it so that 1) you don't accidentally cut the mattress, and b) it expands properly. The box is heavy, it's good to have two people on day of purchase if you're moving it by car to your residence.

Costco has it on special offer occasionally, I think we got $100 off or thereabouts.

There is a bit of a smell I'm afraid - but that's just me. Haha, no that's the mattress but it dissipates in a few days. The first day is the worst, obv.

I would definitely make my next mattress purchase a foam mattress, don't know if I'd try another brand (due to curiosity) or just stick with this brand; at any rate, it should last for quite a while.

Good luck in your shopping and let us know what you end up with!
posted by joseph conrad is fully awesome at 7:28 PM on July 19, 2017

Three years ago I also bought a memory foam mattress (possibly Novaform) from Costco, queen size for around $600. I have similar "bed characteristics" to you--120 lbs, prefer softer beds (my previous bed was a double pillowtop spring), don't have problems with sleeping hot. I actually thought that the Costco mattress would be too firm for me when it was first unpacked out of the box, but it turns out to be the perfect combination of cushy softness yet supportive. When I visit my parents nowadays and sleep in my old bed, it actually feels a bit too soft because the pillowtop isn't as supportive as firm memory foam.

Anyhow, it's been three years and zero rotation/flipping later, the mattress is still in perfect condition and I sleep better at home than anywhere else. And as stated above, I felt safe buying the mattress from Costco because of its excellent return policy.
posted by serelliya at 11:06 PM on July 19, 2017

I went with a Leesa just a few weeks ago. So far, so good, even though my previous mattress was a super-firm futon. Like some of the commenters here, I was influenced by the Sweethome's recommendation but what I really found helpful were the mattress reviews on YouTube. Watching how a body sinks in to a mattress helped me gauge what mattress would likely work for me.

Leesa's policy of donating a mattress to a shelter for every ten sold didn't hurt, either.
posted by Eikonaut at 11:11 PM on July 19, 2017

Response by poster: Wow, thank you for your opinions, everyone! It looks pretty even between Leesa and Tuft, and it surprised me to hear almost no opinions about Casper, which I thought would be the frontrunner. So I'm glad to have my choices narrowed. And I may swing by Costco as well, which I never considered doing. Thanks!
posted by madonna of the unloved at 1:32 AM on July 20, 2017

We've had a Leesa for almost two years and still really like it. A few months ago I got a Purple pillow and really dig it so now I'm thinking I would like the mattress as well. The promo videos with the raw eggs are pretty convincing. Maybe next time!
posted by supercres at 4:55 AM on July 20, 2017

I love our Tuft and bought a second one for my parents' house.

Softness is really hard to define, but one thing I decided during our own complicated mattress discernment process is that if you get a firm mattress, there are any number of things you can do to make it softer or more cuddly (feather bed, foam, wool pad, etc.) but there's really no way to make it more firm. Think about Birkenstocks vs. shoes with padding: you would think the padded shoes would automatically feel better, but because Birkenstocks are better molded to most wearers' feet, they are more comfortable and supportive.

I give a satisfied "ahh" every time I settle into my wonderful mattress after a night or two away. No exaggeration.
posted by St. Hubbins at 7:41 AM on July 20, 2017

I just did a bunch of mattress research for a friend, and like Lunaloon I think you should also check out some Latex mattresses. My friend got a latex topper for her memory foam mattress, and loves it. The latex is soft but more responsive than memory foam, so you get more bounce or spring, rather than just sinking in. I will probably test out some latex next time I'm in the market. I had no idea it was such a different thing than the other types of foam.
posted by thejanna at 8:37 AM on July 20, 2017

Buying a memory foam mattress from amazon (Zinus) was the best thing I ever did. $200 and I have a 12" queen mattress that is a 10/10 for me.

My brother ordered the 6" version of my mattress and decided after trying mine he wanted to upgrade to the 12". How do you return a mattress that was shipped super compressed and originally only a fraction of the size of the expanded mattress? He called amazon and they refunded the total cost and told him just keep the 6" mattress.

This customer friendly return policy plus prime shipping made any concerns about quality ordering from amazon secondary to me.

edit: Just reading through some of the other replies now, I agree that you can't go wrong buying almost anything from costco. Their return policy is probably the best of any retail store. I don't know how they deal with returning an expanded foam mattress but if it's anything like the rest of their policies then it's very customer friendly.
posted by laptolain at 8:59 AM on July 20, 2017

Bought a Leesa. It was too soft (backaches!) so we returned it. Bought a Sapira (same manufacturer, combo of coil and foam). So far we like the Sapira better but TBH we miss our TempurPedic. (We went from queen to king and had to change mattresses and couldn't swing a $4K TempurPedic at the moment.) It wasn't love at first sleep with the Sapira, but it's getting better, perhaps because the springs do need to break in a bit.
posted by woot at 3:52 PM on July 20, 2017 [1 favorite]