I need a cocoon of a mattress

June 13, 2018 9:37 AM

At approximately 4:55am today, my husband slid off the bed and slammed his knee into the wall. I think it's time for a new mattress and boy, is researching this overwhelming. More inside on needs and budget.

We're currently sleeping on a queen, inner spring mattress that is about 5 years old. I can't remember the brand, but we got it from Jordan's (a MA-based furniture superstore). It sits on an IKEA Brimnes frame and the Lonset slats, without a boxspring (which I think is part of the problem). We are both large people (think 650+ weight rating) who sleep hot and have tried memory foam before (and hated it). After 5 years, the mattress is sagging and my husband will wake up with his feet on the floor or wall. Hilarious, but also terrible for sleeping.

I have scoured sleeplikethedead.com, previous questions and am really just overwhelmed. When did reviewing mattresses become such an enterprise? I am not opposed to buying online, but I would like the whole kit and caboodle (queen or king mattress, box spring, frame) to cost no more than $1200. I would rather spend more on the mattress set up than worry about the fanciest of bedframes-- so plain metal is fine as long as it can hold up. I realize that's going to be a tough price range, but that's about all we can swing. I have seen the Zinus mattresses on Amazon for less than $300, but that seems to good to be true. Could it be the real deal or are there other mattress sets that suit my needs better?

posted by thefang to Shopping (22 answers total)

I did a lot of research recently on this topic and ultimately made a budget decision. We went with Tuft & Needle, and have been sleeping on the mattress since December. We both like it a great deal. Ultimately the price point and their 100-day policy sold us. We liked that had we decided we didn't like it, they would pick it up and donate it to a shelter.

Good luck.
posted by terrapin at 9:50 AM on June 13, 2018 [5 favorites]

I have a Tuft & Needle mattress, and if you sleep hot I do not recommend it. I end up sleeping on the couch some nights because it's so hot.
posted by sacrifix at 9:53 AM on June 13, 2018 [2 favorites]

We bought our last matress from Costco and are very happy with it. If you have a membership, looking at their selection may be worth it.
posted by AlexiaSky at 9:58 AM on June 13, 2018 [4 favorites]

We went through the same process because my chronic back pain was becoming untenable. Our choice was the Loom and Leaf Relaxed Firm mattress. We went with the King size because we wanted a larger bed, but the Queen size is within your budget. You have a year to return it if you don't like it.

Sleeping on this is a dream! I like firm mattresses and my boyfriend prefers softer ones, but this seems to have hit the right balance for both of us. It does not run hot - we live in San Diego, and our house does tend to get warm, but with a fan directly on us things are perfect. The mattress has an egg carton surface which may not be for everyone but we love it. I love it! Can't say good enough things, although we've only had it three months, so I can't speak for longevity and long term use.

Good luck - it can get frustrating. FWIW, our other choices after a lot of narrowing, were the Amerisleep and Novosbed mattresses, but the L&L reviews were overall better. Our mattress is on an IKEA Malm platform bed frame.
posted by Everydayville at 10:01 AM on June 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

If there is a place near you that makes mattresses in house, I suggest looking there first. We bought one from a local shop 10+ years ago (finally time to replace it and I'm sad) - king size, pillowtop, the whole kit & caboodle was under $500, more than half the price of regular mattress stores in town.
posted by I'm Not Even Supposed To Be Here Today! at 10:07 AM on June 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

We bought our last matress from Costco and are very happy with it. If you have a membership, looking at their selection may be worth it.

I also bought my mattress from Costco and am very happy with it. Costco is great because they have a limited selection (frees you from choice overload) and an excellent return policy. I could--heh--rest easy making a quick mattress choice at Costco because I knew if I wasn't happy with it they'd take it back. Turns out the mattress was perfect for me and I didn't need to.

+1 to Costco.
posted by phunniemee at 10:12 AM on June 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

For what it’s worth, as a larger person with chronic lower back pain, I slept on a Tuft and Needle mattress in a friend’s guest room for about a week and it was great. I sleep hot and didn’t overheat, but there was a ceiling fan on the whole time so YMMV. I’ll definitely be looking at Tuft and Needle next time we need a new mattress (our current one is fine but nothing to write home about).
posted by wuzandfuzz at 10:22 AM on June 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

I sleep hot, and have all my life, and have had ZERO issues with our Tuft & Needle -- and I live in Houston.

The delivery aspect, plus the absolutely risk-free nature of the purchase, really make the T&N choice pretty attractive, IMO.
posted by uberchet at 10:34 AM on June 13, 2018 [4 favorites]

I have a previous version of this Costco mattress and I can’t say enough good things about it. A few years ago it was Consumer Reports’ number one pick, and was still high on the list when I last checked a few months ago (my subscription has since expired so I can’t check for you now). It frequently goes on sale for about $150 off. I snagged an additional discount by getting a prescription for a mattress from my sleep doctor (!) which saved me the sales tax.

Before I got a fancy upholstered platform bed I had my mattress on top of this bed frame, which is seriously, seriously solid, and requires no boxspring.

I, too, am a hot sleeper, and I live in Texas. I don’t find this mattress to be particularly hot (especially for a memory foam) but I do have a supposedly “cooling” mattress pad on it which I think I got on overstock.com for around $50. But the best thing I’ve ever done for sleeping hot, and for comfy sleep in general, is when I saved up and sprang for linen bedding; life-changing and so perfect. I’ll never switch back to anything else.
posted by theperfectcrime at 10:42 AM on June 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

I have seen the Zinus mattresses on Amazon for less than $300, but that seems to good to be true.

I've had one for over a year with no complaints at all. It might not be the best mattress I've ever slept on, but it is perfectly serviceable, and I'm glad I didn't pay for Casper or Tuft & Needle, which I was strongly considering.
posted by Rock Steady at 11:15 AM on June 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

I sleep super hot. I ended up with a Saatva mattress, which is one of those internet mattresses but has inner springs on the bottom and a memory foam layer on top, so more air can circulate underneath it than with solid memory foam. I'm still a hot sleeper but this has been a pretty good solution. Also extremely recommend linen bedding.
posted by clavicle at 12:06 PM on June 13, 2018 [2 favorites]

Costo +1
posted by ReluctantViking at 12:43 PM on June 13, 2018 [1 favorite]

Costco, or try Sears.
posted by Iris Gambol at 1:08 PM on June 13, 2018

Finishing our first week on a Saatva queen mattress and box spring. Sleeping has been excellent so far. I sleep hot and it's been good so far.
posted by jindc at 3:15 PM on June 13, 2018

I don't know if this is true of all Costcos but when I tried to shop one in the Seattle area for a new mattress a couple of weeks ago they told me that mattresses were something they only stocked seasonally and that during the summer they need the space for large home and garden items. So you may or may not find mattresses at the Costco store nearest you.
posted by Nerd of the North at 4:09 PM on June 13, 2018

It is true that most Costco locations stock furniture and mattresses seasonally. In my personal experience this is in roughly February and August.
posted by Autumnheart at 6:44 PM on June 13, 2018

I have a friend who has a Big Fig Mattress, and have been investigating it for my future mattress-purchasing needs. It's a mattress specifically designed for heavier people--their target audience is 300+ lbs/person, or couples who come in at over 500 combined. They're more expensive than a foam whatever from Amazon (which is what I currently have now), but they come with a 20 year warranty .
posted by mishafletch at 8:16 PM on June 13, 2018

When did reviewing mattresses become such an enterprise?

I really can't trust any of the online reviews now.
posted by bongo_x at 2:12 AM on June 14, 2018

Costco sells matresses year round online, don't let local stock deter you.
posted by AlexiaSky at 3:14 AM on June 14, 2018 [2 favorites]

If you have a location of Original Mattress Factory near you, check them out. They manufacture their own house brand and are one of the few places where you can still buy a 2-sided (flippable) mattress. They are reasonably and fairly priced and very low-pressure. We bought our mattress set there and also our bed, and the experience was uniformly pleasant and helpful.

As a fellow heavy person, I bought a fairly firm innerspring mattress and customized with latex toppers to preferred softness. Unlike memory foam, it's not super hot, and unlike pillowtop, it doesn't compress under our weight. The 2-sided mattress can be not only rotated but also flipped to allow for more even wear. It's been a great purchase.
posted by oblique red at 10:26 AM on June 14, 2018 [3 favorites]

I have a Purple mattress, and am a heavier person. I love this thing so much, I talked about it endlessly at my strongman gym, and now several other strongmen who're also not small and are heavier have bought one, and also love theirs. It's not hot; it works with just a slat bedframe, and it's especially great if you're a side sleeper.
posted by culfinglin at 6:32 PM on June 15, 2018

Nthing Costco. We just sent back two mattresses to them and kept the third. It was around $1000 on sale for the King size, but they come in smaller budget points.
posted by getawaysticks at 6:19 PM on June 16, 2018