The four types
Innerspring mattresses are bouncy, cool and inexpensive, but they relieve the least pressure. Memory foam molds to the body and absorbs a partner's movement, although it sleeps warm and is slow to spring back. Latex is resilient, cool, durable, heavy and costly. A hybrid puts foam or latex over individually wrapped coils, and it suits the widest range of sleepers. Ask for the density of the foam. Base foam below about 1.8 pounds per cubic foot tends to sag early.
Firmness by sleeper
- Side sleepers need a medium-soft to medium surface, so that the shoulder and hip sink in and the spine stays straight.
- Back sleepers do best on medium-firm.
- Stomach sleepers need a firm surface that keeps the hips from sagging.
- People above roughly 230 pounds need a firmer and thicker mattress, preferably with coils, while people under 130 pounds find every mattress firmer than its label.
Firmness labels are not standardized between makers. Research on back pain favors medium-firm, not the hard board of folklore.
Reading the terms
Your body takes about thirty nights to adjust, so a trial should run 90 to 120 nights. Read what a return costs, whether pickup is included, and whether you get a refund or only an exchange. A ten-year warranty typically covers sagging beyond a stated depth, often an inch or more, and it is void if the mattress is stained or sits on the wrong base. Foam generally needs slats no more than three inches apart. Use a waterproof protector from the first night. Stores sell the same mattress under different names to defeat price comparison, showroom prices are negotiable, and the deepest sales fall on the holiday weekends. In a store, lie in your real sleeping position for ten minutes or more. Replace a mattress at seven to ten years, or when it sags visibly or you sleep better away from home.
Pillows
A pillow's one job is to keep your neck in line with your spine. Side sleepers need a high, firm pillow of four to six inches to fill the gap above the shoulder, back sleepers need a medium one, and stomach sleepers need a thin one or none at all. Polyester fill is cheap and washable and goes flat in a year or two. Down, latex and shredded foam cost more and last several years. Fold a pillow in half, and if it does not spring back, it is finished.
Tip Side sleepers with a sore lower back should try a pillow between the knees before blaming the mattress.
