Hi, I’m new to this forum and wanted to get some advice about finding a new mattress, as I’m feeling a little overwhelmed by my options and lack of knowledge.
First, a little about my body and sleep habits: I am fairly ectomorphic at 6’2" tall and 165 lbs. I tend to sleep on my side, but I’ve found that I fall asleep fastest on a firmer mattress. At the same time, after doing some research, I want to be cautious of getting too firm a mattress, as I don’t want to put excess pressure on my hips or shoulders (I am an athlete in my 20s and haven’t experienced this yet, but I realize that this could change as I get older).
I can give you an overview of some of my past mattress models and my thoughts on them. In high school, I used an Ikea mattress that I would rate as 7.5/10 firmness. I actually liked this mattress a lot, but I think the materials in it are probably lackluster, and at any rate I believe it has been discontinued. (It is at my parents’ house so I don’t know the exact model). In college, I used various dorm-issued mattresses, all of which I found a little on the soft side.
After college, the first mattress I bought was a 2017 Leesa mattress. I recently sold this because I found it had started to sag slightly in the middle after only 1.5 year of use, and I really hated the feeling of sinking into a “bowl” in the middle of the mattress. The materials of the Leesa were a layer of 2-in Avena foam (polyfoam) at 20-IFD 3.65-pcf, a layer of 2-in memory-foam at 9-IFD 3-pcf, and a layer of 6-in polyfoam 32-IFD 1.8-pcf. I suspect that the 3-pcf memory foam layer was the culprit in the middle sagging so quickly.
I’ve currently been mattress shopping, but I’m not really sure about what I should be looking for. On a friend’s recommendation, I went to a reseller near me who sells factory and floor models at deeply discounted prices. There, I tried a Stearns and Foster “white label” memory foam mattress – it was really firm, which I liked, but after doing research on this forum it seems like Stearns and Foster is a brand that I should stay away from, especially since the retailer couldn’t tell me about the specific materials used in the mattress. I next tried a Saatva Loom and Leaf mattress, which I really liked in terms of feel (nice and firm), but which seems to be a little less than ideal because it features a convoluted layer of 4 lb memory foam in combination with their 1.5 lb base layer that Phoenix has said is not especially high quality. I also tried a Nest Bedding Alexander medium hybrid mattress. I know that Nest Bedding is a trusted member here, which indicates their mattresses are of a high quality, but I think that the medium is a bit too soft for me. The reseller is, however, offering a great deal – about $750 for what is normally a $1299 mattress. Finally, I tried a Keetsa Tea Leaf Dream mattress, which felt really nice (about the same in comfort and firmness as the Saatva), but which I don’t think I would consider because it is a Chinese made Zinus mattress and doesn’t offer transparency about its make-up.
I was hoping to get help about what my next steps should be in searching for a mattress. I am in graduate school on a fairly humble stipend, so I would prefer to spend less than $1000 on a queen mattress, but I could splurge on up to a $1250 purchase. Any help would be greatly appreciated!