I’ve been driving myself nuts looking up memory foam mattresses for the past few days. My partner and I decided we want to swtich from a coil matress to a memory foam mattress (since we need a larger size one too - going from full to king). We want memory foam for the motion isolation and the comfort aspect, I also think it will be healthier for me because I wake up in the middle of the night from my arm falling asleep once in a while.
But we can’t really afford to spend a lot so I’m looking at the lower end of the price range.
I have no idea how to tell the difference between the two (which would be better quality, last longer, how the feel would compare, which is better for motion isolation, whether one of them would get hotter than the other…).
Can anyone give me some advice based on what you know about these mattresses/companies, or by the specs posted on each web page ? Would be super appreciated.
I’m assuming that you’ve read the mattress shopping tutorial here but two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists (based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you).
The only way to tell the difference between them in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) or how they will feel for you will be based on your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience.
Outside of PPP … the most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability and the durability and useful life of a mattress depends on its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label so I would always make sure that a retailer or manufacturer you are considering is willing and able to provide you with the information listed here so you can compare the materials and components to the quality/durability guidelines to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress before making any purchase.
I would avoid the Ikea memory foam mattresses because the 3 lb memory foam they use is a lower quality and less durable material that would be a weak link in the mattress.
If you can find out all the information about the layers inside the Allure that you will need to make an informed choice (in the first link) and post it on the forum then I’d certainly be happy to make some comments about it and the mattress as a whole. Without this information it’s not possible to make any comments about the quality or durability of any mattress.
The Rest Therapy is made by Primo International which is a Chinese manufacturer (see post #6 here) and it will most likely contain 3 lb memory foam as well.
If you are looking at online options then some of the lower budget options that may be worth considering are listed in post #4 here.
There may also be some good options available to you locally (that you can test in person) and if you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know about any of the better options or possibilities I’m aware of that are close to you.
Wow thanks, the posts you link to are very informative.
The Primo mattress has :
comfort layer - 0.5 inch - 3lb
support layer - 2 inch - 2.5 lb
base layer - 7.5 inch - 2 lb
I’m assuming this is not very good quality, based on what I’ve been reading? I’m thinking of increasing my budget by a few hundred dollars now.
I live in Ottawa, Canada.
I checked out some of the websites for the “bed-in-a-box” companies and am thinking of trying the Casper, but I’m not sure yet. The Love bed by Nest might also be an option since I believe they ship to Canada. Finding it hard to find what the difference would be based on online reviews.
[quote]The Primo mattress has :
comfort layer - 0.5 inch - 3lb
support layer - 2 inch - 2.5 lb
base layer - 7.5 inch - 2 lb
I’m assuming this is not very good quality, based on what I’ve been reading? I’m thinking of increasing my budget by a few hundred dollars now.[/quote]
Assuming the middle layer is memory foam … the materials in this mattress would be lower quality and less durable than I would suggest (even outside of the additional risk that would be involved with a mattress that is imported from China) so I wouldn’t consider it for anything other than temporary or occasional use (in a guest bedroom for example).
The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the Ottawa area (subject to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets the quality/value guidelines I linked in my last reply) are listed in posts #2 and #3 here.
While other people’s comments or reviews about the knowledge, service, and guidance of a particular business can certainly be helpful … I would avoid using other people’s experiences or reviews on a mattress (either positive or negative) or review sites in general as a reliable source of information or guidance about how you will feel on the same mattress or how suitable or how durable a mattress may be for you and in many if not most cases they can be more misleading than helpful because a mattress that would be a perfect choice for one person or even a larger group of people may be completely unsuitable for someone else to sleep on (see post #13 here).
There are also no “standard” definitions or consensus of opinions for firmness ratings and different manufacturers can rate their mattresses very differently than others so a mattress that one manufacturer rates as being a specific firmness could be rated very differently by another manufacturer. Different people can also have very different perceptions of firmness and softness compared to others as well and a mattress that feels firm for one person can feel like “medium” for someone else or even “soft” for someone else (or vice versa) depending on their body type, sleeping style, physiology, their frame of reference based on what they are used to, and their individual sensitivity and perceptions. There are also different types of firmness and softness that different people may be sensitive to that can affect how they “rate” a mattress as well (see post #15 here) so different people can also have very different opinions on how two mattresses compare in terms of firmness as well and some people may rate one mattress as being firmer than another and someone else may rate them the other way around (especially if they are comparing completely different types of mattresses). This is all relative and very subjective and is as much an art as a science.
There is also more information about what I call “simplified choice” mattresses (including both of the mattresses you mentioned and many others as well) in post #2 here that can help you assess the quality and durability of the materials in each of them.
While it’s not a complete list … some of the better online options I’m aware of that ship across Canada are also listed in post #21 here as well.