Hi Mattress Cavern.
You are correct to be wary of both “cheap materials” and “online reviews” for several reasons.
“Short-term” reviews are usually from people who review a product shortly after the purchase. While such a review can be useful for understanding how a company deals with their customers it can be very misleading when it comes to understanding if a particular mattress will be suitable for anyone else’s particular needs and preferences… Consumers who review their newly purchased mattress are almost exclusively unqualified to render an educated opinion about the product and is usually more confusing than helpful as only they can feel what they feel on the particular mattress. This is misinformation is also amplified when the “review” sites then accrue this “data” and attempt to pass it off as homologated research. However, If you can wind your way through the ads from mattress companies featured on the site (which are mixed in to appear to be part of the article), you’ll see a few tidbits of information that is accurate. I sometimes find it funny when a reviewer talks about the quality of a mattress when they have no idea about the materials that are in it. This is where the knowledge of the relative durability and the different characteristics and lifetimes of different materials can be very valuable. Even the cheapest materials can be used to make a mattress that feels amazing … it just won’t stay that way for long. How long the mattress retains the pressure relief, alignment, and feel that is “perfect” is one of the biggest issues in quality and value but is not really dealt with in the majority of reviews.
As you state that you have “no idea if I’m a firm mattress type either” and looking at the array of mattresses you’ve listed I recommend that you first do a bit of testing to determine what you like in terms of mattress type and materials … at least in the comfort/transition layer… It is not a good approach to go randomly hoping that the perfect mattress will suddenly materialize. It is rare to stumble over something that is just the price you are looking ….AND is a perfect match for you in terms of PPP ((Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your Personal preferences) …. AND built with durable materials (which is an indicator of how long you’ll sleep on this mattress before having to change it for something else). As you are looking at a full-size bed around a $500 CAD your options reduced but there are still some options especially if you decide on an innerspring support layer with some good foams in the comfort/transition layer which are suitable for your BMI (weight range) This is why it is so important that you find or ask for the specifications of each mattress that you are considering and find out information listed here so you can compare the quality of the materials and components to the durability guidelines here If you want something durable, I would not consider any of the mattresses for which you are not able to find those specifications.
Again depending on your needs and preferences some mattresses that quickly come to mind in Canada in your price range would be:
Love & Sleep mattress from NestBedding
This high resilience foam mattress & cover from Memory Foam Comfort
Both listings are from our Trusted Members of the site which means that I think highly of them and that I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry
There is not so straight forward way and requires some perseverance if the product specs are not listed on their website. You can certainly call the retailer hoping to speak with a knowledgeable enough assistant who is able to share that information with you. A search on our Mattress Forum can bring up many results with comments, expert discussions, or consumers who share their experience with a particular product or its specifications from a reliable source.
As far as the mattresses you’ve listed, if you can find the specifications mentioned n the links above (layer thickness, density, and IFD.ILD) for each mattress you are looking at then we can let you know if there are any red flags.
The Blackstone Costco mattress you linked is a (10") memory foam mattress made by Zinus and while you can see the layering and thickness the other meaningful specs about density and IFD are not listed. Zinus is a Chinese manufacturer that uses mostly low / mid-quality materials although they are CertiPur certified. They are most commonly sold under many brand names in big box stores and elsewhere. Whenever you see “green tea” you can assume the manufacturer is Zinus. I would also read about mattresses imported from Asia or China in post #6 with mattresses that may have been compressed for long periods of time in either shipping or storage before being purchased. A forum search on Zinus (you can just click this) will bring up more information and feedback about some of their brands and mattresses. Being sourced in China make this somewhat of a risky purchase IMO.
Generally, about the other mattresses, you listed… I would avoid the major brands or any mattress where you aren’t able to find out the quality of the materials inside it no matter what your budget range. Also testing mattresses made by major manufacturers can end up doing more to confuse than to help because no matter how they feel in a showroom … you are making a blind purchase and since you can’t feel quality or durability all that happens is that you waste a lot of time testing mattresses that aren’t worth buying but also can’t be used as a reference point or compared to other mattresses. This is the reason for the first guideline in this article which suggests avoiding them completely (and the chain stores that sell them) The only exception I would consider is if I knew the quality of all the materials and layers and they were good quality materials and value which unfortunately you aren’t likely to find.
Hopefully, the information in this reply will help point you in the right direction in your mattress search.
Phoenix