I’ve been told latex is the highest quality mattress material… but memory foam is pretty nice. Any opinions?
Also my wife is an average (but real pretty) front/back sleeper and I am a tall fetal position sleeper. What options might suit us best?
Also of note: We live in the Toronto area and our budget - for a California King - is likely around $3000-4000.
Hi timwansabed,
The first place to start your research is the mattress shopping tutorial here which includes all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choice … and know how and why to avoid the worst ones.
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 choice between different types and combinations of materials and components or different types of mattresses are more of a preference and a budget choice than a “better/worse” choice (see this article). The best way to know which types of materials or mattresses you tend to prefer is based on your own careful testing or personal experience. Some people prefer some types of mattresses while others may prefer something else completely so there is no right or wrong with preferences. It would be like asking “which clothes are best for me?” and of course there really isn’t any answer to these types of questions except to say “the ones that you prefer”. I would also keep in mind that all mattress categories include a very wide range of different mattresses with different firmness levels and designs so even if you prefer the general “feel” of a certain type or category of mattresses there may be some mattresses of that type that may be “perfect” and others that may be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on.
The first “rule” of mattress shopping is to always remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components or which type of mattress would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress) or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more accurate than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or if you can’t test a mattress in person then your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
I or some of the more knowledgeable members of the site can certainly help you to narrow down your options, help you focus on better quality/value choices that are available to you either locally or online, help you identify any lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you may be considering, act as a fact check, answer many of the specific questions you may have along the way that don’t involve what you will “feel” on a mattress, and help with “how” to choose but only you can decide which specific mattress or combination of materials is the best match for you based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you. I would be very skeptical of anyone who claims that they have some kind of crystal ball that can predict which specific mattress you will sleep best on with any certainty. It just doesn’t exist.
Your budget is easily enough to buy a very high quality mattress. The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the Greater Toronto area (subject to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets the quality/value guidelines I linked earlier in this reply) are listed in post #1 here.
Phoenix