Hi kc12,
That’s a very short question but unfortunately it’s much too broad to provide a specific answer but I can certainly make some comments that can help you … although some of them are a repeat of some of the information in my previous replies.
While I can certainly help with “how” to choose … It’s not possible to make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because 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”, firmness, or PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress), sleeping positions, health conditions, or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more reliable than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).
There is more about the 3 most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here 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 suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price of course and the options you have available after a purchase if your choice doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for).
While again nobody can speak to how any specific mattress will “feel” for someone else or whether it will be a good “match” in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances and you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress … outside of PPP (which is the most important part of “value”), the next most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability which is all about how long you will sleep well on a mattress. This is the part of your research that you can’t see or “feel” and assessing the durability and useful life of a mattress depends on knowing the specifics of its construction and the type and quality of the materials inside it regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or how a mattress feels in a showroom or when it is relatively new so I would always make sure that you find out information listed here so you can compare the materials and components to the durability guidelines here to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.
Each mattress category can include hundreds of different mattresses with a very wide range of different designs, different “feels”, different characteristics, and different firmness levels. Every individual layer and component in a mattress (including the cover and any quilting material) will affect the feel and response of every other layer and component both above and below it and the mattress “as a whole” so each mattress category will generally include some mattresses that have a design that will be a good “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP and others that use the same type of materials and components and are in the same category and may be just as durable but have a different design or firmness level that may be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on … even if it uses the same general type of materials and components.
I would also keep in mind that there is no such thing as “one mattress fits all” and like any mattress the Saatva mattress may be the “best” match for a relatively small percentage of people, a “good” match for a larger percentage, and an “OK” match for a larger percentage yet but the only way to know for certain whether any online mattress you end up choosing will be a “good enough” match for you to keep it (even if it isn’t the “best match” out of all the mattresses that you “could have tried” instead) will be based on your own personal experience when you sleep on it.
Many online mattresses (including Saatva) have a good trial period and return policy so you can try them in your bedroom instead of a showroom with little risk (outside of the time you spend sleeping on it and/or returning it if that becomes necessary or any costs involved in the return process which in the case of Saatva would be about $100) so if it’s not a “good enough” match for you in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) you can just return it and try another mattress if your choice doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for but once again you will only know whether it’s “good enough” and you won’t know whether it would have been better or worse or how it compares to other mattresses that you could have purchased instead that you haven’t actually tried in person. This is one of the disadvantages of buying a mattress online that you can only try “one at a time” vs local testing in a store where you can compare many mattresses side by side at the same time.
The issue with Saatva is that it uses some lower quality and less durable materials that don’t meet the durability guidelines here and that I would consider to be a weak link in terms of the durability and useful life of the mattress.
The simple answer to your question though is that only you can decide whether any mattress is “better” than another one in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP based on your own careful side by side testing or your personal experience on each of them but in terms of the durability and useful life of the mattress then any mattress that meets the durability guidelines would make a more durable choice.
This would include hundreds of innerspring mattresses that are sold either online or locally but this is the part of research that you would need to do for yourself because for obvious reasons it would be impossible for me to take the time list every mattress in a specific category for each of the members that post here and even if I did it would be overwhelmingly confusing to choose between hundreds of different mattresses that you haven’t tried in person.
There are a few examples of online innerspring mattresses of various types in post #6 here which also includes a link to a list of innerspring/latex hybrids in post #2 here and many of them meet the durability guidelines and are also inside your budget range.
If you are also interested in any other mattress that you come across in your research and you find out specifications listed here and post them on the forum I’d also be happy to let you know whether there are any lower quality materials or weak links that would be a reason for concern.
I or some of the more knowledgeable members of the site can 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, 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, manufacturer, or combination of materials is “best for you” regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or whether anyone else has the same needs and preferences, criteria, or circumstances or would make the same choice.
Phoenix