Hi Max,
The first place to start is always post #1 here. This will give you all the information, guidelines, and steps that will help you make the best possible choices.
A mattress is only as good as the type and quality of the construction and materials inside it and if you If you are making apples to apples comparisons then this is rarely the case. The major brands (such as the ones you have mentioned) make meaningful comparisons almost impossible because they usually don’t disclose the quality of the materials in their mattresses. If you are making comparisons based on things like mattress thickness or based only on the type of materials without regard to quality then these types of comparisons are not really meaningful because it’s the quality of the materials in the mattress that makes the difference in cost and value … not just the type or the thickness of the mattress. This is part of learning how to bypass the “normal” practices of the industry that use these kind of assumptions to mislead consumers.
I don’t blame you on both counts. I think that every consumer would have the same kind of difficulty if they were looking at a $3000 mattress. The key is always to ask yourself why you are considering a mattress that is $3000 where there are usually much lower cost choices available that would be perfectly suitable and to also ask yourself if there is either a way to reasonably predict what the mattress will feel like based on your own testing or what your options are if you make a mistake and make an unsuitable choice (either locally or online). This is all part of knowing what I call your personal value equation and which parts of a mattress purchase are most important to you and the benefits, risks, and tradeoffs involved with each option you have.
I think you’ve seen this but for the sake of others that are reading this thread … the better options and possibilities I’m aware of in the Greenville, SC area are listed in post #2 here.
Phoenix