this is my first post on this forum and i have read pretty much all the tutorials but my thoughts are still jumbled a bit-might have read about it all too much–so-i am 63 and generally very active-i am 4’11" and weigh 90-95 lbs-i am a side sleeper and do not move around much at all during the night-i usually wake up in the same position i started out–i don’t sleep a lot-usually only 4-5 hours a night but when i sleep i am pretty much soundly there–never thought about mattresses until realized the one i am on now dips in the middle and don’t have any idea how old it is–but more importantly as i started reading about mattresses i found references to hip pain, especially with side sleeping-i never had any ongoing pain until about two years ago when my home was damaged and i had to stay in a hotel for about 8 months-during that time i began having hip pain with no known injury and it has continued and significantly affects my activity level-so now am hopeful that the right mattress may help with that which would be awesome–i think i need a soft mattress that also is supportive-am not sure what might work in terms of being soft enough and still providing support-my budget is under $600 for now–i have looked at the slumber solution (queen) since i can choose the firmness but then don’t know if a gel foam is better and if 10" or 12" or 14" is better-or if that is a reasonably good mattress considering my budget limits–thanks for any help and just being able to read the information has been very helpful-oh and i live in phoenix az
Hi drbetsyg,
Welcome to the Mattress Forum! 
I advise to read through the information presented here as you would a good book, reflecting back often and not attempting to memorize things.
To make it easier for you, in its simplest form … choosing the “best possible” mattress for any particular person really comes down to FIRST finding a few knowledgeable and transparent retailers and/or manufacturers (either locally or online) that sell the types of mattresses that you are most interested in that are in a budget range you are comfortable with and that you have confirmed will provide you with the all the information you need about the materials and components inside the mattresses they sell so you will be able to make informed choices and meaningful comparisons between mattresses and then …
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Careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in the tutorial) to make sure that a mattress is a good match for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP … and/or that you are comfortable with the options you have available to return, exchange, or “fine tune” the mattress and any costs involved if you can’t test a mattress in person or aren’t confident that your mattress is a suitable choice.
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Checking to make sure that there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you are considering relative to your weight/BMI range that could compromise the durability and useful life of the mattress (see the durability guidelines here).
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Comparing your finalists for “value” based on #1 and #2 and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you.
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 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).
I’m sorry to hear about your hip pain, and I don’t know if a mattress will make that better, but hopefully you can find something that doesn’t exacerbate your condition.
If you end up shopping online, to keep within your budget, post #4 here and the posts it links to also include many of the better lower budget online options I’m aware of.
Slumber Solutions is a little more transparent and list the density of their layers in the Overstock description. They say they are US made but they don’t say whether the mattress is assembled in the US from Chinese foams or if the foam itself is made in the US. Their 3.5 lb memory foam is also a little lower density than the durability guidelines I would suggest using ( see here ) but overall they are “not bad” although there are better quality/value options available to you IMO.
The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in the Phoenix area (subject to the guidelines here ) are listed in post #4 here . You are very fortunate to live in the area because 4 of the manufacturing members of the site are based there and you have the chance to test their mattresses in person while most of the forum members can only order them online.
I hope that information helps to get you a good start in your search. If you have further questions, please let me know.
Phoenix