Best Mattress for Guest Room (2023): Reviews and Buyer’s Guide

Shopping for a quality guest room mattress can be tricky because you’ll need a bed capable of supporting many sleep styles, body types, and comfort levels.

The best mattress for a guest room needs to be versatile, with a medium to medium-firm feel to provide enough comfort and support for every guest to have a good night’s sleep. In our article, we share our favorite guest bed choices and discuss what to look for in the best mattress for guest rooms.

Our Top Mattress Recommendation

View on Amerisleep

AS3 Highlights

• 100-night sleep trial
• 20-Year Warranty
• Designed to reduce pain points
• Heat reducing mattress cover
• Comes in King, Queen, Twin, Full, and Splits

Our Runner-Up

View on Zoma

Zoma Highlights

• 100-night sleep trial
• 10-Year Warranty
• Designed for faster recovery
• Triangulex™ technology promotes healthy posture
• Comes in King, Queen, Twin, Full, and Splits

Best Mattresses for Guest Room

The construction of the Amerisleep AS3 creates an ideal blend of comfort and support. The high-quality construction and design supports every sleep style. Because of this versatility, the Amerisleep AS3 is one of the best mattresses for a guest bedroom.

Amerisleep offers a 100-night sleep trial with the purchase of the AS3 mattress, allowing customers to try out the bed within the comfort of their own home. If you’re unsatisfied with the AS3 after a month, you can contact Amerisleep and they will work with you to donate the mattress before issuing a full refund.

The AS3 mattress comes with a 20-year warranty— the first 10 years cover replacement of your mattress without charge. During the second 10 years of the warranty, customers can receive a replacement at a prorated charge. The warranty covers manufacturing defects and sagging greater than an inch.

How Lying Down Feels

The AS3 is the most popular model offered by Amerisleep, thanks to its middle-of-the-road feel. The responsive cushion lets sleepers marginally sink into the surface, while the underlying transition foam ensures the bed feels soft and firm as needed.

People who want to offer a mattress like the AS3 but want a more bouncy feel or a mattress with edge support might want to consider the counterpart AS3 Hybrid. The base contains buoyant pocketed coils, every spring wrapped in fabric to improve motion isolation. The edge support along the sides can make it easier to move out of bed.

Inside the Mattress

The Amerisleep AS3 mattress starts with a lightweight, breathable cover that is designed to keep air moving throughout the mattress. The cover is also completely washable so it is easy to keep your mattress clean and in good condition.

The top layer of the Amerisleep AS3 is made with Amerisleep’s eco-friendly Bio-Pur®. Amerisleep partially replaces the petroleum in Bio-Pur® with castor oil for an open-cell, plant-based memory foam, preventing overheating while reducing pressure points.

Bio-Pur® is also great for guest bed sleepers sensitive to smells. The difference in ingredients of Bio-Pur® eliminates off-gassing odor. Open-cell technology also creates a better response, allowing Bio-Pur® to regain its shape quicker than traditional memory foam.

The second layer of the AS3 is the Affinity layer featuring HIVE® technology (Harnessing Intelligent Ventilation & Energy). HIVE® features hexagon-shaped cutouts, designed to offer softer support to the shoulders and hips, and firmer support to the head, back, and legs.

The Bio-Core® foam is the final layer of the AS3 mattress. This high-density, eco-friendly foam reinforces the top layers while supporting the body without the risk of sagging.

SEE ALSO: Amerisleep Mattress Review

The Zoma Mattress is a versatile, highly supportive bed built to withstand shifts and motion transfer, making it a great mattress for guests of any size or shape. While Zoma’s online mattress is geared towards athletes and those with active lifestyles, it’s also an excellent option for hot sleepers.

Zoma comes with a 100-night sleep trial. If customers return the bed after an adjustment period, they will receive a full refund. Zoma also includes a standard 10-year warranty, offering a replacement for any defects in construction or materials and sagging greater than an inch.

How Lying Down Feels

Guests will almost instantly note the coolness of the Zoma Mattress as they stretch out. Many sleepers fall asleep quickly thanks to the relaxing chill, which is also designed to limit sleep interruptions to ensure guests wake up in the morning fully refreshed and ready to tackle their day.

Inside the Mattress

The Zoma Mattress features 2 inches of Triangulex™ foam. Triangular segments cut into the foam create a 3-zone support system, with firmer support to the back and softer support to the head, shoulders and legs. Trianglex™ cushions and contours to the body to ease aches and pain.

The second layer of the Zoma is 2 inches of Reactiv™. This layer is designed to react like latex and act as a transitional layer between the comfort and support layers. Reactiv™ prevents your body weight from sinking too far into the mattress and makes it easier to move around at night.

Support+ is the final layer, containing 7 inches of high-density foam which reinforces support for the body.

SEE ALSO: Zoma Mattress Review

You don’t need to break your bank account to provide guests with pure comfort. The Vaya Mattress has a simple design that balances plush cushioning with springy support.

There are two layers that make up a Vaya Mattress, keeping production costs low and the final price affordable for most customers. A plush cover encases the mattress.

Your Vaya Mattress will come with a 100-night home trial with free returns, as part of the bed’s pure comfort promise. You also have a 10-year warranty that covers manufacturing defects, such as sagging beyond an inch.

How Lying Down Feels

The Vaya Mattress’s near-universally comfortable feel has a touch of plushness to provide luxury. No need to overspend to offer guests a cushioning surface where they can lie down and relax after a long day of travel.

Most sleepers will enjoy the gentle cradling the surface offers, though a few guests may prefer a more firm surface. Toppers are an excellent way to change a too-soft or too-firm mattress, so it’s smart to keep one on hand if you frequently have guests over.

Inside the Mattress

The mattress’s top layer features 3 inches of Vaya Comfort Foam, a pressure-relieving material that’s lighter than traditional memory foam. Though Vaya Comfort Foam conforms to your body, the material is springy and supports most sleepers. It’s quick to respond to your movements, preventing entrapment.

Underneath is Vaya Base Foam, a sturdy material that prevents pressure points from building up across your body. This resilient should resist compression for years, ensuring you have a long-lasting mattress.

SEE ALSO: Vaya Mattress Review

Eco-conscious hosts who want a guest room mattress that won’t contribute to the destruction of the planet should consider the Nolah Natural 11. This mattress boasts biodegradable and recyclable ingredients. And it has a lower carbon footprint than synthetic mattresses to boot!

Nolah’s mattresses come with a lifetime warranty and a 120-night sleep trial

How Lying Down Feels

This mattress is a latex hybrid. So the only thing bouncier than it is going to be an innerspring mattress. However, latex hybrids are much better than innerspring mattresses at controlling motion transfer.

That means this latex mattress will only bounce back underneath the sleeper moving. It won’t transfer their motion all over the bed.

The Natural is also extremely cooling. Unlike memory foam, which needs infusions to make it cool, latex is naturally breathable. That means it keeps you cool as a cucumber all night long by circulating air underneath you.

Inside the Mattress

The Natural has a, well, natural Talalay latex comfort layer. This perforated latex is light, springy, and almost as contouring as memory foam. This makes it perfect for a guest room bed because it can conform to your guests’ needs in the most literal sense.

The next layer is a transition layer of firmer Talalay latex to keep sleepers lifted onto the sleep surface. The transition layer’s buoyancy is enhanced by the pocketed coil support layer. This layer of adaptable coils supports the spine to keep it in proper alignment and ensure ideal pressure relief.

All this comfort is wrapped in a layer of organic cotton certified under the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) and topped by a GOTS-certified wool fire barrier. This ethically harvested wool offers total fire protection without the need for synthetic infusions.

Best of all, all the materials in this mattress are biodegradable, recyclable, or both. The steel for the coils is already recycled. And the production of latex produces much less toxic waste than memory foam manufacturing. That makes the Natural as great for the planet as it is for your night’s sleep.

SEE ALSO: Organic Cotton vs. Regular Cotton

The GhostBed Luxe is a fantastic mattress for a guest room bed because its medium feel and contouring memory foam layers mean it can accommodate just about any sleep position and body type. This is also one of the coolest beds on the market. So if you have hot sleepers staying over, they might just want to take it home.

How Lying Down Feels

Lying down on the Luxe, your guests will immediately notice its cool-touch feel. The pleasantly chilly surface is created using a combination of several different cooling technologies. And these technologies help maintain the cool sleep surface throughout the night. So your guests never have to worry about overheating with this cooling memory foam mattress.

Inside the Mattress

The Luxe boasts seven layers, three of which are sewn right into the cover. The Ghost Ice fabric promotes an instantly cool feel over the whole mattress. Meanwhile, a thin layer of gel memory foam and a bottom layer of cool burst fibers enhance airflow to create a deliciously cool cover that sports maximum breathability.

Below the three-layer cover, the Ghost Ice layer offers even more cooling than the over by itself, as does the gel memory foam in the next layer. This comfort layer of gel memory foam will help pull body heat away from you. The foam also contours like a dream to offer the best pressure relief on the market today.

After all these cooling layers, the Ghost Bounce layer ensures responsiveness and bounce. That way, your guests can toss and turn as they please without having to deal with body impressions and slow response time.

Finally, the high-density support layer provides ideal support to the spine to ensure proper alignment. This layer also ensures high durability in this mattress. Expect the Luxe to last over 25 years!

SEE ALSO: Hot Sleeper vs Cold Sleeper: What Type of Sleeper Are You?

If you want to go a more traditional route for your guest room, the Saatva Classic puts a new spin on a traditional innerspring mattress. The updates and improvements to the original innerspring design mean your guests will be sleeping on a much more contouring and comfortable mattress.

How Lying Down Feels

The Classic is bouncy and breathable, just like a standard innerspring mattress. However, you’ll notice right away that it’s more contouring and adaptable than a typical innerspring mattress. This is because of the Classic’s pocketed coil upper support core. Pocket coils can all move independently of one another, so the upper support core can adapt just like a hybrid.

Inside the Mattress

The Classic starts off with a quilted Euro top for the ultimate contouring. This topper also features Lumbar ZoneTM quilting in the middle to ensure your lumbar region gets the ultimate enhanced support from the top down.

Next, a layer of high-density memory foam counters sinkage and offers tons of buoyancy. The Lumbar ZoneTM active spinal wire also helps enhance back support even more.

Then, we get to the first of two support cores. The upper support layer is made of pocketed coils to create superior adaptivity. Another great thing about pocket coils is that they isolate motion much better than open coils. This means the Classic is a fantastic innerspring for couples.

The bottom support layer is made of traditional open coils. This coil layer offers the traditional bounce you’d expect from an innerspring mattress, while the pocketed coils above absorb the motion so that you can feel the bounce without it traveling all over the sleep surface.

These coils are wrapped in four perimeter rails to enhance edge support and ensure added durability. Expect the Classic to last at least 15 years – a lot longer than your average innerspring bed.

SEE ALSO: Mattress Sizes and Dimensions

Like the original Zoma Mattress, a Zoma Hybrid is a bed that suits a wide range of sleepers. The design promotes more recovery when you sleep and maintains a cool sleeping surface that limits nightly disturbances.

Every Zoma Hybrid includes a 100-night sleep trial and a 10-year warranty.

How Lying Down Feels

Like the classic Zoma Mattress, the Zoma Hybrid has a medium feel that can suit most sleeping positions and body types. Not only does it provide a versatile surface for a guest room mattress, but the cooling features and buoyant coils let the surface adapt near instantly.

Limiting heat build-up ensures that guests are unlikely to wake up in a sweat, while the motion-isolating coils keep partners from disturbing each other’s rest. With both, your guests will wake up feeling at 100 percent and ready to face a big day.

Inside the Mattress

The bed’s comfort layer features gel-infused foam. The gels increase heat dispersion, preventing the mattress from growing overly warm and interrupting your sleep.

Next is 2 inches of Reactiv™ foam. With its latex-like feel, the material keeps you from sinking in so deep that you misalign your spine.

The support layers are 7 inches of pocketed coils on an inch-thick foam base. The pocketed coils are wrapped in fabric casings to prevent any movements from rippling across the bed, which can cause a partner discomfort.

SEE ALSO: Zoma vs. Bear: Side-by-Side Mattress Comparison

The Tuft & Needle Original mattress offers a medium feel, perfect for any type of sleeper, making this all-foam mattress an excellent choice for a guest bed.

Tuft & Needle offers a 10-year warranty with the purchase of their mattress. This covers any manufacturing and material defects of the mattress, including any splitting or cracking of foam and sagging. There’s also a 100-night sleep trial with a free return at any time.

How Lying Down Feels

As our top recommendation for a medium-firm mattress for a guest room, the Tuft & Needle is best for guests who enjoy gentle support that promotes recovery. However, some side sleepers may find the surface too unyielding, particularly if they’re a lightweight sleeper.

Inside the Mattress

Each Tuft & Needle mattress features a polyester and polyamide blend cover designed for durability. Polyester may not breathe as well as cotton, but it holds up to tossing and turning over time, which makes it perfect for a guest mattress.

The top layer of the Tuft & Needle Original mattress features 3 inches of T&N Adaptive® foam, a special graphite-infused gel foam that conforms to the body and relieves pressure points. T&N Adaptive® foam is also more responsive than traditional memory foam, making it easier for guests to switch sleep positions.

7 inches of high-density poly-foam makes up the support layer. This base foam supports the body and reinforces the overall shape of the bed.

SEE ALSO: Tuft & Needle Mattress Reviews

What to Look For in a Guest Mattress

Whether you’re looking for a mattress in a box or an in-store bed, there are features you should be aware of to find the best mattress for your needs, including mattress type, preferred sleeping position, and available sleep trials, warranties, and return policies.

Mattress Type

Mattresses come in a variety of quality materials. The type of mattress you choose is mostly based on personal preference. Mattress types include memory foam, innerspring, latex, and hybrids.

Memory Foam

Memory foam is one of the most popular mattress types on the market today. Memory foam is known for its excellent pressure-relieving properties and contouring ability. A basic memory foam mattress contains a comfort layer of memory foam and a support layer of high-density foam.

One drawback to memory foam is its heat retention. To remedy this, manufacturers incorporate cooling features like gel, copper, and graphite infusions and plant-based and open-cell construction.

Innerspring

Innerspring mattresses are the type of beds most of us grew up with. Also known as the traditional bed, an innerspring mattress consists of a thin comfort layer or pillow top made from foam or fiber and a support layer of coils. Innerspring mattresses have excellent cooling properties because of the open structure of the coils, but these same coils are more likely to create pressure points.

Latex

Latex is similar in feel to memory foam, except latex sleeps cooler and has a responsive bounce. There are two types of latex— synthetic and natural. Synthetic latex is made through a chemical process, while natural latex is sap extracted from rubber trees and then whipped into a foam.

A basic latex mattress contains a comfort layer of latex and a support layer of either high-density foam or latex.

Hybrid

By combining memory foam and pocketed coils, manufacturers came up with the perfect bed— the hybrid mattress. Hybrid mattresses are one of the most expensive mattress types on the market due to the amount of materials they contain. A basic hybrid mattress consists of a comfort layer of memory foam and a support layer of pocketed coils— a true hybrid must contain a 2-inch comfort layer and a coil support core.

Hybrids were specifically created to offset the drawbacks of memory foam and innerspring mattresses, and while they’ve done a good job, the risks are still present. Hybrids are also heavier than other types of beds and more expensive.

Sleeping Position

Your preferred sleep position can have a large impact on the type of mattress you buy. Each sleep position needs a specific level of cushioning and support to allow for healthy spinal alignment, so what the most comfortable mattress is will depend on your preferred position.

Side Sleeping

Side sleeping is one of the most common and healthiest sleep positions. Side sleeping allows for better breathing and reduces pressure on vital organs. Side sleepers need a softer mattress with more cushioning to better align the spine. The best mattresses for side sleepers are soft to medium-firm.

Back Sleeping

Back sleeping is another healthy sleep position— because of the back’s direct contact with the sleep surface, the spine is naturally aligned. While back sleeping does make it easier to breathe, it also comes with a higher risk of snoring and sleep apnea. Back sleepers should look for a medium to firm mattress to allow a slight sinking of the hips to provide more support to the lower back.

Stomach Sleeping

Stomach sleeping is the least common and least healthy sleep position. Stomach sleepers are at a greater risk of neck strain by twisting the head at an unnatural angle to breathe, and lower back pain because of the combined force of gravity and weight forcing the natural curve of the spine to straighten.

It’s better if stomach sleepers switch to side sleeping, but if they prefer sleeping on their stomachs, they should look for a medium-firm to firm mattress. This type of bed will keep the body resting on top of the mattress, without heavy sinking.

Sleep Trials, Warranties, and Return Policies

When mattress shopping, look to see if a prospective mattress comes with a sleep trial and what type of warranty and return policy is included. Always read the fine print of each before committing to a purchase.

Sleep Trial

A sleep trial allows customers to try a new mattress within the comfort of their own home without pressure to buy. Sleep trials range between 90 to 120 nights. Should a customer not love their new mattress, most companies will issue a full refund.

Warranty

A warranty protects the mattress from manufacturing defects and sagging. The sagging depth covered by the warranty varies by brand. Most quality mattresses include a standard 10-year warranty.

Return Policy

Should a sleep trial not come with a new mattress, the next best thing to look at is the return policy. Return policies last about 30 days— the same amount of time it takes for the body to adjust to a new mattress. If the customer isn’t happy with the mattress, they can return it for a full refund.

Saving on Guest Room Mattresses

Many don’t want to overspend on an occasional-use mattress, so we recommend taking advantage of the regular mattress sales during the year.

• Best Presidents Day Mattress Sales
• Best Memorial Day Mattress Sales
• Best 4th of July Mattress Sales
• Best Labor Day Mattress Sales
• Best Columbus Day Mattress Sales
• Best Black Friday Mattress Sales
• Best Cyber Monday Mattress Sales

Other Things to Consider

Is a full sized mattress good for a guest room?

A full size mattress is a good size for a guest bed, but you may be able to choose a bigger size, based on available living space and budget. For those with more room, a queen size bed might be the best option, especially if you have couples or families staying at your home. For those with less space to work with, a twin or full-size mattress is a great option. As an alternative for studio and one-bedroom apartments, a futon mattress is also another option— their dual purpose as both a sofa and a bed is a perfect option, especially if on a tight budget.

How can I make my guest bed more comfortable?

Adding a mattress topper is a great way to alter the feel of the sleep surface. Mattress toppers can add support or softness to an existing guest mattress, making the bed more comfortable and improving sleep. If your current guest bed is not sagging and still in excellent condition, adding a mattress topper is less expensive than purchasing a new mattress.

What is a good mattress for a guest room?

Mattresses designed to accommodate a variety of sleep needs and body types is best, especially if you plan on hosting several different guests. Medium mattresses are usually a go-to because they offer a good blend of comfort and support to suit different sleepers. In regards to mattress type, all-foam or hybrid models are usually best. Innersprings aren’t very comfortable for side sleepers, and considering the majority of people sleep on their side, it’s safe to say innersprings won’t work for most guests.

Can two beds fit in a 10 feet by 10 feet guest room?

If you’d rather have two smaller guest beds instead of one larger guest bed, we suggest going for two twin or twin XL size mattresses. Two twin XL mattresses can also be pushed side-by-side to make one king size mattress, in case your guests prefer to sleep in one big bed.

You can also place bunk beds and loft beds in guest rooms to save room while providing extra sleeping space. Bunk beds can work with twin and twin XLs, and some frames even work with full size bunk bed mattresses.

What’s the most comfortable portable bed?

It’s hard to say because air mattresses and portable beds are hardly anybody’s first choice. A few brands offer rollaway beds but they’re very thin, so they’re quite firm and they break down rather quickly. On the other hand, air mattresses blow up to be quite thick and can usually last for a while given their durable nature. However, neither option is very comfortable. If you rarely have guests, we suggest finding an air mattress to blow up for the occasional visitor. However, if you have more frequent guests, we recommend buying a regular mattress and bed frame to comfortably accommodate them.

Conclusion

The best way to find the right mattress is to pick an affordable mattress with versatile features. Remember, unless guests frequent your home regularly year-round, you don’t need a luxury mattress— a basic mattress under $1500 will work perfectly.

Don’t go too firm, and don’t go too soft— medium to medium-firm is the best way to go since these firmness levels accommodate all sleep positions.