Best Mattress Under $500

Not everyone can spend thousands on a mattress, even if they want to. While mattresses under $500 aren’t always the most luxurious option ever, they still offer excellent cushioning and support for sleepers. After all, you don’t need a bed with fancy tech and confusing names to sleep well.

When spending less than $500, your mattress options are limited. Still, you don’t have to settle. With our guide, you can learn about the best mattresses available for under $500.

Easily the best mattress for under $500 is the Zoma Start. Originally built for active adults, the Zoma Start is a cooling bed that relieves muscle pain and improves your sleep quality. At 10 inches tall, it has a medium feel that provides a balance of cushioning and support.

Zoma wraps the Start in their ventilated AirCloth fabric, a stretchy knit that prevents you from getting too sweaty at night.

How Lying Down Feels

The Zoma Start’s balance of support and comfort layers make it suit most sleeping positions and body types, drawing from our experience. After sleeping on the Zoma Start for just a few nights, customers say how the bed has improved their pain and stopped them from waking up frequently throughout the night.

Some highlights from testers and consumers include:

• Savannah writes “I would buy another one!”
• Noah says “We loved our king Zoma mattress so much and we came back and got our son a twin!”
• Devin comments “I feel like I’m laying on nothing when I sleep, It has a nice modern look to it, and the build quality is very nice.”

Inside the Mattress

The Zoma Start is 10 inches tall and consists of 1 inch of gel memory foam, 1 inch of Reactiv™, and 8 inches of Support+. The mattress cover is a polyester blend fabric.

The firmer support of the gel memory foam minimizes sinkage, making the Zoma Start one of the best mattresses for back pain per our expertise. In our tests, Reactiv™ feels like latex with a responsive bounce for easy movement. The Support+ base reinforces the top layers and prevents sagging, as our trials showed.

While the Zoma is a mattress for athletes, our team discovered it is also a great choice for hot sleepers. Cooling gel is infused in the top layers of foam to relieve pressure, align the spine, and prevent overheating. 

What the testers say: “When I lay down, I felt a clear sense of contouring and cushioned comfort, all while maintaining good support. The foams seemed to adjust to my body shape, offering relief from pressure while keeping my spine aligned. While the bed could feel firm, I woke up with no aches and pains nor did I ever experience major stiffness and soreness from lying down.” – Dr. Nilong Vyas, MD, MPH, Zoma Start Reviewer

Read Our Full Review of the Zoma Start Mattress

An affordable mattress made with sustainable materials is the Vaya 8-Inch Mattress. It provides an excellent balance of softness, bounce, and support so you sleep peacefully all night long. With its medium-plush feel, we recommend the Vaya 8-Inch Mattress to side sleepers, petite sleepers, and some combination sleepers.

The Vaya 8-Inch Mattress features a stretchy and lightweight knit cover. It doesn’t trap heat or moisture so you never have to wake up sweaty or uncomfortable. Under the covers are two layers of hypoallergenic foam.

How Lying Down Feels

When compared to pricier beds, sleepers say the Vaya Mattress is no different from what they offer, if not better than many of its more expensive competitors. Sleeping on the Vaya helped people sleep better, improved their pain, and made them look forward to getting into bed. Our tests found that the foam in the mattress doesn’t trap heat, so hot sleepers can finally sleep in peace.

No need to just take our word for it, though, as we’ve looked at the recent thoughts from those who’ve trialed the Vaya Mattress:

• Cooper says that “I’ve had the Vaya for about a month and for the first time in decades I can sleep though the night and wake up with no back pain.”
• Tia writes that “Sleeping on it has been life-changing. I was worried about the foam trapping in heat, but it does no such thing. The mattress regulates heat well and stays comfortable all night.”
• Amberlee comments that “This mattress is very comfortable and easy to set up. It expanded so quickly there was no waiting hours for expansion.”

Inside the Mattress

The Vaya is medium in firmness and contains 2 layers, altogether it is 8 inches thick. Vaya also offers a hybrid variation of the Vaya Mattress, the Vaya Hybrid, if you’re looking for a similar mattress, only with more bounce and breathability.

SEE ALSO: Vaya Mattress Review

Hot sleepers, look no further. The Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam Mattress offers all the perks of traditional memory foam beds without trapping heat. The Cooling Gel Memory Foam Mattress has different firmnesses based on your thickness choice. Your thickness options are 8, 10, 12, or 14 inches, though all of the 14-inch sizes cost over $500.

How Lying Down Feels

Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam mattress owners commend it for being highly responsive, making it easier for them to move around and get out of bed. They describe the bed as being soft but still supportive so they don’t feel stuck and unable to move at night.

Inside the Mattress

The Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam mattress comes in four thicknesses: 8 inches, 10 inches, 12 inches, and 14 inches. We’ll discuss the 14-inch model, which has four layers of foam to create a soft feel that’s excellent for side sleepers.

A stretchy knit fabric covers the mattress. Green tea extract inside the bed minimizes smell, leaving your mattress with a soothing aroma. The top layer is 4 inches of swirled gel memory foam. Gel memory foam transfers heat away from your body, preventing you from sleeping hot.

Next is 2 inches of comfort foam for more softness. Then there are two 4-inch layers of high-density foam—dividing what could have been one layer into two helps air to flow through the mattress.

SEE ALSO: Best Gel Memory Foam Mattress: Buyer’s Guide

The Dream Foam Chill by Brooklyn Bedding is an excellently-made cooling memory foam mattress available at a decent price. It comes in five different thicknesses with varying firmnesses.

How Lying Down Feels

Laying on the Dreamfoam High-density Cooling Foam mattress is an experience. The moment you sink into its embrace, you’ll feel a perfect balance of support and softness. The dense foams are engineered to endure the test of time, promising a decade of uninterrupted comfort.

What truly sets this mattress apart, however, is its extraordinary cooling prowess. The gel swirl memory foam works like a whisper, banishing hot nights and ensuring a consistently cool sleeping environment. The sensation is akin to being cradled by a gentle, refreshing breeze. As you shift, you’ll notice an unbelievable bounce, a responsiveness that rivals even the finest hybrid mattresses. It contours to your body with precision, providing relief to pressure points you didn’t even know existed.

Thanks to its A+ Airflow technology, this mattress boasts an open-cell structure that allows body heat to disperse, guaranteeing you stay cool throughout the night. It’s not just a mattress; it’s a sanctuary of rejuvenation and serenity.

Inside The Mattress

The 6- and 8-inch options have a medium-firm to firm feel suited for stomach and back sleepers. The 10-inch model is medium-firm and good for side, stomach, and back sleeping. The 12-inch version has a medium feel, while the 14-inch version has a medium-plush feel suited for side sleepers.

Regardless of thickness, the Chill Mattress features an eco-friendly Nano Stain Terminator cover to protect against moisture and stains. The top layer of the bed is a gel swirl memory foam, which helps relieve pressure without getting hot.

A layer unique to the 12- and 14-inch models are the VariFlex™ transition foam. It provides deeper contouring and prevents the bed from feeling too stiff beneath you.

At the base of every mattress is a durable foam. It maintains the mattress’s shape while also ensuring healthy spinal alignment.

The Chill Mattress by Brooklyn Bedding is CertiPUR-US® certified and includes free shipping and returns, a 120-night sleep trial, and a 10-year warranty.

SEE ALSO: Best Cooling Memory Foam Mattress for Hot Sleepers

Hybrid mattresses can get expensive, but the Allswell manages to be affordable while also being comfortable. The Allswell is 10 inches thick and has a medium-firm feel great for back sleepers, stomach sleepers, and people with chronic back pain.

The Allswell features the company’s signature quilted top panel. It includes tufted rosettes to secure the mattress layers and help your affordable mattress last a long time.

The top of the Allswell is charcoal and copper gel memory foam. Both the charcoal and copper gel are built to absorb your body heat, preventing you from feeling uncomfortable and sweating while sleeping. The Allswell features a pocketed coil support layer with reinforced edges. The coils support your body while furthering air circulation.

Allwell offers free shipping and returns, a 100-night risk-free trial, and a 10-year warranty. Plus, they’ll haul away your old bed!

How Lying Down Feels

Compared to other Allswell mattresses, the Luxe Hybrid Mattress has the most similar design to the Brick Mattress. They’re both 12 inches thick and contain similar materials, only the Brick has a firmer feel than the Luxe Hybrid.

The design of this medium-firm mattress helps reduce motion transfer during sleep. This makes it optimal for those who share a mattress.

Inside the Mattress

The quilted top panel is crafted with SwirlFoam, a fabric technology that helps keep the sleeper cool. This specialty layer makes the Allswell Luxe particularly good for hot sleepers and stomach sleepers, as they tend to get warm during the night.

Below is 2 inches of copper-infused memory foam, which is designed to offer muscle and joint pain relief. Copper-infused materials also offer protection from microbes, meaning the mattress will stay relatively fresh and free from smells even over long periods.

SEE ALSO: Best Mattresses for Back Pain of 2023

The Sweet Night Dreamy is an excellent starter mattress for kids, it has three medium range firmness options from medium soft, medium and medium firm for those who are not sure what they want, and is a cooling, fiberglass free mattress, which is tough to find for under $500!

The Sweet Night Dreamy also has a Unique Contouring Curve™ Design which is used to perfectly conform to your childs body curve, helping them experience a balance of support and comfort.

This mattress is also made of gel-infused memory foam to keep your child cool at night while giving them the comfortable sleep a growing kid needs.

SEE ALSO: Do Sweetnight Mattresses Have Fiberglass?

How Lying Down Feels

Laying down on the mattress with the Unique Contouring Curve design is a distinctive experience. The mattress offers a versatile choice of three firmness options within a single design, allowing for a customizable level of comfort.

The heat dissipation and cooling features are notable, ensuring a consistently cool sleeping surface. The Grand Canyon inspired anti-slip cover adds an extra layer of functionality and aesthetic appeal, providing a secure and visually appealing surface for rest.

Overall, the mattress combines innovative design elements for a comfortable and temperature-regulated sleep experience.

Inside the Mattress

This bed is constructed with high-quality materials, including CertiPUR-US Certified Foams, ensuring they meet rigorous standards for safety and environmental performance. Additionally, it is STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX certified, indicating that all components, including fabrics and foams, have been tested for harmful substances.

The breathable Jacquard Cover enhances airflow and adds a comfortable surface for sleep. Notably, this bed is fiberglass-free, providing peace of mind and an extra layer of safety. The combination of these materials ensures a comfortable and health-conscious sleeping environment.

Zinus aims to create affordable and high-quality memory foam and hybrid mattresses built to keep you cool and comfortable at night. Of their most popular mattresses is the Cooling Gel Memory Foam bed, which is just their second best-seller under the Green Tea Memory Foam bed.

A Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam mattress costs $246 to $392, depending on your chosen thickness. It includes free shipping and returns, a 100-night trial, and a 10-year warranty. Zinus’s warranty covers sagging deeper than 1.5 inches.

How Lying Down Feels

Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam mattress owners commend it for being highly responsive, making it easier for them to move around and get out of bed. They describe the bed as being soft but still supportive so they don’t feel stuck and unable to move at night.

Inside the Mattress

The Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam mattress comes in four thicknesses: 8 inches, 10 inches, 12 inches, and 14 inches. We’ll discuss the 14-inch model, which has four layers of foam to create a soft feel that’s excellent for side sleepers.

A stretchy knit fabric covers the mattress. Green tea extract inside the bed minimizes smell, leaving your mattress with a soothing aroma. The top layer is 4 inches of swirled gel memory foam. Gel memory foam transfers heat away from your body, preventing you from sleeping hot.

Next is 2 inches of comfort foam for more softness. Then there are two 4-inch layers of high-density foam—dividing what could have been one layer into two helps air to flow through the mattress.

SEE ALSO: Mattress Sizes and Dimensions

Best Mattresses Under $500 Comparisons and Highlights

Types of Mattresses Under $500

With a budget under $500, there are only so many types of mattresses available. Still, you can find foam, latex, innerspring, and even hybrid mattresses with this budget.

Memory Foam

Memory foam mattresses are one of the better cheap mattress options out there. You can find high-quality foam beds for less than $500, though they may not include high-tech features such as zoned support.

A memory foam mattress is great for soothing pressure and cushioning your body. If you deal with chronic pain, memory foam is always a good choice.

The main issue with this type of foam is it can get hot. So, we suggest choosing memory foam beds with cooling technologies, such as charcoal or green tea infusions.

There are also gel infused memory foam mattresses. A mattress with gel foam and spruing or foam layers is referred to as a gel memory foam mattress. Gel foam is a viscoelastic foam that has been combined with gel beads to add stability and to prevent heat buildup. Gel foam is made to compete the popularity of foam and satiate the demand for supreme comfort.

Latex

Latex mattresses are a natural option if you’re hoping to reduce your carbon footprint. They’re made from rubber trees and aren’t harmful to produce. A latex mattress is springy, cooling, and can last between 12 to 15 years.

It’s rather difficult to find a natural latex (or organic latex mattress) mattress for under $500, but it’s still not impossible. When searching for a budget latex mattress, avoid blended or synthetic latexes. Synthetic latex is made entirely of unnatural materials, while blended latex contains both natural and unnatural materials.

Synthetic and blended latexes are more budget-friendly compared to natural latex. However, they contain potentially harmful chemicals and don’t last nearly as long as natural latex. You’re better off choosing a memory foam mattress rather than a blended or synthetic latex mattress.

Innerspring

Innerspring mattresses are one of the most popular types of beds out there. They’re readily available through most mattress manufacturers for a great price, so they’re an affordable option many people choose.

Most innerspring beds contain open coil vs pocket spring with continuous coils, meaning the coils are attached to each other. While they’re cheap to produce, continuous coils cause lots of motion transfer and are prone to scraping and breaking.

Rather than foam comfort layers, innerspring mattresses have pillow tops made from materials such as cotton, wool, polyester, or feathers. While these materials feel light and fluffy, they don’t offer as much pressure relief as latex or memory foam. Still, their lightweight design means they function well as bunk bed mattresses.

Hybrid

Hybrid mattresses are difficult, but not impossible, to find for under $500. They have complex constructions, so it can be difficult for brands to keep prices down while designing a hybrid bed. The hybrid mattress contains features from both innerspring and hybrid mattresses, being breathable, springy, and pressure-relieving.

Hybrid beds have comfort layers made from memory foam, poly-foam, or latex foam. The comfort layer must be at least 2 or 3 inches thick to be considered a hybrid rather than a regular innerspring. Some luxury hybrid mattresses may feature a pillow top or Euro top and a foam comfort layer, but this is unlikely for budget options.

Rather than the continuous coils in innerspring mattresses, hybrid mattresses contain pocketed coils. Pocketed coils are wrapped in fabric to prevent squeaks, isolate motion, and help the coils last as long as possible.

Air

Not all air mattresses are uncomfortable, vinyl bags built for camping or mattreses for guest rooms. You can find high-quality air mattresses with pillow tops or foam comfort layers built to use every night. High-quality air mattresses are great if you suffer from joint pain or sleep hot.

The primary issue with air mattresses is they aren’t the most durable. If you pop a hole in your air mattress, it’s likely irreparable.

Sleeping Position

The way you sleep is the most important factor in determining how firm your mattress should be. Your sleeping position affects how your body touches the bed and how your spine lines up, which determines how much support and pressure relief you need while you snooze.

Back Sleepers

The best mattress for back sleepers provides both support and cushioning. It should keep the body from sinking while still giving enough pressure relief under the buttocks and enough support under the lumbar area. This helps the mattress follow the curve of the spine and keep it aligned. That’s why medium-firm mattresses, with a balance of lift and pressure relief, are usually best for back sleepers. They contour to the body’s shape while still keeping it from sinking too much.

Combination Sleepers

Combination sleepers don’t have a favorite sleep position. They may switch it up or change positions during the night. So, the best mattress for combination sleepers is a mattress that can work for different sleep positions without being made for one in particular. Medium mattresses are perfect for them since they offer a balance between support and pressure relief. They can protect joints when you’re on your side and give enough lift for stomach sleepers. These mattresses are also great for couples because they can work in different sleep positions.

Side Sleepers

A side sleeper needs more pressure relief than other sleepers because their shoulders and hips push down on the mattress, creating pressure points. A mattress that’s too firm can cause pain in these joints. That’s why they need a soft to medium mattress (3 to 5) that can absorb pressure and ease hip and shoulder pain.

Combination Sleepers

Combination sleepers move around a lot during the night, switching between 2 to 3 sleep positions. This is good because it has benefits for their heart health and spine alignment, but it can also cause problems like snoring and neck pain. The best mattress for combination sleepers is a medium to medium-firm mattress to keep their spine aligned in any position.

What to Consider When Shopping on a Budget

When you have a small budget, your mattress options are a bit limited. It can be hard to find high-quality mattresses for less than $500, but we have some tips on how to shop.

Mattress Firmness

Regardless of your budget, choosing a mattress it is important to find the best firm mattress for sleeping comfortably. Mattress firmness refers to how much cushioning your bed has and how soft it feels. Firmness is scored on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the softest and 10 being the most firm mattress on the market.

The best way to choose a mattress firmness is based on your sleeping position:

• Back sleepers need medium mattresses (5) or medium-firm mattresses (7)
• Side sleepers need soft mattresses (3) or medium mattresses (5)
• Stomach sleepers need medium-firm mattresses (7) or firm mattresses (8)
• Combination sleepers need medium mattresses (5)

Reviews

It’s always a good idea to read customer reviews when looking for a budget mattress. It can be difficult to gauge a mattress’s performance, so reading about other customers’ experiences can help you decide whether or not it’s the right choice for you. Most mattress brands list their customer reviews on their website, but you can also find reviews on third-party websites.

Reading reviews gives you an idea of how durable a bed is, how it feels, if it’s breathable, and more.

Look for Sales

If you’re on a tight budget, always take advantage of mattress sales throughout the year. Such events include:

• Presidents Day Mattress Sales
• Memorial Day Mattress Sales
• Fourth of July Mattress Sales
• Columbus Day Mattress Sales
• Labor Day Mattress Sales
• Black Friday Mattress Sales
• Cyber Monday Mattress Sales

During these days, countless brands offer discounts and coupon codes on their mattresses, whether it be money off or bundling deals. This way, you can get nicer mattresses without paying more than you can afford.

You have a better chance of finding mattress deals online than in-store. This is because online stores have less overhead costs than retail stores, meaning they can offer bigger discounts more often on their online mattresses.

Sleep Trials and Warranties

When spending less than $500 on a mattress, you’re less likely to find long sleep trials or warranties. While many brands still offer warranties or sleep trials, they may not be as long or all-encompassing as with luxury brands.

Warranties for budget mattresses are usually between 1 to 10 years. Still, it’s possible to find one of the best mattresses with a warranty while shopping on a budget.

You may have more difficulty finding an inexpensive mattress with a lengthy sleep trial. If a brand offers a sleep trial for their beds, it may only be between 30 to 100 days and companies may not offer free returns. However, for a mail order mattress you haven’t had a chance to try out, a sleep trial can give you some peace of mind.

FAQs

What’s the best hybrid mattress under $500?

Hybrid mattresses can be hard to find for less than $500, especially if you want a big bed. While it’s not impossible to get a cheap hybrid bed, your options are somewhat limited.

The best hybrid mattress on sale for under $500 is the Allswell. It contains cooling foams and has a medium-firm feel great for back or stomach sleepers.

What’s the best memory foam mattress under $500?

With a budget of less than $500, you can find lots of high-quality foam beds. A common difference between affordable memory foam mattresses and luxury memory foam mattresses is the affordable ones have simpler designs. They likely have fewer layers and won’t have zoned technology.

Some of the best foam mattresses under $500 are the Zoma Mattress, Vaya Mattress, and Dream Foam Chill.

What’s the best queen mattress under $500?

Queen mattresses often run you at least $750 to $1500, which is unreasonable for many people. Still, you can find a variety of queen beds for under $500 if that’s what you’re looking to spend.

The best queen beds available for under $500 include the Vaya 8-Inch Mattress, the Allswell, and Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam Mattress.

What’s the cheapest and most comfortable mattress?

It’s hard to say what the most comfortable and cheap mattress is since comfort is so subjective. The most comfortable mattress ever for one person can be the most uncomfortable mattress ever for someone else. Consider what mattress type and firmness level you prefer when searching for a cheap and comfortable bed.

Is it better to buy a mattress online or in-store?

There are pros and cons to both online and in-store mattress shopping. Online generally has a wider selection of beds and better prices, but with that, you can’t feel the beds before buying them.

You can physically feel and lay on beds when shopping in-store, but they’re expensive compared to online. And although you can lay on the mattresses, they’re often worn down and won’t feel the same compared to when you take one home.

Conclusion

You don’t have to spend an arm and a leg on a new mattress. With less than $500 in your pocket, you can purchase any type of bed to suit your needs, whether you want something extra cushioned or extra supportive. Use our guide as a resource when comparing these budget beds and let us know what you ended up going with!