Best Mattresses with a Free Sleep Trial of 2023

Nowadays, most mattresses from reputable manufacturers come with a sleep trial. If a mattress does not feature a sleep trial, that should raise some serious red flags. It should cause you to question its quality and the methods of the people who made it.

However, you won’t have this problem if you’re sticking with reputable mattress brands. Since so many mattresses now have a sleep trial ranging from a month to sometimes even a year, it can be difficult to sift through all of them to find the best quality and value. The good news is, we’ve done that for you with our list of the best mattresses on the market with a free sleep trial.

Best Mattresses with a Free Sleep Trial of 2023

If you want a mattress that offers a little something for everyone, check out the AS3 by Amerisleep. This mattress has it all. It’s got cooling breathability for hot sleepers. It’s got responsiveness for active sleepers. It’s hypoallergenic for sleepers with allergies. It’s durable for those who don’t like to replace their mattresses – and it has a great sleep trial!

All Amerisleep mattresses come with a 100-night sleep trial, plus free shipping and a 20-year warranty.

How Lying Down Feels

The AS3 is a memory foam mattress that doesn’t feel like a memory foam mattress. That’s because this particular memory foam mattress features plant-based memory foam that fixes a lot of the problems of traditional memory foam.

This foam can bounce back as soon as you move. It’s breathable to shed heat. And it won’t have that chemical smell that many traditional memory foam mattresses have when you first purchase them.

Inside the Mattress

The AS3 starts off with a cooling and breathable cover known as the Refresh cover. This cover uses minerals to convert your body heat to far infrared energy. This diffuses the heat and surrounds your body with energy that may improve your sleep.

Underneath the cover, you’ll find a layer of plant-based Bio-Pur® memory foam. This memory foam is made using plant oils instead of certain petroleum products. That’s what gives this mattress its breathable responsiveness.

Next, a foam transition layer offers five different zones of pressure relief and support to target each body area with its ideal mix of both. Finally, a layer of ultra-firm base foam ensures your body stays lifted onto the sleep surface.

This base foam also helps ensure the AS3 will fight off sagging and soft spot development for at least 20 years. That’s why this fantastic mattress comes with a generous 20-year warranty as well as a 100-night sleep trial.

SEE ALSO: Best Mattresses Without Fiberglass

One of the most responsive and supportive memory foam hybrid mattresses on this list, the Zoma Hybrid is perfect for athletes and physical workers alike because it was designed for performance-enhancing sleep.

Every Zoma mattress comes with a 100-night sleep trial, along with a 10-year warranty.

How Lying Down Feels

The Zoma Hybrid has two layers designed for responsiveness. This means even most other hybrid mattresses cannot compete with its level of bounce. As soon as you move, it will bounce back underneath you, leaving no room for body impressions. That means if you want a memory foam hybrid that will bounce back like a latex hybrid, this could be the mattress for you.

The Zoma Hybrid also offers a highly versatile medium feel. This mattress is on the firmer end of medium, so it’s perfect for heavier combo sleepers and back sleepers alike. And it’s also a fantastic option for back pain sufferers.

Inside the Mattress

The Zoma Hybrid begins with a comfort layer made of gel memory foam. Gel memory foam is just as contouring as traditional memory foam. But the thermally conductive gel draws heat away from your body to make this version of memory foam a lot cooler than its traditional counterpart.

Next, a layer of springy and responsive Reactiv™ foam ensures that this is one of the bounciest memory foam hybrids on the market. You will never have to worry about slow response time or body impressions with this mattress because it will always spring right back.

Finally, a layer of individually wrapped pocket coils provides dynamic and adaptable support. Unlike open coils, pocketed coils can move independently of one another. This makes them much better able to adapt to your body shape. This translates to a mattress that offers much better spinal alignment and pressure relief.

All this comfort is wrapped in an airy and ventilated cover for maximum cooling air circulation throughout the whole mattress. And you will have plenty of time to try the Zoma Hybrid out, thanks to its 100-night sleep trial.

SEE ALSO: Best Gel Memory Foam Mattresses

If your tight budget has got you feeling you could never afford a hybrid mattress, check out the Vaya Hybrid. This hybrid mattress sports a simple design that allows it to maintain both quality and affordability at the same time. This means even shoppers on the tightest budgets can still enjoy this mattress.

All Vaya mattresses come with a 100-night sleep trial and a 10-year warranty.

How Lying Down Feels

The Vaya Hybrid is a true medium mattress, which means it is versatile enough to accommodate most combination sleepers. At the same time, this mattress sports highly contouring memory foam that makes it so pressure relieving that even some side sleepers can feel comfortable on it.

This makes it perfect for combination sleepers who might favor their sides but sometimes sleep on their backs or stomachs.

Inside the Mattress

The Vaya Hybrid starts off with a plush and breathable cover designed to keep air flowing across the sleep surface and through the mattress itself. This first layer works with the comfort layer below to shed heat.

The comfort layer is made of extremely porous and highly contouring memory foam. There are millions and millions of air pockets throughout every inch of this foam, which allows it to circulate air for maximum coolness.

The pocketed coils below the comfort layer also help to shed heat because they can circulate air better than base foam can. This means that cooling air will constantly be flowing underneath your comfort layer as well as through it. These pocketed coils also provide high adaptability and responsiveness, as well as cooling power.

The coils sit on a layer of base foam that adds stability and durability to the mattress, making it just as durable as many more expensive mattresses. This is why it still boasts a 10-year warranty and 100-night sleep trial despite its amazing price.

SEE ALSO: Best Budget Mattresses

One of the best cooling mattresses on the current market, the Nolah Evolution 15 hybrid mattress boasts multiple cooling technologies to help keep your sleep surface pleasantly chilly no matter how hot you sleep!

How Lying Down Feels

Lying down on the Evolution, the first thing you’ll notice is its amazing cooling capacity. This mattress starts off with a sleep surface that’s cool to the touch and stays that way all night. This is thanks to the Evolution’s combination of breathability and thermal conductivity.

The Evolution is also a highly buoyant mattress, regardless of which firmness level you choose, because it features two transition layers of high-density foam.

Inside the Mattress

The Evolution begins with a cooling cover made of breathable organic cotton and heat-dissipating ArcticTex™ fibers that help conduct body heat away from you. This cooling cover sits atop an equally cooling thermally conductive quilted Euro topper.

This topper draws heat away from you and pushes it out of the heat escape gusset so that it can escape the mattress as soon as possible. Whatever heat does not escape the gusset will be drawn away from your body by the graphite-infused memory foam comfort layer.

Underneath all these cooling layers, you’ll find a layer of high-resilience foam and a layer of high-density foam. These foam layers provide lots of buoyancy to the sleep surface. They also offer seamless progression to the coils below.

The Evolution features a layer of premium reinforced pocketed coils that offer three zones of support. They compress more under your hips and shoulders and provide more lift to your middle to keep your spine perfectly aligned.

Best of all, the Evolution sports a 120-night sleep trial and a lifetime warranty to give you plenty of time to try it out!

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

There’s a lot to love about Dunlop latex. It’s natural. It can be organic. It’s buoyant. And it’s bouncy. All this means there’s a lot to love about the pure Dunlop latex inside the Spindle Mattress.

How Lying Down Feels

Lying down on the Spindle, you really get a feel for just how fantastic Dunlop latex is. This material is breathable, buoyant, and bouncy, which makes for a truly amazing sleep surface.

Even better, the Spindle Mattress doesn’t have a single firmness level. The swappable layers inside the mattress allow you to choose your own firmness level based on how you stack them.

Inside the Mattress

The Spindle Mattress starts off with a cover made of organic cotton and stuffed with organic wool batting. The organic cotton is highly breathable to wick away both heat and sweat. Meanwhile, the organic wool offers an extra layer of pressure relief and an all- natural fire barrier that eliminates the need for harsh chemicals or fiberglass.

Next, you’ll find the layers of Dunlop latex. There are three different firmnesses inside each Spindle mattress: soft, medium, and firm. How you stack the soft, medium, and firm layers is what determines the firmness level of the sleep surface.

For instance, if you want a soft mattress, you would stack the soft layer on top and the firm layer on the bottom with the medium layer sandwiched in between. It’s easy to change your firmness if you don’t like it. All you have to do is unzip the cover, restack the layers, and you’re good to go. This means the Spindle Mattress is perfect for all sleep positions.

SEE ALSO: Best Organic Latex Mattresses

If you want a mattress that offers all the bells and whistles you can imagine, say hello to the Saatva Solaire. This mattress has all kinds of luxury features that can give you the most fantastic night’s sleep you’ve ever had.

How Lying Down Feels

One of the best things about this mattress is it features adjustable firmness. At the touch of a button, you can set your mattress firmness to one of 50 precise settings. This ensures that everyone of every body type and sleep style can find their ideal comfort on the Solaire.

Inside the Mattress

The Solaire starts off with a breathable organic cotton cover treated with botanical antimicrobials to prevent the growth of microbes that can cause allergy symptoms. This cover sits atop a pressure-relieving and contouring three-inch Euro top for a luxe feel.

Next, you’ll find a layer of ergonomic five-zone latex for buoyant and responsive pressure relief. This latex sits atop a layer of gel-infused memory foam for added contouring and thermal conductivity.

Under these layers, you’ll find a moisture barrier for water protection and a set of sink-free vulcanized air chambers for edge-to-edge support. These air chambers provide the support for the mattress and also are the reason it boasts adjustable firmness. They add or release air based on the setting you select.

The also comes with a lifetime warranty, free in-room delivery and setup, and a full 365-night sleep trial period for a truly luxurious experience.

SEE ALSO: Best Customizable Mattresses

Those who want a soft mattress for side sleeping that offers tons of support and buoyancy at the same time should check out the Helix Midnight Luxe. This mattress mixes high-density and plush foams with zoned coils to create a mattress that can support and cradle your body.

How Lying Down Feels

Lying down on the Midnight Luxe, you’ll notice how it contours to your shape but somehow also keeps your body lifted on top of the sleep surface. At the same time, you’ll also notice that the Midnight Luxe has an incredibly cooling sleep surface for a soft mattress. This is all thanks to its breathable cover and gel memory foam comfort layer.

Inside the Mattress

The Midnight Luxe offers you a choice between two cooling covers: breathable TENCEL or thermally conductive GlacioTex fabric. Whichever cover you choose, it will sit atop a layer of high-grade polyfoam that keeps you lifted like you’re floating on a cloud without sacrificing the mattress’s medium-soft feel.

Next, a thick comfort layer of copper-gel memory foam provides contouring and a plush feel. This layer also draws body heat away from you to ensure maximum coolness. This layer sits atop a layer of Memory Plus Foam to provide seamless progression from the comfort foams to the zoned coils below.

Finally, a layer of pocketed coils brings up the bottom of the mattress. This support layer provides three zones of comfort to keep each body area optimally supported. Reinforced perimeter coils also provide superior edge support. And a 100-night sleep trial gives you plenty of time to try out this mattress.

SEE ALSO: Best Hybrid Mattress for Side Sleepers

Those who suffer from allergies should consider a mattress that can help fight some of the most common causes of those allergy symptoms, like the Bear Elite Hybrid. This mattress creates a hostile environment for lots of different microbes that can trigger allergy symptoms.

How Lying Down Feels

Of course, when you lie down on the Bear Elite Hybrid, the first thing you’ll notice will not be its allergy-fighting capacity but its coolness. Copper is highly thermally conductive, which translates into a sleep surface that starts off cool and stays that way all night. That means hot sleepers and sleepers with allergies alike can enjoy the benefits of this mattress.

Inside the Mattress

The Bear Elite Hybrid features a cool-touch, hypersoft cushion cover that combines PCM fabric and Celliant fiber for the ultimate in cooling comfort. This cover works with the thermally conductive copper gel memory foam comfort layer to provide a fantastically cool sleep surface.

The copper memory foam also has the added benefit of creating a hostile environment for microbes that cause allergens.

Next, a layer of dynamic transition foam provides ergonomic support and contour. Plus a seamless progression  from the comfort layer to the pocketed coils below, increasing compression depth.

These coils are individually encased and zoned for ideal support for each body area, with more supportive coils in the center and around the perimeter for superior lumbar and edge support and excellent motion isolation. The Elite Hybrid also boasts an excellent sleep trial period of 120 nights.

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

Plus-size sleepers who want a hybrid mattress that will offer them enough support without making them feel like they’re sleeping on a granite slab should check out the plush but firm Titan Plus Luxe Hybrid by Brooklyn Bedding.

How Lying Down Feels

The Titan is a medium-firm mattress with a lot of reinforcement, meaning it’s a great choice for heavier back and combo sleepers, but not so much for heavier stomach sleepers. If you want a mattress that can keep you lifted without failing to contour, the Titan might be the best option for you because it offers a good mix of pressure relief and lift.

Inside the Mattress

The Titan starts off with an optional GlacioTex cooling cover that helps maintain skin temperature at the ideal for sleep: 88 degrees. This cover works with the quilted top with gel-infused memory foam to draw heat away from your body and ensure your sleep surface never overheats.

Underneath these layers, a layer of patented TitanFlex™ foam delivers the ideal mix of buoyancy and cradling that heavier bodies need to maintain ideal spinal alignment. Then, a layer of Energex™ foam offers enhanced contouring and deeper compression for added pressure relief.

Underneath all these cooling and cradling layers, there sits a layer of up to 1,032 TITANCALIBER™ individually encased coils that offer reinforced support and superior motion isolation, making this a wonderful hybrid mattress for couples and heavier sleepers alike. And its 120-night sleep trial will make all sleepers happy!

SEE ALSO: Best Casper Mattress Alternatives

If you’re looking for a fantastic memory foam mattress that also has a secret power, check out the Layla Mattress. The Layla packs a secret punch in that it’s actually two mattresses in one. All you have to do to switch feels is flip it.

How Lying Down Feels

Lying down on the Layla feels different depending on which side you decide to use. The firm side of the Layla is a true firm, meaning it is about a seven of 10 on the firmness scale. This makes it perfect for stomach sleepers and heavier back sleepers.

The softer side of the Layla has a medium-soft feel. This makes it a wonderful option for side sleepers and petite combo sleepers. Regardless of which side you are sleeping on, the Layla will offer you a cool and buoyant feel, thanks to its copper gel memory foam and ultra-firm support core.

Inside the Mattress

The soft side of the Layla starts with a copper gel memory foam comfort layer for a soft and plush feel that draws heat away from your body. This heat is conducted down to the Max Airflow foam underneath the comfort layer. This foam breathes to keep cool air flowing and push heat out of the mattress.

Then, you get to the high-density foam core. Not only does this ultra-firm foam layer provide lots of lift. It also ensures minimal bounce and maximum motion isolation for those who don’t like a bed that springs underneath them.

Finally, another layer of copper memory foam brings up the firm side of the mattress. All this comfort is wrapped in a plush, breathable cover that features hexagonal air channels for maximum air flow across the surface of the mattress. And the 120-night sleep trial gives you plenty of time to try out both sides.

SEE ALSO: Mattress Sizes and Bed Dimensions

Honorable Mentions for Mattresses with Free Sleep Trials

Because there are so many mattresses with free sleep trials, we had to be selective when it came to curating our list, but there are still a few top mattress brands we want to give a quick shoutout to as worth checking out.

How to Choose the Best Mattress with a Free Sleep Trial

With so many of the best mattresses on the market now boasting about their free sleep trials, it’s important to pay attention not only to the actual fine print of the sleep trial but also the makeup of the mattress and whether it meets your needs.

There are a few factors you need to consider when shopping for a new mattress. The sleep trial, construction, and firmness are a few of the big ones when it comes to choosing the most comfortable mattress.

Why You Need a Sleep Trial

There are several reasons why you might need a risk-free mattress trial. First of all, a lot of us now buy our mattresses solely online. Since this is the case, there’s no way for you to know for certain how you will feel about an online mattress once you actually sit on it. This means you need at least a small window to return a mattress you were not able to try before you bought it.

Even if you bought your mattress in a store, you still need a sleep trial that lasts at least 90 days. This is because that is how long it takes to break in your mattress in a box, once it’s been unpackaged and expanded. This breaking-in period is the time when your mattress’s feel will change a little bit.

This usually means it gets a bit softer than it was when it came, though it’s possible to have an overly firm mattress. Without the sleep trial, you’d be stuck with your mattress even if you didn’t like it after the end of the breaking-in period.

A sleep trial can also give couples, people who don’t know what kind of mattress they prefer, and other unsure shoppers a chance to make up their minds. If you share a bed or have never shopped for a mattress before, a sleep trial is especially vital for you.

You can find mattresses without sleep trials, and they may be cheaper because of this. But just as we always recommend mattresses with warranties, we also suggest paying for a mattress with a sleep trial.

Ideal Mattress Sleep Trial Length

The fact that most mattresses from reputable companies now come with sleep trials does not mean all sleep trials are equal. These trial periods can vary in length, and they may also vary in their terms.

You can expect a mattress sleep trial to be anywhere from 30 days to 365 days. A year-long sleep trial period is rare and a bit of overkill, as most people don’t need this long to decide whether they like their mattress. Often, it’s just a marketing tactic to make a bed seem like the better deal, compared to a mattress that may have better features but a shorter trial period.

On the other hand, you really don’t want a sleep trial that is fewer than 90 days in length. This is because the breaking-in period for your mattress can last at least three months. This means you want a sleep trial that is no fewer than 90 days.

You’ll want to check your free sleep trial’s terms, as well. You want to make sure that the sleep trial says something to the effect of “satisfaction guarantee,” “money back guarantee,” or the like. Read the terms of the agreement to ensure that you will get a full refund for your product if you return it within the specified trial period.

You may also want to read the terms of the agreement to see if return shipping is included. Some free sleep trial periods may not cover return shipping costs. This can be a major issue for big items like mattresses.

Finally, make sure there are not a bunch of conditions in the sleep trial that exclude you from returning your mattress. Acceptable exclusions include issues like you damaging the mattress yourself. But exclusions other than this are cause for concern.

Ideal Mattress Materials

Regardless of the length or terms of the sleep trial your mattress comes with, you’ll need to know a little bit about materials in order to choose the best type of mattress for you. Mattress materials control so much about how your mattress feels, from how well it can diffuse heat to how responsive it is to how buoyant it is and even how durable it will be in the long run.

You’ll need to know your sleep preferences and how you prioritize these qualities. For instance, if you know you are a hot sleeper, there are certain materials you will want to avoid.

Likewise, if you like to toss and turn, there are materials that are great for this and materials that are terrible for it. This means you will want to be somewhat aware of how you sleep before you shop.

Memory Foam

Of all the materials on the mattress market, memory foam is among the best. This flexible polyurethane foam can alter its shape in a way that no other mattress foam can. Memory foam mattresses create one of the most contouring and pressure-relieving sleep surfaces imaginable.

Memory foam’s contouring power is perfect for side sleepers and petite sleepers who may find that other mattress types exert too much pressure on their bodies. Also, if you want a firmer mattress that can still contour to your body, a memory foam mattress is likely best. See our guide to the best memory foam mattresses for back pain and support.

Memory foam mattresses aren’t just one of the most comfortable sleep surfaces around. They’re also among the most affordable because memory foam is so easy to produce. Many top models are among the best mattresses under $1000.

And memory foam’s durability means you can expect to not have to replace your memory foam mattress for quite a while, making it even more affordable in the long term. When it comes to how long a mattress lasts, memory foam is no slouch, with many performing well after 10 or more years.

Watch out if you are a hot sleeper or an active sleeper, though. Memory foam tends to retain body heat more than other mattress materials. A memory foam mattress also bounces back into place slower than other mattress types. This means, if you like to toss and turn, a memory foam mattress might not be the best choice for you.

Latex Foam

If you want a cooler and more responsive alternative to memory foam mattresses, natural latex may be the best option for you. This naturally springy and breathable material sheds heat much better than memory foam, and it also springs back into place as soon as you move. This makes it a wonderful choice for hot sleepers and active sleepers, when comparing latex to memory foam.

Natural latex foam is also the best choice for eco-conscious sleepers. Not only does latex produce much less toxic waste during the manufacturing process. It is also biodegradable and recyclable. This makes a latex foam mattress a better option for the environment than any other mattress type.

Keep in mind that latex is the most expensive mattress type upfront. Though its extreme durability will make up for some of this initial expense, with latex the cornerstone of many mattresses that won’t sag, it can be a pain in the wallet to purchase a natural latex mattress since the initial cost is so high.

Latex mattresses can also pose problems for people who need extra pressure relief because they tend to maintain their shape more than memory foam mattresses. This means they cannot contour quite as well.

You may not notice this if you are not a side sleeper or a petite sleeper, but if you do fall into one of these categories, you will need to be extra careful when it comes to selecting a firmness for your latex mattress. Many prefer memory foam in mattresses for pressure points.

Hybrid

Hybrid mattresses are the most versatile of all mattress types. A hybrid mattress is made by combining a support layer of pocketed coils with at least two inches of comfort foam. This creates a mattress that has all the benefits of both coils and foam while simultaneously fixing a lot of the issues with innerspring mattresses.

Each coil comes in its own fabric or foam casing. This means they can all move independently of one another. This translates into a mattress that offers a high level of contouring, a lot of responsiveness, and virtually no motion transfer.

Another great thing about hybrids is the fact that you can choose latex or memory foam or even a combination of both for your comfort layers. This means you don’t have to choose between mattress types. You can enjoy them all in one hybrid mattress.

The only real problem with the hybrid mattress is its expense. Hybrid mattresses are only slightly more affordable than latex mattresses. At the same time, they are less durable because their pocketed coils do eventually lose tension and wear out. This means hybrid mattresses are the most expensive mattress type over the course of their lifetimes.

Innerspring

Of all the mattress types on the market, innerspring mattresses are the ones to avoid. These mattresses feature a support layer made of open coils. This means the coils inside the mattress do not have a casing around them and are wired together with cables. This creates a mattress with more problems than solutions.

Some of the many problems that you may experience when you sleep on an innerspring mattress include squeaking noise from metal-on-metal contact, terrible motion transfer, and too much bounce.

Perhaps the worst problem of innerspring mattresses is that they do not contour very well. Their network of springs tends to sag under your heavier parts instead of taking your body shape. This translates into inferior pressure relief and inferior spinal alignment.

While innerspring mattresses are the cheapest of all the mattress types upfront, they become one of the most expensive mattress types over time because they are the least durable. You can expect to replace your innerspring mattress every six to ten years.

This is well below the life expectancy of every other mattress type. For all these reasons, we suggest going with a hybrid mattress if you want a mattress with coils.

Ideal Mattress Firmness

Choosing the right mattress firmness level is no less important than choosing the right mattress materials. Firmness is usually measured on a scale from one to 10, with 10 being the firmest.

However, you will be unlikely to find a mattress that is softer than around a three or firmer than around an eight. This is because there isn’t much of a market for mattresses that have no give and no support. No matter what firmness level you choose, you still need a mix of both.

Sleep Position

Your sleep position is the main factor that impacts your firmness needs. Your sleep position decides how your body contacts the bed, where your pressure points are, and how much support your spine needs to stay aligned.

If you get the wrong mattress firmness for your sleep position, it could leave you with all kinds of problems, from poor spinal alignment to pressure and pain in your joints.

This means you will need to select your baseline firmness based on the position you prefer to sleep in during the night. You can go up and down from this baseline based on other factors.

Back Sleepers

Back sleepers can have a couple of different problems when it comes to their sleep. First off, when you sleep on your back, your body is more likely to sink into the surface unless offset by a mattress for back sleeping. This sinkage can bend your spine out of alignment if the bed is too soft to keep you lifted onto the sleep surface.

The second problem back sleepers may experience is their lumbar regions may collapse onto the bed if it is too hard to contour to their shape at all. This can leave back sleepers sleeping in a hunched position. It may also cause lower back pain.

In order to prevent both these problems, back sleepers should choose a medium-firm mattress. Medium-firm mattresses (6 of 10) can help keep your body lifted onto the sleep surface while simultaneously contouring to the curve of your spine well enough to give you proper lumbar support and prevent back pain.

Combo Sleepers

Combination sleepers don’t have a specific preference for a single sleep position. Rather, they may choose to sleep in any position at any point. This can make it tough for combo sleepers to find mattresses that work for them because they need a high degree of versatility.

This means the best mattress firmness for combo sleepers is medium (5 of 10). Medium mattresses have the most versatility of any mattress firmness level. Such a mattress for combination sleeping can support you when you’re on your back and stomach and offer pressure relief when you’re on your side. This means you can expect medium mattresses to accommodate you in any position.

Side Sleepers

Side sleepers typically need the softest mattresses of all sleep positions. When you sleep on your side, your body weight presses one of your shoulder and hip joints into the bed. If your bed resists this pressure instead of compressing underneath, it could leave you with joint pain and stiffness when you wake up in the morning.

A medium-soft mattress (4 of 10) can help counter these issues for side sleepers. These mattresses for side sleeping offer lots of pressure relief and deep compression to cradle your joints instead of pressing against them. At the same time, they also provide enough lift to help keep your spine aligned.

If you need even more pressure relief, you could go down to a soft mattress (3 of 10).

Stomach Sleepers

Stomach sleepers generally need the firmest mattresses because they have the most issues with spinal alignment. Sleeping on your stomach allows your pelvis to sink into the mattress. When this happens, it pulls the lumbar region forward and can lead to lower back pain. This means you need to keep your pelvis lifted with an appropriate mattress for stomach sleeping.

Firm mattresses (7 of 10) can help ensure your pelvis stays lifted and your spine remains aligned when you sleep on your stomach. If you find that even a firm mattress doesn’t fix this problem entirely, you might even go up to an extra-firm (8 of 10) or try sleeping with a thin pillow under your hips to ensure you maintain spinal alignment.

Body Type

Though your sleep position preferences most impact your firmness needs, certain individuals may also need to take their body weight into account. In general, the mattress industry has decided that 130 to 230 pounds is the average adult human weight range.

If you fall into this range, then you don’t have to do anything when it comes to altering your firmness needs. Just select the firmness level that best corresponds to your sleep position. If you fall outside this weight range, you may need to go up or down in firmness.

Petite Sleepers

Petite sleepers are under 130 pounds. If you fall into this category, you may find that mattresses that match your sleep position preferences do not give you enough pressure relief. They may exert pressure on you and not contour enough to keep your spine aligned.

To counter this issue, petite sleepers should go one firmness level down from the one that corresponds to their sleep position. Such mattresses for lightweight sleepers offer them similar pressure relief and support to what an average-weight sleeper would get from a mattress firmness that matches their sleep style.

Plus-Size Sleepers

Plus-size sleepers tend to have the opposite problem as petite sleepers. When you weigh more than 230 pounds, you may not get enough support out of a mattress that matches your sleep style. To fix this issue, you’ll need to go a firmness level up from the one that corresponds to your sleep position preferences in a mattress for heavier sleepers.

For example, if you are a heavier stomach sleeper, you may want to upgrade from a firm to an extra-firm mattress. Heavier combo sleepers, meanwhile, may want to go up from a medium to a medium-firm mattress.

Ideal Mattress Sizes

How Do I Return a Mattress Under a Sleep Trial?

So, you’ve decided that the mattress with a sleep trial you purchased isn’t working out for you, and you want to return it for a refund. However, you may be a bit uncertain about how to do so. While the exact specifications of what to do can vary slightly by mattress brand, here’s a good overview of what you can expect:

1. Contact the retailer’s customer service. Provide order details, purchase date, and reason for return. The retailer will provide a return authorization or code. This is essential for initiating the return.
2. Follow the retailer’s instructions to either schedule a pickup or drop off or donate the mattress. Ensure it’s in good condition and adheres to packaging guidelines.
3. After receiving and inspecting the mattress or receiving proof of donation, the retailer will process your refund or exchange. Some retailers deduct return shipping or restocking fees.
4. Monitor your payment method for the refund. Keep all communication and documentation related to the return for your records.

Before buying a mattress, it’s smart to familiarize yourself with the sleep trial terms and conditions provided by the mattress retailer. This will help you understand the duration of the trial, any eligibility criteria, and the return process.

Also, most mattress brands require you to keep the mattress for a minimum period, often 30s days. Known as the “break-in” period, this is to ensure you’ve given the mattress a fair chance.

While you may be able to return the mattress before this break-in period is up, you usually have to pay a penalty fee to do so. In other words, to get a full refund, you’ll need to try the mattress for a month or so.

Free Sleep Trial Comparison by Mattress Brands

Here is a thorough overview of mattress brands and the sleep trial length they offer. Remember, though, that a longer trial period does not automatically equal a better mattress.

Any trial period that stretches to 90 days or more should provide all the time you need to figure out if a mattress is right for you. Some longer trial periods can even be a disadvantage, as you may find it easier to forget when your trial ends.

What Happens to a Returned Mattress?

If you return the mattress to its original retailer, what will happen depends on the retailer’s practices and mattress’s condition. Typically, the mattress will be inspected to determine what it is suitable for, along with making sure it meets the conditions for a refund. This involves checking for any damage, stains, or excessive wear.

Then, the returned mattress might be refurbished or reconditioned if necessary, and then it could be resold as a refurbished unit at a discounted price. Often, though, a returned mattress is donated to a local shelter or other charity.

If the mattress cannot be reused, however, it will likely be taken to a mattress recycling center.

FAQs

Is there any way I can skip a sleep trial?

No. You should never skip the sleep trial or purchase a mattress that does not have one. The main reason you want to avoid this is that all mattresses have a breaking-in period where their feel will change a bit. If your mattress comes with an inadequate or even no sleep trial, you have no recourse if you no longer like the feel of your mattress after a month or two.

The sleep trial also allows you to have some leeway when shopping online. Since you can’t sit on models before buying them, a sleep trial for an online mattress gives you some leeway in case you wind up not liking what you purchased.

Finally, a free sleep trial period is also a demonstration of a company’s confidence in their product. A company that offers a robust and lengthy sleep trial has confidence that you will like their products and be keeping them long after the trial ends. Occasionally a mattress brand will let you remove the trial for an added discount, but it’s best to weigh up if this will cost you more in the end, should you not like the mattress.

Do I need a sleep trial if I buy my mattress in person?

Even if you buy your mattress in person and do get the chance to sit on a floor model before purchasing your new mattress, you still need a mattress that has a sleep trial. First of all, the floor models will not feel exactly the same as your new mattress because they have been tried by so many people.

Second, even if you liked your mattress on the showroom floor, sitting on it is not the same as sleeping on it. And the mattress will also not feel the same after the breaking-in period as it did before. For all these reasons, you’ll want to ensure that your mattress comes with a free sleep trial even if you bought it in a store.

Why do I always need a sleep trial?

You always need a sleep trial for several reasons. First and foremost, you need a sleep trial because of the breaking-in period that all mattresses have. All mattresses will slightly change feel when you sleep on them for a few months. A sleep trial allows you to decide whether you like the new feel of your mattress or want to return it.

A sleep trial also helps ensure you are getting a good quality product. If a mattress manufacturer does not offer any kind of sleep trial, this is a big red flag that their product is not of adequate quality. This means a sleep trial, along with a warranty, can offer you some assurances that a manufacturer has put thought and effort into their products.

What is the ideal sleep trial length?

The ideal sleep trial length is 90 to 120 days. A sleep trial that is below 90 days does not give you enough time to properly complete the breaking-in period and decide if you want to keep your mattress afterward.

Likewise, sleep trials that last more than 120 days are not much more than marketing gimmicks. You don’t need six months to a year to figure out whether you like your mattress. If you find a mattress with a sleep trial of this length, this is perfectly fine. There’s probably no funny business, but know that it is not necessary.

What if my potential mattress does not come with a sleep trial?

If a mattress you are considering does not come with a sleep trial, you should almost always avoid purchasing it. Not only does the lack of a sleep trial period give you no recourse if you decide you don’t like your mattress after sleeping on it for a few weeks.

It also is a good indicator that the manufacturer or retailer selling the mattress knows it is of poor quality and wants to ensure the sale remains final so that you have no ability to do anything about it when you figure that out. It’s likely that mattresses that come with no sleep trial also have inferior warranties as well, so you need to watch out for these products.

Bottom Line

Making sure you get the right mattress includes making sure you get a good sleep trial. Not only can a sleep trial help you figure out if you actually did select the right mattress for your needs. A sleep trial can also give you some assurance that you are buying a mattress from a reputable retailer who cares about their product and their customers’ experiences.