How To Buy A Mattress, Online Or In-Store

A good night’s sleep is priceless—and your mattress plays a huge role in getting you there. Yet the mattress-buying experience often only involves a quick lie-down in the store, or a fingers-crossed add-to-cart moment.

“It’s tough to lie down on a mattress for five minutes and be like, ‘Oh yes, this this is it,’” says Derek Hales, editor-in-chief and founder of the Phoenix-based mattress review site, Nap Lab. He knows what he’s talking about; over the past decade, Hales has extensively tested more than 325 mattresses. “It's definitely both intimidating and challenging to try and make a mattress purchase in-store.”

On the flip side, buying a mattress online can also be a shot in the dark. “You’re basically just looking at a bunch of pictures and a bunch of prices,” says Jory Solomon, the Toronto-based director of sales training for Sleep Country Canada. (He’s part of a team responsible for training the chain’s 1,000 sales representatives—a.k.a. “sleep experts”—from coast to coast.) If you prefer to shop online, he says, you should absolutely get in touch with the retailer to pinpoint whether their product is right for you. Sleep Country, for example, has experts available by phone and by chat, in addition to in-store. “They’ll ask the right questions and give you an idea of what area of the lineup you should be looking at,” says Solomon.

Whether you’re interested in shopping online or in store, here is everything you need to know to buy a mattress you love.

How often should I replace my mattress?

With proper care—more on that below—the lifespan of a good quality mattress is typically 10 years. (It may be less, notes Hale, for “some of the ultra budget-friendly matches that you’ll find on Amazon or Costco.”)

You also might want to replace your mattress sooner than the 10-year mark if you’ve experienced physical changes—such as weight gain or an injury—which might change the level of support you need from a mattress, notes Solomon.

Above all, if you’re regularly waking up with soreness or pain, it’s time to reconsider your mattress. “A couple of minutes of stiffness or tightness in the morning is normal,” says Dr. Steve Knighton, a chiropractor at Nottingham Family Wellness Centre in Oakville, Ont. “But if people are waking up with pain, I always ask them when was the last time they changed their mattress.”

What are the most common mattress types?

Coil

You likely grew up sleeping on a mattress filled with steel coils—and maybe you still do. “Coil mattresses are very popular,” says Solomon. “If you prefer an active [more] feel—where you push against the mattress and it pushes back—then you may prefer coil.“ Coil mattresses, also called innerspring mattresses, are typically not sold in a box.

Foam

Until hybrid mattresses came on the scene, the majority of mattresses-in-a-box (such as the original Casper and Endy mattresses) were foam. As the name suggests, these mattresses are made from layers of foam—including memory foam, latex foam and other foam types. “Foam conforms to your shape and it can almost feel like you’re sleeping in the mattress, as opposed to on top of the mattress as with a coil mattress,“ says Solomon. Typically, he notes, stronger, denser foam means better support—and overall, foam mattresses typically provide better pressure relief than coil mattresses. (In other words, if you tend to experience tension in your shoulders, back or hips, a foam mattress may help alleviate it better than a coil mattress.)

Hybrid

A mix of foam and coil, hybrid mattresses are often “the best of both worlds,” says Hales. “Some foam mattresses have issues with support and sagging, while some coil mattresses have issues with pressure relief and motion transfer,“ he continues. “Hybrid mattresses solve a lot of those problems.” (If your partner regularly tosses and turns, and you feel it on your side of the bed, that’s motion transfer.) Like foam mattresses, many hybrid mattresses are sold in a box.

How can I figure out what firmness is best?

Unfortunately, there’s no standard measure for mattress firmness levels—meaning one brand’s firm may be another brand's medium firm. Ideally, testing mattresses in person at a mattress store that carries a wide variety of brands and models is the best way to gauge your ideal firmness.

However, “as a general rule” notes Hales, “the vast majority of sleepers need a medium-firm mattress, which is about a six-out-of-ten on the firmness scale.“ Heavier individuals may require more support, while lighter people—say, those who weigh 120 pounds or less—may prefer a softer mattress.

The type of support you prefer may also depend on your preferred sleep position.

“Stomach sleepers typically need a softer mattress so they’ll sink in a bit,” says Knighton. However, he actively encourages his patients to avoid sleeping on their stomachs as it can cause neck and shoulder issues. “It will take about a year to teach yourself to sleep in a new position, but it’s a huge step if you can do it.” (He suggests sewing a few tennis balls into the front of a shirt to discourage sleeping on your front.)

Side sleepers can typically handle a firmer mattress, says Knighton, while back sleepers may prefer medium firmness.

There’s a lot of mattress lingo. What terms are most important?

Edge support

This term refers to the support around the edges of the mattress—important if you frequently sit on the edge of your bed. “It doesn’t really impact sleep,” notes Solomon. While mattresses were previously edged with wire, now most use a more supportive foam edge guard, meaning the mattress edge is less likely to sag over time.

Motion isolation

If one partner tosses and turns (or goes to bed later or gets up earlier than the other partner), a mattress with strong motion isolation is key. “Foam mattresses are going to have have the lowest amount of motion transfer,” says Hales. “Hybrid mattresses will be somewhere in the middle. The highest amount of motion transfer is going to be with coil mattresses.”

Open-cell technology

This feature will appeal to hot sleepers, says Solomon: “[Open-cell] allows body heat to travel through the mattress and not get trapped in the foam.” Gel-infused foam is another cooling feature to consider.

Zoned-coil technology

Zoned coils provide targeted support to specific areas of the body, such as the shoulders and hips. Three-zoned support lines up with the lower lumbar region (a.k.a. your lower back), notes Solomon, whereas five-zone support (typically pricier) provides extra support at the shoulders, back and knees.

Is a more expensive mattress a better mattress?

“It’s possible to find good mattresses, and the best options for your specific needs, in every budget range,“ says Solomon. “Generally, the more expensive you go, the support will get stronger and the features get slightly more specialized.”

From his years of testing, Hales maintains that “you can get a a really nice, high-performance, high-quality mattress for around $1,500.”

Does it matter how much a mattress weighs?

A heavier mattress, according to Hales, is often a better quality mattress.

“One thing that I always encourage consumers to look at—because it’s the one of the only things that really doesn’t have any marketing speak behind it—is how much the mattress weighs,” he says. “The ones that weigh more [often] perform better, last longer and are more durable—and it’s not something that brands really fake.”

For example, says Hales, there’s likely a huge difference in terms of the quality of materials in a queen mattress that weighs 70 pounds compared to one that weighs 120 pounds.

Can mattresses be returned or exchanged?

Most mattress brands and/or retailers offer either a return or exchange program. Look for a policy with a time frame of 30 days or more, as it typically takes up to a month to figure out if a mattress is right for you.

How long should I sleep on a new mattress before deciding whether it’s right for me?

Hales and Solomon agree that it can take up to a month to gauge whether a mattress is a good fit for your specific sleep needs. “There really is a significant adjustment period,” says Hales.

“It’s not uncommon in the first few nights for a new mattress to feel a little odd,“ adds Solomon. “But after three to four weeks, if you're still finding it to be not the right comfort level you should take advantage of the return policy.”

How I can make my mattress last?

The number-one most important thing you can do to extend the lifespan of your mattress, according to Hales, is to purchase a high-quality foundation—whether it's an adjustable frame, slatted frame or box spring. “I often see consumers buying a really nice mattress and then putting it on a 20-year-old foundation,“ he says.

Not sure what type of foundation is best? Most manufacturers will specify which type their mattress requires—and using the incorrect type could impact your warranty.

Both Hales and Solomon also suggest rotating your mattress every six months to help it wear evenly. (This is especially important if two people of different heights and weights are sleeping on it).

Finally, both experts recommend investing in a mattress protector. “The comfort layers on the top of the mattress are often made from some the same materials as clothing, such as cotton—meaning they absorb liquids,“ says Solomon. “Protecting against spills will help give your mattress the longest life span possible.“