Our Experts With 5+ years of mattress testing experience, we use our different sleeping position and body type perspectives to offer well-rounded, honest reviews. What to consider Firmness A firm mattress will offer more support while a soft mattress will be more pressure relieving. Medium mattresses fall in the sweet spot right in between.
The right firmness level for you depends on your sleeping position. Sleeping position Side sleepers should consider a medium to soft mattress that cradles the hips and shoulders. Back and stomach sleepers should consider a medium to firm mattress that keeps the spine in a straight alignment.
Switch between positions? A medium firmness level can accommodate all sleeping positions. Feel Coils and latex foam give a bed more bounce, while memory foam and poly foam make a bed feel more cushy and pressure relieving. The feel of your mattress will depend on the types of materials it has on the inside.
Construction There are essentially two mattress types, hybrid and all-foam. Hybrid mattresses are constructed with steel coils and foam, but all-foam mattresses are just as their name implies. Body type Hybrid mattresses tend to be best for people who want extra support and durability.
Sleepers over 230 pounds in particular should consider a hybrid over an all-foam mattress because it’s more supportive, durable and long-lasting. Performance Motion isolation, edge support and temperature are important features for couples or people who sleep hot to consider. Hot sleepers should consider a mattress that boasts special cooling features.
Couples want minimal motion transfer and a strong, supportive bed perimeter. Company policies All online brands offer a free trial, free shipping and a warranty, but some brands are more generous with their policies than others. Our Picks Soft mattresses can be an excellent choice for people who prefer to sleep on their side or have a petite body type.
Soft beds offer exceptional pressure relief and comfort for most sleepers. Although, softer mattresses may not be the best fit for certain sleeping positions and body types. At CNET, our sleep experts have spent years testing all kinds of mattresses.
We rate each mattress we test on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being the softest and 10 being the firmest mattress you can get. With that knowledge and experience, we've gone to great lengths to find you the best soft mattress. During our testing, we factored in the materials and the qualities a mattress needs to make your bed as soft as you would want it to be.
Here are our picks for the best soft mattresses you can buy. What's the best soft mattress? The GravityLux is a luxury mattress from WinkBeds. It has three different firmness profiles, allowing you to choose the best option for your preferences.
The soft (or what we consider medium-soft) option is suited for side sleepers looking for a bed that will offer pressure relief for the shoulders and hips. It could also work for combination sleepers who spend time on their back or stomach, but we'd recommend the medium or firm models if those are your primary sleeping positions. It's the kind of mattress that could work for anyone, so we think it's the best overall soft mattress.
This soft mattress also has a "progressive support" design for all the layers, which is firm and soft where your body needs it most. The layers are thick, proprietary foam with cooling technology and extra durability. A queen GravityLux mattress retails for $1,799, although it's often on sale.
Video: Best soft mattresses review Watch CNET video producer Owen Poole review the best soft mattresses for 2024. Best soft mattresses of 2024 SCORE Crafted with multiple layers of thick, proprietary foam, this mattress also offers seven support layers to combine for the perfect soft mattress. From top to bottom, this mattress consists of a tufted cooling-gel-infused cover, then a layer of the company's patented AirCell memory foam, which relieves pressure, dissipates heat and minimizes motion transfer.
Another layer of memory foam comes next, called Progression foam, which varies in its supportiveness and softness depending on what each region of your body needs. Finally, the Atlas Core foam is at the base of the mattress, adding to its durability. SCORE First, there's 1.
5 inches of gel-infused cooling foam, followed by another 1.5 inches of plush pressure-relieving foam and two inches of moisture-resistant foam. At the bottom of this Puffy mattress, there's a final seven inches of high-density foam with a coil base to keep things sufficiently supportive and provide edge support.
All the Puffy Lux mattress foams are CertiPUR certified, meaning the mattress brand creates this type of mattress without ozone depleters, formaldehyde, toxic flame retardants or other toxic ingredients. Read more in our full Puffy Lux mattress review . SCORE The 1.
5-inch layer of the company's proprietary CopperFlex foam contours to the body as you lay on the bed. It has a soft, squishy feel, although it's very responsive thanks to the second layer of proprietary soft foam called TitanFlex that instantly responds whenever your body moves. This bed has 1,000 individually wrapped coils for maximum support.
The base consists of even more foam, this time a 0.75-inch layer, making the foam mattress bed more durable with support for the shifting coils. Read our Brooklyn Bedding Aurora Luxe review .
SCORE The mattress then has a layer of the company's super soft Memory Plus foam for pressure relief, followed by Helix Dynamic Foam for contouring. After those comes a high-grade ergonomic polyfoam that gives support and further contour while acting as a transition layer to the ones further down. Next are over 1,000 wrapped coils for support and spinal alignment.
Finally, the base is made of DuraDense foam, another proprietary soft foam mattress material that provides support for the entire mattress above. Read more in our Helix mattress review . SCORE The hefty construction prioritizes support and durability, making the Saatva Rx the best soft mattress for back pain.
This bed has a zoned support design that gives you plenty of cushion through the center third of the bed without sacrificing comfort. As if that wasn’t enough, each coil is tipped with two inches of foam, and then there is an inch-thick layer of micro coils wrapped in 2.75-inch high-density foam.
If you live with back pain and want a soft mattress, the Saatva Rx’s attention to detail and specialized construction are sure to impress. Read our full Saatva Rx mattress review . SCORE Below that, there's a foam called Active Flex that adds a smidge of softness, followed by a transition layer called HIVE for spinal alignment.
Finally, the base is made of Bio-Core to promote durability and keep each component of the mattress together for years to come. Read more in our Amerisleep mattress review . SCORE The original Layla mattress is made with just foam, so it's going to be better for people who weigh under 230 pounds.
If you're looking for more support, the Layla Hybrid mattress is also an option. It has the same flippable design, but it's made with strong pocketed coils to add more support and durability. Other mattresses we've tested In addition to the soft mattresses listed above, our CNET Sleep editors have tested over 100 other beds.
The ones chosen for our best soft mattress list are among the best, but several other beds deserve an honorable mention. Brooklyn Bedding Signature : Brooklyn Bedding is one of the only online mattress brands that makes and manufactures its own beds, so the prices are extremely fair and reasonable. I'd argue the Signature mattress is one of the best values.
It has three firmness levels, but the soft model is rated around a three or medium-soft. It also has a bouncy, neutral-foam feel that most people will find comfortable. WinkBed mattress : The WinkBed is a luxury-hotel-worthy bed with a solid hybrid construction.
It's made with memory foam but has a more neutral, innerspring mattress feel. Its pillow top gives it a plush feel, while the inner springs make it feel supportive and springy. It also has three different firmness levels.
Leesa Legend mattress : The Leesa Legend is quality-built and perfectly plush bed. It has two different layers of springs, a design only a handful of beds use. This makes it a bit more bouncy than a memory foam mattress, which takes a few moments to react to pressure.
It's rated around a 5 out of 10 on the scale or a medium, but its light and airy foam feel makes it feel soft and inviting. How we tested the best soft mattresses Over our years of testing mattresses, we've established tests we use to assess mattresses on key factors. You can think of firmness as how hard or soft a mattress is when you are lie on it.
We've tested hundreds of mattresses and have an extensive catalog to compare against each new bed we test. When assessing for feel, we get handsy with the bed. As we press on the bed, we watch what the material does.
Does it take a second to bounce back like traditional memory foam, or is it quick and bouncy like latex foam? Mattresses don't last forever, and you want to buy one that lasts. Based on its construction, we hypothesize how well a mattress will stand up to nightly use. Beds that have steel coils as a base will generally last longer than all-foam mattresses.
Motion isolation is how well a mattress dampens movement across the surface. It's a big deal for people who sleep with a partner or pet who moves around at night. We jump and bounce around on the mattress for motion isolation and see how much movement is detected.
We also place a glass of water on the edge of the bed and roll around and bounce near it. If it doesn't topple over, a mattress has good motion isolation. A mattress's edge support is how strong the bed's perimeter is.
We lay and sit on the edge of the mattress and assess how sturdy it feels. If we feel like we will fall off, then a bed doesn't have good edge support. Hot sleepers need to look for mattresses with cooling technology.
Many mattresses claim to have it, but we know the difference between marketing and cooling construction that will actually keep you cool. Our CNET Sleep editors picked the beds and other products we write about based on editorial merit. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission.
Find out more about how we test mattresses . What to consider when shopping for a soft mattress Buying a soft mattress is a big decision. There are a lot of options out there, and not every bed out there will be the best choice for you.
There are four key factors to remember when browsing: sleeping position, body type, health conditions and your budget. What are the benefits of a soft mattress? Soft beds are best for side sleepers. If you sleep on your back or stomach, a firm bed helps prevent your back from sagging.
Besides being ultra comfortable to snuggle up in, the best soft mattresses are ideal for side sleepers and petite individuals who seek more pressure relief. Best soft mattress FAQs Most soft mattresses are made with memory foam, polyurethane foam, or a blend of the two. These two materials are great for pressure relief and they can be manufactured to be ultra-plush and soft.
Latex hybrid mattresses, on the other hand, tend to be the firmest. If you strictly sleep on your side, a soft mattress will cradle your curves and give under your hips and shoulders to promote a neutral spinal alignment. When you're sleeping on your back or stomach, a soft mattress allows your spine to sag into the bed.
Beds that offer more support have proven to be more beneficial for people with back pain. If you want a bed that offers plushness and support, go for a medium firmness level. Side sleepers tend to benefit from soft mattresses the most because they need a firmness profile that cradles the joints around your hips and shoulders.
A firm mattress offers little to no give around the shoulders and joints, which can throw off your spinal alignment and cause back pain. People under 150 pounds also like mattresses on the soft side because they exert less pressure onto a bed, making it feel firmer than what your average-weighted sleeper feels..
