The Ultimate Mattress Shopping Guide: Pros and Cons of Different Mattress Types
Buying a new mattress can always be exciting, especially if it’s been a while since you’ve last purchased one. Oftentimes we feel drawn to choosing the best product—one that would offer excellent comfort, durability, and high-quality materials. Although these characteristics matter if we wish to achieve a consistent peaceful slumber, they tend to be very costly.
When purchasing expensive products, we always pause to decide if it is worth buying. The same principle applies when purchasing a mattress. As there are many options in the market, understanding the differences is essential to ensuring your chosen bed is worth the investment. Here are the pros and cons of different mattress types.
Memory Foam
One of the popular mattress types is memory foam because of its comfort and pressure relief, and due to its popularity, there is a high chance that you have at least tried lying on a memory foam bed. These mattresses are made of moldable foam that responds to the contour of your body. If you enjoy the feeling of sinking and being cradled by your bed, this mattress type may be for you.
Pros:
The foam properties of the bed are responsive by adequately distributing your weight and providing a degree of support and comfort. Beyond that, what makes memory foam one of the best mattresses is it also offers a high level of pressure relief, encourages proper spine alignment, has motion isolation properties, is hypoallergenic, and is durable.
Cons:
The responsive nature of memory foam mattresses is its most remarkable aspect, but it can also be its worst. Not all people are a fan of this benefit, especially that it can rather get warm. Also, through time, foam mattresses are known to release harmful contents through chemical off-gassing, leading to health deterioration.
Innerspring
Innerspring mattresses are the most common bed type since they have been around since the early 1900s. This product consists of multiple coil springs underneath, topped with mattress foam. The beds you see on televisions when people lie on their mattresses are commonly innerspring mattresses; the bouncy effect is because of the coil springs.
Pros:
Another factor that makes innerspring mattresses popular is it’s budget-friendly. Moreover, they come in various firmness options and are customizable for people with different sleeping positions. Innerspring meds are also lightweight, hence easy to transport.
Cons:
Before you consider purchasing this bed, there are a few setbacks about innerspring mattresses. This bed type can get annoying with squeaky noises when tossing and turning. Light sleepers are not a fan of that. Despite their affordability, they have relatively low durability, making innerspring beds prone to sagging through time.
Latex
Throughout the years, latex mattresses have been increasing in popularity. This is because of its outstanding performance, offering extreme comfort similar to that of a memory foam bed, and is highly durable. Moreover, they are an eco-friendly option as latex beds are made from a natural resource.
Pros:
Your back pain issues will be resolved because latex beds offer the best comfort and pressure relief, encouraging neck and spine alignment. Moreover, since it is made of organic materials, it has hypoallergenic properties. What also makes it a great bed option is it’s cooling feature, no need to flip and rotate to sleep cool constantly.
Cons:
If you are thinking of investing in latex mattresses, know the negative aspects. For starters, they are more expensive than memory foam beds and are much heavier. Also, latex beds tend to retain heat more than memory foam. If you prefer to sleep cool at night, then a latex bed might not be the option for you.
Hybrid
Hybrid mattresses are one of the top-performing beds in the market. The materials of an innerspring mattress combined with a memory foam result in a more balanced sleeping experience. It’s a best-of-both-worlds type of mattress, as they say. In terms of comfort, hybrid beds deliver excellence by providing pressure relief and promoting spine alignment.
Pros:
Hybrid mattresses are known to resolve couple disputes. It is the perfect bed type for partners with different sleeping positions and still provides the best comfort. It also has antimicrobial features, thanks to the foam material and the extra support that the coils offer. In addition, durability is not a question as hybrid beds are on par with memory foam mattresses.
Cons:
There is, however, a catch with hybrid mattresses. Due to the differences in materials, hybrid beds can have some structural weaknesses. Moreover, even with the foam properties, it may not contour your body well. It also has low-quality motion isolation and may have some slight noise due to the coil spring system.
Takeaway
When investing in a mattress, it is always best to research the differences between each mattress type. As the saying goes, there are always two sides to every coin. Hence, knowing the benefits and the downfalls will be much easier for you in choosing the bed that would suit your preferences.
