Best mattress 2024 – tested by our experts for a great night’s sleep

Finding the best mattress for your individual needs can be transformative, allowing you to sleep better at night and wake up feeling refreshed. But, with a dizzying amount of options available, how do you find the right mattress for your body and budget?

That’s where I come in. As Ideal Home's Sleep Editor, I’ll explain how to factor your sleep position, weight, aches and pains, and sleep temperature into your mattress choice, as well as what to look for if you share a bed with a partner. I’ll also demystify the different mattress types – from open-coil to pocket-spring – explaining which might suit your body and budget best, and simplify the jargon, from ‘motion isolation’ to ‘edge support’.

After all, a good mattress should last seven to ten years, but there are lots of reasons you might need to swap out a mattress sooner, and whilst adding one of the best mattress toppers to your existing mattress may solve some sleep issues, a topper doesn't solve everything.

First up in this guide, I'll introduce you to the best mattresses myself and our review team have tested. My first choice is the Simba Hybrid Original mattress because of its crowd-pleasing comfort and value for money, but my other choices all deliver their own unique USPs and come highly recommended.

To make this shortlist, our team has so far put over thirty mattresses through Ideal Home's mattress testing process. That means we slept on each mattress in our own home for a number of weeks, months or years, sleep-testing for comfort, responsiveness, motion isolation, temperature regulation, and edge support. Every mattress was also assessed for the brand's sleep trial offer, longterm customer satisfaction, delivery process, environmental impact, and the value for money of the mattress in question.

Amy Lockwood

I'm Amy, and I've spent the last four years testing products from all the leading mattress brands. I’ve slept on hybrid, memory foam, and sprung mattresses, researched mattress construction, and spoken to a wide range of sleep experts – from osteopaths and physiologists to sleep scientists and product developers – to determine the key factors needed for a good night’s sleep.

The quick list

Short on time? This quick list is an overview of the very best mattresses myself and the Ideal Home review team have tested. You'll find more information on each mattress and why we recommend it if you keep on scrolling.

Best mattresses 2024 – tried and tested

Best mattress overall

The Simba Hybrid Original mattress ticks all the boxes to deliver a good night's sleep and all for a reasonable price point, which is why, after testing numerous other contenders, we still rate it as the best value mattress you can buy.

This is a hybrid mattress with memory foam cushioning and spring support, and, for most of us, its medium-firm tension should prove 'just right' comfort-wise. Our testing team describe it as 'the Goldilocks of the mattress world – not too soft or too firm'. When sleeping on their sides our testers appreciated the cradling of the memory foam top layer around their hips and shoulders, and when laying on their backs they found the mattress offered plenty of support.

Simba's graphite-infused open-cell memory foam also offers better breathability and temperature regulation than most memory foam mattresses, so our usually warm sleepers didn't overheat. Our testers found the Hybrid Original's edge support, motion isolation, and responsiveness decent, welcoming the extra bit of bounce the hybrid design provided.

This mattress in a box makes is easy to negotiate tricky access or narrow staircases on delivery day, plus you can opt for delivery to your room of choice or 'white glove' delivery where the mattress is unboxed and packaging removed. Add to that a sleep trial that allows you to test out the mattress for 200 nights in your own home, great customer reviews, good value for money, and Simba's ongoing commitment to lowering its environmental impact, and we think this mattress rightly deserves its 5-star Ideal Home rating.

The only caveat is that if you sleep on your front, or are heavier or lighter than average you may need a mattress with a firmer or softer tension. In this case, it could be worth paying more for Brook + Wilde's Ultima mattress, a hybrid memory foam mattress that comes in four tension options from soft through to firm. Or opt for the firmer feel Sealy Newton Posturepedic mattress. Likewise, if breathability or sustainable materials are top of your wishlist, the Hypnos Pillow Top Select mattress, a pocket-sprung mattress with a pillow top layer that's packed with natural materials, offers a cooler night's sleep overall, and a lower environmental impact.

Our full Simba Hybrid Original mattress review has more detail.

Best mattress for back pain

The Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology states that ‘low back pain has been identified as one of the main causes of poor sleep quality'. This same study looked into the best mattress for back pain and determined that a medium-firm mattress was the most beneficial.

However, finding a medium-firm mattress can be trickier than we might think, because our body weight plays a big part in how a mattress feels for us. Heavier sleepers usually need a firmer tension to nail that 'medium-firm' feel, whereas lighter-weight sleepers require a softer mattress. Thankfully, this is exactly what the Brook + Wilde Ultima mattress delivers.

A hybrid memory foam and pocket spring mattress, the Ultima is available in four tension options – soft, medium, medium-firm, and firm. Add to this a 200 night sleep trial that allows you to test out the mattress in your own home, and it's far easier to find exactly the right tension for your body, which can help to alleviate back pain. It certainly worked for our tester who rated this mattress 5-stars for comfort, saying 'I often suffer from lower back pain but after sleeping on the Ultima I woke up with no pain whatsoever'.

The open-cell memory foam also offers decent breathability, and our tester rated it highly for motion isolation, even when her partner tossed and turned dramatically by her side, as well as for responsiveness and edge support. The rolled delivery is also useful for homes with awkward access, and Brook + Wilde offers both delivery to your room of choice and 'white glove' delivery where the mattress is unpacked and installed for you.

The only potential downside is that this mattress is made to order, so it may take a few weeks to arrive, and, its luxurious design is matched by a luxury price tag. However, if you want to tailor your mattress' comfort to your exact specifications, the Ultima is well worth the investment.

Our full Brook + Wilde Ultima mattress review has more detail.

Best budget mattress

The Emma Original is an affordable mattress that does away with any springs and instead uses a mix of memory foam and foam in its construction. It's one of the brand's bestselling mattresses, no doubt thanks to its budget-friendly price (often made even more attractive in Emma's regular sales) and its superb cushioning.

Our tester loved its malleable sleep surface, especially when she was laid on her side as the memory foam layer moulded perfectly around her shoulder and hips to cushion any pressure points. She also found it offered brilliant motion isolation that substantially dampened movements of her restless partner.

However, this mattress doesn't feature open-cell memory foam or offer much by way of temperature-regulating technology, so our tester (usually a cold sleeper) found she was prone to overheating on its foam surface, and her hot-blooded partner often woke up sweating. She also found it lacked edge support and the cushioning made it a bit harder to change position in the night.

Heavier sleepers may also find the all-foam design doesn't offer quite enough support, and the memory foam top layer could be too enveloping for those who sleep on their front or back. Plus, Emma only offers doorstep delivery, which won't be suitable for anyone less able-bodied. And, compared to the brand's main competitor, Simba, we couldn't find a lot of evidence that Emma is making efforts to incorporate recycled materials or lower the environmental impact of this mattress.

But, it's hard to beat this mattress in terms of affordability, and that, paired with a 200 night sleep trial that offers the opportunity to test the mattress out in your own home before you commit, means we think its one of the best budget mattresses to consider. An alternative would be the hybrid memory foam REM-Fit Hybrid Pocket 1000 Mattress which adds springs to the mix for not that much more money.

Our full Emma Original mattress review has more detail.

Best memory foam mattress

The Emma Original mattress might be the best memory foam mattress on a budget, but we think the Tempur Sensation is the best memory foam mattress overall.

That's because unlike most all-foam mattresses which take a one-size-fits-all approach to tension, this mattress comes in four tension options – soft, medium, medium-firm and firm – making it much easier to find the right tension option for you, no matter what your body weight.

We found this mattress elicited a sigh of contentment from every tester who laid down on its surface, with the memory foam rapidly cocooning around the body to cushion all joints and support every inch of the spine. It was a particular favourite amongst our side sleeping testers because the deep memory foam allowed enough space for their shoulder and hip to sink in, but in the firmer options our back sleeping testers also found they benefitted from enough support. The mattress also scored brilliantly for motion isolation, eliminating virtually any motion transfer even when we got a co-tester to toss and turn close by.

However, we did encounter some downsides, namely that our hot sleeping testers found they woke up warm on its surface due to a lack of breathability. We also found the edge support lacking – so if you need a firm surface to push up from in the mornings this may not be the best choice – and the thick layer of memory foam does make it heavy. Very heavy. And although it only needs rotating rather than flipping, the weight and lack of side handles still make that tricky.

Would we forgive all those niggles for the comfort it offers? Majority of our testers voted, yes. And the good news is that Tempur has recently launched a new and improved TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool mattress range which promises to address the breathability issues we encountered. We're currently testing the new collection and will keep you updated on our findings.

Our full Tempur Sensation mattress review has more detail.

Best mattress for side sleepers

Research shows that majority of us sleep on our sides. As a result there are many mattresses designed with side sleepers in mind, such as the Simba Hybrid Original and Brook + Wilde Ultima mattress higher up this list.

However, although it's better value, our testers found the Simba Hybrid Original slightly firmer than the Emma Luxe Cooling mattress, so if you're a lightweight side sleeper then you may prefer the Luxe Cooling's softer surface tension that allows shoulders and hips to sink down a little deeper for good spinal alignment. Heavier side sleepers will sink into any mattress a little deeper, so a slightly firmer surface like the Simba Hybrid Original can come up trumps comfort-wise.

And, although the Brook + Wilde Ultima mattress offers four surface tensions – including a softer option for lighterweight builds – it's more of an investment if you don't catch it during a sale, so the Emma Luxe Cooling can be a more budget-friendly side sleeping option in comparison.

Our reviewers also found the Luxe Cooling does exactly what its name promises, with its extra graphite-infused foam layer offering a far more breathable sleep surface than the brand's Emma Original mattress, making in on a par with the Simba and Brook +Wilde options in this regard. It also offers decent motion isolation, responsiveness and edge support, plus a 200 night sleep trial.

The downsides are that although the Luxe Cooling is delivered vacuum-packed and rolled into a box, Emma only offers doorstep delivery, which won't be suitable for everyone. Plus, the brand is less vocal about any efforts to lower its environmental impact than many of its competitors, which means it lost a few marks in our scoring criteria.

Our full Emma Luxe Cooling mattress review has more detail.

Best pocket sprung mattress

Thanks to a pillow top comfort layer that's packed with breathable natural fibres, the Hypnos Select Pillow Top is the best pocket sprung mattress we've tested.

The sewn-on pillow top layer means this pocket spring mattress feels far more luxurious than most pocket sprung designs, and whilst that pillowed comfort layer doesn't offer quite the same sink-in cushioning as memory foam, many of our testers preferred the less enveloping feel, finding it made for a more responsive sleep surface that was easier to change position on.

Because this mattress doesn't feature foam or memory foam, it's also extremely highly rated by our hot sleeping testers. Our tester usually most prone to waking up hot and sticky on a synthetic mattress found it offered fantastic breathability, meaning she didn't overheat, even during summer heatwaves.

The Pillow Top Select also scores highly for edge support, only losing a few marks in our motion isolation tests. When our tester's partner tossed and turned there was a little more motion transfer through the matttress than they encountered whilst sleeping on the all-foam or hybrid mattresses in our round up. As a mattress that's made from predominantly natural, renewable, and biodegradable materials – that pillow top layer is packed with wool, kapok, and cotton – this is also one of the most environmentally friendly mattresses we've tested.

It may not be the most affordable option available, but in our tests this Hypnos mattress proved itself worthy of the investment.

Our full Hypnos Pillow Top mattress review has more detail.

Best hybrid mattress

There are a lot of hybrid mattresses on the market, so crowning the best-in-class can be a tricky business. However, our reviewer loved the Simba Hybrid Pro mattress. Comfort-wise she found this mattress gave her all the right support in all the right places, easing the back and neck pain she had been suffering from after sleeping on an all-foam mattress without any spring support. And, as a hot sleeper, it also kept her cool at night.

That improved temperature regulation is the main reason why you might consider investing some more cash and upgrading from the Simba Hybrid Original mattress (which still takes the top spot in our round-up thanks to its lower price point) to the Simba Hybrid Pro. If you don't have a problem with sleeping warm, then the lower-priced Hybrid Original could still be the best hybrid mattress for you.

The Hybrid Pro also offers slightly better edge support than many of its competitors (important if you tend to gravitate towards sleeping on the edge of the mattress, or if sleeping space is at a premium), along with decent responsiveness and motion isolation.

And, as with the Simba Hybrid Original, this mattress benefits from Simba's market-leading customer care, with several delivery options including a 'white glove' service, a 200 night sleep trial, and the option to have your old mattress taken away and recycled when your new one is delivered. Plus, alongside naturalmat, Simba is one of the few UK mattress manufacturers to attain B Corp status, with its Environmental Impact Report showing the brand's ongoing commitment to more sustainable manufacture.

Our Simba Hybrid Pro mattress review has the full lowdown.

Best firm mattress

The Sealy Newton Posturepedic mattress is our top recommendation for the best firm mattress you can buy. This hybrid mattress mixes a latex comfort layer with open coil support to create a sleep surface with a higher tension than most.

Initially it took our tester a few days to get used to the firmer feel, especially compared to the memory foam mattress she'd previously been sleeping on, but she was soon sold, saying that whilst sleeping on the Newton Posturepedic she didn’t wake up with lower backache like she previously had been. That firmness makes it a great choice for front and back sleepers, although lighter weight side sleepers may just find it a little too firm.

In our tests, this mattress also offered excellent edge support and our reviewers found the latex comfort layer to offer better temperature regulation than memory foam. They also found the latex was a little more responsive when changing postition, with less of the 'lag' that can sometimes come as memory foam adapts and readapts to your contours in a new posture.

The downsides were that our reviewer noted that motion isolation could have been a little better, which is perhaps due to that continuous coil spring unit. However, she said this wasn't enough to negatively impact hers or her husband's sleep. In addition, this mattress is one of the few in our round-up not to offer a sleep trial, although it is available to test in store in various locations. It's also worth mentioning its flat delivery, as our tester initially struggled to get it up her narrow and winding staircase.

Find the full details in our Sealy Newton Posturepedic mattress review.

Other mattress we've tested

Each month we put new mattresses through the Ideal Home review process – from popular bestsellers to the latest launches – to see how they compare to the best-in-class mattresses included in this round-up.

Whilst not all the mattresses we review make the grade and get included in this edit – perhaps they perform well but another option offers better value, they are outshone in one category of our review process, or they get replaced by a newer model – we've included some of the most popular mattresses we've reviewed below so that you can compare their pros and cons for yourself.

• Emma NextGen Premium mattress 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Hypnos Wool Origins 6 mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• DreamCloud Luxury Hybrid mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• REM-Fit 600 Lux Elite Hybrid Mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Sleepeezee Jessica 1800 Pocket Gel mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Silentnight Lift Replenish Hybrid mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Otty Pure Plus Hybrid Bamboo & Charcoal Premium mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• OTTY Pure Hybrid Bamboo and Charcoal mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Emma Select Diamond Hybrid mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• eveSleep Premium Hybrid mattress review 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Woolroom Hebridean 3000 mattress review 4 out of 5 stars
• REM-Fit Hybrid Pocket 1000 mattress review 4 out of 5 stars
• eveSleep Wunderflip Lighter Hybrid mattress 4 out of 5 stars
• Dreams Workshop Follows Traditional Spring mattress review 4 out of 5 stars
• Emma Premium mattress review 4 out of 5 stars
• Dusk Cool Gel Foam Hybrid Mattress review 4 out of 5 stars

How to choose the best mattress

Whether you’re predominantly a front, side, or back sleeper, your weight, body temperature, and any pre-existing aches and pains, plus whether you sleep alone or with a partner can all affect which mattress is best for you.

Finding the best mattress for your best night's sleep largely comes down to matching a mattress to your sleep preferences. So in this guide, we'll help you to decide which mattress is the best fit for you.

Sleep position

Your favourite sleeping position can be a big factor in which type of mattress you'll find the most comfortable, so it's important to consider whether you're predominantly a side, back, or front sleeper before you start mattress shopping.

This is because the spine needs to be supported differently for optimum alignment in each of the respective sleep positions, and that's where mattress firmness comes into play.

As a general rule, mattresses tend to range from soft-medium, medium, and medium-firm, to firm, and extra firm. However, there are no industry-wide standards of mattress firmness, so one manufacturer's medium rating can sometimes be another brand's firm. That's why we always try to include our tester's firmness findings in all of our reviews.

Your mattress firmness preferences are always a personal decision – there are no right or wrong answers – but below are the generally agreed-upon recommendations for each type of sleeper.

Side sleepers

Sleeping on your side allows your spine to relax and therefore takes the pressure off of the back. This makes it one of the healthiest ways to sleep. Side sleepers will generally prefer the cushioning of a medium-soft or medium-firm mattress that allows the shoulder and hips to sink in a little whilst supporting the waist so that the spine can rest in its most natural position.

A hybrid mattress that mixes a pocket-spring base layer with a memory foam or latex top layer can be a popular choice for this style of sleeping due to the cushioning effect that enables the mattress sleep surface to mould to the curves of the body and support natural spine alignment.

If you're solely a side sleeper, then you could also opt for a more affordable all-foam mattress. This will save you some cash compared to a hybrid mattress, and you likely won't miss the additional spring support as much as a front or back sleeper.

Back sleepers

If you're a back sleeper then a medium-firm mattress may well be the best option for you, as it will offer support to the hips and upper back whilst adding a little cushioning to support the lower back too.

Memory foam can also be a good option for this sleep position, although you'll likely want a slightly firmer surface than a side sleeper. You'll probably also prefer a hybrid or pocket-spring mattress for the additional support they offer as opposed to an all-foam mattress.

Front sleepers

Generally, this is the sleep style least recommended by osteopaths due to the pressure it can put on the neck, however, front sleeping is still the position of choice for a minority of us. If this is you then your mattress choice could help eliminate some of the pressure put on your spine when sleeping in this position.

A firm mattress is the best option here as it will keep the hips lifted rather than allowing them to sink, therefore reducing the unnatural curvature of the spine.

You're likely to sleep best on a pocket-spring mattress, as a hybrid mattress topped with memory foam, or an all-foam mattress, are both likely to be too soft for your needs.

Motion isolation

Sharing our bed can have a big impact on potential sleep disturbance, so it's an important factor to consider when choosing a mattress.

Unfortunately, your mattress choice might not be able to eliminate all of your partner's annoying sleep habits, but if one of you tends to toss and turn in the night or fidget before finding the most comfortable sleep position, or you go to bed and get up at different times, then opting for a mattress with good motion isolation can prevent a lot of night-time disturbance.

There are two main factors that help to add good motion isolation to a mattress. One is the addition of mini coil springs to a pocket spring or hybrid mattress. These smaller springs can help to absorb and reduce the amount of bounce in the mattress, and therefore reduce vibrations from one side of the mattress to the other – so far less risk of your partner bouncing you out of bed as they exuberantly get in!

The other is the addition of a cushioned top layer – like memory foam or latex – which will absorb and have a dampening effect on each partner's movements.

Both are well worth considering if a fidgety sleep buddy is waking you up at night and you're desperately looking for how to sleep better in tandem. Opting for the largest size mattress your room (and budget) allows can also decrease disturbance – our guide to how to choose the right size mattress can help.

Temperature regulation

If you regularly wake up too hot at night, then it could well be your mattress to blame. Our bodies naturally give off heat and moisture during the night, and with a synthetic mattress, this heat and humidity can be reflected toward the sleeper.

Whether made from foam or memory foam, a synthetic mattress is constructed from materials that are a variation on polyester or polyurethane – both of them forms of plastic derived from petroleum – and, if you think of their essence as being similar to a plastic bag, it's easy to see why a synthetic mattress can lack breathability and get hot and sweaty pretty quickly!

A mattress filled with natural materials will generally do the best job of offering breathability and providing the coolest sleep. In our tests, we've found wool-fill mattresses in particular are the hot sleeper's best friend.

Wool does a great job at regulating temperature throughout the night, helping those prone to overheating or night sweats to maintain a comfortable, steady temperature, and therefore secure a deeper night's sleep. No wonder, seeing as a sheep's temperature-regulating fleece keeps it warm in the winter and cool in the summer! Wool is also naturally absorbent, wicking moisture away from the body and releasing it into the air, therefore creating a 'breathable' mattress that's ideal for hot sleepers.

An entry-level natural-fill or wool-filled mattress will generally be more of an investment than an entry-level synthetic mattress, but if night-time overheating is affecting your sleep quality then it can be an investment in your wellbeing that's well worth making.

If overheating is a concern but you want the affordability of a synthetic mattress, then look out for terms like 'air-flow' and 'cooling' which generally demonstrate attempts have been made to allow the dissipation of heat away from the body.

A wool mattress protector or mattress topper can also do a great job of helping to combat the overheating associated with a synthetic mattress. If you're not sure which option is right for you, then our guide to a mattress topper vs new mattress can help.

Sleep trials

To help us to avoid any expensive mattress buying mistakes, and all of the palaver of how to get rid of a mattress that isn't suitable, a wide range of mattress manufacturers now offer sleep trials to allow you to test out a mattress in the comfort of your own home, night after night, before committing.

This can be a great way of taking some of the stress out of this major investment purchase, especially as experts tend to say it can take up to three months to get used to sleeping on a new mattress.

You'll usually have to pay for the mattress upfront, and there will generally be terms and conditions to abide by to qualify for a return and refund so always check the small print, but a sleep trial can be a great way to find out of a mattress is the right fit for you.

Generally speaking, you'll need to buy from the mattress manufacturer directly to take advantage of a sleep trial, and trial periods can differ considerably in length, with Emma and Simba both currently offering a 200-night sleep trial, and Nectar offering a whopping 365 nights.

How we test mattresses

Ideal Home's sleep experts have multiple years of experience in putting mattresses to the test. We know our open-cell foam from our high-density viscoelastic, and our pocket springs from our coil springs. In the course of our testing, we've also developed extensive knowledge of what makes the best night's sleep – in our opinion that's breathability, temperature regulation, motion isolation, cushioning, and support.

In order to compile this guide to the best mattresses you can shop, our mattress reviewers have tested out bestselling mattresses from the leading brand names in the world of sleep. Each mattress has then been rated, and compared by our sleep experts, and only our top recommendations are included in this guide.

You can click here to find out more about how we review products at Ideal Home, and here to find out how we test mattresses specifically. You can rest assured that we only recommend mattresses that our team of reviewers has tested in person.

Each mattress has been sleep-tested in the homes of our review team and slept on for a minimum of a month – in most cases far longer – before we write our review. This enables our reviewers to adjust to each new sleep surface and assess a mattress's performance over the course of multiple weeks.

We test out the mattress' comfort, motion isolation, edge support, breathability, and temperature regulation to find the best mattress for a variety of needs. We also make sure to take into account additional factors such as the delivery process, any off-gassing in the case of foam mattresses, sleep trials, and, of course, price point, in making our recommendations.