The Best Memory Foam Mattress

Here’s the core truth about mattresses: It’s impossible to find one that works for everybody. The best any mattress can do is feel amazing for a small group of people, work well for some people, and do okay for the majority of people. Comfort and support depend on a host of different factors, including your weight, your musculoskeletal health, your body’s temperature gauge, and your personal preferences, to name just a few. Most foam mattresses claim to be “medium firm” (the “medium rare” of the mattress industry), but there's a huge range within that middle. Still, the stated firmness level can give you an indication of whether you’ll find a mattress comfortable. Side-sleepers tend to do better on the softer end of medium firm; that’s because when they sleep, more of their body weight is concentrated on their hips and shoulders. Stomach-sleepers tend to need a medium-firm to slightly firmer mattress not only to keep their head and neck aligned but also to cradle their knees or the front of their hips. A squarely medium-firm mattress often works best for back-sleepers, who distribute their weight more evenly and need support for the spine’s natural curve. A general, but helpful guideline: If you weigh more than 200 pounds, consider investing in a mattress with higher foam densities, which should make the mattress more durable. (Mattresses with higher foam densities are also more expensive, usually.)