Best Mattresses for Kids: Expert-Tested, Parent-Approved

The Helix Kids mattress has a flippable design that grows with your child, accommodating ages 3 to 12. Each side has a distinct firmness that supports the different stages of a growing body.

How It Performed

The thoughtful dual-sided design ensures the mattress will provide enough support at different stages of your child’s life. One side is aimed at children ages 3 to 7, with a medium firm (6) feel to support growing bodies. As a child reaches 8 to 12 years old, they can transition to the medium soft (4) side, which has plusher comfort layers. Our test lab found this side offered extra contouring and pressure relief. The mattress earned high marks in our temperature neutrality tests, partly thanks to the enhanced airflow through the coil support core. So it should feel cool and comfortable even if your child tends to sleep hot.

What It’s Made of

Both sides of the mattress feature a Tencel cover with a water-repellent finish. The finish ensures the mattress’ longevity and protects against damage from accidents or messes. Beneath is a flammability protection layer to keep your kid safe. The support core features 5-inch pocketed coils that provide targeted support to your child’s hips and shoulders. A row of coils lines the perimeter of the mattress, which we found quite supportive when we sat on the edge.

On the side designed for 3- to 7-year-olds, the comfort system consists of dense polyfoam. Our testers found this side’s comfort layer much firmer, which helps maintain proper spinal support for younger children. The other side, which is meant for 8 to 12 years old, features a comfort system made from gel-infused memory foam that performed well in our pressure relief tests. The gel in this layer is engineered to absorb and dissipate excess body heat.

Helix ships free to all 50 states and offers families 100 nights to try out the mattress. A lengthy sleep trial is helpful if you’re unsure of your child’s sleep preferences. The Helix Kids mattress also comes with a 10-year warranty.

The Nectar uses three layers of memory foam, giving it a significant hug that your child may find soothing and comfortable. The Nectar is also more affordable than many similarly constructed models, so it is friendlier to a family’s budget.

How It Performed

Rating a 6 on our 10-point firmness scale, the Nectar is an all-foam model with a medium firm feel. This is in the range many children find comfortable, so the Nectar will serve your child well throughout growth spurts and changes in sleep preference. The memory foam layer evenly distributes your child’s weight, which we found helps relieve pressure points. The deep contouring also excelled in our motion isolation tests, so your child won’t feel much movement if you lie in bed with them.

What It’s Made of

The cover is made from a blend of polyester, nylon, and polyethylene that our testers found breathable. Next is a comfort layer of gel-infused memory foam that contours to your child’s body. A transitional polyfoam layer beneath gives extra support while acting as a barrier between the comfort and support layers. The support core uses 6 inches of 2.2 PCF polyfoam to stabilize the rest of the mattress.

A lifetime limited warranty and 365-night sleep trial are included with purchasing a Nectar Mattress. This gives families ample time to try out the mattress, with the ability to return it for a full refund if it’s not a good fit for your child.

Younger kids often benefit from a firmer surface to help promote healthy sleep posture. The Bear Cub has a firm (7) feel and a robust coil system that keeps the body on an even plane.

How It Performed

The Cub’s firm feel and foam hybrid construction best suited our side sleepers. The foam layers offered cushioning for sore hips and shoulders, while the coils prevented excessive sinkage. Back- and stomach-sleeping testers who weigh at least 130 pounds also found the mattress comfortable. Temperature control was one of the mattress’ major strengths during our tests. This is largely due to the breathable cover and coil support core, which allows air to circulate through the bed’s interior. The mattress has a responsive feel that was easy for us to move across, and the coils created a sturdy perimeter. Thanks to the supportive edges and 8.5-inch profile, kids should find it easy to get in and out of bed.

What It’s Made of

The comfort system begins with an adaptive memory foam layer that contours to your body to relieve pressure buildup. The foam is infused with cooling gel meant to absorb and dissipate excess heat. A polyfoam transitional layer ensures your weight is evenly distributed across the mattress’ surface and acts as a buffer between your body and the coils.

Pocketed coils make up the support core, offering targeted support to the hips and shoulders to prevent uncomfortable sagging. A breathable Tencel cover encases the mattress. Tencel is derived from eucalyptus, and has cooling and moisture-wicking properties to help kids sleep at a comfortable temperature.

Bear offers free shipping to customers in the contiguous U.S. and a 120-night sleep trial to test the mattress. You can return it anytime after a 30-night break-in period for a full refund. A lifetime warranty backs the Bear Cub if you decide to keep it after the trial period.

Children and preteens often need a mattress that cushions and supports their bodies equally. This helps ensure proper growth and development, as well as night-to-night comfort after they have transitioned from their toddler bed. The Leesa Kids Mattress is designed specifically for children and preteens. Our testers found that the medium firm (6) feel limits sinkage, which should keep your child’s body on an even plane.

How It Performed

During our tests, the Leesa Kids Mattress performed very well with temperature control – an area where many all-foam models tend to earn subpar ratings. The open-cell memory foam coupled with a breathable cover let heat dissipate rather than build up along the surface. The balanced medium firm feel should also prevent young kids from sinking too much or feeling trapped by the mattress. A low 7-inch profile allows the mattress to rest safely in most bunk beds at least 5 inches below the side rails, per current safety guidelines.

What It’s Made of

The Kids Mattress features a three-layer design that begins with a top layer of open-cell memory foam. This material features small air capsules engineered to promote circulation and prevent bothersome heat absorption. The transitional and support layers are composed of polyfoam that we found balances support and contouring. The base layer is much denser to provide adequate reinforcement for your child’s growing body. A knit polyester cover encases the entire mattress.

The Leesa Kids Mattress is available in twin and full sizes, which are reasonably priced. Shipping is also free of charge to customers in all 50 states. Your order includes a sleep trial that allows your child to test the mattress for up to 100 nights and decide if it’s right for them. Should you decide to keep it, you’ll also receive a 10-year warranty against structural defects.

The Saatva Youth is a reversible innerspring mattress designed to accommodate children’s changing mattress needs as they grow older. Since one side is firmer, you can flip the mattress once your child grows too heavy to be supported by the softer side.

How It Performed

The mattress performed well in our temperature neutrality tests since the coil layer allows a substantial amount of airflow throughout the mattress. This ensures your child won’t sleep too hot throughout the night. The thick construction of the coils also gives this bed great edge support, preventing kids from rolling off the bed in the middle of the night. The strong edges and low profile also make it easy for kids to get in and out of bed on their own. The quality of materials ensures a durable mattress that should last into your child’s teenage years.

What It’s Made of

The softer side of the mattress features a zoned polyfoam comfort layer that provided extra support to our testers’ backs and hips while conforming closer to the head, neck, and shoulders. The comfort layer on the firm side is made of higher-density convoluted polyfoam, which felt more supportive overall. In between these two sides is a support core of thick bonnell coils. The cover is composed of breathable organic cotton.

While the Saatva Youth has a slightly above-average price-point, Saatva offers free White Glove delivery, including in-home assembly and old mattress removal, which is rare in the online mattress industry. Saatva also offers a lifetime warranty and 365-night sleep trial for parents who want their child to try the bed before committing.

The Nolah Nurture is a dual-sided foam hybrid with a different firmness on each surface. If you’re looking for a kid-friendly mattress with two firmnesses in one, you should consider this high-quality hybrid model.

How It Performed

The Nurture has a flippable design — we rate one side as  medium soft (4) and the other as firm (7). Children under 130 pounds may prefer the softer side, while kids weighing at least 130 pounds may find the firmer side more comfortable. Across weight categories, side and back sleepers on our test team benefited from the Nurture’s pressure-relieving foam comfort layers and zoned coil design. More responsiveness on the firmer side also prevented back sleepers’ hips from sagging and misaligning the spine. We noticed that the enhanced airflow through the coil support core kept the surface cool.

What It’s Made of

The comfort system features 1 inch of adaptive on the firmer side, and 1 inch of memory foam on the softer side. Both surfaces earned favorable ratings during our pressure tests.

The support core is made from 6-inch pocketed coils, strategically zoned to support the hips and shoulders. The mattress is encased in a cover made from GOTS-certified organic cotton, a naturally breathable material that kept the surface cool to the touch during our tests. An organic wool fire barrier helps the surface stay cool by wicking moisture away from your body.

Nolah offers free shipping to the contiguous U.S. and a 120-night sleep trial. Sleep trials of any length are an asset to parents, especially if the child is particular about the feel of their bed. Nurture purchases come with a generous lifetime warranty.

If your child sleeps hot or your family resides in a place prone to extreme weather, a cooling mattress can make a huge impact on sleep quality. The Dreamfoam Hybrid from Brooklyn Bedding is engineered to resist heat buildup, wick moisture away from the body, and promote airflow — all qualities that help ensure a comfortable sleep temperature for your little one.

How It Performed

As a medium firm (6) foam hybrid, the mattress provides a nice balance of contouring, support, and bounce. Our testers noticed deep cushioning when they got into bed and strong pushback from the coil system as their bodies settled. Cooling gel infused into the comfort layer prevented excessive heat buildup and the coils promoted decent airflow. We also enjoyed the responsive feel and awarded the mattress high marks for ease of movement and edge support.

The Dreamfoam Hybrid received its most favorable ratings from side sleepers between 130 and 230 pounds, but the mattress earned a positive response from our side and back sleepers across all weight groups. Stomach sleepers up to 230 pounds also felt comfortable and adequately supported. 

What It’s Made of

The hybrid begins with a layer of fiber fill quilted into the cover, followed by 2.5 inches of adaptive, gel-infused memory foam. This comfort system responds slowly to movement, resulting in a deep cradle and even weight distribution for the entire body. Pocketed coils and base foam make up the support system. A cotton-poly cover encases the mattress. A total of 12 sizes are available. You can choose from standard mattress dimensions as well as several RV sizes including a bunk-friendly option. 

The mattress is highly affordable compared to the average hybrid and Brooklyn Bedding offers free ground shipping throughout the contiguous U.S. All orders come with a 120-night sleep trial, during which your child can test the mattress. If they aren’t satisfied, returns are free of charge, but you’ll receive a 10-year warranty against structural defects if you decide to keep the Dreamfoam Hybrid.

If you want to buy an environmentally friendly mattress for your child, the Avocado Eco Organic Kids Mattress is a great option. The comfort layer consists of naturally springy Dunlop latex certified organic by the Global Organic Latex Standard, a leading authority for sustainably sourced latex products. The mattress also contains an organic wool fire barrier, pocketed coils made from recycled steel, and an organic cotton cover. Additionally, Avocado holds carbon negative status. This means the company offsets more than 100% of its emissions through green manufacturing and shipping practices.

How It Performed

Like other latex hybrids we’ve tested, the Eco Organic Kids Mattress has an exceptionally springy feel. This should help your child move across the surface without sinking when they get in and out of bed. The latex is ventilated, a wool fire barrier wicks away moisture, and the coils promote steady air circulation. Thanks to these components, we don’t expect bothersome heat retention to be a major issue.

The mattress has a firm (7) feel intended to promote healthy growth and development for children. Zoned coils provide extra reinforcement beneath the midsection without making the rest of the mattress feel too stiff. The coils are also thicker around the perimeter to prevent deep sinkage when your child sleeps close to the edges of their bed.

What It’s Made of

A layer of organic wool rests beneath the cover and serves as the mattress’ fire barrier. This material and the organic cotton cover have both received certification from the Global Organic Textile Standard. The latex is produced using the Dunlop process, resulting in a dense material that lightly cushions the body. Pocketed coils make up the support core.

The Eco Organic Kids Mattress measures 7 inches thick and is available in twin, twin XL, and full sizes, so it should be compatible with most bunk beds and child-friendly bed frames. We recommend measuring any bunk bed to make sure there are at least 5 inches of clearance between the guard rails and the surface of the mattress.

Avocado offers free ground shipping throughout the contiguous U.S. A complimentary copy of “My Blue Planet,” a kids book produced by Avocado, is included with each purchase. The Eco Organic Kids Mattress comes with a 100-night trial period, and parents who choose to keep it also receive a 10-year warranty.

Many mattresses made today are suitable for adults and kids alike, but the Nest Bedding Puffin is specifically designed for young children. The Puffin consists of three layers of dense, supportive foam to promote growth and development. A slim 7-inch profile makes the mattress compatible with bunk beds and standard bed frames.

How It Performed

We noticed above-average responsiveness while testing the Puffin. The all-polyfoam construction and firm (7) feel create considerable bounce that makes it easier for kids to move across the surface and get in and out of bed. Phase change material infused into the cover helps offset the heat retention that can occur with foam mattresses, so the Puffin also earned positive ratings during our temperature control tests.

What It’s Made of

The Puffin begins with a half-inch of polyfoam quilted into the cover, followed by an Energex polyfoam comfort layer that combines the cushioning of memory foam with the responsiveness of latex. A high-density polyfoam base completes the design. The polyester cover is infused with phase change material to dissipate heat on contact, maintaining a cool, comfortable surface at all times.

The Puffin has a weight capacity of 110 pounds and measures 7 inches tall. Twin, twin XL, and full sizes are available. We recommend double-checking the dimensions of your child’s bunk bed to ensure at least 5 inches between the mattress’ surface and the top of the guard rails.

The Puffin is competitively priced and shipping is free for all orders within the contiguous U.S. Your order includes a 30-night trial period. The mattress is backed by a lifetime manufacturer’s warranty against structural defects, and you can purchase additional coverage against spills and other types of physical damage for 3, 5, or 10 years.