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Written by
Daniel Noyed, Certified Sleep Coach
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Following our latest round of product testing, we've updated this page to feature the SleepOvation Mattress as our pick for best pressure relief. The Luxury Firm WinkBed remains our best overall mattress for seniors.
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We all understand the importance of a good night’s sleep. But as we age, natural changes in our sleep cycle and the increasing prevalence of chronic health conditions can make getting a restful night of sleep more difficult.
Your mattress matters. The right bed—one that suits the unique needs of seniors—can mean the difference between a full 8 to 9 hours of sleep or a restless night of uncomfortable tossing and turning.
We’ve picked our top best mattresses for seniors and outlined what makes these beds the best choice for adults over the age of 65. We also highlight the challenges seniors face when it comes to getting a good night’s sleep and take a look at the most important mattress purchase considerations for seniors.
Best Overall
The WinkBed is an innerspring mattress with an impressive array of features and options. The mattress is available in four firmness options, including the Luxury Firm WinkBed that offers a balanced medium firm (6) feel for seniors who enjoy cushioning for their body but also need a fair amount of support.
The mattress is made with a thick comfort system that consists of multiple foam layers that contour evenly without sinking too much. This level of conforming promotes spinal alignment, and offers moderate pressure point relief and excellent lumbar support for seniors. For this reason, we consider the Luxury Firm WinkBed a worthwhile option for seniors with back pain. The mattress is also a good option for couples because of its ability to minimize motion transfer.
The coil-based support system provides a slight bounce, while keeping sleepers cool due to superior airflow through the mattress. As a result, the Luxury Firm WinkBed has excellent temperature regulation. The coils are also zoned to reinforce the midsection and reduce perimeter sinkage.
WinkBeds ship for free anywhere in the contiguous United States. The Luxury Firm WinkBed is also protected with a 120-night sleep trial and a lifetime warranty.
Best Value
The Nectar Mattress is made from body-hugging memory foam engineered to minimize aches and pains associated with pressure buildup. The flagship Nectar Sleep model has a modest price-point, making it a great option for value seekers.
The mattress is an all-foam design with a medium firm (6) feel, which is one of the most popular firmness levels for sleepers. At 12 inches thick, the mattress shouldn’t require sheets with extra-deep pockets. A breathable knit cover made from polyester, nylon, and polyethylene encases the entire mattress. The quilted pattern gives the cover a plush feel.
Aside from the cover, the mattress features three distinct layers. A 3-inch comfort layer of memory foam cradles the body and alleviates pressure points without sinking too much. The foam also incorporates gel infusions intended to dissipate excess heat.
Next is a layer of transitional polyfoam that offers some bounce while preventing sleepers from sinking into the core. The 7-inch support base is made from high-density polyfoam that is meant to reinforce the top layers and stabilize the mattress. The all-foam design also ensures excellent motion isolation and little to no transfer across the surface, which can benefit anyone whose sleep is disrupted by their partner’s movements.
Nectar Sleep offers free shipping to the contiguous U.S. and delivers to Alaska and Hawaii for a fee. The company allows customers to try out its mattresses for 365 nights, which is a longer-than-average sleep trial. The Nectar Mattress is also backed by a limited lifetime warranty that covers manufacturing and material defects.
Most Comfortable
The DreamCloud Mattress is a hybrid bed with a foam and coil design. With a quilted cover made from a cashmere blend fabric, this bed is likely to satisfy sleepers who prioritize beds that feel cool and comfortable.
The bed has a medium firm (6) feel and begins with a layer of gel-infused memory foam that conforms closely to the body. The cover is quilted with polyfoam to further enhance the plush feel of the surface. Beneath is a transition layer of polyfoam that is firmer than the memory foam but still offers ample contouring, followed by pocketed boils that comprise the support core. The bed should sleep fairly cool, thanks to the air circulation enabled by the coil system. The gel infusion in the foam is also meant to minimize heat retention, while the cashmere blend fabric naturally absorbs excess heat.
If you are a side sleeper who weighs up to 230 pounds, this bed should feel quite comfortable. The cushioned comfort layer provides excellent relief to the shoulders and hips for people who sleep in this position, while the coils offer sufficient support for the lower back. Back sleepers should also receive enough support to keep their backs on an even plane, while the plush surface minimizes pressure buildup along the spine.
DreamCloud offers a generous 365-night trial and lifetime warranty with this mattress. The company also provides free shipping within the contiguous U.S.
Best for Side Sleepers
Helix produces a wide array of mattress models to accommodate a variety of body types and sleep preferences. The Helix Midnight Luxe is a hybrid bed that provides an even balance of cushion and support. Building upon the basic Midnight model, the Luxe is designed with enhanced lumbar support that can help sleepers who are experiencing pain or discomfort in the lower back.
The bed is a 14-inch model with a medium firm (6) feel. Two comfort layers of memory foam cradle the body closely, followed by an inch of transitional polyfoam that provides cushion but is also firm enough to keep the body from sinking into the support core. With a quilted pillow-top that further enhances the plush surface, the foam layers provide excellent cushion to help avoid pressure buildup in areas like the shoulders, hips, and spine. Meanwhile the support core contains pocketed coils with a zoned design that bolsters support to the lower back to prevent unhealthy spinal alignment.
This model caters especially to side sleepers, who benefit from cushioned surfaces more than other sleep positions. Side sleepers put pressure on the shoulders and hips and need a surface that prevents pressure buildup in these areas. Some back sleepers may also find this bed quite comfortable, thanks to the supportive design. Side and back sleepers who weigh over 230 pounds may find the bed is too soft to provide sufficient support.
Helix offers a 100-night sleep trial with this mattress as well as a 15-year warranty. Shipping is free throughout all 50 states.
Best for Back Pain
The Firmer WinkBed is constructed with a comfort system that moderately conforms to the body, and a zoned support core. This combination is beneficial for sleepers with back pain who need extra support to promote spinal alignment.
The Firmer WinkBed’s construction begins with a quilted Euro-top featuring a layer of gel-infused polyfoam. This gives the surface a plush initial feel, while the cooling gel is meant to keep you cool. Underneath is a layer of SupportCell polyfoam that prevents you from sinking too deeply into the mattress. This layer also acts as a buffer between the comfort layer above and the coils.
The support core contains pocketed coils that move independently when compressed, offering targeted support to heavier areas of the body. The coils are arranged in a zoned configuration with thicker springs beneath the midsection and along the perimeter. This limits sinkage across the sleep surface and along the edges without sacrificing gentle cradling for lighter areas of the body.
Our testing found the firm (7) feel benefited back and stomach sleepers, providing an even sleep surface and ample pushback to support the midsection. Side sleepers who weigh over 230 pounds may also appreciate the extra support. Hot sleepers should find the Firmer WinkBed particularly comfortable. The cover is composed of breathable Tencel material that wicks moisture away from the body. The coils also promote cooling by enabling steady airflow through the mattress’ interior.
Shipping is free for all orders in the contiguous U.S. The Firmer WinkBed comes with a 120-night trial period and a lifetime warranty.
Best for Spinal Alignment
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The Nolah Evolution 15 is sold in three firmness options: medium (5), medium firm (6), and firm (8). This selection makes the mattress a good option for most people regardless of their weight or sleep position. The luxurious Euro-top design creates an invitingly plush feel when you get into bed, while a sturdy coil system prevents excessive sinkage.
Multiple foam layers contour evenly to distribute weight and eliminate pressure along the spine. The mattress uses proprietary foams engineered to dissipate – rather than absorb – heat, so people shouldn’t feel excessively warm on the Evolution 15. The support core contains pocketed coils that are zoned to reinforce the midsection and prevent excessive perimeter sinkage.
The Evolution 15 offers excellent temperature neutrality thanks to its heat-resistant foams, breathable cover, and consistent internal airflow. Sturdy edge support also eases the process of getting in and out of bed for people with mobility limitations.
Ground shipping is free for all orders in the contiguous U.S. The Evolution 15 is backed by a 120-night sleep trial that customers can opt out of to lower their up-front costs. All mattress purchases include a lifetime warranty against structural defects.
Best for Hip Pain
The Leesa Legend is a sophisticated hybrid that features a unique coil-on-coil design. The mix of foam and coils strikes a perfect balance of cushioning and support to help people who are experiencing painful pressure buildup in the hips.
The mattress begins with a layer of aerated polyfoam to promote airflow and cooling near the surface, followed by a second comfort layer of memory foam that contours evenly to the body. The foam layers absorb movement and reduce motion transfer to a noticeable extent, so couples can sleep soundly through the night without disturbances.
The third comfort layer consists of pressure-relieving microcoils encased in foam around the midsection to provide zoned support for your back and hips. While the mattress is medium firm (6), this microcoil layer ensures most people won’t sink too much – particularly back sleepers, who often require added support to prevent pressure points from building up around the spine.
Other components include a transitional layer of dense polyfoam and a pocketed coil support core. These layers stabilize the entire mattress and reinforce the perimeter against deep sinkage, allowing you to move across the mattress with ease and sit along the edges without sinking too much. The Leesa Legend is fairly responsive, resulting in a bouncy surface that can help relieve pressure in sore joints. The coil layers also promote steady airflow to help maintain a comfortable core temperature for the mattress.
Leesa offers free ground shipping to all 50 states. The Legend is backed by a 100-night sleep trial and a 10-year warranty.
Best Pressure Relief
Use this SleepFoundation.org link for the most current discount on SleepOvation mattresses
Most hybrids sold today feature individually pocketed coils that are designed to move independently from one another, creating a support core that delivers plenty of reinforcement and pushback without generating excessive motion transfer. The SleepOvation Mattress builds on this idea with “tiny mattresses,” which consist of individually encased, rectangular foam comfort layers over singular coils. This innovative system provides extra cushioning for the shoulders, lower back, and hips, and gentler cradling for lighter areas of the body that are not as susceptible to pressure buildup.
Channels between the tiny mattresses promotes steady airflow throughout the interior of the mattress. This helps ensure excellent cooling even compared to other hybrids, which are known for above-average temperature control. Motion isolation is another major strength of the SleepOvation Mattress. The foam layers absorb movement on each side of the mattress and prevent transfer from spreading elsewhere, so you and your partner can sleep soundly even when the other person changes positions or tosses and turns during the night.
Our testing found that the SleepOvation Mattress is best suited for side sleepers, particularly those who weigh up to 230 pounds. People who use this position are more prone to pressure points, and the tiny mattresses offer close contouring thanks to the SleepOvation’s medium (5) feel. Back and stomach sleepers weighing less than 130 pounds may also find the mattress comfortable. As an added bonus, the cover is removable and can be laundered in any household machine. This allows you to maintain a clean, hygienic sleep surface at all times.
The SleepOvation Mattress has earned a GREENGUARD Gold certification, meaning it has been tested for chemical omissions against the highest standards used today. Customers in the contiguous U.S. qualify for free ground shipping with their purchase. The mattress is backed by a 100-night sleep trial with a 30-night break-in requirement, as well as a 10-year warranty against structural defects.
Best for Couples
30% off all GhostBed mattresses & 2 free pillows. Free weighted blanket ($479 Value) with a minimum $1.5k order.
The GhostBed Flex is a pillow-top hybrid with a balanced medium firm (6) feel that should appeal to sleepers who need a combination of contouring and support. A layer of foam quilted into the cover makes the mattress feel invitingly plush when you get in and out of bed, and two layers of memory foam provide additional cushioning. The support core contains thick pocketed coils that are reinforced along the edges to help you get on and off the mattress without sinking excessively.
The Flex should be ideal for anyone who weighs 130 to 230 pounds, especially those who sleep on their sides. The memory foam layers also absorb movement very well and reduce a significant amount of transfer, which can help ensure a good night’s rest for you and your partner regardless of the other person’s movements in bed. At the same time, the coils make the surface feel somewhat responsive. This makes the mattress easy to move across and delivers good springiness for sex.
The coils promote consistent airflow to help the mattress maintain a comfortable temperature. Another thermoregulating component is the cover made of proprietary Ghost Ice fabric that feels cool to the touch and dissipates body heat on contact. The memory foam layers are infused with gel for added breathability.
The Flex is competitively priced and GhostBed ships the mattress free of charge throughout the contiguous U.S. The company’s sleep trial spans 101 nights in length, and those who keep the mattress also receive a manufacturer’s warranty that covers structural defects for up to 25 years.
Buying a new mattress represents a significant purchase for most adults. This is especially true for seniors who are more likely to experience recurring aches and pains in their backs and joints. The right mattress can make getting into and out of bed easier, promote spinal alignment, and relieve painful pressure points in sensitive areas.
Unfortunately, mattress companies often use confusing industry jargon in their marketing materials. This can make finding the right mattress harder than it needs to be. Let’s take a look at what really matters when choosing a mattress.
Each mattress type—defined by its internal construction and materials—has its own advantages and disadvantages. While some mattress types may overall offer features that are better for seniors, there can be variation within each category depending on the brand and specific model. Some types also have a greater range of diversity than others. That’s why it’s important to understand the characteristics of each type of mattress and carefully consider which will best suit your needs.
Definition: Hybrid mattresses contain an innerspring support core made with pocketed coils and a substantial comfort system made with another material such as foam or latex.
Best of Both Worlds: Hybrids aim to combine mattress materials to capture the benefits of foam/latex as well as traditional metal coils while minimizing each material’s potential disadvantages. That means hybrid mattresses offer a great combination of features for seniors—they’re responsive with excellent airflow while providing a quiet sleep experience and contouring that relieves pressure points.
Definition: Innerspring mattresses represent the oldest type in the mattress industry. They are composed of a core of metal coils and an outer covering layer. While the outer layer may be made of foam, latex, cotton, or polyester, it usually does little to change the feel of the mattress. Innerspring mattresses tend to be highly resilient or bouncy.
Low Price Point: As innerspring mattresses have waned in popularity, they tend to represent the most inexpensive, entry-level model offered by mattress retailers. Unfortunately, since the completely coiled construction makes innersprings difficult to compress and ship cheaply, most online retailers do not offer traditional innerspring mattress models.
Definition: Latex mattresses are constructed entirely with latex. Most online retailers use natural latex made from rubber trees. However, you may also come across mattresses made with synthetic or blended latex.
Cool, Responsive, and Contouring: Latex mattresses provide moderate contouring—they conform to the shape of your body and alleviate painful pressure points without letting you sink too deeply into the mattress surface. Unlike foam mattresses, latex tends to sleep cool and provide greater durability. All of these features make latex a great choice for seniors.
Definition: Airbeds, not to be confused with temporary air mattresses, are constructed with a support core that contains an air-filled chamber. The sleeper can add or remove air with a remote or smartphone app to adjust the firmness level. The comfort and transitional layers of an airbed mattress can be made from different materials including memory foam and latex.
Customizable Sleep Experience: The main advantage of an airbed is its level of adjustability. This is particularly beneficial for seniors who may need to adjust their bed’s firmness as joint aches come and go. Most airbeds come with two air chambers on each side so that couples can adjust each side of the bed separately. Additional chambers along the length of the bed in some models allow you to adjust the firmness for different parts of the body.
Definition: Foam mattresses are constructed entirely out of foam. Different types of foam are typically layered to create an upper comfort layer and a more dense, lower support core. Memory foam is one of the most common materials used in foam mattresses. Polyurethane foam (polyfoam) is another popular material. Latex is sometimes used among the layers, but foam mattresses will not contain coils.
Superior Contouring: All-foam mattresses are the best choice when it comes to contouring, the ability to hug the shape of your body. This is an especially important feature for seniors as it promotes pressure relief in major joint regions such as the hips and shoulders. However, all-foam mattresses tend to have less than ideal temperature regulation.
When choosing the best mattress for seniors, it’s important to consider how age affects sleep. A common belief is that our sleep needs decline as we age. While it’s true that the amount of time we need to sleep each night declines from infancy onwards, this trend levels off once we reach adulthood.
That means seniors still need around eight hours of sleep for optimal health. However, the process of aging introduces some unique challenges that can make it more difficult to get the right amount of sleep each night. So how exactly does age affect sleep?
While the amount of sleep we need stays the same during adulthood, our sleep patterns change as we age. Age-related changes in sleep patterns include:
In addition to the natural changes in sleep patterns, seniors are also more likely to suffer from health conditions that disturb restful sleep.
Seniors face more hurdles when it comes to getting a full night of restful sleep. But good sleep habits can help balance the disturbances that come with age. This includes the mattress you choose.
The right mattress can make a difference. By carefully choosing a mattress that meets the unique needs of aging adults, you can create a better sleep environment that helps you get the rest you need each night.
Now let’s take a look at a few final items that are also important to consider as a senior buying a new mattress. Here we’ll cover how firmness, budget, and warranties should inform your mattress purchase.
As is typically the case, the best level of mattress firmness will depend on the sleeper’s weight, sleep position, as well as personal preferences. However, seniors are more likely to experience chronic aches and pains in the back, hips, and major joints. As a result, older adults may want to stay away from overly firm mattresses which can create painful pressure points for already tender joints. Medium soft, medium, and medium firm mattresses that offer moderate contouring are likely to be the best choices for seniors.
Seniors are often on a fixed income and the potential price tag of a new, high-quality mattress can seem daunting. Fortunately, with increased competition from online mattress retailers, it’s become much easier to find a mattress that fits the unique needs of seniors and their budgets. Online mattresses are often less expensive, since the manufacturer isn’t paying for showrooms and additional staff. These “mattress in a box” models are comparable to those sold in brick-and-mortar stores in terms of construction and performance. All of the mattresses we’ve reviewed for seniors can be purchased online and we included several budget-friendly models.
Although mattress prices are rather straightforward these days, buying a new mattress is still a significant purchase. The mattresses on our list of best mattresses for seniors range from $1199 to $4099 for a queen mattress.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that mattresses are a long term purchase, typically lasting a minimum of 6 years. Moreover, sleep is an integral component of a healthy lifestyle. Weighing how closely a mattress does or does not meet your specific needs as a sleeper should be as important of a consideration in buying a mattress as its price.
One way to protect your investment is to make sure your mattress purchase is covered with a sleep trial and a warranty. Sleep trials give you time to test out a new mattress first hand for a variable period of typically 90 days or more. If you’re not satisfied with your purchase, you can return the mattress within the trial period for a full refund.
Warranties protect you from manufacturing defects. While you still need to take care of your mattress, a warranty may allow you to receive a partial refund or receive a replacement mattress if yours begins to fall apart prematurely. All of the mattresses on our list of best mattresses for seniors come equipped with a sleep trial and warranty coverage.
Certified Sleep Coach
Danny is a Certified Sleep Science Coach with an in-depth knowledge of sleep health. He has tested hundreds of mattresses and sleep products.
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