Sleepopolis is supported by readers. Product links on Sleepopolis are referral links. If you use one of these and buy something Sleepopolis makes a little bit of money. See how it all works here. Major Update: Check out our updated Tuft & Needle mattress review here. T&N has made some major changes since I originally published this piece. For Sleepopolis regular readers you may already know that Tuft & Needle hasn’t always been one of my favorite mattresses. A little over 6 months ago I was in the market for a new mattress and a co-worker of mine recommended I give the Tuft & Needle a try, which I did. All things considered, it was a good mattress and a great company, but after just a few nights it was apparent that it wasn’t the right mattress for me. The mattress at the time was quite simply too firm for my back. However, Tuft & Needle has been on the warpath these last 6 months and their mattress and foam formulation has gotten a complete overhaul. Tuft & Needle listened to their consumer feedback and went back to the drawing board.
Within the last 6 months the team at Tuft & Needle has made more than a dozen major changes to the mattress addressing consumer feedback, complaints, and other issues.A completely new and dramatically improved mattress. ’s most popular rated mattress. So with that said, let’s dive in and take a look at the major changes to Tuft & Needle. The biggest complaint, by far, that Tuft & Needle has received within the last several months has been around the firmness. As I mentioned above, the mattress was just a bit too firm for me when I originally tried it. Tuft & Needle took this feedback from their customers and began to go back to the drawing board of their foam formulation. The new foam delivered the same great support that so many have raved about on Amazon, but with considerable improvement to the softness. The new Tuft & Needle has a much softer feel and is closer to a true neutral firmness. This one isn’t as much of a change, but it’s so critically important, and it’s something I wasn’t aware of 6 months ago.
Unlike most mattress companies Tuft & Needle doesn’t use latex foam, Avena foam, memory foam, or any other patented foam. Because they simply don’t have as much control over the support and comfort of those foams. Tuft & Needle’s foundation isn’t in design or marketing, and they don’t have an army of venture capitalists backing them. At the core they are engineers trying to solve the problems that plague the mattress industry, all from an engineer’s angle. And what do engineers want most? Formulaic control of their product, data driven feedback from their customers, and an experience that simply works. Since they make their own foam they have incredible control over every aspect of the feel. By changing certain variables in the formulation and/or pouring process they are able to dial in support, comfort, firmness, cooling, sinkage, and virtually every other criteria you could imagine. Hybrid foam mattresses are fairly standard in the online factory direct mattress market.
In fact, Tuft & Needle itself was something of a 3-layer hybrid mattress when they first launched. Their newest model has gone from 3-layers down to 2. Instead of having two separate layers, one for support and one for comfort, they have developed a foam formulation that combines these into a single 3 inch layer. In addition to simply being softer, the new Tuft & Needle foam formulation has been designed to promote additional cooling. The foams draw heat away from your body as you sleep and expel the heat through the sides and bottom, resulting in a mattress that sleeps cool immediately and constantly, even after laying down all night. The active cooling is aided by the reduced number of layers and glue in the mattress, both of which help air to flow more freely. Quite frankly, I’m impressed with the new Tuft & Needle. They have always been a great mattress, even when they were too firm for me, but their ability to quickly adapt to the needs of consumer and create a truly adaptive and dynamic product is something to admire.
If you were on the fence before about the Tuft & Needle due to firmness concerns I would recommend giving them a second look.We receive free products to review and participate in affiliate programs, where we are compensated for items purchased through links from our site (at no cost to the buyer). See our for our list of comped products and affiliate programs. If you sleep on your side and have the wrong mattress, it can lead to shoulder pain or hip pain. A good mattress for side sleeping should conform to your body, taking the pressure off your hips and shoulders and aligning your spine so that your muscles can relax. Thus for side sleepers specifically we recommend buying a mattress online. Don’t get roped in by a two-minute test in a store — that will tell you nothing about ultimate feel and durability in the long run. Online companies typically have a trial period (up to 100 nights in some cases) where you can return the mattress for a full refund if it doesn’t suit your preferences.
You should definitely do your research before buying, but at least this trial process takes away the risk of you being stuck with a mattress for years that actually isn’t a great fit. I have reviewed a number of mattresses that claim to be good for side sleepers, however I’ve narrowed down my top 4 for the purpose of this review. My top 3 are: These mattresses are not necessarily #1 in my overall mattress reviews, but they do rate the highest when considering side sleepers. Note these are all high-quality mattresses that I consider very durable, with GhostBed as an option for those with a little less of a budget. Amerisleep is very high quality memory foam and ranks at the top of my memory foam mattress list as well. They have a few models, for side sleepers I would go with a softer option (their Liberty, Colonial, or Independence are good choices). Amerisleep in general is very comfortable (in my opinion) and very good value (get an extra $50 off here).
They also have some unique cooling features in their foam and some very cool features in general, learn more in my full Amerisleep review. Layla is a relatively small and unknown memory foam mattress mattress company, but we need to mention them due to their great specs and price. Layla easily compares to models that are 3x expensive in stores (see more details on their website). The mattress is flippable, with two relatively soft options for sleepers. Read my Layla mattress review for a full analysis of the specs. Layla also delivers only online, passing on some of the savings of not having retail stores to buyers. Layla stands out from the competition in my mind because the memory foam is copper infused, so it sleeps cooler than most memory foam mattresses. Loom and Leaf is designed to be a luxury memory foam mattress at an affordable price (see more HERE). The mattresses is sold only online, so it can compete with some of the top memory foam brands in terms of specs (think Tempur-pedic) at a fraction of the price.
They’re not marking up the product by a huge margin just to fund retail locations. The company uses very high quality memory foam that offers side sleepers great support. Learn more about this mattress in my full Loom & Leaf review. Loom & Leaf is made by an online innerspring mattress company (Saatva) that has been in the game a long time. They wanted to take on the high-end of the memory foam market, and Loom & Leaf is doing just that. The mattress comes in three firmness settings: soft, medium, and firm. For side sleepers, we definitely recommend either the soft or the medium. The great thing about memory foam (especially quality memory foam like you get with Loom & Leaf) is that it has the best tradeoff between comfort and support while providing great orthopedic benefits. People often tell us their backs feel better after sleeping on these mattresses. GhostBed is similar to a lot of medium tier mattresses on the market (think Casper competitors), however they have made a few key changes that makes them one of my preferred mattresses in the price range, and a good fit for side sleepers.
They added an extra inch of comfort layer foam (the mattress is 11 inches total), which as discussed is good for pressure relief and spinal alignment. They also invested in higher quality foams throughout, which gives me more confidence in the durability. Finally, GhostBed comes out of Nature’s Sleep, a company that’s been doing large volume in the mattress game for a long time. Nature’s Sleep appears to have leveraged their volume to edge out even the biggest online players in terms of price. Get the full read on this mattress in my GhostBed review. If you sleep on your side, you are going to be naturally putting a lot of pressure on your hips, shoulders, and neck, which can cause tension throughout the spine. To sleep comfortably, you want a mattress that is soft enough to relieve those pressure points. Foam mattresses tend to be great at relieving pressure points and can be ideal for this aspect of sleeping on your side. If a mattress is too firm, it will cut off a lot of the blood circulation in your body, and it will potentially cause major aches and pains because it doesn’t contour to the widest points in the hips and shoulders.
It could lead to waking up in the middle of the night a lot, as well as a significant amount of tossing and turning as your body struggles to find a supportive position. A mattress that is too firm is something you want to avoid if you spend most of your time sleeping on your side. As I mention in my Tempur-Contour Supreme review, not all mattresses are suited for side sleepers. It is critical for your health that you find a mattress that contours well to your body and supports the natural alignment of your spine. If you sleep on your side and the mattress is too firm, your neck won’t be properly supported and your spine will be thrown off its natural alignment. This could lead to back and neck pain fairly easily, which may compound over time. That’s yet another reason why purchasing online from a company with a 100 night free trial can be so beneficial. You truly get to test to see what works for you! If the mattress is too soft, you could sink in too much and your spine will be too curved.