Pillow Top Mattresses Review Why Get a Pillow Top Mattress? If you find yourself dreading sleep each night, you might need a pillow top mattress. If lying in bed feels like you’re on a piece of wood, you might need a pillow top mattress. If you spend the night tossing and turning only to wake up with countless aches and pains, you probably need a pillow top mattress. Pillow top mattresses are the solution to solving the pains of a regular spring mattress, utilizing multiple layers of foam and pillow cushioning to give you that unmatched level of comfort needed to fall asleep and stay asleep. Three pillow top mattresses available are the Serta iSeries Ceremony, Sleeping Beauty and the Birchmere Plush Euro. Pillow Top Mattresses: What to Look For The best mattress is one suited to your body’s needs, and only you can determine that. Even the best mattress reviews and clinical studies will tell you how personalized mattress comfort is. If you have back or neck pain, you might prefer a healthy medium between firm and soft.
However, do your own primary research to find your optimal firmness level. Ask a doctor if necessary. And by all means, go to a mattress store to try out many mattress types. Pillow top mattresses offer many sleepers the perfect amount of firm support and soft body contouring, so be sure to try them out. As you examine these mattresses, keep in mind the following attributes. A pillow top bed contains an added layer of cushioning foam atop a traditional spring mattress. The density of the foam contributes to the mattress’s level of firmness, allowing even a pillow top to become quite firm. At the same time, the key selling point of a pillow top is how soft it can become. A soft top layer effectively alleviates pressure points and relieves the causes of pain that most often awake you from sleep. There's more to a mattress than springs. A quality pillow top mattress has high-grade memory foam that's odorless, layered for comfort and durable enough to go decades without losing its shape.
The best mattresses also have springs – or spring alternatives – that isolate movement and hold their form long after the warranty expires. The mattress frame and surrounding tacking should also be high quality as well as pleasing to the eye. Most people change positions while in bed at night, and a bed that proves too small will keep you from moving freely in your sleep. The standard dimensions of a mattress range from the king at 76 x 80 inches and the queen at 60 x 80 inches to the full at 53 x 75 inches and the twin at 38 x 75 inches. A king size pillow top mattress obviously offers the most room to stretch out, but since it also costs the most, other sizes are also smart considerations. A common issue faced by owners of pillow top mattresses is a gradual indentation or the loss of foam integrity. The presence of a dip in the mattress can become quite apparent and detract from a pleasant night’s rest, which means you need a warranty that will protect against common and uncommon problems alike.
And not just any warranty, a warranty that will protect it for years to come. Beds are significant investments, and as such they should be guaranteed to last. The pillow top mattress continues to prove popular due to the soft yet supportive surface it presents sleepers. After spending the night on one big pillow, you’ll never want to go back to spring top mattresses. Mattress Reviews - Summary Memory Foam Mattress Reviews Memory Foam Hybrid Reviews Adjustable Bed Base Reviews Memory Foam Density - Higher Vs Lower Memory Foam Vs Latex Sleep Number Bed Reviews Tempurpedic vs Sleep Number Mattresses and Sex Comparison Mattresses and (Back) Pain Research Mattress Warranties: What You Should Know Buying a Mattress Online: What You Should Know Returning a Mattress: What You Should Know Mattress Buyer's Guide For Large, Heavy Persons Ratings > Pillow Top Mattresses The Truth About Pillow Top Mattresses Review, Ratings, Comparisons and Complaints Based on 1,874 Owner Experiences
What You Need To KnowPillow top mattresses have above-average initial comfort. Tops that include memory foam tend to have above average (back) pain-relief potential and conforming ability.Pillow top mattresses overall are at least two times more likely than non-pillow top mattresses to have problems with durability, off gassing, and heat retention. WHAT IS A PILLOW TOP MATTRESS. Pillow tops are most often found on innerspring beds and perhaps airbeds. A pillow top (or euro top) mattress is generally defined as a mattress with several inches of additional padding sewn into the top. This padding can consist of regular foam, memory foam, latex, fiberfill, cotton, wool. Some tops have an integrated appearance with the mattress (euro top) while others appear to be merely lying on top. A non-pillow top mattress, by contrast, often has only minimal to moderate padding. Pillow Top vs Non-Pillow Top Mattresses The following table compares pillow top and non-pillow top mattresses based on actual consumer experiences.
The findings apply mostly to innerspring mattresses. Pillow top mattresses likely require at least twice the maintenance in regard to (head to foot) rotation. Pillow top beds are on average about 30% more expensive than non-pillow top beds. Sagging of pillow tops can undermine support and possibly cause back pain as a result. Support can be lacking for sleeping or sitting near the edge of pillow top mattresses, especially those with thicker tops. Eurotops (tops that are tapered near the edges) tend to perform better. Pillow tops are more likely to contour to the body and relieve pressure points. Easy to move on / get up off Soft pillow tops with at least two inches of memory foam provide some resistance to movement / changing positions. Pillow top beds often have sophisticated spring systems that keep movement isolated so as to not disturb one's partner. The top itself may also absorb some motion. The conforming ability of most pillow tops can be beneficial to back sleepers.
Side sleepers tend to be most satisfied with pillow tops as they often provide softness for hips and shoulders. Thicker and softer pillow tops may allow stomach sleepers to sink too far into the mattress thereby undermining neck alignment and or breathing ease. Pillow tops are mainly available in medium or soft, and non-pillow tops mainly in medium or firm. Pillow tops with memory foam especially can require extended time for break in. People over 230 pounds may find that they sink too far into thick pillow tops. Pillow tops often provide good comfort but may lack the bounce of non-pillow tops. See mattress sex comparison for general analysis. Pillow top mattresses with their extra material tend to be heavier by about 20% on average. Analysis of Key Issues Owner experience data suggests that a pillow top mattress is initially effective at minimizing pressure points, relieving pain and fostering better sleep. But these benefits often do not continue beyond the first few years – or even the first few months in some cases.
At least 30% of pillow top mattress owners report significant sagging or compression occurring within three years of ownership. By contrast, about 17% of non-pillow top mattress owners report the problem. Sagging, of course, often undermines comfort and support. A person's weight and size do not appear to be the main factor in regard to whether a pillow top will sag / compress as owners weighing under 150 pounds regularly report the problem. The chart below shows the lifespan of pillow tops as a group based on owner experiences. In other words, it shows how long a pillow top maintains all or most of its initial comfort before it sags or compresses. Pillow top mattresses, especially those with memory foam, are at least two times more likely to sleep hot than non-pillow top beds. About 8% of pillow top mattress owners report that their bed acts as a heat trap resulting in an uncomfortably warm sleep surface. By contrast, about 4% of non-pillow top mattress owners report a sleeping hot issue.
(Learn more about mattress heat retention.) INITIAL ODOR / OFF GASSING Initial odor or off gassing refers to smell or gas that a mattress can give off when it is new due to the manufacturing and or packaging process. The intensity of the odor can vary from mattress to mattress, and the odor can last from a few hours to a few months. Non-pillow top mattresses have few complaints regarding off gassing odor. By contrast, about 8% of pillow top bed owners, especially owners of beds with memory foam tops, complain about odor. Learn more about mattress off gassing. Especially when they are new, pillow tops tend to be effective in the relief of pain – including back, hip and shoulder pain – as at least 20% of owners report pain-relief benefits. As the top ages, compresses and sags, at least some pain benefits disappear. In addition, pillow tops with memory foam tend to be more effective in the relief of pain than pillow tops without memory foam. Learn more about mattress pain relief.
PILLOW TOPS: AIRBEDS VS INNERSPRING BEDS Airbeds and innerspring beds are the mattress types most likely to have a pillow top. Any part of an airbed can be replaced, including the pillow top. The top is not permanently attached to the airbed, and, as a result, the existing top can be easily removed and a new top added. The cost of the replacement top may or may not be covered under the warranty. In addition, the pillow top of an airbed can often be easily rotated or flipped to extend its life. In contrast to an airbed, a pillow top on an innerspring mattress is almost always permanently attached and cannot be easily replaced or replaced at all. This likely means that, unlike the case with airbeds, the entire mattress would need to be replaced (or repaired by a professional) if the pillow top lost its comfort. The cost of replacing / repairing the mattress may or may not be covered under the warranty terms. A small number of innerspring mattresses have a pillow top on the front and the back of the bed.
This allows the mattress to be flipped on occasion to increase the lifespan of the pillow top and therefore the lifespan of the entire bed. About Our Mattress Research Our pillow top mattress research findings are based on 1,850+ mattress consumer reviews that were collected using our unbiased, accurate methodology. – While pillow top mattresses tend to have good-to-excellent initial comfort, their long-term comfort is generally no better than fair due to compression and sagging. – Pillow top mattresses overall are about twice as likely to have a problem with initial odor / off gassing than non-pillow top beds. This is usually because pillow top beds include more foam material. – Pillow top beds, especially softer models and those with memory foam, are at least two times more likely to sleep hot than non-pillow top beds. About 8% of pillow top mattress owners report unwanted heat retention. – Pillow tops are mainly available in medium or soft, and non-pillow tops mainly in medium or firm.