Looking for the best mattress for your money? To cut through the clutter of advertising you'll see out there, Consumer Reports has a look at the best mattresses and mattress retailers. The magazine broke out their findings by category: Traditional innerspring, memory foam and adjustable air. In each category, Consumer Reports recommends a best buy, as well as other mattresses they recommend based on ratings. Innerspring: The Denver Mattress Doctor's Choice for $500. The Sealy Posturepedic Hybrid Trust Cushion for $1,275 is also a best buy in this category, with a higher rating, but it's obviously a bit more expensive. Memory foam: Tuft & Needle Ten for $600. (Message from Tuft & Needle: "We don't actually use any memory foam in our mattress. We use our own time of polyfoam, T&N Adaptive™ foam. We created it with a foam scientist to have the pressure relief and comfort of memory foam and the breathability and support of latex foam.") The Novaform 14" Serafina Pearl Gel (Costco) is also a "best buy" pick for this category, but it's more expensive at $800.
Adjustable air: Sleep Number c2 Bed for $800. It's important to remember that price does not necessarily equate to satisfaction with mattresses. A more expensive mattress may not make for a better product. For more tips on finding the right mattress for you, check out Consumer Reports' buying guide here. Read more: What you need to know about sleeping pills On the question of retailers, Consumer Reports ranked the Original Mattress Factory stores as the top choice for customer satisfaction. Costco Wholesale was a close second. The high placement for Costco may reflect their return policy on mattresses: A full money back refund without penalty and no time limit. That really makes Costco stand apart! I particularly like the warehouse clubs for mattress shopping, and I've long advised people to test the mattress right there in the store for an extended period. Bring a book or tablet to Costco or Sam's Club and get those mattresses off the displays or yank them off the walls.
Then lay there for 15 minutes and see how you like the feel before you buy. There's one more option I want to mention to you. Casper is a new mattress company that's beloved by millennials. Their mattress comes via package delivery in this tiny box and you open it and watch it unfold before your eyes. The mattress, which sells for between $500 and $950, is made of memory foam and latex. Here's the reason a lot of young people really like this company: Casper gives you 100 nights to test out their mattress. If you don't like it, you send it back for 100% refund.There comes a point in many people’s lives when they realize, “That couch has got to go.” Or maybe their back is starting to complain about the mattress they’ve had so long they can’t remember what year they bought it. Regardless of what your reason may be for wanting new furniture, be strategic about when you purchase new items to revamp your home without breaking the bank. While January is also a great month to buy furniture (post-Christmas sales, new styles are released in February), July wins out over January because:
Springtime is when home sales are on the upswing, which means eager furniture retailers want to help people furnish their homes quickly by offering deals and discounts on indoor furniture. Don’t buy outdoor furniture in spring because patio sets, barbecues and poolside furniture are all in very high demand — with higher consumer demand, comes higher prices. Once summer rolls around, furniture sales seem to slump, especially in July (if it weren’t for discounts bringing in customers, retailers would be in trouble). Use this slump in sales to your advantage, and buy indoor furniture at heavily discounted prices in July before retailers release dozens of new items in August. Although August is a big month for new furniture sets, it’s a great month to buy outdoor furniture too. You just may have to bundle up or wait a while before you and your partner get to share a meal at your new patio table. Looking for a new swivel chair, desk or other office furniture?
Fall is the best times to invest in new office furniture, as retailers compete for students’ parents’ money. Buying spring or summer-related furniture — such as patio chairs or grills — is also a smart move during the autumn months. Retailers want to completely clear their shelves of outdoorsy items that don’t stand much of a chance of selling until the weather warms up next spring. Wintertime isn’t fun for furniture shopping. Before Christmas, people are simply too busy buying gifts and gadgets for their loved ones to be concerned with upgrading their beds, ottomans or recliners. As previously mentioned, January is still a decent bet for favorable furniture prices, even if the weather conditions are, well, frightful. If you have money leftover from the holiday shopping season and want to buy a new mattress or indoor furniture, then definitely look into buying furniture in January. Local furniture stores don’t always follow market trends. Sometimes, they’ll have a sale simply for the sake of boosting their sales numbers for the month, giving you great deals on everything from coffee tables to bed sets.
Patience is the key when trying to save on your next furniture purchase. If you can wait, you can find great deals all year long. But still, try to buy in July. You’ll save a bundle. This page doesn’t exist or can’t be found. To find something you’ll like, click a category above or use the search box.A Month-by-Month Guide to the Best Time to Buy EverythingBased on data from price-tracking sites DealNews and FatWallet, MONEY created this month-by-month guide to snagging the best deals on everything. Want to see every month in one place? Download the whole list as a handy chart. And check out these other smart strategies for timing your purchases.AprilWhat to buy:Home, garden, and auto supplies; spring clothingSample 2015 deal:40% off Craftsman tools at SearsMayWhat to buy:Home furnishings, home goodsSample 2015 deal:60% off clearance at Williams-Sonoma decorJuneWhat to buy:Tools and home improvement materialsSample 2015 deal:57% off tools at Home DepotJulyWhat to buy:Swimwear, summer entertaining goods, air conditionersSample 2015 deal:37% off LG air conditioners at AmazonAugustWhat to buy:Laptops, summer clothingSample 2015 deal