Top Mattresses For Comfort and Style

Maybe you’re not quite ready for a new mattress, or maybe your old one has lost its comfort. The right top mattress can bring a new life to your bed.

Pillow top mattresses are padded mattresses with extra padding sewn on top of the mattress cover. They are usually comfortable, but not suitable for all sleeping styles.

Support

A mattress topper can be an inexpensive way to make your bed more comfortable. It sits right on top of your mattress, held in place by straps. They can range in thickness from an inch to eight inches. Thinner ones don’t usually offer much extra support or cushioning, but they can help hide lumps and bumps in your current mattress.

Memory foam conforms with the body and relieves pressure points. It also offers good motion isolation so that partners will not be disturbed as much by each other when changing positions in bed.

This topper comes in six sizes and is made from sustainably cultivated natural latex in the U.S. It is breathable and helps to keep the sleeping surface cool and moist. It’s encased in a cotton cover that looks and feels luxurious. It’s washable and hypoallergenic, resisting mildew and dust mites. It is backed by a generous warranty.

Comfort

This mattress is made with foams which create a plush feeling and a medium amount of body contouring. It offers solid support that promotes spinal alignment and can help relive back pain. It’s a great choice for back, stomach, or side sleepers.

It’s also flippable, so you can choose between a soft or firm side of the bed. It has a layer made of softer latex and a layer made of memory foam.

Comfort varies by person and can be hard to quantify, but this mattress has plenty of positive feedback from our team, including anecdotal evidence like waking up without back pain or never sweating through sheets. It’s also affordable and comes with a generous trial period. However, it doesn’t have the same cradling feel as an all-foam model and tends to compress around the edges more than some other mattresses. You’ll also need a deep fitted sheet to properly cover it.

Durability

A pillow top mattress is one with a thick, soft layer that is stitched or glued to the mattress’ outer cover. It’s usually between 2 and 4 inches thick and can be made of many different materials.

The cushioned top helps to reduce pressure at key points such as the hips and shoulders. It also distributes weight evenly for a better night’s sleep. This is particularly important for those with shoulder, back or hip pain.

Pillow top mattresses tend to sag with time. This is often unavoidable, but rotating the mattress every few months can help prolong its life. Also, pillow top mattresses tend to be deeper than standard mattresses, so it’s important to select sheets that can accommodate the additional cushioning.

Value

The Allswell is the latest mattress-in-a-box from Walmart, and it offers great value at $699 for a queen. It’s a hybrid bed with layers of temperature-regulating foam and copper-gel-infused memory foam. It isn’t as plush as the top ten mattresses but is still comfortable enough for most people.

It also has a very good edge support for a foam mattress. It comes in a variety of sizes including California king, and a huge 80 by 76-inch King for heavyweight couples.

As Tom’s Guide’s mattress expert, Claire is responsible for all sleep product testing for the site. She has years of experience in product testing and is a certified Sleep Coach to help readers find their perfect bed. She has written for The Spruce and Apartment Therapy as well as Livingetc. She loves helping readers solve their sleep problems and wind down well at night. Her favorite mattress is Nest Bedding Alexander medium firm.