7 Best Mattresses for Side Sleepers, According to Pros 2022
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If you’ve been waking up with sore muscles or joints, feeling hotter than usual at night, struggling with worsening allergies or asthma, or just dealing with poor sleep overall, your mattress might be to blame. And if your mattress is sagging or has gotten noisier or looks worn, it’s definitely time to ditch it. If you sleep on your side, certain features make some options the best mattresses for side sleepers like you, so don’t rush to buy a replacement without knowing what to look for first—especially if you’re buying online.
Here’s some good news: Side sleepers shouldn’t find it hard to find a mattress they love. “Side sleeping is the most common sleeping position,” says Derek Hales, founder and editor-in-chief of NapLab, which tests and reviews mattresses, pillows, and other sleep products. “As a result, most mattress brands design around the needs of side sleepers.”
In This Article 01 Jump to the best mattresses for side sleepers
Which level of mattress firmness is best for side sleepers?
“To get appropriate pressure relief and the correct spinal alignment, side sleepers need a mattress that is somewhere between slightly soft and medium firm,” says Hales. He adds, “Sleeping on your side has more areas of potential pressure point buildup than on your stomach or back. The combination of your body, pillow, and mattress must work together to get your spine into the correct alignment.”
When you’re deciding on a firmness option, you should take your body weight into account, as Hales explains. “In general, the heavier you are, the closer to the medium firm you'll need, especially if you're 250+ [pounds],” he says. “Lighter-weight side sleepers, especially 130 pounds or less, tend to need a mattress that's closer to the slightly soft feel.”
Is it worth buying a mattress online?
If you’re worried about buying online instead of trying out mattresses in person, you should be reassured by most companies’ policies that decrease your risk of ending up stuck with a mattress you’re not happy with. (Plus, online mattress shopping means you don’t have to deal with any pressure from salespeople.)
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Most of the brands below offer home trials of 100 to 365 days, plus free returns. Their product descriptions are extremely thorough (more than you’ll even want to know!), the sites feature a ton of customer reviews, and the mattresses come with multiple-year or lifetime warranties.
To help you stop tossing and turning and make it easier for you to wake up refreshed, we’ve asked Hales to share his recommendations for some of the best mattresses for side sleepers.