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Best Affordable Mattress

Derek Hales

Written by: Derek Hales

Updated On:

High quality, budget-friendly mattresses are hard to find, as the difference between a good bed and a mediocre one is tough to determine at face value.

To find the best affordable mattress we tested 146+ mattresses vs. our battery of objective & data-driven tests. Our tests, analysis, and data showcase the best mattresses at 4 budget-friendly pricing tiers.

The 13 Best Affordable Mattresses

In This Guide
Best Mattress Under $1200 | Best Mattress Under $1000 | Best Mattress Under $800 | Best Mattress Under $500 | Mattresses We Considered | How We Choose |

Best Mattress Under $1200

Latex Hybrid

Awara Logo 150px

Awara

9.70

Price: $1,099
Firmness: Medium-Firm

Copper Memory Foam Hybrid

Bear Logo 150px

Bear Star Hybrid

9.66

Price: $1,299
Firmness: Medium-Firm

Poly Foam Hybrid

Nest Bedding Logo 1

Nest Bedding Quail

9.59

Price: $1,169
Firmness: Medium, Firm

Memory Foam Hybrid

Helix Logo 150px

Helix Sunset

9.57

Price: $1,099
Firmness: Soft

COMBO Foam Hybrid

Leesa Logo 150px

Leesa Original

9.56

Price: $1,099
Firmness: Medium-Firm

Best Mattress Under $1000

Memory Foam

Novosbed Mattress Logo

Novosbed

9.64

Price: $999
Firmness: Soft, Medium-Firm, Firm

Poly Foam Hybrid

Brooklyn Bedding Logo

Brooklyn Bedding Signature

9.63

Price: $999
Firmness: Soft, Medium-Firm, Firm

Gel Memory Foam Hybrid

Zoma Mattress Logo

Zoma Hybrid

9.59

Price: $999
Firmness: Medium

Combo Foam Hybrid

Ghostbed Logo 150px

GhostBed Classic

9.53

Price: $842
Firmness: Medium-Firm

Best Mattress Under $800

gel memory Foam

Bedinabox Mattress Logo

BedInABox Original

9.62

Price: $799
Firmness: Medium-Firm

POLY Foam Hybrid

Emma Mattress Logo

Emma CliMax

9.55

Price: $799
Firmness: Slightly Firm

Best Mattress Under $500

Memory Foam

Siena Mattress Logo

Siena

9.55

Price: $399
Firmness: Medium-Firm

Best Affordable Mattress Under $1200

Top Picks: Awara Hybrid | Bear Star Hybrid | Nest Bedding Quail | Helix Sunset | Leesa Original

Awara Hybrid

Awara Natural Luxury Hybrid Material Layers
9.70 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
9.5 Edge Support
9.8 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.8 Off-Gassing
10 Company

Best For

  • Extremely fast response time
  • Natural materials, organic latex
  • Low motion transfer, 3.72 m/s² accelerometer range

Quick Specs

  • 10″ thick with thin cover
  • 365-night trial
  • Limited lifetime warranty
  • Value Score: 9.6

Why It’s Best

The Awara Hybrid mattress is a 10″ latex hybrid with a 2″ top layer of perforated natural latex. Natural latex has a few advantages like faster response time, limited off-gassing, and higher levels of bounce, compared to other foams.

Typically latex hybrids are more expensive, with an average cost of $1500 for a queen size. The Awara Hybrid comes in 27% below this level, a savings of over $400 for the same size mattress.

Type: Latex Hybrid
Firmness: Medium-Firm (6)

Awara Hybrid Performance

Performance tests on the Awara hybrid revealed exceptional scores across the board, scoring perfect 10s for extremely low levels of motion transfer, very fast response time, and a long trial and warranty.

Having low motion transfer on a latex hybrid can be a big ask for some mattresses. The combination of natural latex plus coils tends to generate a bouncier mattress that may struggle with motion transfer.

But that’s not what we see with the Awara Hybrid, with a max motion transfer of only 3.72 m/s² (average is 7.84 m/s²).

FactorAwara
Overall9.70
Max Temp.90.1° F
Max Sinkage2.63″
Total Motion Transfer3.72 m/s²
Response Time0.2 sec.
Total Bounce15.79″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage4.00″
Edge Support – Lying SupportVery Good
Sex Overall9.8
Comfort Material2.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellModerate
Off-Gassing – Days3 days
Trial365 days
WarrantyLifetime

Bear Star Hybrid

Bear Star Hybrid 2023 Material Layers
9.66 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
9.2 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
10 Edge Support
9.7 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.6 Off-Gassing
9.8 Company

Best For

  • Balanced feel, memory foam contour with fast response
  • Plush, quilted cover with Celliant (cooling fibers)
  • Exceptional edge support

Quick Specs

  • 13″ thick with plush, cooling cover
  • 120-night trial
  • Limited lifetime warranty
  • Value Score: 9.5

Why It’s Best

The Bear Star Hybrid mattress uses pocketed coils, poly foam, and copper-infused memory foam. It has a balanced feel with a medium-firm feel (6 out of 10 on the firmness scale). The Star Hybrid is a fantastic budget-friend all-around hybrid.

The Star Hybrid has a solid performance score of 9.63 overall, which gives it a nice balance of performance and price.

For reference, the Bear Star Hybrid costs $1,299 for a queen, which is just slightly below the average for all hybrids tested to date.

Type: Hybrid
Firmness: Medium-Firm (6)

Bear Star Hybrid Performance

For the price, the performance of the Bear Star Hybrid is excellent with an overall score of 9.66. This mattress has excellent cooling and limited heat retention. The pocketed coils and blended use of poly foam and copper-infused memory foam help to provide a balanced feel.

The Star Hybrid has very deep sinkage of 2.69″. The 2023 redesigned cover created a more plush euro-top with added sinkage for improved pressure relief.

This mattress provides a feel that is active and engaging with an extremely fast 0.3-second response time (mostly recovered) and moderate bounce at 9.05″.

While the deeper sinkage won’t be for everyone, those who prefer the feel (especially side sleepers) will find excellent performance for the money. Bear’s Star Hybrid is a fantastic value by any definition.

FactorBear Star Hybrid
Overall9.66
Max Temp.88.3° F
Max Sinkage2.69″
Total Motion Transfer8.28 m/s²
Response Time0.3 sec.
Total Bounce9.05″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage3.00″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExcellent
Sex Overall9.7
Comfort Material4.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days5 days
Trial120 days
WarrantyLifetime

Nest Bedding Quail

Nest Bedding Quail Material Layers
9.59 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
8.8 Edge Support
9.5 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.9 Off-Gassing
10 Company

Best For

  • Very low levels of motion transfer
  • Extremely fast response time
  • 2 firmness options (medium and firm)

Quick Specs

  • 10″ thick with thin cover
  • 365-night trial
  • Limited lifetime warranty
  • Value Score: 9.8

Why It’s Best

The Nest Bedding Quail mattress is available in two firmness levels—medium (5) and firm (8). It is an all-foam mattress with a 10″ profile that uses primarily poly foam to provide the comfort layers.

Using exclusively poly foam and the thinner profile helps to keep the cost down, while still providing solid performance.

Overall, the Quail scored 9.59, which is above the average score across all mattresses tested to date (9.51).

Type: Foam
Firmness: Medium (5) & Firm (8)

Nest Bedding Quail Performance

Performance tests on the Nest Bedding Quail were very good overall, excelling in most all testing categories.

The mattress has good cooling, low levels of motion transfer, and a fast response time. Within 0.2 seconds the mattress is mostly recovered and by 0.3 seconds the materials have fully rebounded to their original shape.

The only real area where the Quail struggled was edge support, where we measured 5.5″ of sinkage when sitting directly at the edge.

For an all-foam mattress, edge support isn’t an uncommon area to struggle with, but is worth noting if you’re especially sensitive to edge support issues.

Nest Bedding Quail Edge Support Test
Nest Bedding Quail edge support test
FactorNest Bedding Quail
Overall9.59
Max Temp.90.2° F
Max Sinkage2.31″
Total Motion Transfer3.61 m/s²
Response Time0.2 sec.
Total Bounce8.96″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage5.50″
Edge Support – Lying SupportVery Good
Sex Overall9.5
Comfort Material5.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellMinimal
Off-Gassing – Days1 days
Trial365 days
WarrantyLifetime

Helix Sunset

Helix Sunset Foam Layers
9.57 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
8.6 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
9.8 Edge Support
9.6 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.7 Off-Gassing
9.8 Company

Best For

  • Softer feel, ideal for lightweight and / or side sleepers
  • Extremely fast response time
  • Excellent edge support (despite having a soft feel)

Quick Specs

  • 12″ thick with thin cover
  • 100-night trial
  • 10-year warranty
  • Value Score: 9.9

Why It’s Best

The Helix Sunset is a hybrid mattress that uses memory foam, transitional poly foam, and pocketed coils to provide comfort and support. It has a softer feel (4 out of 10 on the firmness scale, where 10 is the most firm) and would be better suited for lightweight or side sleepers.

Despite having a soft feel, it excelled in many areas across the board, including fast response time, good cooling, good pressure relief, and good edge support.

Type: Hybrid
Firmness: Soft (4)

Helix Sunset Performance

Performance on the Helix Sunset mattress is good, with scores in the upper 9’s across the board.

It has moderate bounce and sinkage with a soft feel, while retaining a fast response time and good edge support. When sitting directly at the edge of the mattress, we measured only 3.5″ of sinkage, which is less than the average of 4.31″.

Helix Sunset Edge Support2

Considering the softer feel of the Sunset, I was pleased with the amount of edge support it offered.

The biggest disadvantage is the higher level of motion transfer. In our tests, we measured a motion transfer of 10.60 m/s² on the Sunset. Compared to the average level of 7.87 m/s², the Sunset has 34% more motion transfer than average.

If you’re a light sleeper, this could be problematic, but not all sleepers will be bothered by this level of motion.

FactorHelix Sunset
Overall9.57
Max Temp.91.9° F
Max Sinkage3.07″
Total Motion Transfer10.60 m/s²
Response Time0.4 sec.
Total Bounce8.57″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage3.50″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExcellent
Sex Overall9.6
Comfort Material3.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days4 days
Trial100 days
Warranty10 years

Leesa Original

Leesa Original Foam Layers2
9.56 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
8.8 Edge Support
9.4 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.8 Off-Gassing
9.8 Company

Best For

  • Extremely low motion transfer, 2.06 m/s²
  • Less bounce than average (5.91″ total)
  • A balanced feel with fast response time

Quick Specs

  • 10″ thick with thin cover
  • 100-night trial
  • 10-year warranty
  • Value Score: 9.6

Why It’s Best

The Leesa Original mattress is a 10″ foam mattress designed to meet the needs and desires of most sleepers. It uses 4″ of comfort foam on top, which is a blend of transitional memory foam and a more responsive, poly foam top layer.

Priced at $1099, it’s about 20% more than the cost of an average foam mattress. But considering its balanced feel and appeal to a wider range of sleepers, it can be a good choice for many types of people.

Type: Foam
Firmness: Medium-Firm (6)

Leesa Original Performance

Similar to the Nest Bedding Quail, the Leesa Original tends to excel and struggle in the same areas. It has extremely low levels of motion transfer and relatively low levels of bounce as well (5.91″ total bounce).

The average level of bounce across all mattresses tested to date is 9.62, which means the Leesa Original has 40% less bounce than average.

The Leesa also has 5.5″ of sinkage when sitting directly at the edge. This is the same amount of sinkage we saw on the Nest Bedding Quail. Despite the deeper sitting sinkage, the lying support was excellent.

Leesa Original Back Sleeping2
FactorLeesa Original
Overall9.56
Max Temp.92.1° F
Max Sinkage2.09″
Total Motion Transfer2.06 m/s²
Response Time0.3 sec.
Total Bounce7.94″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage5.50″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExcellent
Sex Overall9.4
Comfort Material4.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days3 days
Trial100 days
Warranty10 years

Best Affordable Mattress Under $1000

Top Picks: Novosbed | Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid | Zoma Hybrid | GhostBed Classic

Novosbed All Foam

Novosbed Material Layers
9.64 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
9.4 Edge Support
9.4 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.7 Off-Gassing
9.8 Company

Best For

  • Very low motion transfer levels, 2.66 m/s² total
  • Extremely fast response time
  • Available in three firmness levels

Quick Specs

  • 11″ thick with Tencel cover
  • 120-night trial
  • 15-year warranty
  • Value Score: 9.9

Why It’s Best

The Novosbed mattress is a memory foam mattress with a 4″ comfort layer and 7″ support layer. It has that classic memory foam feel with high hug and contour, but also while retaining a faster response time.

This mattress is a solid pick if you’re looking for a more traditional memory foam feel on a budget. According to our tests, the average memory foam mattress we’ve tested costs $1242 for a queen, but Novosbed comes in at $999—a savings of 20% from the average cost.

Type: Memory Foam
Firmness: Soft (4), Medium-Firm (6), or Firm (8)

Novosbed Performance

The performance of the Novosbed memory foam mattress is fantastic across the board. Unlike many other foam mattresses we’ve tested, the Novosbed does not really struggle with edge support and only has 4.25″ edge sinkage.

Novosbed Edge Sitting
Novosbed edge support – sitting

The mattress has very fast response time, excellent cooling, and moderate levels of bounce (6.89″ of bounce compared to an average of 9.62″ considering all mattresses tested to date). It also has very low levels of motion transfer, a total acceleration range of 2.66 m/s².

FactorNovosbed
Overall9.64
Max Temp.85.8° F
Max Sinkage1.88″
Total Motion Transfer2.66 m/s²
Response Time0.5 sec.
Total Bounce6.89″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage4.25″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExcellent
Sex Overall9.4
Comfort Material4.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days4 days
Trial120 days
Warranty15 years

Brooklyn Bedding Signature

Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid Medium Material Layers
9.61 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
8.7 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
10 Edge Support
10 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.8 Off-Gassing
9.5 Company

Best For

  • Good cooling with coil and foam materials
  • Excellent edge support
  • High levels of bounce, good for sex performance

Quick Specs

  • 11″ thick + tufted, plush cover
  • 120-night trial
  • 10-year warranty
  • Value Score: 9.9

Why It’s Best

The Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid is a budget-friendly hybrid with wide appeal for many different sleeper profiles. It comes in three different firmness options—soft, medium-firm, and firm.

This mattress has a solid performance score of 9.61 overall, which ranks it in the top 30% among all mattresses tested to date. But what it lacks in score, it makes up for in value.

The Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid mattress costs $999 for a queen, which is 24% less than the average hybrid ($1298). It’s an absolute fantastic value.

Type: Hybrid
Firmness: Soft (4), Medium-Firm (6), Firm (8)

Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid Performance

In terms of performance, the Brooklyn Bedding Signature hybrid is a fantastic value and offers a well-rounded score of 9.61 overall. This mattress scored a perfect 10 for extremely fast response time, exceptional edge support, and a perfect mattress for enhancing sex performance.

Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid Medium Edge Support
Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid medium edge support
Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid Medium Edge Support Vest
Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid medium edge support with vest

It has higher levels of bounce (9.99″), but even this high level of bounce is only slightly beyond the average level of bounce we see among all hybrids (9.69″).

Considering all of the performance factors that we test for, the only real disadvantage to the Signature Hybrid is the level of motion transfer. This mattress generated 10.23 m/s² of motion transfer in our tests.

Comparing this to the average among all hybrids we’ve tested to date (7.65 m/s²), the Signature Hybrid has 25% more motion transfer.

If you’re a sensitive sleeper or sleep with an active partner, this could be a big (or small) factor to consider.

FactorBrooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid
Overall9.61
Max Temp.90.7° F
Max Sinkage2.27″
Total Motion Transfer10.23 m/s²
Response Time0.3 sec.
Total Bounce9.99″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage2.75″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExcellent
Sex Overall10
Comfort Material3.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days3 days
Trial120 days
Warranty10 years

Zoma Hybrid

Zoma Hybrid Material Layers
9.59 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
9.3 Response Time
9.1 Edge Support
9.6 Sex
10 Pressure Relief
9.6 Off-Gassing
9.8 Company

Best For

  • Pressure relief is truly exceptional
  • Excellent support while lying directly on the edge
  • Fantastic value / budget-friendly mattress

Quick Specs

  • 12″ thick + cotton-blend cover
  • 100-night trial
  • 10-year warranty
  • Value Score: 9.9

Why It’s Best

The Zoma Hybrid mattress contains a mix of memory foam, poly foam, and pocketed coils for support It has a medium feel, 5 out of 10 on the firmness scale.

This mattress has a good performance score of 9.59 overall. While this score may not sound especially impressive, the lower price point relative to the performance makes it a solid value.

The Zoma Hybrid mattress costs only $999 for a queen, which is 24% less than the average hybrid ($1298).

Type: Hybrid
Firmness: Medium (5)

Zoma Hybrid Performance

The Zoma Hybrid performance was extremely well-rounded with exceptionally low levels of motion transfer and fantastic pressure relief. Both of these categories scored perfect 10s.

Cooling was good and I felt very limited levels of heat retention. The mattress itself uses a combination of gel memory foam, poly foam, and pocketed coils—materials all designed for improved cooling.

The Zoma Hybrid has a slightly deep level of sinkage at 2.51″. Compared to the hybrid average of 2.22″, the Zoma is just a bit beyond that.

Zoma Hybrid Sinkage Test
Zoma Hybrid sinkage test

Sinkage is a preferential factor, but generally side sleepers like a little deeper level of contour or lightweight sleepers. Consider your personal preferences to decide if this amount of sinkage is right for you.

FactorZoma Hybrid
Overall9.59
Max Temp.86.4° F
Max Sinkage2.51″
Total Motion Transfer4.02 m/s²
Response Time1.2 sec.
Total Bounce9.01″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage4.75″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExceptional
Sex Overall9.6
Comfort Material3.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days5 days
Trial100 days
Warranty10 years

GhostBed Classic

Ghostbed Classic Foam Layers2
9.53 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.0 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
9.3 Edge Support
9.5 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.8 Off-Gassing
9.8 Company

Best For

  • Very fast material response time
  • Low levels of motion transfer
  • Excellent pressure relief, with 3.5″ of comfort material

Quick Specs

  • 11″ thick with plush, cooling cover
  • 101-night trial
  • 20-year warranty
  • Value Score: 9.9

Why It’s Best

The GhostBed Classic mattress is an 11″ foam mattress made of latex foam, gel memory foam, and a support foam base. It strikes that nice balance of low motion transfer with fast response time.

If you like the feel of memory foam, but are worried about heat retention, too much sinkage and contour, or slow response, the GhostBed may be a good option to consider. 

Priced at only $842 for a queen, the GhostBed Classic is a solid option for a mattress that performs slightly above average and with a price that is slightly below average, making the GhostBed a great value.

Type: Foam
Firmness: Medium-Firm (6.5)

GhostBed Classic Performance

Performance on the GhostBed Classic mattress is well-balanced across the board.

It has very low levels of motion transfer, 4.8 m/s². Compared to the average level of motion transfer we’ve seen (7.87 m/s²), the GhostBed has 39% less motion.

It also has a fast response time, moderate sinkage, and moderate bounce. The materials provide good contour without sinking too deep into the comfort material.

FactorGhostbed Classic
Overall9.53
Max Temp.92.7° F
Max Sinkage2.34″
Total Motion Transfer4.80 m/s²
Response Time0.4 sec.
Total Bounce8.00″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage4.50″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExcellent
Sex Overall9.5
Comfort Material3.50″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days2 days
Trial101 days
Warranty20 years

Best Affordable Mattress Under $800

Top Picks: BedInABox Original | Emma CliMax

BedInABox Original

Bed In A Box Foam Materials
9.62 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
9.3 Edge Support
9.2 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.8 Off-Gassing
9.8 Company

Best For

  • Fantastic cooling performance
  • Extremely fast response time
  • Good pressure relief, with 3″ to player of gel memory foam
  • Minimal sinkage, only 1.86″

Quick Specs

  • 13″ thick with plush, cooling cover
  • 120-night trial
  • Limited lifetime warranty
  • Value Score: 10

Why It’s Best

The BedInABox mattress is a memory foam mattress that combines minimal sinkage with a higher degree of contour. It’s a nice pick for sleepers who want that memory foam feel, but don’t want to feel stuck.

It offers a good value, without noting any real performance disadvantages. With an overall score of 9.62, the BedInABox Original is still performing higher than the average mattress, among all mattresses tested to date (9.51 overall).

Type: Memory Foam
Firmness: Medium-Firm (6)

BedInABox Performance

In our performance tests, the BedInABox Original had low levels of motion transfer, extremely minimal sinkage, a fast response time, and very low bounce. In our tests, it has only 5.40″ of bounce, which is 4.23″ less than the average amount of bounce (9.63″).

It strikes that balance of the best parts of memory foam while offsetting the traditional downsides.

It also had great cooling, better than expected considering this is a budget memory foam mattress. Despite the top 3″ of memory foam, this mattress had limited heat retention and I felt very comfortable on this mattress.

The gel-infused foam really helps to pull that heat away and prevents feelings of heat from being trapped in the mattress.

FactorBedinabox Original
Overall9.62
Max Temp.87.4° F
Max Sinkage1.86″
Total Motion Transfer2.85 m/s²
Response Time0.5 sec.
Total Bounce5.40″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage4.50″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExcellent
Sex Overall9.2
Comfort Material3.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellModerate
Off-Gassing – Days3 days
Trial120 days
Warranty20 years

Emma CliMax

Emma Climax Material Layers
9.55 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.5 Cooling
8.7 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
10 Edge Support
9.9 Sex
9.0 Pressure Relief
9.7 Off-Gassing
10 Company

Best For

  • Exceptional edge support
  • Excellent cooling performance
  • High bounce is great for active and engaging sex performance
  • Supports sleepers up to 500 lbs.

Quick Specs

  • 10.5″ thick with zippered cover
  • 365-night trial
  • 10-year warranty
  • Value Score: 10

Why It’s Best

The Emma CliMax is a hybrid mattress designed for great cooling and great sex. It has a 4-layer hybrid with 2.75″ in comfort material and 7.7″ in support material.

In our tests, the CliMax had solid performance across the board, only struggling with pressure relief and motion transfer. However, both of those aspects are a symptom of the slightly firm 7 out of 10 firmness feel.

For those sleepers who prefer the slightly firmer feel a little more motion and a little less pressure relief are required in order to achieve the right balance of support, comfort, and sinkage.

What really makes the Emma CliMax compelling is the price point. This isn’t a perfect mattress, but given the relative performance vs. the price point, it does far more right than it does wrong. Overall, it’s an excellent value if you like the slightly firm feel.

Type: Hybrid
Firmness: Slightly Firm (7)

Emma CliMax Performance

Performance on the Emma CliMax was excellent across the board. It has an extremely fast response time and an extremely minimal level of sinkage, only 1.36″. The average level of sinkage that we see is 2.2″ so the Emma has 40% less sinkage than average.

Pressure relief is good and edge support is exceptional, with only 2.0″ of sinkage when sitting directly at the edge. The average level of sinkage sitting at the edge is 4.31″ so this mattress has over 2″ less sinkage than average.

The only real disadvantage of the Emma CliMax is motion transfer. Since there is limited sinkage and fast response, the materials are not really designed to absorb motion.

In our tests, we measured a total acceleration range of 10.1 m/s². This is 2.23 m/s² more motion transfer than the average of 7.87 m/s².

FactorEmma CliMax
Overall9.55
Max Temp.86.8° F
Max Sinkage1.36″
Total Motion Transfer10.10 m/s²
Response Time0.2 sec.
Total Bounce15.63″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage2.00″
Edge Support – Lying SupportExceptional
Sex Overall9.9
Comfort Material2.80″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days4 days
Trial365 days
Warranty10 years

Best Affordable Mattress Under $500

Top Picks: Siena

Siena All Foam

Siena Material Layers2
9.55 Overall Score
Tested With Scoring System 1.1
9.0 Cooling
10 Motion Transfer
10 Response Time
9.3 Edge Support
9.2 Sex
9.5 Pressure Relief
9.8 Off-Gassing
10 Company

Best For

  • Extraordinarily budget friendly
  • Extremely low motion transfer
  • 5″ of comfort material with excellent pressure relief

Quick Specs

  • 10″ thick with thin cover
  • 180-night trial
  • 10-year warranty
  • Value Score: 10

Why It’s Best

The Siena is a budget-friendly mattress with an all-foam construction and balanced feel. It comes in a medium-firm firmness (6 out of 10) and did well in our performance tests.

The biggest advantage of the Siena over other mattresses we’ve tested is the exceptional value. Priced at only $399 for a queen, the Siena still brings in an overall score of 9.55. The average foam mattress we’ve tested has a price tag of $913 and an average score of 9.49 overall.

Compared to these numbers, the Siena performs better than average and also costs 60% less than average.

Type: Memory Foam
Firmness: Medium-Firm (6)

Siena Performance

Performance of the Siena mattress is very well-rounded with no real outliers in terms of disadvantages. Cooling is good, motion transfer levels were very low, and response time was extremely fast.

It has a deep level of sinkage (2.34″) which is slightly more than average (2.20″). It also has low levels of bounce. Low levels of bounce help limit motion transfer, but also hinders the sex score since mattresses with high bounce are usually better for couples.

The Siena isn’t a perfect mattress. Cooling is the biggest issue, with edge support and sex being good, but far from great. Even so, considering the price point it’s got far more going for it than against it.

FactorSiena
Overall9.55
Max Temp.88.7° F
Max Sinkage2.34″
Total Motion Transfer1.79 m/s²
Response Time0.5 sec.
Total Bounce6.49″
Edge Support – Sitting Sinkage4.50″
Edge Support – Lying SupportVery Good
Sex Overall9.2
Comfort Material4.00″
Off-Gassing – SmellStrong
Off-Gassing – Days2 days
Trial180 days
Warranty10 years

Mattresses We Considered

When selecting the best affordable mattresses we are looking at all mattress types. Furthermore, we consider the balance of budget and performance and provide affordable options at a range of price tiers, ranging from $400 up to $1200.

To be considered for this best of list the mattress had to be less than $1200.

The scoring cut-off for this category was 9.53. Any mattresses that scored below this threshold were excluded based on performance alone.

Other mattresses that were excluded include:

  • Zoma All Foam (9.62 overall): The Zoma scored well, but has inventory issues and is frequently out of stock. In any case, the Zoma Hybrid is a similar alternative that has no stocking issues.
  • Plank (9.61 overall): This mattress has a very firm feel, making it a nice pick for heavier sleepers and / or back or stomach sleepers, but not suitable for many other sleepers. For this reason, it has been excluded due to its narrow range of sleepers that it’s appropriate for.
  • Titan Plus Luxe (9.56 overall): This mattress is designed for heavy-weight sleepers only and has been excluded due to its narrow sleeper range.
  • Nest Bedding Robin (9.54 overall): The Robin has a price point of $850 for a queen, but the score falls below the other mattresses we’ve featured in the $800-$1000 price range.
  • Bedinabox Tranquillium (9.53 overall): Solid performance on the Tranquillium, but priced at $1099, the BedInABox Original is a better value.
  • Ashley Gruve (9.46 overall): The Ashley lineup has a very poor return policy and virtually non-existent trial period. In today’s market, this is rare to see and the mattress has been excluded for this reason alone.

How We Choose The Best

For our Best Affordable Mattress list we based our selections on the best-scoring / highest-performing mattresses according to our objective testing results.

These tests analyze performance across 8 critical factors and included mattresses of all types. Price and value were also notable consideration points.

Performance Factors Gray

Our testing and selection process is incredibly detailed and rigorous. The links below have detailed write-ups on our testing process, scoring formulas, and the precise criteria for how we choose the best mattresses.

About Derek Hales

Derek Hales

Derek Hales is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of NapLab.com. He has been featured in Fast Company, Reader's Digest, Business Insider, Realtor.com, Huffington Post, Washington Post, AskMen, and She Knows. Derek has personally tested over 320+ mattresses and hundreds of pillows, sheets, beds, and other sleep products.