Leesa vs. Purple

Our Testing & Selection Process

This guide highlights the most important factors in determining if Leesa or Purple is the better mattress for you.

In This Comparison
Compare the Models | Performance Tests | Firmness | Support

At NapLab, we put each mattress to the test.

We score each mattress using a series of performance tests. Here is a full comparison of all current models we’ve tested between Leesa vs. Purple.

This first table shows the factor scoring of all current models that we have tested:

Compare Leesa Scores

Factor	Leesa Legend	Leesa Legend Chill	Leesa Oasis Chill	Leesa Original	Leesa Original Hybrid	Leesa Plus Hybrid	Leesa Sapira	Leesa Sapira Chill	Leesa Studio	Leesa Studio Chill
Overall Score	9.19	8.86	9.05	9.01	9.16	8.73	9.48	9.09	8.44	8.64
Cooling	9.0	10	10	9.0	9.0	9.0	10	10	8.0	9.0
Motion Transfer	10	7.8	8.1	10	9.7	6.7	10	6.6	10	7.0
Response	9.9	7.4	9.1	9.4	9.5	9.6	9.5	9.0	7.6	8.5
Edge Support	8.0	9.2	9.4	8.0	8.4	9.0	7.5	9.5	7.2	9.4
Sex	9.0	8.9	8.7	7.6	9.5	9.0	9.1	9.4	6.6	8.3
Pressure Relief	9.0	9.0	9.0	9.0	9.0	9.0	10	10	9.0	9.0
Off-Gassing	8.9	7.8	7.2	9.2	8.3	8.3	8.3	7.2	8.9	8.3
Company	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5

Compare Purple Scores

Factor	Purple	Purple Flex	Purple Plus	Purple Restore	Purple Restore Plus	Purple Restore Premier
Overall Score	8.99	7.69	8.49	8.31	8.88	8.47
Cooling	10	8.0	9.0	9.0	9.0	9.0
Motion Transfer	10	6.5	7.0	6.0	7.2	6.7
Response	10	10	10	10	10	10
Edge Support	5.1	7.1	7.3	8.9	10	9.9
Sex	8.8	9.1	9.1	9.6	9.9	8.8
Pressure Relief	9.0	6.0	9.0	8.0	9.0	9.0
Off-Gassing	8.9	8.9	6.9	6.1	7.2	2.8
Company	8.5	8.5	8.5	8.5	8.5	8.5

This second table shows the testing data from each test. In many cases, the difference between scores can be minimal, but this table helps to highlight these differences.

Compare Leesa Data

Factor	Leesa Legend	Leesa Legend Chill	Leesa Oasis Chill	Leesa Original	Leesa Original Hybrid	Leesa Plus Hybrid	Leesa Sapira	Leesa Sapira Chill	Leesa Studio	Leesa Studio Chill
Price (Queen)	$2,099	$1,999	$1,399	$1,099	$1,299	$1,399	$1,699	$1,799	$749	$999
Cooling	Excellent	Outstanding	Outstanding	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Outstanding	Outstanding	Good	Excellent
Sinkage – Depth	1.88″	2.54″	2.19″	2.09″	1.92″	2.15″	2.05″	2.16″	2.00″	2.26″
Sinkage – Feel	Minimal	Deep	Moderate	Moderate	Minimal	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate
Motion Transfer – Acceleration	4.38 m/s²	9.80 m/s²	9.32 m/s²	2.06 m/s²	5.61 m/s²	12.23 m/s²	4.66 m/s²	12.55 m/s²	2.22 m/s²	11.64 m/s²
Response Time – Mostly Recovered	0.2 sec.	0.5 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.2 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.6 sec.	0.2 sec.
Response Time – Fully Recovered	0.4 sec.	1.7 sec.	0.8 sec.	0.5 sec.	0.4 sec.	0.8 sec.	0.4 sec.	1.0 sec.	1.0 sec.	2.0 sec.
Bounce – Height	11.57″	9.84″	9.07″	7.94″	13.04″	9.73″	12.67″	10.51″	6.22″	8.40″
Bounce – Feel	High	Moderate	Moderate	Low	Very High	Moderate	Very High	High	Low	Moderate
Edge Support – Sitting	5.50″	3.50″	3.25″	5.50″	4.75″	3.00″	6.25″	3.00″	6.75″	3.25″
Edge Support – Lying	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Good	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent
Comfort Layer Thickness	4.5″	4.8″	4.8″	4.0″	2.5″	4.0″	4.0″	5.3″	3.0″	4.0″
Mattress Thickness	11.5″	13.5″	13.5″	10.0″	11.3″	13.0″	11.0″	14.0″	10.0″	12.0″
Off-Gassing – Smell	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong
Off-Gassing – Days	4 days	8 days	10 days	3 days	6 days	6 days	6 days	10 days	4 days	6 days
Trial	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights
Warranty	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years

Compare Purple Data

Factor	Purple	Purple Flex	Purple Plus	Purple Restore	Purple Restore Plus	Purple Restore Premier
Price (Queen)	$1,399	$1,095	$1,595	$2,295	$2,595	$3,495
Cooling	Outstanding	Good	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent	Excellent
Sinkage – Depth	2.24″	1.66″	2.03″	1.90″	1.99″	1.82″
Sinkage – Feel	Moderate	Very Minimal	Moderate	Minimal	Minimal	Minimal
Motion Transfer – Acceleration	2.23 m/s²	12.72 m/s²	11.62 m/s²	13.90 m/s²	11.27 m/s²	12.36 m/s²
Response Time – Mostly Recovered	0.2 sec.	0.2 sec.	0.2 sec.	0.2 sec.	0.2 sec.	0.2 sec.
Response Time – Fully Recovered	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.	0.3 sec.
Bounce – Height	12.79″	11.29″	11.28″	14.42″	12.20″	9.46″
Bounce – Feel	Very High	High	High	Extremely High	Very High	Moderate
Edge Support – Sitting	7.75″	4.50″	5.00″	4.00″	2.75″	3.25″
Edge Support – Lying	Mediocre	Mediocre	Fair	Excellent	Outstanding	Outstanding
Comfort Layer Thickness	5.5″	2.0″	4.0″	3.0″	5.0″	3.0″
Mattress Thickness	9.5″	8.0″	11.0″	11.0″	13.0″	13.0″
Off-Gassing – Smell	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong	Strong
Off-Gassing – Days	4 days	4 days	11 days	14 days	10 days	26 days
Trial	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights	100 nights
Warranty	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years

Best Mattress For

Before diving into the specific tests, let’s highlight some of the best models for specific needs. The table below marks some honorable mentions for several factors that may be important to you.

Depending on what exactly you’re looking for, you may find Leesa or Purple to be best suited for your needs.

Factor	Winner	Score
Best Overall	Leesa Sapira	9.48
Best Cooling	Leesa Legend Chill, Leesa Oasis Chill, Leesa Sapira, Leesa Sapira Chill, Purple	10
Most Sinkage	Leesa Legend Chill	2.54″
Least Sinkage	Purple Flex	1.66″
Lowest Motion Transfer	Leesa Legend, Leesa Original, Leesa Sapira, Leesa Studio, Purple	10
Fastest Response Time	Purple, Purple Flex, Purple Plus, Purple Restore, Purple Restore Plus, Purple Restore Premier	10
Most Bounce	Purple Restore	14.42″
Least Bounce	Leesa Studio	6.22″
Best Edge Support	Purple Restore Plus	10
Best for Sex	Purple Restore Plus	9.9
Best Pressure Relief	Leesa Sapira, Leesa Sapira Chill	10
Least Off-Gassing	Leesa Original	9.2
Best Company	Leesa	9.5

We test 10 different factors that impact the comfort and feel of the mattress, as well as assess the company as a whole. Testing categories include:

1. Cooling
2. Sinkage
3. Motion Transfer
4. Response
5. Bounce
6. Edge Support
7. Sex
8. Pressure Relief
9. Off-Gassing
10. Company

Which Mattresses Are We Comparing?

Leesa has all-foam and hybrid mattresses in their collection, as well as a special lineup of cooling-driven mattresses (the Chill collection). In this comparison, we’ll be comparing:

• Leesa Original (all-foam)
• Leesa Sapira (hybrid)
• Leesa Legend (hybrid)

These mattresses were selected due to their popularity and good performance in our data tests.

Purple manufactures a mix of foam and hybrid options, all of which include their patented Purple gel pad. In this comparison, we’ll be looking at the following models:

1. Purple Original (foam + Purple gel pad)
2. Purple Restore Plus (hybrid + Purple gel pad)
3. Purple Restore Premier (hybrid + Purple gel pad)

The Purple Original is a foam + Purple gel pad mattress and the Restore mattresses are both hybrids.

Lower-scoring mattresses including the Purple Plus, Purple Restore, and Purple Newday were excluded based on their lower overall performance scores.

So with that context in mind, let’s get started.

Between Leesa and Purple, Leesa scored the higher average cooing score at 9.3, though Purple wasn’t far behind (9.0). They excel at cooling with limited heat retention and optimal airflow.

Cooling Test	Score	Baseline	Max Temp	Ending Temp
Leesa Legend	9.0	81.2°	91.2°	84.0°
Leesa Original	9.0	83.6°	92.1°	86.5°
Leesa Sapira	10	81.2°	90.0°	83.5°
Purple	10	79.7°	89.2°	84.0°
Purple Restore Plus	9.0	81.7°	91.7°	84.7°
Purple Restore Premier	9.0	83.0°	91.3°	86.2°

• Baseline Temperature – the temperature of the mattress before anyone lies on it
• Maximum Temperature (0 minute) – the temperature of the mattress after lying on it for 15 minutes
• Ending Temperature (after 5 minutes) – the temperature of the mattress after being lied upon and having no one on it for 5 minutes

One mattress from each brand earned a perfect 10 out of 10 score—the Leesa Sapira and the Purple Original.

Leesa has many hybrid models that have excellent cooling with cooling covers or microcoils integrated into the comfort layer.

In our tests, mattresses in the “Chill” collection by Leesa scored 10 out of 10 for cooling (except for the Studio Chill which is their budget option that earned a score of 9.0 out of 10).

Below, you can watch a video of how the heat dissipates on each mattress during our cooling test. For this test, we lie on the mattress for 15 minutes, get off the mattress, and then take periodic surface-level temperature measurements.

Both Leesa and Purple offer a range of sinkage between minimal and moderate.

For reference, the average level of signage across all mattresses tested to date is 2.18″.

Sinkage Test	Sinkage Feel	Sinkage Depth
Leesa Legend	Minimal	1.88″
Leesa Original	Moderate	2.09″
Leesa Sapira	Moderate	2.05″
Purple	Moderate	2.24″
Purple Restore Plus	Minimal	1.99″
Purple Restore Premier	Minimal	1.82″

The level of sinkage for each mattress is documented in the images below.

For deeper sinkage, check out the Leesa Legend Chill at 2.54″, which would be considered deep by our metrics. This may be a good pick for side sleepers who can benefit from the deeper level of contour and hug.

Motion transfer levels are lower on the Leesa mattresses than Purple, with the one exception being the Purple Original (which scored a 10 out of 10).

Across all mattresses we’ve tested to date, the average motion transfer is 8.50 m/s². Anything below 5.00 m/s² could be considered low motion, but that doesn’t mean that a lower number wouldn’t be better.

Motion Transfer Test	Score	Acc. Range
Leesa Legend	10	4.38 m/s²
Leesa Original	10	2.06 m/s²
Leesa Sapira	10	4.66 m/s²
Purple	10	2.23 m/s²
Purple Restore Plus	7.2	11.27 m/s²
Purple Restore Premier	6.7	12.36 m/s²

Of this chart, the mattress with the lowest level of motion transfer is the Leesa Original—2.06 m/s² closely followed by the Purple Original at 2.23 m/s².

The mattress with the highest motion transfer is the Purple Restore Premier at 12.36 m/s².

The level of motion transfer on the Leesa vs. Purple mattresses is shown in the videos below.

Regarding response time, Purple mattresses have a perfect 10 score across the board, while Leesa mattresses have good, varying results. The majority of these mattresses are mostly recovered by 0.2 seconds and fully recovered by 0.3 seconds—incredibly fast.

Response Test	Score	Mostly Recovered	Completely Recovered
Leesa Legend	9.9	0.2 seconds	0.4 seconds
Leesa Original	9.4	0.3 seconds	0.5 seconds
Leesa Sapira	9.5	0.3 seconds	0.4 seconds
Purple	10	0.2 seconds	0.3 seconds
Purple Restore Plus	10	0.2 seconds	0.3 seconds
Purple Restore Premier	10	0.2 seconds	0.3 seconds

The Purple mattresses are tied as the fastest-responding mattresses we’ve tested to date.

On average, we see a mostly recovered response time of 0.4 seconds and a fully recovered time of 0.8 seconds.

All Purple mattresses in this comparison are significantly better than the average.

A closer visual of the level of responsiveness for each mattress is documented in the videos below.

Talking through bounce, it’s important to mention that bounce is largely preferential. Some sleepers will enjoy higher levels of bounce while others are looking for more subdued bounce. There is no right or wrong answer here.

Bounce Test	Bounce Feel	Bounce Height
Leesa Legend	High	11.57″
Leesa Original	Low	7.94″
Leesa Sapira	Very High	12.67″
Purple	Very High	12.79″
Purple Restore Plus	Very High	12.20″
Purple Restore Premier	Moderate	9.46″

Comparing Leesa to Purple, Leesa has a mix of mattresses with low to very high bounce levels. Purple mattresses are either moderate (Purple Restore Premier) or very high bounce.

The videos below illustrate bounce levels via a ball bouncing on the mattress.

The average level of bounce across all mattresses tested to date is 9.61″.

The Leesa Original has the lowest level of bounce at 7.94″ with the Purple Restore Premier close behind at 9.46″. Both of these mattresses have less bounce than average.

The Leesa Legend, Leesa Sapira, Purple Original, and Purple Restore Plus all have more bounce than average.

Between Leesa and Purple, Purple had better edge support on average.

Leesa’s average edge support sinkage was 5.75″, while Purple’s average sinkage came in at 5.17″. This is compared to the average edge support sinkage on all mattresses we’ve tested to date, which is 4.10″.

When it comes to edge support, being average isn’t where you want to be. 4.0″ or less is what I would call great edge support. Much worse than that and it starts to feel less than great when it comes to both support and comfort.

Check out the table below for a full rundown of edge support on the complete collection:

Edge Support Test	Score	Sitting Sinkage	Lying Support
Leesa Legend	8.0	5.50″	Excellent
Leesa Original	8.0	5.50″	Excellent
Leesa Sapira	7.5	6.25″	Excellent
Purple	5.1	7.75″	Mediocre
Purple Restore Plus	10	2.75″	Outstanding
Purple Restore Premier	9.9	3.25″	Outstanding

Unfortunately, all of these mattresses listed, except for the Purple Restore Plus and Purple Restore Premier, have more edge sinkage than average.

For many sleepers, this is less than ideal and may leave you feeling unsupported when sitting or lying directly at the edge of the mattress.

This part of our scoring looks at the expected sex performance based on a number of performance factors.

The best mattresses for sex have high bounce, good edge support, quiet materials, and good pressure relief and cooling.

These 5 factors make up the NapLab sex performance score and from these factors, we can generate a sex score for each mattress.

The table below shows how sex performance varies between these two brands.

Sex Test	Sex Score	Bounce	Edge Support	Noise	Pressure Relief	Cooling
Leesa Legend	9.0	9.7	6.9	8.0	9.0	9.0
Leesa Original	7.6	7.4	6.9	10	9.0	9.0
Leesa Sapira	9.1	10	5.9	8.0	10	10
Purple	8.8	10	4.1	10	9.0	10
Purple Restore Plus	9.9	10	10	10	9.0	9.0
Purple Restore Premier	8.8	8.4	9.7	10	9.0	9.0

Leesa has a sex average of 8.61 and Purple has an average of 9.21 out of 10.

Edge support is the primary killer for the sex score on the Leesa mattresses, as you can see in the table above.

That being said, they were still very active and engaging surfaces and they excelled in the other sex sub-categories—good bounce, minimal noise, excellent pressure relief, and fantastic cooling.

The Purple Restore Plus and Purple Restore Premier scored higher in this category thanks largely to better edge support paired with high levels of bounce.

Pressure relief is good on all of these mattresses in this comparison, with consistent scores between 9.0 – 10 out of 10. The only mattress to score a perfect 10 is the Leesa Sapira Hybrid.

Pressure Relief Test	Score	Comfort Layer	Support Layer
Leesa Legend	9.0	4.5″	7.0″
Leesa Original	9.0	4.0″	6.0″
Leesa Sapira	10	4.0″	7.0″
Purple	9.0	5.5″	4.0″
Purple Restore Plus	9.0	5.0″	8.0″
Purple Restore Premier	9.0	3.0″	10.0″

When thinking about the overall pressure relief of a mattress, we mainly consider the thickness of the comfort layer compared to the total thickness of the mattress.

Generally, we want to see at least 3.0″ of comfort material and at least 10″ of mattress thickness. Mattresses with a higher quality comfort layer (like the Purple Original) can sometimes get away with a thinner total thickness without negatively affecting pressure relief.

The amount of comfort material and total mattress thickness are two of the most important factors when considering pressure relief.

Off-gassing is strong with both Leesa and Purple right out of the box, but Leesa mattresses off-gas significantly faster than Purple on average.

Off-Gassing Test	Score	Initial Smell	Smell Duration
Leesa Legend	8.9	Strong	4 days
Leesa Original	9.2	Strong	3 days
Leesa Sapira	8.3	Strong	6 days
Purple	8.9	Strong	4 days
Purple Restore Plus	7.2	Strong	10 days
Purple Restore Premier	2.8	Strong	26 days

All Leesa mattresses in this comparison off-gas between 3-6 days. Purple mattresses range from 4-26 days to fully dissipate any odors that are packed in the box.

For reference, the average off-gassing period is 5 days. The Leesa Legend, Leesa Original, and Purple Original are the only mattresses that off-gas faster than average.

When it comes to company policy, Leesa and Purple are similar. They both have about the same 100 night trial and a 10-year warranty.

Shipping and returns are both free as well and both brands manufacture mattresses from within the US.

Company	Leesa	Purple
Score	9.5	8.5
Trial Period	100 nights	100 nights
Warranty	10 years	10 years
Shipping	$0	$0
Returns	$0	$0
Trust	Outstanding	Good
Country of Origin	USA	USA

For comparison, the average trial period is 165 nights and the average warranty is 14 years (excluding 23% of all mattresses that offer lifetime warranties.)

Compared to the average, both Leesa and Purple have shorter trial periods and warranties than average.

Both Leesa and Purple offer a range of firmnesses. The table below lists the firmness of all tested mattresses from each brand.

The firmness range of Leesa spans from 4 – 8 out of 10. The Leesa Oasis Chill and Leesa Sapira Chill (in soft) are the softest Leesa mattresses on the market.

For the firmnest Leesa feel, opt for the Leesa Saipra Chill in a firm, which has a firmness of 8 out of 10.

Both Leesa and Purple have a huge number of mattresses in the medium to meidum-firm range (see below).

Purple has a firmness range of 4 – 7 out of 10. For the softest Purple mattress, check out the Purple Restore Premier in the soft version (4 out of 10).

The Purple Restore and Purple Restore Plus both offer the mattress in a luxury firm version, which has an estimated firmness of 7 out of 10.

Firmness	Rating	Feel
Leesa Legend	5	Medium
Leesa Legend Chill	5	Medium
Leesa Oasis Chill	4, 6	Soft, Medium-Firm
Leesa Original	6	Medium-Firm
Leesa Original Hybrid	6	Medium-Firm
Leesa Plus Hybrid	6	Medium-Firm
Leesa Sapira	6	Medium-Firm
Leesa Sapira Chill	4, 6, 8	Soft, Medium-Firm, Firm
Leesa Studio	6	Medium-Firm
Leesa Studio Chill	6	Medium-Firm
Purple	5	Medium
Purple Flex	6.5	Medium-Firm
Purple Plus	6	Medium-Firm
Purple Restore	5, 7	Medium, Slightly Firm
Purple Restore Plus	5, 7	Medium, Slightly Firm
Purple Restore Premier	4, 6	Soft, Medium-Firm

Not sure which firmness is right for you?

Use the table below to better determine the firmness range that may be best suited for you, based on your personal weight and preferred sleeping position.

Almost all Leesa and Purple mattresses have a medium to medium-firm feel. At this firmness range, they are ideal for a vast majority of sleepers, all sleeping positions, and all body types.

Sleeper Weight	Stomach Sleepers	Side Sleepers	Back Sleepers
Under 150 lbs.	Yes	Yes	Yes
150-250 lbs.	Yes	Yes	Yes
250-300 lbs.	Yes	Yes	Yes

Lightweight sleepers or side sleepers may benefit from something in the soft, medium soft, or medium range. Those would include the:

• Leesa Legend
• Leesa Legend Chill
• Leesa Oasis Chill (soft)
• Leesa Sapira Chill (soft)
• Purple
• Purple Restore (soft)
• Purple Restore Plus (soft)
• Purple Restore Premier (soft)

Likewise, heavier weight bodies often benefit from a slightly firm or firm feel. Those mattresses would include:

• Leesa Sapira Chill (firm)
• Leesa Plus Hybrid
• Purple Restore (firm)
• Purple Restore Plus (firm)
• Purple Restore Premier (firm)

Design

Both Leesa and Purple offer a mix of foam and hybrid options, although Purple is the only brand to include the Purple gel pad.

That being said, the Purple gel pad doesn’t always necessarily mean better performance. The average Purple overall score is 8.33, lower than Leesa’s average overall score.

Here’s a quick overview of the mattresses covered in this comparison:

Design	Type	Mattress Thickness
Leesa Legend	Hybrid	11.5″
Leesa Original	Foam	10.0″
Leesa Sapira	Hybrid	11.0″
Purple	Specialty	9.5″
Purple Restore Plus	Specialty	13.0″
Purple Restore Premier	Specialty	13.0″

Materials

Here is a breakdown of the insides of Leesa vs. Purple:

Leesa vs. Purple: Which Should You Buy?

So bottom line, between Leesa and Purple, which mattress is right for you? Here is a recap of each mattress score as well as our recommendation.

Leesa Mattresses

Leesa Mattresses	Score	Best For	Firmness	Check Price
Leesa Legend	9.19	13″ Thickness, Low Motion Transfer	Medium (5)	Check Price
Leesa Original	9.01	Budget Sleepers, All-Foam Construction	Medium-Firm (6)	Check Price
Leesa Sapira	9.48	Fantastic Cooling, Excellent Pressure Relief	Medium-Firm (6)	Check Price

Purple Mattresses

Purple Mattresses	Score	Best For	Firmness	Check Price
Purple	8.99	Least Expensive (Good) Purple	Medium (5)	Check Price
Purple Restore Plus	8.88	Best Performance from Purple, Arguably Best Value	Medium (5), Slightly Firm (7)	Check Price
Purple Restore Premier	8.47	Exclusively For Sleepers Who Wants a Soft Feel (4)	Soft (4), Medium-Firm (6)	Check Price