There are few home purchases quite as important as your mattress. Though it might seem like something somewhat insignificant, especially compared to major expenses like kitchen appliances or landscaping, your mattress quite literally provides a foundation for your health and wellness.
The right mattress for you will ensure good, deep sleep, which helps the body and mind rest and repair after every day. If you are even slightly uncomfortable during your slumber, your sleep won’t be as satisfying, and you could begin to suffer psychologically or physically.
Thus, you shouldn’t go into your next mattress purchase unprepared. Here are a few critical questions to mull over before you step foot in a mattress store.
How Much Is My Mattress Budget?
Undoubtedly, this should be the first question associated with any major home purchase. Most mattresses cost somewhere in the mid-hundreds of dollars, but name-brand mattresses or those with special materials or structures can several thousand. A custom mattress in a unique shape or size, like those owned by many celebrities, could cost tens of thousands, which doesn’t include the custom bedding you would then need to buy.
You should look at your finances and decide what your mattress budget is well before you step foot in any mattress store, whether brick-and-mortar or digital. Experts recommend setting aside at least $1,000, which should provide a quality sleeping solution and a reliable warranty, but you might need to make a concerted effort to save up if you have unique needs and wants.
What Are the Pros and Cons of My Current Mattress?
Your answers to this question should give you insight into what matters most to you in your mattress. After several years sleeping on your current mattress, you must have formed some opinions on how your mattress performs — whether it helps or harms healthy sleep. You should use those opinions to create a picture of a more perfect mattress, which will guide your shopping practices going forward.
Some particular qualities to concern yourself with include:
- Is the size of your current mattress sufficient?
- Do you like how firm or how soft your current mattress is?
- Does your current mattress trap heat or stay cold?
- Is your current mattress easy to clean?
Do I Care About Mattress Materials?
The mattress market is more diverse than ever before — which is great, considering that there are so many different types of sleepers. However, the variety of materials used in mattress construction can be overwhelming, so you need to decide how much you care about mattress materials before you start shopping.
The materials within a mattress can affect various aspects of how that mattress functions and what features it boasts. For example, memory foam might provide the right sink and bounce, but it can degrade faster than other mattress materials and often traps heat, which isn’t ideal for warmer climates. Innerspring mattresses can blend a number of materials, like metal coils, polyester stuffing, foam and more, but they can create uncomfortable pressure points or squeak as they age. If you decide that materials matter, you might look up the pros and cons of gel, air, water and other mattress options. You might also consider the sustainability of certain materials, if having a green mattress matters to you.
Who Is My Sleeping Partner, and What Do They Think?
When you sleep by yourself, you only have your own sleep preferences to consider in your mattress shopping journey. However, it is common for American couples to share a sleeping space — even if they would prefer to sleep in separate beds. If you currently share your mattress with someone else or you expect to regularly share your bed in the coming months or years, you might include your sleep partner in the mattress shopping experience by asking them about their preferences for sleep. If your sleep partner is a furry friend, you might prioritize purchasing a more durable mattress, to protect your investment from their fur, dander, slobber and nails.
It is easy to get bogged down in questions and concerns during mattress shopping, but if you stick to the basics, you should be able to find a new mattress — and one that rightly suits your needs — in no time.
