The 7 Best Hotel Mattresses According to Our Experts

Our Take: “There is quality in every single layer of this bed.” – Mark Mattei, Sleep Advisor Mattress Tester

What We Liked

• It’s customizable – As Mark commented, with the WinkBed, “you can choose what style is going to best fit your body.” This mattress is available in Softer, Luxury Firm, Firmer, and Plus versions, the last of which is meant for heavyweight sleepers.
• It’s extremely strong – WinkBeds are handcrafted in an American factory, and their design has undergone loads of third-party testing to guarantee its durability. Our tester Sean admired this aspect of the WinkBed: “It is literally a strong and sturdy bed.”
• It stays cool – WinkBeds references its Triple Layer Heat Disperse™ technology throughout its marketing. This term encompasses the three major cooling elements of the mattress: its Tencel© cover, its gel-infused foam, and its coil unit, which permits air circulation. During testing, Sean confirmed that the mattress is indeed a pleasant temperature: “From the start, the bed feels cool to the touch.”

Potential Drawbacks

• You won’t sink very deep – “People who like to feel like they are sleeping in the bed may feel more like they are floating on top of this mattress,” said Sean. “But there should be plenty of pressure relief to make up for that.”
• It transfers a bit of motion – Sean noticed that the WinkBed doesn’t isolate motion quite as well as an all-foam bed. However, because the coils are individually wrapped in tiny fabric pockets, they don’t pass as much movement to their neighbors as older, interconnected designs.

Want to learn more? Read our full WinkBed mattress review, or check out our list of the best mattresses for back pain.

Why the Emma Hybrid Comfort Earned Best Hotel Mattress for Heavy People

The Emma Hybrid Comfort has a hotel-quality feel that’s welcoming to all body types. The brand designed this bed not only to be shared by sleeping partners, but to reliably support heavier people where other mattresses might sink and sag.

It accomplishes these goals by stacking three specialized foam layers above its sturdy coil unit, and by splitting that coil unit into seven zones for specialized support.

What’s the Emma Hybrid Comfort Made Of?

The Emma Hybrid Comfort is 13 inches tall and contains 6 layers, including a moisture-wicking cover. 

Underneath is a layer of cooling Airgocell® foam with an open-cell structure. This design means that air can flow through the body of the foam (which prevents too much heat retention) and that it’s less dense than closed-cell foams (such as traditional memory foam).

Next is a sheet of cooling memory foam, which is responsible for full-body pressure relief as well as impressive motion isolation. It’s followed by a layer of HRX (High Resiliency Extra) foam, a durable foam that feels particularly firm and promotes healthy spinal alignment.

The Hybrid Comfort’s spring unit consists of pocketed coils that are robust enough to buoy heavyweight sleepers. It’s also zoned into seven areas that provide varying levels of pushback to different areas of the body, so you feel more bolstered where you need more support.

Finally, there’s a layer of thick foam at the mattress’s base.

Our Take: We dig the Emma Hybrid Comfort for its considered design, which prioritizes the comfort needs of couples and larger people. Its layers boast above-average firmness, strength, and resiliency.

What We Liked

• Fair motion isolation – Hybrids tend to struggle with motion isolation, but this mattress does better than you'd expect. The three foam layers on top of its innerspring unit work together to keep you from feeling smaller movements (though you'll still probably feel big shifts).
• It should last a long time – When you design a bed for plus-sized people, its components need to be durable. The Emma Hybrid Comfort is bound to last longer than mattresses with lower weight capacities.

Potential Drawbacks

• It’s quite firm – The foams inside the Hybrid Comfort do provide some pressure relief, but overall it may prove unyielding to lightweight sleepers and those who prefer the side-sleeping position.
• It’s not super green – If you’re searching for a bed that incorporates particularly eco-friendly or organic materials, this bed isn’t for you. It’s worth mentioning, however, that all of its foams are CertiPUR-US® certified, meaning they don’t contain any of the potentially harmful materials sometimes found in lower-quality foams.

Need more information? Read our Emma Hybrid Comfort review or browse the best mattresses for heavy people.

Why the DreamCloud Earned Best Hotel Mattress in a Box

DreamCloud fits a lofty 7-layer mattress into convenient packaging for delivery, which is impressive enough. But when you factor in the budget-friendly price of this bed, as well as all the elements of its hybrid construction, you’ll see why it handily won best hotel mattress in a box.

“It feels like luxury at an affordable cost,” said Stuart, who took the DreamCloud for a test run. He was taken with this bed’s cashmere blend cover, surprisingly firmer feel, and the support he got from the innersprings—especially on his back and stomach. He commented multiple times on just how swanky this mattress looked and felt.

What’s the DreamCloud Made Of?

If you count its upper and lower covers, the DreamCloud has seven distinct layers, and it stands a lavish 14 inches high.

Our reviewer Stuart was a big fan of the cover’s scalloped design and feel: “It mimics the look of clouds, which I think is really cool … It also makes the top of the bed feel a little more plush.” Notably, DreamCloud’s cover incorporates cashmere, which is an exceptionally soft and sought-after fiber that we don’t encounter too often in our testing.

There are 1.5 inches of plush foam stitched into the cover that make for a pillowy surface layer. They’re followed by an inch of gel-infused memory foam, which should mold to the peaks and valleys of your body and relieve pressure from your joints. The next layer consists of 2 inches of firmer, “dynamic” foam that provide support for your spine and form a barrier between the comfort layers and the spring system.

The springs in the DreamCloud take up 8.5 inches of its height, and they’re reinforced around the edges. They sit on top of an additional inch of foam that ensures the mattress’s overall stability.

Around the sides and bottom of the bed, there’s a lower cover outfitted with handles for convenient transport.

Our Take: “DreamCloud feels really well-made and luxurious … It’s a budget mattress that doesn’t feel budget.” – Stuart, Sleep Advisor Mattress Tester

What We Liked

• Super for stomach and back sleepers – Stuart is a combination sleeper, and knows how tough it can be to find a bed with the right amounts of both give and support. “I loved this bed on my stomach and back,” he said. “I felt very supported in my hips, and I could feel the plusher top layers help relieve pressure.”
• Easy to readjust while you sleep – “We had no problems adjusting positions and never felt stuck in the bed,” said Stuart. He attributes the DreamCloud’s responsiveness to its sizable coil unit.
• Perks at a great price – The DreamCloud is often priced lower than comparable hybrids, making it an attractive option for folks who want an affordable bed that still reminds them of a lavish hotel stay.

Potential Drawbacks

• Surprisingly firm – This bed falls into the medium-firm range on our firmness scale, but as Stuart said, “It’s definitely not as cloud-like as you’d imagine from a name like DreamCloud.” He wouldn’t recommend it to side sleepers, as they’re apt to feel some pressure buildup in their hips and shoulders.
• Lackluster edge support – “The edges are a little weaker than we’d expect from a hybrid,” Stuart commented. If you need a ton of room to spread out, opt for a larger size, or a mattress with a more bolstered perimeter.

Want to learn more?  See our full DreamCloud mattress review, or investigate our list of the best mattresses-in-a-box.

Buying a Hotel Mattress Online vs. In-Store

When you’re hoping to capture the feel of a hotel mattress with a new bed in your home, you might be tempted to visit area mattress stores and try out various models.

This approach does allow you to lie on top of a bed before buying it, but in the long run, it tends to be the more costly option—plus, it requires you to interact with salespeople, who often have priorities other than your comfort.

Buying a hotel mattress online will likely save you some money, as these mattress brands can ship directly to you, the consumer. They aren’t forced to first sell their beds to retail stores, where the price will then escalate even more so that both the manufacturer and the retailer can profit.

Additionally, online mattress companies should still give you the chance to test out a bed at home for multiple days, weeks, or even months. These long-term sleep trials are a much better indicator of whether a mattress is a good fit for you than a brief nap in a store setting.

Benefits of Buying a Hotel Mattress In-Store

• You can test the bed immediately (if briefly)
• You can compare the feel of different models

Benefits of Buying a Hotel Mattress Online

• Convenient shopping experience free of pushy salespeople
• Long-term sleep trials give you a clear idea of how you’ll sleep on a mattress
• Lower overall costs for the same quality
• Easier mattress transport and setup, often with white-glove delivery service
• Simple return processes if a mattress doesn’t work out

What Types of Mattresses Do Hotels Use?

Reputable hotels most commonly outfit their rooms with hybrid mattresses that combine a supportive innerspring unit with comfort layers on top. Some hotels may use more traditional innerspring models, or all-foam mattresses made with latex, memory, or poly foam layers.

So, what’s the difference between these types of hotel beds? You can read more about each variety below.

Innerspring Hotel Mattresses

An innerspring mattress derives its support (and its name) from a coil unit inside the bed. The coils may be interconnected or “pocketed,” which means they’re wrapped in small fabric sleeves and move independently of one another.

The most modern hotel mattresses should have pocketed coils with high durability. The springs will lend the bed a bouncy feel and a lot of responsiveness, which makes moving about on the mattress easier. Innerspring beds are also naturally cool, as the coil unit allows for airflow between its springs.

However, traditional innerspring mattresses are prone to sagging over time, and they may not feel as plush or comfortable as foam or hybrid beds.

Memory Foam Hotel Mattresses

Hotels may opt for memory foam mattresses if they want their beds to have an especially plush feel. When you lie down on memory foam, the material compresses beneath and conforms to the shape of your body, supplying a signature hug-like sensation.

Memory foam is known for retaining heat, so hotel chains that use memory foam beds tend to buy ones with cooling features built in. These features might be vented gussets, breathable covers, and/or infusions of cooling gels or metals into the body of the foam itself.

Latex Hotel Mattresses

Latex foam is a relative newcomer to the mattress scene, but it’s a material with a lot of potential. Luxury hotels might prize latex for its innate breathability, durability, and responsiveness. It represents a great (but often expensive) compromise between the benefits of memory foam and springs.

Check out our picks for the best latex mattresses.

Hybrid Hotel Mattresses

Hybrids are particularly popular as hotel mattresses because they’re constructed with both spring units and foam layers for comfort. This format allows for both versatility and opulence, as you can fit many more layers in a hybrid mattress than in an all-foam or innerspring model.

The foam layers inside a hybrid bed might be memory foam, another kind of poly foam, latex foam, or a mix of these types. They provide a soft, cozy buffer between the sleeper and the bed’s springs, which contribute the bulk of the support.

What to Consider When Shopping for a Hotel Mattress

Price

Mattresses that mimic those found in hotel rooms will probably be a bit more expensive than your average bed. That’s because the best hotel mattresses utilize high-quality, durable materials.

If you’re craving the exact experience you had on a mattress during a vacation, many hotels make it possible for you to buy their proprietary mattresses online. These mattresses can cost thousands of dollars (for example, the Ritz-Carlton Bed is more than $3,000 for a queen).

You can save money by browsing more mainstream mattress models that feel similar to the hotel mattress you loved. The mattresses in our above roundup are more affordable than their hotel counterparts, but should offer a comparable degree of comfort.

Firmness

A mattress’s firmness falls somewhere on the scale between quite soft and quite unyielding. We provide numerical rankings for each bed on a firmness scale of 1-10 in our in-depth reviews.

It’s a subjective metric, however, so know that your experience of a bed’s firmness may not match another person’s, especially if you have dramatically different body types.

Many hotel mattresses strike a desirable balance by having a medium-firm surface. This is the most comfortable firmness level for the average person, and it accommodates most sleeping preferences.

Think back to mattresses you’ve slept on in the past and enjoyed. Did they have a plush, sinking feeling when you laid down on them, or did they make you feel more buoyed and supported? Using your personal preferences as a guide, you can help narrow down the best new hotel-inspired mattress for your home.

Sleeping Position

Your sleeping position has more bearing on your ideal hotel mattress than you might think. Different positions correlate with different firmness levels, and put stress on different pressure points throughout the body.

Back sleepers generally need a medium-firm mattress that mixes support and pressure relief well. This position results in a neutral spine and the most even weight distribution across the mattress, so it’s often recommended as the most health-conscious posture.

Side sleepers need a softer mattress that will cushion their shoulders and hips. These “sharp” pressure points are enduring most of the strain in this position, so a plush surface is best. You’ll still want a supportive foundation, though!

Stomach sleepers need a firm mattress that will prevent too much sinkage around their hips. A mattress that’s too soft will let their lower body dip into the bed and push their spine out of alignment.

Combination sleepers should look for a bed that will allow them to change positions easily during the night. They typically do well with a medium-firm mattress with a high degree of responsiveness.

Cooling

The best hotel mattresses have state-of-the-art cooling features so that guests don’t wake up sweaty and uncomfortable. While you’re looking for your new mattress, keep an eye out for the following cooling elements:

• Spring units that allow for extra airflow
• Vents or breathable gussets
• Covers made of breathable material, such as cotton
• Foams infused with cooling gels or metals, such as copper
• Foams with open-cell structures
• Latex foam, which is naturally more breathable than synthetic foams
• Other temperature-regulating fabrics or “phase change” technologies that dissipate heat

Motion Isolation

Motion isolation refers to how well a mattress limits the transfer of motion across its surface. Many hotel beds invest in this feature so that guests who are sleeping with a partner won’t be awoken by movement during the night.

If you’re a light sleeper, motion isolation is especially important. Look at mattresses that incorporate foam layers, which tend to be the best at restricting motion transfer. Traditional innerspring mattresses, on the other hand, don’t do as well in this department.

Edge Support

Mattresses with superior edge support don’t dip or sag at their borders, even when you’re sitting on them or pushing down on them to get in or out of bed. They may accomplish their edge support with reinforced coils or foams along the perimeter.

Hotel mattresses should have notably good edge support, as this is an important feature for couples (or anyone sharing a bed). It allows sleepers to spread out over the bed’s entire surface area without fear of feeling like they’re about to fall off.

Mattress Toppers and Accessories

Sometimes, an amazing hotel mattress owes much of its memorable feel to its bedding and accessories. Hotels wisely outfit their beds with quality sheets, pillows, and mattress toppers so that guests are cozy from head to toe.

The next time you stay at a hotel and find yourself impressed with the bed, check to see if there’s a built-in pillow top layer or a separate mattress topper beneath the fitted sheets. If there’s a topper, then you might want to try one for yourself at home. Peruse our list of the best mattress toppers available to get started.

Hotel Mattress FAQs

What mattress brands do hotels use?

This will obviously vary from place to place and it is not unusual for many companies to feature exclusive products designed specifically for their establishments. However, some popular mattress companies create these products for these establishments and may sell these or similar items on their own websites.

Why are hotel mattresses so comfortable?

Comfort is key in the tourism industry, helping to ensure guests have a positive experience in a particular hotel. Pillow top mattresses are popular choices for these sorts of items. Many establishments credit their entire bedding system for creating their signature feels, using mattress toppers, pillows, and sheets to enhance how their mattresses perform.

What is the price of a hotel mattress?

Hotel mattresses are often expensive because they’re typically made exclusively for the hotel in question. The price of a hotel mattress (if it’s available for sale) can range from 900 to 2000 dollars depending on the manufacturer and the bed size you choose.

Why do hotel mattresses feel so good?

Hotel mattresses feel good because most have a universal feel (medium firmness) that fits most sleepers. In addition, many of these beds have quilted tops, cooling covers, and maybe even a mattress topper adding more comfort to an already comfortable bed.

What mattress firmness do hotels use?

Most hotels use medium to medium-firm mattresses because these fit most sleepers. Since the majority of people sleep on their side and back, medium and medium-firm mattresses prove to be a good fit for most hotel guests.

What type of mattress do most hotels use?

Hotels typically go for hybrid and innerspring mattresses because they’re durable and more breathable than memory foam models. In addition, hybrids and innerspring beds are more responsive, so they’re also easier for people with mobility issues to use.

Conclusion

Not everyone can afford an extended hotel stay—especially at a five-star venue—but you can still sleep as though you’re on an indefinite vacation. When you invest in the best mattress that reminds you of your favorite hotel, going to bed each night becomes its own kind of luxurious getaway.