Best Mattress for Petite Sleepers

Lightweight sleepers need a specific mattress to deliver the perfect balance of comfort, pressure relief, and support in different sleeping positions. If you weigh less than 130 pounds and you’re looking to buy a new mattress, the following features should go into your decision-making process.

Lightweight sleepers do best with a firmness level between soft and medium firm, depending on their preferred sleeping position. Softer beds are best for side sleepers, while those who prefer sleeping on their stomach or back should like a medium-firm bed. No matter your body type, a mattress that’s too soft would cause the hips to sink more into the construction, forcing the spine out of alignment. Conversely, a mattress that’s too firm would create pressure points and cause discomfort due to the lack of cushioning.

Mattresses of all kinds are available for different prices, so there’s a bed for everyone’s budget. You should first think about how much you’re willing to spend as well as the features and specifications you’re looking for in a bed. Buying from an online retailer helps save some money, since the manufacturer ships directly to you.

As mentioned earlier, your sleeping position will affect the kind of bed you find comfortable. Most side sleepers, especially petite ones, prefer softer beds that cushion and contour the body to prevent pressure from building up on the shoulders, hips, and legs. However, back and stomach sleepers will like more medium-firm beds that offer more support in these areas.

Material quality is always important to consider when buying a new mattress. Most brands work with memory foam, spring coils, latex, cotton, wool, and other common fabrics, but some will also use proprietary materials they create themselves. While proprietary materials can be a plus, it’s important to consider how long these materials will last. In most cases, reading customer and professional reviews helps bring some insight into the durability of the materials and bed as a whole.

A quality mattress should help prevent the pressure from building up while still maintaining a proper level of support for the spine. Petite people can struggle with increased pressure if their beds don’t contour them enough. The reason for this is that light sleepers don’t always have enough weight to activate comfort layers and as a result, they will feel a bed to be more firm that those carrying more weight. Therefore, petite sleepers need a softer bed with targeted pressure relief to compensate for this.

Motion isolation is usually important to couples with different sleeping habits. If you’re petite and your partner is on the heavier side, you may feel them moving, tossing, and turning throughout the night. A bed that absorbs motion and prevents it from traveling from one side to the other could help provide a better night’s sleep. If motion isolation is important to you, look for beds with memory foam or hybrids that utilize individually wrapped coils to limit motion transfer.

Cooling is an important feature to people who sleep hot at night. Normally, hybrid, innerspring, and latex beds sleep the coolest. However, manufacturers have found a way to help keep memory foam from overheating by using cooling mechanisms like gel infusions or an open-cell structure. Mattress companies may also use breathable fabrics in the cover to help keep the bed cool, such as phase-change material, cotton, and wool.

Edge support is another factor typically important to couples. However, single individuals who like to spread out across the bed should also consider edge support. Most brands use higher-density foam or steel coils along the perimeter to reinforce the edges and prevent them from collapsing. This should allow you to sit or sleep near the edge without feeling like you’d slide off.

Contouring can come from the cover and initial comfort layers of your mattress. Side sleepers usually need the most contouring to prevent pressure build-up on the shoulders and hips, though some contouring can be helpful for back sleepers too. Mattresses that provide deep contouring are typically softer, making you feel like you’re sleeping in a bed instead of on it.

Whether you choose a memory foam, latex, innerspring, or hybrid bed is entirely up to you. All types are available in various firmness levels and sizes to accommodate different sleepers. Petite sleepers can do with almost any type as long as the firmness level fits their body weight, offering sufficient contouring and pressure relief. However, the only mattress type lightweight sleepers may want to steer clear of is innerspring beds, which are usually the hardest and since they have minimal cushioning on top, won’t provide much pressure relief.

Most reputable mattress brands, especially online ones, will offers customers a significant trial and warranty deal with their mattress products. Some offer lifetime warranties while other may have a warranty lasting 10 or 20 years. The trial will also vary depending on the brand. For example, some companies give you a year to test out the mattress, while others will give you 30 to 120 days.

Accessories such as mattress toppers and pads are worthy investments if you want to improve the feel of your bed. You may wish for a softer bed while your partner is happy with the one you already have. In this case, adding a mattress topper or a pad to your side of the bed could help soften things up. Pads and toppers are available in different sizes, thicknesses, and firmness levels.

The best mattress for a light person is a soft to medium bed that will deliver the right balance of pressure relief and support. However, certain mattress types may be better for petite sleepers than others.

Memory foam mattresses have all-foam layers of different thicknesses. Most brands use memory foam in the comfort layers on top with denser poly foam for support. Memory foam beds are often considered some of the top-performing models for pressure relief, making them a great option for petite sleepers.

Memory foam mattresses are also excellent at absorbing motion, which is good news for couples. However, one drawback is that this foam tends to overheat, so these beds may not be the best for hot sleepers unless they feature some kind of cooling technologies and materials.

Hybrids are a combination of multiple foam layers and a coil unit. These beds may use memory foam, poly foam, latex, or a mix of all three.The construction usually has a steel coil unit as a support layer, while memory foam or latex make up the upper comfort layers. The result is a supportive bed with plenty of cushioning, responsiveness, and bounce.

Manufacturers mix different materials to achieve a certain feel and performance. Hybrids can also be very breathable and cool, especially if they incorporate cooling features and materials.

Innerspring mattresses have interconnected spring coils, offering maximum responsiveness. Although these aren’t the best when it comes to motion isolation, they’re bouncy and easy to move on. The upper layer is usually a pillowtop, wool, or a thin layer of foam to provide some transitioning to the coil unit. Innerspring beds are some of the firmest around, providing minimal contouring. For this reason, these likely won’t be the best option for petite sleepers.

A latex bed is an excellent option if you’re prone to allergies because the material is hypoallergenic and resistant to dust mites, mold, and mildew. Latex is highly responsive and offers great pressure relief, which is important for petite sleepers, especially those who sleep on their side. Latex beds made with natural ingredients are also ideal for eco-conscious shoppers. One drawback is that latex beds are typically more expensive, but their durability means they should last a long time.

We use the term ‘lightweight sleeper’ to describe someone weighing less than 130 pounds, which can include both adults and children. However, if you are shopping for a young person, we recommend visiting our list of our favorite mattresses for kids, which include beds specially made for children.

Memory foam is great for lighter people because it does an excellent job of hugging the body’s curves and relieving pressure on the most sensitive areas. Soft or medium-firm beds built with memory foam can provide a plush feel most petite sleepers enjoy.

Lightweight sleepers usually need a softer mattress because they don’t weigh enough for a firmer bed to compress and respond to their movement. As a result, these individuals may find a harder mattress uncomfortable. However, this will also depend on your preferred sleeping position. Lightweight side sleepers could feel comfortable on a mattress with a soft rating, while back and stomach sleepers could be a good match for beds with a medium firmness.

Yes, thicker mattresses can be better in some cases. While lightweight sleepers don’t run the risk of bottoming out on a thin bed the way heavier people could, they can find more softness through thicker beds because of the added layering. When a mattress has a plush cover, a few comfort layers, and a transitional layer on top of the base, this could help it feel more comfortable. Conversely, beds with only a few layers may feel firmer. That being said, if you’re a petite sleeper who is short and has a high foundation, a bed that’s too thick could be harder to get in and out of, so you’ll want to consider this as well.