Mattress Buying Guide: 7 Types of Mattresses Explained

Understanding the different types of mattresses is a crucial step in the selection of the right mattress for your family. Owing to the properties of the filler material, like the latex for latex mattresses,  mattresses’s behaviour changes with their type, making the same mattress uncomfortable for one being while being comfortable for another. 

The varying comfort, support, and other parameters make it necessary that the buyer should understand the various bed mattress types before buying one. As such we crafted this article to cover extensively the 7 different types of mattresses available in India and help our readers make a fact-based judgement when buying a mattress. 

Each mattress type, mentioned here, comes with the pros and cons of the mattress, and some mentionings of the best-selling mattress of that particular kind. We will also be guiding you on how to choose a mattress that suits your needs the best as a part of this mattress buying guide.  Let us start with the types of mattresses, first.

What are the different types of mattresses available in India?

Let us understand each mattress type with its pros and cons and some best-seller recommendations below:

1. Cotton Mattress

Cotton mattresses are traditional mattresses used extensively in India, probably since the 18th century. The process of making cotton mattresses comprises filling naturally extracted cotton (from the cotton tree)  in a bed-length of cloth followed by stitching it uniformly, from both sides,  across the surface area to restrict the filler materials from accumulating in one place.

The quality of filled-in cotton decides the price of the mattress. Cotton is filled in KGs (Kilograms) and the buyer decides the quantity of cotton for making the mattress. Around 20 kilograms of cotton makes around a 4-inch high single bed box-type cotton mattress.

Pros of the Cotton Mattresses:

• Since cotton is extracted from trees, cotton bed mattresses are natural and eco-friendly mattresses.
• Good for all climates, the cotton mattresses do not cause sweating troubles on hot days.
• Cotton confirms the body shape, making cotton mattresses a good choice for back pain issues. However, there are some exceptions depending upon the quality of cotton used in the mattress.

• Cotton mattresses support air circulation, making them good in summer seasons.
• Cotton mattresses are highly durable, lasting as long as latex mattresses (10-15 years) or even more; nonetheless, the cotton needs to be de-cluttered once in 2 to 3 years.
• Cotton mattresses are affordable despite using superior-quality cotton fillings.

Cons of the Cotton Mattresses:

• Cheap quality cotton-filled mattresses develop pressure points, necessitating de-cluttering and refilling every year.
• Improperly built or uneven cotton distribution creates pressure points or saggings.
• Cotton attracts dust mites, making it necessary to lay the mattresses under sun rays occasionally. 

2. Coir Mattress

Coir Mattresses are made from the extracts of coconut husk, a natural fibre called coir. Coir mattresses are resistant to compression, remain hard in the long run, and are considered good for people with back pain issues. But they come with some drawbacks, that have made them unpopular among users, especially with the mattresses made by local manufacturers where the initial compression density is low and the outer cover quality is inferior. These bed mattresses are bulky and using them for the double beds is not recommended.  

Pros of the Coir Mattresses:

• Coir mattresses are all-natural mattresses making them cool for all climatic conditions
• Much more affordable than its peers

Cons of the Coir Mattresses:

• Coir mattresses are too firm, making them hard enough to sleep on but that doesn’t necessarily create back pain issues for all. There are more myths associated with this aspect.
• The middle portion of the coir mattress sags with time, making the user experience back pain issues.
• Coir mattresses are highly susceptible to damage with water contact, making them highly unsuitable for families with kids.
• Poking complaints were observed over time with many coir mattresses.

3. Spring Mattresses

Spring mattresses consist of a spring frame with around 1000 to 3000 spring counts for a king-size mattress. The more springs you have, the better support you get. These springs are made from steel or titanium and form the middle layer of the mattress.  The top and the bottom layers comprise embedded foams inside the mattress cover.

Thus the spring portion acts as the support layer, and the foam potion acts as the comfort layer.  Depending on the quality of materials used and the process of manufacturing the springs may be stiff or soft. The stiff springs are hard springs with a lower compression ratio while the soft ones are more compressible.

The Innerspring mattresses are popularly used in hotels to provide luxury and comfort to visitors. These kinds of mattresses can be manufactured customized to serve some specific requirements.

The spring mattress may come in two types:

1. The Bonnell spring mattress, and
2. The Pocket spring mattress

Pros of the Spring Mattresses:

• Support Versatility: Depending upon what stiffness you choose, spring mattresses can be versatile in providing support. They can be firm and extra firm too.
• Responsiveness and Bounce: Spring mattresses are known for their responsiveness. They support your body while taking turns.
• Better Air Circulation: Spring constitutes the middle layer, creating open space and supporting better air circulation.

Cons of the Spring Mattresses:

• Spring mattresses may turn noisy after some years. However, it depends upon the quality of springs used or the type of spring mattresses you use: Bonnel or pocket.
• Bonnel spring mattresses transfer motion with turns while sleeping, creating sleep disturbances for a sleeping partner.
• Individual spring failures can be disasters, ruining the support at the point a spring fails.
• Spring mattresses may sway after a use duration.

4. Foam Mattress

Mattress, sofa cushions, car seats, bike seats and a lot more; we encounter several places in our day-to-day life where we use foams; all that is different is the quality of these foams, or better to say, the properties of these foams. The mattresses that are derived from these daily use foams come under the types of foam mattresses.

Out of all these, the two most popular bed mattress types widely used in the current days are:

• Memory foam mattress, and
• The Latex foam mattress

Polyurethane foam:

Polyurethane foam comes in varying densities are used accordingly for varying purposes. The High resilience form of polyurethane foams finds application as the comfort layer in mattresses. The rest are popular in commercial applications such as sofa cushions, vehicle seats and others because of their excellent bounce-back capabilities. 

Gel foams:

The Gel foams can be memory foam or PU Foam with induced gels in them. The gel induction imparts cooling properties to the mattress. These are mainly used in the comfort layer in the different types of mattresses. In recent times, to impart a more stable temperature to the body, manufacturers have introduced gel particle-induced foams. The gel particle-induced foams keep a balance of temperature between the mattress and the body. 

Reflex Foams:

Reflex foams are polyurethane foams with high density and less firmness. Changing the composition of the polyurethane forms gives different results; reflex foam is an example of the same. These foams are generally considered good for orthopaedic patients; the air inside the mattress, instead of coming out from the mattresses, as in memory foam, displaces aside and returns to its position when relieved. These mattresses are a cheaper option than the memory foam mattress,

Convoluted foam:

Convoluted foam forms the toppers of the mattresses. Their shape appears as an egg crate. Convoluted foams were developed to cut the cost of mattress production. With a similar thickness as the conventional foam, the convoluted foam cut be cut to produce two sheets. Because of hips and valleys, these foams sag faster and are not that former.

Evlon Foam:

Also known as lux foam, the Evlon foams are derived from polyurethanes. They are dense and quickly bouncy. They find applications such as sofas and seat cushions.

Now let us understand the two most popular foam mattress types that the producers promote and sell high.

Memory foam Mattresses:

Memory foams are known for providing better comfort. They are used in the comfort layer of the mattress; the support layer is high-density foam. When you sleep on the memory foam mattress, it takes the shape of your body; In better words, it conforms to the shape of your body. In more exact words, you, in actuality, sleep inside a raised edge of the memory foam mattress and not above the mattress. As a result, your spinal cord remains more or less straight.

Pros of the Memory Foam Mattresses:

• Memory foam mattresses conform to the body’s shape, providing consistent support throughout the body.
• Memory foam mattress comes with firmness options, making them ideal for all user types.
• Memory foam mattresses do not transfer motions.
• Memory foams regain their original shape, safeguarding them from saggings in the long run.

Cons of the Memory Foam Mattresses:

• Memory foam mattresses do not support taking turns and can be dangerous for small kids or senior citizens
• Memory foam mattresses retain heat making them hot on summer days.
• Memory foam mattresses are synthetically produced comprising chemicals and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

Latex foam Mattresses:

Latex foam mattresses are the most preferred type of mattresses today. They may not be the best-selling types of mattresses, but indeed, they are favourites for their properties. They are more expensive than even the memory foam mattresses.

The reason for their popularity is the claim that whatever drawbacks (con points ) we see in memory foam mattresses are not encountered with latex foam mattresses. This is well justified by the words “100% natural latex” that many of you must have seen in the ads. This word implies that you do not need to be very skilled to identify a genuine latex foam mattress, unlike memory foam mattresses.

Pros of the Latex Foam Mattresses:

• Available in various firmness
• Good for people with back pain issues
• Support taking turns while in sleep
• Natural and safe, does not contain VOCs
• Long life, can last for 15 years or even more
• Disposing of latex mattresses doesn’t harm the environment.

Cons of the Latex Foam Mattresses:

• Costly

5. Hybrid Mattress

Now the seventh and last mattress type in our list is the Hybrid Mattress. Now, this is interesting. Let’s find out why.

The Hybrid mattress is a combination of a spring mattress and a foam mattress.

Please note that there is more than one foam layer in a hybrid mattress; the spring base forms the support layer of the hybrid mattress, whereas the upper foam layers constitute the comfort layer.

The spring type used here is mainly the pocket spring type, whereas the comfort layer foams can be memory foam, a latex foam with some other high density and High resilience PU foams combination. But this is a no-fixed rule; the types may differ; depending upon the seller/manufacturer. Please check it once and get confirmed before making a deal.

 Hybrid types of mattresses are available at a comparatively higher price than memory foam mattresses but less than latex foam mattresses and have better comfort properties. Also, they don’t encounter sweating problems because of sufficient air circulation provisions.

Now, let us look at the Pros and Cons of the hybrid types of mattresses.

Pros of the Hybrid Mattresses:

• As we have seen, the hybrid bed mattress types provide better support and comfort; these can be good for all types of sleepers. The firmness is suitable for people with back pain issues, and the comfort layer can provide pressure relief if the comfort layer is made of memory foam. The firmness is primarily due to the presence of springs instead of foams.

• Hybrid mattresses are breathable mattress types; heat absorbed in the comfort layer is circulated through springs and emitted. So, these can be a better option for hot sleepers.
• Since made from pocket springs and memory foams’/latex foams, these mattresses do not exhibit transfer. However, motion transfer in these types of mattresses may exceed the memory foam mattress extent.
• They are more durable than memory foam mattresses but less than all-natural latex foam mattress types.

Cons of the hybrid types of mattresses:

• The first con is the price. They’re costlier than the memory foam mattresses
• As a spring-based mattress, these are heavier.
• Though the comfort layer in the hybrid mattress provides pressure relief, they are not as great as a memory foam mattress.

6. Air Bed Mattress

The air bed mattress types have a wide range of applications. They can be used as a permanent mattress at home, as a temporary mattress for guests, camping and others, as a medical aid for patients in a hospital, and other similar uses.
The Air mattresses are made of rubber material, Vinyl or plastic and the available in two main air mattress types.

• The Permanent Air bed mattress, and
• The temporary Air bed mattress

As the name indicates, permanent bed mattresses are meant for regular use in houses and hospitals, while temporary bed mattresses are ideal for quick outdoor services. The medium of comfort and support in these types of mattresses is air. They have been designed to allow regulation of air in their inbuilt chambers, thereby allowing adjustment of support and comfort. Based on research and multi-occasion applications, air bed mattresses can be beneficial mattresses to bring home.

Pros of the Air bed Mattresses:

• Handy and portable
• Quick and effortless inflation
• Anti-decubitus variable pressure air mattress 
• pressure-relieving 
• Allows adjusting the firmness

Cons of the Air bed Mattresses:

• Motion transfer
• Not suitable for long-term use, can be used as an occasional substitute
• Susceptible to puncture

7. Water bed mattress

Water bed mattresses have water as the medium of support and comfort, unlike the springs or foam core. These mattresses come with a thermostat to adjust the heating of water as per preferences.
Available in two types; the hard-sided water bed mattress and the soft-sided water bed mattress, the water bed mattresses have disadvantages of generating high electricity bills, accidental breakdown hazards, and others.

Among the advantages- the water bed mattress conforms to the body shape and thus acts as a pressure points relieving mattress. These can also be a good mattress for people with back pain issues. The advantages are similar to what we get with memory foam mattresses, but the disadvantages are considerably high. We suggest making a thorough analysis of the hazards associated with it before bringing a water bed mattress home.

Pros of the Water Bed Mattresses:

• Water bed mattresses can keep you warm in winter and cool in summer.
• Conforms to the body shape, providing uniform support and thus comfort.
• Can be great for people with back pain issues, eliminating pressure on the spine.
• Do not resist the body weight, so no joint pains.

Cons of the Water Bed Mattresses:

• Finding a seller can be hard for water bed mattresses in India, though a buyer can look for online purchasing options.
• Maintaining a water bed mattress can be tough
• Pricing across the ranges is extensively variable, a good quality water bed mattress may come with a high purchasing price.

Conclusion

A detailed knowledge of the various types of mattresses can empower a buyer with the insights necessary for choosing the right kind of mattress. We recommend understanding the requirements first, including the sleeping habits, and leveraging the information on the 7 types of mattresses we shared here to get the best deal within a budget.  

We have also provided some popular mattress links below each of these different kinds of mattresses; You may visit those products, study them thoroughly and make a buy. These mattresses have been found to perform better than their competitors. Be it a backpain-type mattress or a mattress for side sleepers, you can better decide now which mattress type is best for you.

Thank you so much for reading our comprehensive report on the various types of mattresses. If you have queries further, please write to us through the comments section below. We will be more than happy to help you 🙂