Mattress Buying Guide

Struggling to choose the right mattress? Investing the right one for you is crucial to getting the best night’s sleep.

However, there is not a catch-all ‘best mattress’ and there are a number of different factors to consider before making a decision. In our mattress buying guide, we'll show you how to choose a mattress that is best suited to your needs. We'll take a look at

Types of Mattress

There are a number of mattress types available on the market, each with their own qualities. So, let’s begin by taking a look at what they can offer.


Memory Foam Mattresses

Memory foam mattresses offer fantastic support by moulding to your body and offering a personal level of comfort that other products can't. Memory foam 'remembers’ its shape, which means it can be laid on night after night yet will return back to its original form.

Another great benefit of this material is that there is no transfer of movement, so couples are less likely to disturb each other when moving during the night.

Memory foam mattresses can have different comfort levels simply by having different thicknesses of layers — the thicker the layer, the softer the mattress. At Dormeo, we are memory foam experts, and you can find out even more in our guide to memory foam.

Pocket Sprung Mattresses

Pocket sprung mattresses are a step up from traditional open spring mattresses as, instead of a continuous piece of metal coiled into several springs, they are made from many individual springs sewn into fabric pockets.

Pocket sprung products have become the traditional type of mattress, but do not mould to your body like next-generation materials, such as memory foam and latex.

Here at Dormeo, we do offer a pocket sprung mattress, but we tend to use the benefits of pocket springs mixed with other sleep technologies in our hybrid mattress range to ensure you get the best of both worlds.

Octaspring Mattresses

The ultimate innovation in sleep technology, Octaspring mattresses combine foam and springs for a sleep experience like no other. This design offers a number of advantages over others through the use of pressure-relieving, supportive memory foam alongside our very own Octaspring technology for improved breathability.

Many premium mattresses achieve their soft feel by using deep layers of memory foam, but these can retain heat and get rather warm at night.

Thanks to the natural airflow between each octaspring, Octaspring mattresses are eight times more breathable than traditional memory foam. This means you can get the same luxury memory foam feel but stay cool through the night.

Hybrid Mattresses

Hybrid mattresses blend together a combination of sleep technologies, normally by layering them throughout the core of the mattress to produce a mixture of comfort, support and feel.

These mattresses can feature the likes of memory foam, pocket springs, and latex to create an advanced design that could be the perfect solution to your needs.

We recommend fully exploring the features and benefits of any individual hybrid mattress to ensure it matches your specification.

Latex Mattresses

Latex mattresses include a layer of latex foam, which has similar properties to memory foam, but offers a different sleeping experience that some may prefer.

Latex foam does mould to the shape of your body but doesn't provide the precise contouring of memory foam, so will not give the same level of personalised support.

However, it does return back to its natural state quicker and has slightly more spring to it, providing a firmer feel. It's also more breathable than memory foam, so it will provide a cooler sleeping environment.

Latex is also hypo-allergenic and anti-microbial, so it is perfect for allergy sufferers.

Rolled Mattress

Often known as a ‘mattress-in-a-box’ or ‘bed-in-a-box’, rolled mattresses are modern designs that can be easily compacted and stored in a more manageable way than traditional designs.

The main benefit of buying a rolled mattress is the added convenience for delivery and setup. Rolled mattresses can be delivered to your door as a parcel and then all you need to do is open the box, unroll, then wait for the mattress to recover.

Also, as rolled mattresses can be vacuum packed, it means they are eco-friendly during transport and retain excellent hygiene.

Dual Core Mattresses

Dual Core mattresses allow partners with different sleep preferences to share a bed in comfort. They contain two separate foam cores that can be flipped to give the choose of firmness on each side.

The two different halves of the mattress allow partners to enjoy their own personalised sleep experience.

Mattress Sizes

One of the first decisions to make when buying a mattress is the size. The main aspects to consider with deciding the size of mattress to buy are your height and weight, whether you will be sharing with a partner, how restless you are as a sleeper, and the size of your room and bed. You can find detailed advice in our mattress and bed size guide.

At Dormeo, our mattresses are available in all UK standard sizes and some select European sizes. The dimensions are:

Sleep Position & Body Type

Different sleeping positions and body types require different types of support, so choosing the right mattress firmness is crucial to your health and wellbeing. Here at Dormeo, we have five different ratings to choose from.

Medium Rating:

Medium-rated mattresses tend to suit the widest range of people. They are not too soft, but not too firm. This means that people with a variety of different body shapes and sizes, as well as sleeping positions, can experience a great night’s sleep on one of these mattresses.

Browse our Medium mattresses

Medium/Firm Rating:

Mattresses with a Medium/Firm rating are best for those who mostly sleep on their back or front. This level is achieved by using either a thinner mattress or a mixture of layers: firmer layers deeper in the mattress for overall support, and top layers focusing on comfort. Medium/Firm mattresses may also suit heavier people who sleep in a variety of sleeping positions.

Browse our Firm mattresses

Firm Rating:

Firm mattresses are best suited to those who sleep on their front, are heavier, or have been recommended by a medical professional to alleviate back pain (see our guide to choosing a mattress for back pain for more information). Firm mattresses have less “give” and prevent your midsection from sinking into the mattress, therefore keeping your spine aligned.

Browse our Firm mattresses

Multi Rating:

Mattresses with a Multi comfort rating are able to achieve different comfort ratings depending on how they are configured, which can be done quickly and easily at home. These mattresses also have dual cores, which makes them perfect for couples with varying needs.

Browse our Multi comfort rated mattresses

Mattress Quality

A mattress is an investment in quality sleep, and can have a huge impact on your health and wellbeing.

Therefore, it's important to pay attention to the quality of your mattress when shopping for a new one: foam should be responsive without being too soft, pocket springs should not creak or dig in when you lie down, and the surface of your mattress should be even — these are just some of the warning signs of a poor-quality mattress.

Here at Dormeo, we're so confident in the quality of our mattresses that many of them have up to 20-year warranties. We also want you to have peace of mind when choosing one of products, so we offer a 60-night comfort guarantee, which is a sleep trial that allows you to try your mattress in your own home for 60 nights.

Your Mattress Budget

Your budget will also be a factor when it comes to choosing a mattress. While you need to ensure your mattress is affordable, you should try to make sure it meets your needs and remember that it's one of the key things you can invest in for your health and comfort.

If you see a Dormeo mattress that you think might be the right match for you, you may be interested to know that we offer interest-free credit on orders over £399, allowing you to spread the cost and making your perfect mattress more affordable.

If your budget can’t quite stretch to your perfect mattress or your current mattress just needs a refresh, consider our range of mattress toppers, which could rejuvenate your bed at a fraction of the cost of a brand new mattress.

Our Mattress Collections

At Dormeo, we manufacture a wide variety of mattress collections each with its own features and benefits. With a mattress for everybody, every bedroom and every budget you’re sure to find the right mattress for you from Dormeo.

Dormeo Mattress Collections

For more advice, be sure to look at our other guides. You can also talk to our Sleep Experts, who can assist you in finding the right mattress over the phone, 24/7 for free on 0800 625 0134.