How to Choose a Mattress & How to Shop for a Mattress

There are two different but very important parts of the mattress-buying process: how to choose a mattress and how to shop for a mattress.

Knowing how to choose a mattress means that you can take multiple factors – the different types of mattresses, the comfort level you prefer, your sleeping position, etc. – and use them to select the best mattress for your sleeping needs.

Knowing how to shop for a mattress means that you know the best tricks for a smooth shopping process. These strategies include knowing how to check for a high-quality mattress online.

When buying a mattress, it is important to remember that one size does not fit all. At Texas Mattress Makers, we want our customers to have all the information they need when choosing their next mattress. Discover everything you need to know about how to choose a mattress and how to shop for a mattress so that you can shop with confidence. 

Have additional questions? Struggling with all the factors you need to keep in mind when purchasing a mattress? Chat with a mattress expert online, call one of our stores, or visit us in one of our showrooms! 

How to Choose a Mattress

How to Shop for a Mattress

1. How to Choose a Mattress

Even though we spend around 8 hours a day on our mattresses, we tend to put more thought and consideration into what car we purchase than what surface we sleep on. In reality, there are many factors to consider when picking your next mattress. Typically, knowing how to choose a mattress often starts with knowing what type of mattress will fit your sleeping needs.

Know what type of mattress you want  

There are many different types of mattresses available today, with variations in everything from firmness to eco-friendly options. Here are the most common types of mattresses you’ll see:

Innerspring mattresses

Innerspring mattresses (also called open coil mattresses) are made with interconnecting coils and are known for their bounciness and affordability. Innerspring mattresses can frequently meet the sleeping needs of young children, but are typically not supportive enough for adults.  

For more information about the pros and cons of innerspring mattresses, please see our innerspring mattress buying guide.

Hybrid mattresses

At Texas Mattress Makers, we sell more hybrid mattresses than any other type of mattress. That’s because hybrid mattresses tend to provide sleepers with the best of both worlds: the resiliency and support of individually wrapped coils in the base layer and the cushion of foam, latex, or other materials  in the comfort layer. These different layers help combine both the support and the preferred feel specific for your sleep needs. Unlike most foam mattresses, hybrid mattresses can also help promote a cooler sleeping environment. 

For more information about the pros and cons of hybrid mattresses, please see our hybrid mattress buying guide. 

Memory foam and alternative foam mattresses 

100% memory foam mattresses provide sleepers with deep contouring and comfort. As the foam molds to your body, it reduces the pressure placed on your joints — like those in your hips and shoulders — and helps foster spinal alignment. These mattresses can also be ideal for people who are concerned about support for overweight needs.  While 100% memory foam mattresses have seen a recent rise in popularity, the truth is that they are ideal for only a relatively small proportion of the population. (For more details, visit our foam component page.)

Either way, if you sleep hot, avoid memory foam mattresses and look at our hybrid alternatives. Also, keep in mind that not all foam mattresses are 100% memory foam mattresses; Texas Mattress Makers uses several different types of foam and foam alternatives to make up the different layers for some of our hybrid mattresses as well. 

For more information about the pros and cons of memory foam mattresses, please see our memory foam buying guide.

Latex mattresses

Texas Mattress Makers sells clean, eco-friendly Talalay latex mattresses. Latex shares the same cushioning benefits as foam mattresses, with the additional benefit of extra resiliency for individuals who don’t like the “sunken in” feeling associated with foam. The perforations in latex can also help provide a cooler night’s sleep than a foam mattress. Latex is a luxury mattress material. Although latex mattresses are frequently more costly than other types of mattresses, they also tend to last much longer.

For more information about the pros and cons of latex mattresses, please see our latex mattress buying guide. 

Pillow top and Euro top mattresses

Pillow top and Euro top mattresses can use a wider range of materials for the comfort layer. However, at Texas Mattress Makers, we prefer to use a foam top layer in our pillow top mattresses and Euro top mattresses to increase comfort and support.

Please note that we do not carry Euro top mattresses in our showroom, but any mattress can be customized to feature the Euro top comfort layer if desired. For more information, visit the Euro top buying guide.

Know how your preferred mattress firmness and your support needs interact

Firmness tends to be the biggest concern when shopping for a mattress, but firmness is often mistaken for support. Firmness is related to how comfortable a mattress feels — be that, soft, medium, firm, or somewhere in between. Support, meanwhile, is related to what type of support your body needs in order to achieve proper spinal alignment and relief for your body’s pressure points. The manner in which the firmness of a mattress affects your support depends on your sleeping position (back, side, stomach, combination) your weight, and the material your mattress is made of.

Pro Tip:  A lot of people think you need a firm mattress to get support but, with our handcrafted mattresses, we can achieve optimal support at different levels of comfort.

Factors to consider when considering mattress comfort levels

Weight: For example, a person who carries little weight and sleeps on their side may receive adequate support from an ultra soft or plush mattress, while a side sleeper who carries more weight would probably fare better with a slightly firmer support system or denser material.

Sleeping position: Now imagine a similarly lightweight person to the one mentioned above, except this person sleeps on their back. They would likely want a slightly firmer mattress than the side-sleeper; even though this person also carries little weight, back sleepers often need a slightly firmer mattress to keep their hips from sinking.

Material: Different mattress materials all have their own benefits and drawbacks. Understanding the way these different materials interact with an individual’s support and firmness needs, weight, and sleeping position can be the most complicated part of knowing how to choose a mattress. There are plenty of charts online that explain the intersection of two of these elements, but rarely all of them. That’s why shopping for a mattress online can carry risks if you are unfamiliar with your sleeping needs and preferences. 

As always, if you’re overwhelmed by all the choices that come with purchasing a mattress, you can call the mattress experts at Texas Mattress Makers any time. We are always happy to help! 

If you have a partner, learn their preferences

If you have a partner who sleeps in the same bed as you, make sure that you are aware of their sleeping comfort needs as well as your own. After all, whether or not one partner gets a good night’s sleep can have a major impact on the other. And if either of you tosses and turns while sleeping, you’ll want a bed that minimizes motion transfer. 

Fortunately, it’s now easier than ever to find a mattress that will work for both of you. However, even if you and your partner have very different sleeping needs, you still have options. 

Texas Mattress Makers makes dual comfort mattresses. These mattresses are constructed to offer a different feel on each side of the mattress, and can be made in a queen-size mattress, king-size mattress, or larger. (We typically recommend a king-size and up since, in a queen-size dual comfort mattress, each section is smaller than a twin bed.) 

An alternative solution to the issue of differing sleeping needs is the split king bed. These beds are built to accommodate two different, smaller mattresses on either side of the bed, all within one king-sized frame. Both setups allow partners to keep the intimacy and comfort of sharing a bed even if they don’t share one another’s sleeping needs.

2. How to Shop for a Mattress

Like every other major purchase in your life, there are things you should keep in mind to ensure you’re making the best purchase possible. 

Verify whether or not you actually need a new mattress

There are few things worse for your sleep than a bad mattress, and the consequences of a bad night’s sleep can extend way beyond feeling groggy or sore in the morning. 

Here are a few signs that you should consider getting a new mattress:

• The mattress is older than the recommended time for replacing it
• The mattress didn’t suit you well to begin with
• Weight gain or weight loss has changed your ability to feel comfortable on the mattress
• The mattress is sagging
• You frequently wake up with aches and pains, especially in your back, shoulders, or hips
• You frequently wake up feeling unrested despite getting multiple, full nights of sleep and despite not having an underlying condition 

Sometimes, knowing whether or not you need a new mattress isn’t always straightforward. For example, the classic mattress myth about “replacing your mattress every 8 years” shouldn’t apply to high-quality mattresses. In fact, many of our top-of-the-line mattresses, especially our Quantum coil line,  are made such that they can last a lifetime (and more) with normal wear and tear. 

Additionally, it can be easy to confuse a body impression with a mattress that sags. In beds with a comfort layer, the former is actually normal and a sign that the bed is conforming to your body. 

Have a reasonable budget in mind

The price of your mattress is going to depend on the type of mattress you choose, the mattress size, and the materials used to make it.

An average-sized mattress (queen-sized) will likely cost you between $900 and $1,300. Since quality mattresses can come at many different price points, it’s important to shop with a manufacturer you can trust. At Texas Mattress Makers, we design and manufacture our own mattresses 100% in-house. This helps us ensure consistent quality, and keeps overhead at a minimum so that we can pass on savings without sacrificing quality. 

For more information on mattress costs, see what our sleep experts have to say:

Know when to shop

Naturally, the best time to shop for a new mattress is when you need a new mattress! We can’t stress that enough. And no, we’re not just trying to sell you something here; a good night’s sleep is the biggest investment you can make in your mental and physical health. Since we recognize that our customers may need a mattress any time of the year (and not just on holidays) we work hard to make sure our customers are taken care of year-round.

Because Texas Mattress Makers makes its own mattresses:  

• Our customers get factory direct pricing and avoid paying for the middle man 
• We do not have to increase prices to cover inventory costs
• Customers can avoid paying for a brand name that adds no value to the quality of the mattress

In other words, when we have a sale (which we almost always do) our customers are getting savings on top of savings.  

The best way to stay up to date with sales and exclusive discounts is to join our email list! Click here to sign up and never miss a chance to save!

Want Expert Advice for How to Choose a Mattress? You’ve Come to the Right Place.

A lot goes into knowing how to choose a mattress and how to shop for a mattress. Whether you’ve spent hours researching mattresses or are a mattress-buying novice, the sleep experts at Texas Mattress Makers are always here to help. 

At Texas Mattress Makers, we don’t want to sell you just any mattress; we want to sell you the right mattress. We have dedicated more than 4 decades to learning and perfecting what it means to custom-fit a mattress to your unique body type.

We sleep for about a third of our lives. So your comfort should never be up for negotiation. Find the best choice for your body by browsing our full selection of handmade mattresses online and choose to shop by either comfort level, mattress type, mattress size, or budget.

Or if you prefer to get a feel for our mattresses in-person, you can visit us at any of our convenient Houston locations today!