Our pick
People with back pain who prefer a bed with some softness but no extra fluff are likely to appreciate the Saatva Classic. The Luxury Firm model is a plush, medium-firm mattress with just a bit of cuddle.
Pocketed coils, quilted polyfoam, and a touch of memory foam conform to your curves and support your spine. The support coils at the base aren’t pocketed, which means motion isolation is limited; as a result, this mattress is perhaps best for people who have the whole bed to themselves. (If your back pain makes climbing into bed difficult, opt for the 11½-inch-thick version over the 14½-inch-thick one.)
To avoid body impressions, rotate this mattress at least every six months, especially if you weigh more than 200 pounds. Saatva offers a 365-day trial period, during which you can return the Classic for a full refund minus a $100 transportation fee.
Our pick
This mattress combines sturdy foam layers with just enough bounce. It also offers better cooling and a thicker cover than the competition.
The Leesa Sapira Hybrid might appeal to back-pain sufferers who prefer a loose, pressure-relieving cuddle over an all-out, body-conforming hug. Dense (4 pounds per cubic foot) memory foam and more than 1,000 individually pocketed coils conform to your curves to help support your achy back and relieve pressure points.
Since the Leesa Sapira Hybrid is neither too hard nor too soft, the mattress is likely to support just about any sleeping position. And because it’s neither overly bouncy nor too “sticky,” it should satisfy backache sufferers who want a memory-foam cradle with enough resilience to make shifting positions easy. It should hold up over the long term for people of most weights, including those who weigh more than 200 pounds.
Use the store locator to find partner retailers near you so that you can try the Leesa Sapira Hybrid before you buy it. Leesa allows for a 100-night trial, and returns give you a full refund.
Our pick
This all-latex mattress is $1,000 more than similar online options, but it should prove more durable and breathable (and thus feel cooler) than many foam mattresses. Good latex mattresses are expensive, but this one provides solid value.
If durability is your top priority, the all-latex Zenhaven from Saatva is a logical choice, including for people who weigh more than 200 pounds.
Latex, a foam engineered from the milky sap of a rubber tree, won’t break down as easily as memory foam or polyurethane foam. It’s also intrinsically springy, which is helpful for back-pain sufferers who find it hard to move around on pillowy or sinky surfaces.
The Zenhaven is flippable, too, allowing you to choose between two firmness options: The Gentle Firm side, designed for back- and stomach-sleepers, is almost firm, while the Luxury Plush side is a supple medium-firm.
But it’s heavy, so you need either a platform frame or a box spring. You can try the Zenhaven for 365 nights and return it if you don’t like it (you pay a $100 fee).
Our pick
This Costco favorite is made from layers of foam that are as dense (and probably as durable) as the foam in mattresses that cost twice as much. Testers loved its supportive feel, though some found it too firm.
If you’re looking for a budget-friendly memory-foam mattress, the Novaform ComfortGrande may be worth a try.
It doesn’t feel quite as sturdy as our higher-end foam pick, the Tempur-Adapt (Medium Hybrid), but we found it surprisingly supportive for the price. It has a supportive memory-foam sink, but that sink is not as slow or conforming as what you can find on the Tempur-Adapt.
With a memory-foam density between 3 and 3.5 pounds per cubic foot (the company wouldn’t provide exact numbers), the Novaform ComfortGrande should prove durable in the long term for people under 200 pounds; to prevent body impressions, it’s best to rotate the mattress at least every six months and vary where you sleep on it.
Thanks to Costco’s generous return policy, you can return the ComfortGrande for a full refund whenever you’d like, for any reason.
Our pick
This flippable, two-piece mattress is made of high-quality, durable materials—including latex and extra-sturdy coils—that are rare even in pricier mattresses. But it’s heavy, and you’ll likely have to pay extra if you want help setting it up.
The house-made coils and latex foam in the two-piece Charles P. Rogers Estate SE provide durable, sturdy support for back-pain sufferers (and anyone else). Thanks to its latex-and-cotton-quilted topper, it offers cushioning for sore joints and muscles, too.
Each side of the mattress has a different firmness level: Place the coil unit right-side up for a medium-firm feel with a bit more give; turn it over for a slightly firmer sleeping surface. Either way, the latex adds a subtle springiness to that conventional coil bounce, making it easier for achy sleepers to move around in bed. The quality materials should prove durable, even for those who weigh more than 200 pounds.
One possible downside: The Estate SE is heavy and thus requires either a platform frame or a box spring. The company offers a 100-night trial, within which time you can return the mattress for a refund (but you’ll pay a $200 “recycling fee” and in-home delivery fee, if you chose that in lieu of free FedEx shipping).
Our pick
With luxurious, slow-sinking foam and sturdy edge support, the Tempur-Adapt feels leagues ahead of most foam mattresses we tried. But it also costs two to four times as much.
The Tempur-Adapt (Medium Hybrid) mattress is on the firm side of medium-firm, but it’s also extremely curve-conforming—meaning your finicky spine is likely to feel well supported while your pressure points are gently cushioned.
Its foam density is 4.5 pounds per cubic foot, so the Tempur-Adapt should hold up for the long term, even for those who weigh more than 200 pounds. But that foam is quite huggy, so back-pain sufferers who frequently shift positions may have a hard time moving around on it.
You can try the mattress in the many showrooms and department stores that carry it. The Tempur-Pedic site also offers a 90-night tryout, with a full refund (less shipping) if you don’t like it after sleeping on it for at least 30 days. However, if you purchase from a third-party retailer, you’re subject to that seller’s return policy instead.
