How to Choose a Mattress

A Hybrid — Individually wrapped coils on the bottom, comfort layers on top. One hybrid we carry puts foam comfort layers over the coils in a 14-inch pillow-top build. Another puts natural latex, wool and organic cotton over the coils. The coils give the responsive, slightly bouncy feel and the reinforced edge; the top layers decide how soft it is.

Solid Latex — One slab of Dunlop latex, six inches deep on the mattress we carry, wrapped in organic wool and cotton. No coils and no foam. It feels dense and supportive with a little spring, it is heavy, and it is the build to look at if you want natural materials end to end.

Futons and Shikibutons — Layers of cotton, wool and sometimes latex, hand-tufted into a four-to-seven-inch mattress that folds for storage. A shikibuton is the thinner Japanese version, meant for tatami or slats. These are beds for a guest room, a studio or anyone who wants a firm, low bed, not a replacement for a full mattress.

What the Labels Mean — Organic cotton and wool are certified to GOTS. Organic latex is certified to GOLS. Foam can be certified to CertiPUR-US, which tests content and emissions. The product page names the certification for each layer. A maker that says "natural" without naming a certificate is making a different claim.

Feel by Position — Side sleepers usually want plush or medium, because the shoulder and hip sink in. Back and stomach sleepers usually want medium or firm, because they lie flatter. The hybrids we carry come in plush, medium and firm. The latex mattress comes in firm and extra firm, and its maker says most adults find extra firm too hard and would rather add a topper to firm.

Two Sleepers, Two Feels — Nest builds its hybrids with an internal split: medium on one side and firm on the other, or plush and medium, in one mattress with one cover. The other route is two twin XLs on one base, which also lets each side move on an adjustable base. Decide this before you pick a size, because the split changes which sizes are available.

Weight and Firmness — A heavier sleeper sinks further into the same mattress, so a "medium" reads softer. If two sleepers differ a lot in weight, that is another reason to consider the split feel.

Firmness Numbers — Latex makers publish an ILD figure. On the latex mattress we carry, firm is 28 to 32, which its maker calls the industry standard for firm. Hybrids rarely publish one. When a number exists, ask for it; when it does not, ask what the feel compares to.

Sizes — Twin, twin XL, full, queen, king and California king are standard. Twin XL is five inches longer than twin and is the size that pairs on a split king base. The hybrids we carry also come as one side of a split king or split California king. Measure the mattress you have, not the frame, and check the maker's size list against it.

The Base Rule — Every mattress warranty has a support condition, and the latex one is strict. The latex mattress we carry must sit on a slatted frame or foundation, off the floor, with slats one to three inches apart. Hybrids take a platform, slats or a box spring, and Nest's warranty requires proper, continuous support. Buy the base to the warranty, not the other way around.

Adjustable Bases — A hybrid or a latex mattress will bend on an adjustable base, but confirm the maker lists it as compatible, and remember that a king on an adjustable base is usually two twin XLs.

Floor Beds — Futons and shikibutons breathe from underneath. Their makers ask that they sit on slats or tatami mats, never flat on the floor, and that they are flipped and aired regularly.

How It Arrives — The hybrids we carry are made to order, compressed and boxed, and delivered by ground to your door. The latex mattress does not compress. It ships flat from the maker in Washington, by freight or carrier depending on size, and someone has to carry it in.

What It Weighs — A queen latex mattress is about 95 pounds and a king about 121. Hybrids are lighter in the box but awkward once unrolled. Know who is carrying it upstairs before it ships.

Lead Time — Nest's mattresses take three to six business days to build before shipping. The Soaring Heart latex mattress is made by hand after you order and takes four to five weeks before it ships. Futons, shikibutons and toppers from the same maker take three to five weeks.

On Arrival — Inspect the packaging before you sign for freight. If there is damage, note it on the delivery receipt and photograph it. The makers we carry want damage reported within days, not weeks.

The Sleep Trial — A mattress trial is only useful if it applies to your purchase. Nest's 365-night trial and Soaring Heart's 30-day comfort exchange are written for purchases made directly from them. Ask whether the trial applies when you buy from a dealer, and get the answer in writing. When it does not, the dealer's own return policy is what covers you. Ours is 30 days, unused and in original packaging, with a 25 percent restocking fee and return shipping at your cost.

Comfort Exchanges — Some makers will swap the comfort layer rather than the whole mattress. Nest calls this a Lifetime Renewal Exchange and includes one with its hybrids. Ask whether an exchange counts as a return, and who pays to ship the layer.

The Warranty, by Years — Read the warranty in parts. The latex mattress we carry carries 20 years: the first ten non-prorated, the second ten prorated at a twentieth of the purchase price per year, and two years on the cover fabric. Nest's is a limited lifetime warranty for the original purchaser. "Lifetime" and "20 years" describe different things; what matters is which years are non-prorated and what you pay in the prorated ones.

What Voids It — The common conditions: proper support, a mattress protector, the original purchaser only, no stains, and the law label left on. On the latex mattress we carry, skipping the natural protector ends the coverage, and body impressions under one and a half inches are normal wear, not a defect. Normal softening and comfort preference are excluded on every warranty we have read.