The 8 Best Queen Mattresses of 2021

Best Overall: Tuft & Needle Original King Mattress

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The Tuft & Needle Queen Mattress is one of the Internet’s most popular foam queen mattresses. It earns rave reviews for its comfort and 10-year warranty, but the company offers a 100-night sleep trial to make sure its mattress is the right fit for you.

Don’t confuse the Tuft & Needle queen foam mattress with the memory foam commonly found in other bed-in-a-box mattresses. It uses a special adaptive foam that bounces back instead of sinking in the way that memory foam often does. In addition, it’s infused with cooling gel beads and graphite to keep you sleeping cool and comfortable. One user describes it as firm enough for good back support, but soft enough to keep pressure off joints such as knees and hips.

This made-in-the-USA mattress is also Certi-PUR, Oeko-Tex 100 Certified, and GreenGuard Gold certified. While each of these designations carries slightly different testing standards, the bottom line is that the mattress is certified to be free from a whole slew of harmful substances and chemicals.

If you’re looking for a supportive foam mattress that isn’t too stuffy or hot and won’t trap you in place, then the queen mattress from Tuft & Needle might be the right choice for you. This mattress won’t break the bank and it's much cheaper than many mattresses found in big box stores.

Best Budget: Linenspa 8-Inch Hybrid Queen Mattress

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Constructed with coiled springs and a memory foam topper, you’ll get support and softness without spending all your cash.

People like the value of this hybrid innerspring mattress and appreciate the softness offered by the built-in memory foam topper. If you’re not a big fan of the sinking feeling sometimes associated with a memory foam mattress, this Linenspa mattress gives you the support of a coil mattress with just a soft touch of memory foam on top.

You will need to let this mattress air out before use, which is true of most memory foam mattresses. While most people were ready to use this mattress after a day or two of ventilation, a few people were still bothered by off-gassing after a week or more of unpacking. While the mattress is CertiPur-certified, this is something to consider if you’re sensitive to scents.

This queen size mattress is comfortable enough to sleep on every night but is also great for a guest room. At this price point, you won’t get independently encased coils to minimize the transfer of movement or edge support, but people still find this mattress to be comfortable and worth the price.

Best Mid-Range: Live and Sleep Ultra Queen Gel Memory Foam Mattress

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If you want to sleep like royalty with a queen mattress, give the Live & Sleep Ultra Queen Gel Memory Foam Mattress a try. This popular mattress is made with 12 inches of CertiPur memory foam, including a 1-inch layer of gel memory foam to keep you sleeping cool and comfortable.

The Live & Sleep Ultra mattress is often compared to far more expensive Tempur-Pedic mattresses, but at a fraction of the price. It offers medium-firm support that most people find to be supportive without being squishy or rock hard.

"It's important to have the comfort level be there; however, for longevity of the mattress, I've found that the medium firmness tends to be more preferred by patients," says Dr. Samantha March-Howard, doctor of chiropractic at 100% Chiropractic office in Dunwoody, Georgia. "When it's too firm, it's just as bad as being too soft and it's hard for the muscles to relax on any materials that are like that."

One thing that is often recommended by users is to use firm support (like a box spring) under this mattress to keep the mattress from sagging in spots. If you opt for a slatted bed base, make sure that the slats are relatively close together to provide enough support.

Many reviewers report sleeping well and receiving good support from this queen mattress even after a year or more of use. Note that it may take a few days to adjust to the feel of this bed—more than one person experienced a few nights of soreness as their body adjusted, but now they sleep better than they ever have.

Best Memory Foam: Zinus Memory Foam 12-Inch Green Tea Mattress

4.5

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Memory foam mattresses have been taking the Internet by storm since they offer savings, easy shipping, and comfort. The Zinus Memory Foam 12-inch Green Tea Queen Mattress reigns supreme in terms of comfort and value, according to the tens of thousands of positive online reviews.

Unlike some other queen memory foam mattresses, this version from Zinus features good edge support according to users—even beating out the edge support of coil mattresses. This means you can roll to the side of the mattress without feeling like you’ll end up on the floor or sit on the side of the bed to put your shoes on without sliding off. And users also report that the mattress doesn’t hold heat or seem to develop saggy spots, which is often a concern for memory foam mattresses.

The Zinus Memory Foam 12-inch Green Tea Queen Mattress is CertiPur-certified for durability, performance, and content. A few people mention an odor after unboxing, but most find the mattress to be ready for use within a day or two. 

Best Coiled: Signature Sleep Contour 8-Inch Encased Coil Mattress

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If you’re looking for sweet slumber on a conventional spring mattress, the Signature Sleep Contour 8-Inch Coil Mattress is a top choice for a competitive price.

Unlike some bed-in-a-box mattresses on the market, this coiled mattress features 1.6 inches of high-density foam on the top and bottom of the mattress for comfort and support. The fact that the mattress is constructed in such a symmetrical way means that you can flip it over and sleep on either side—allowing you to evenly rotate it to avoid premature wear and aging.

After more than 2 years, one reviewer was happy to report no sagging or lumpy spots—but did point out that the mattress isn’t as firm as it once was. Reviewers also make mention that this coiled queen mattress doesn’t have much edge support. Even still, overall satisfaction with the sleeping experience and price point remains high.

Best Eco-Friendly: Sleep On Latex Pure Green Natural Latex Mattress - Medium Firmness

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For an eco-friendly queen mattress, check out a latex mattress like this one from Pure Green. This queen mattress is made of natural latex material plus organic wool and cotton. It’s also made from start to finish in the USA.

This mattress has a medium firmness that offers support with some give. It’s constructed of Dunlop latex which is slightly springy but not as bouncy as Talalay latex foam, which is usually better for most people. Take note that latex doesn’t conform to your bed in the same way that memory foam does, so you might find this mattress to feel a little firmer. Even still, people find this queen mattress to be a very comfortable eco-friendly option. Latex also doesn’t sleep as hot like memory foam, which is a major plus.

Because of natural materials used, reviewers sometimes describe a faint ‘barnyard’ smell that wears off, usually within several weeks at most. Most people didn’t complain, especially keeping in mind the all-natural materials used to construct this mattress.

Best for Side Sleepers: Purple Mattress

4.3

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Side sleepers face a dilemma: they want a mattress that is soft enough to let their shoulders sink in, but firm enough to hold up the spine and hips. There’s a colorful new solution if you’re looking for a queen mattress for side sleepers—the Purple Mattress.

Purple’s claim to fame is offering foam mattresses topped with a unique hyper-polymer grid that forms the top layer of this mattress. This allows the bed to absorb and distribute pressure across the body. For side sleepers, this means less pressure on the shoulders and hips.

One caveat is that lightweight side sleepers may not be able to fully compress the grid, giving this mattress a more firm feel. However, the Purple’s ability to distribute pressure across the body for an easy night of sleep might make up for this. It’s also easy to change position since the grid bounces back quickly and doesn’t cause you to sink in and feel trapped like memory foam sometimes does.