Best Budget Mattress in a Box
Quick OverviewThe best cheap mattress in a box
- Editor’s Pick – Tuft & Needle Original
- Best Affordable Mattress in a Box for Hot Side Sleepers – Helix Midnight
- Best Cheap (Budget) Organic and Natural Mattress in a Box – Eco Terra Hybrid Latex
- Best Cheap (Budget) Mattress in a Box for Active Sleepers – Purple Smart Comfort Grid Mattress
- Best Cheap (Budget) Mattress in a Box for Athletes – Bear Mattress
Quick overview
Editor’s Pick
- The adaptive foam offers maximum pressure relief, with softness and exceptional cooling added to the equation.
- You’re hitting two birds with one stone here; comfort plus cooling.
- It has a 100 sleep trial and is covered by a 10-year limited warranty.
Best for Hot Side Sleepers
- The ability to give you a customized experience is a service that deserves some merit.
- This mattress caters to all sleeping styles, so you don’t have to overthink or do too much research.
- It comes with a 10-year warranty, making it a solid long-term investment.
Best Organic and Natural
- You get 3 inches of luxurious talalay latex that’s responsive, natural and healthy.
- The 90-day sleep trial means you have up to three months to test the mattress.
- You also get free shipping and returns, as well as 0% APR financing with Klarna.
- They offer a 15-year warranty.
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Best for Active Sleepers
- It’s a crazy bargain. If you look at the quality of this mattress as well as the originality of the brand, it’s difficult to understand how such a luxurious mattress can cost as little as $650 for a twin-sized bed.
- It’s temperature neutral. You don’t get the same experience as with memory foam, so there’s no sinking and heating up with this one!
- It’s not a spring mattress, but you get some pretty good bounce out of it, all while enjoying the comfort of a foam mattress.
- If you’re a bit hesitant about making this all-important decision, you can try out the mattress for 100 days as part of a sleep trial, free of charge.
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Best for Athletes
- Its FDA approved, giving it extra credibility.
- It caters to active people, which is a big plus because they tend to have trouble finding the perfect mattress.
- You get a 100-night trial, without having to pay extra.
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The best budget mattresses in a box reviewed
1. Editor’s Pick – Tuft and Needle
- Couples: The low motion transfer means that you can share a bed without feeling the other person’s movements.
- Combination sleepers: If you go through several positions a night; trust that you’ll get a great balance of comfort and support from this mattress.
- Bargain hunters: You’re dealing with one of the best deals out there. At no more than $600 for a queen, you might just consider becoming a brand ambassador.
PROS
- Compared to other foam mattresses, the Tuft & Needle is surprisingly cool. There’s no need to compromise your comfort because you’re scared of sleeping hot, you can have the best of both worlds with this one.
- With state-of-the-art adaptive foam, you can expect the Tuft & Needle to adjust to anything thrown at it.
- It cools well, thanks to a little something called graphite gel. Heat is easily dispersed and redirected away from your body, nothing short of a miracle for a foam mattress.
- Heavier sleepers might not take kindly to it, considering it’s a medium-firm mattress. They simply couldn’t get enough support from the foam and in fact, a coil mattress might be a better option for them.
2. Best Cheap (Budget) Mattress in a Box for Hot Side Sleepers – Helix Sleep
- Those Strapped for Cash: Going for as low as $600 for a Twin-sized model, the Helix Midnight is a great choice for a sleeper looking to make a good long-term investment with minimal risk.
- The Hesitant: Not sure what you’re looking for in a mattress? The Helix quiz will help you figure it out, and easily so.
PROS
- Many firmness Options: Regardless of what you like or how much you weigh, you’re likely to find something for you in the Helix range.
- No sleeping hot: You have the airflow-allowing coils to thank for that.
- The variety: Having many options means that more customers can be catered to, so your whole family can look no further than Helix for all its sleeping needs.
- If the hybrid thing is new and unusual to you, you might be more inclined to a normal memory mattress. In that case, the Helix may not be your cup of tea because out of all their options (9 in total), none of them give a complete memory foam experience.
- Latex Lovers: Preference plays a major role in buying a mattress, if you like how latex feels on your skin, you’ll be disappointed here because this material doesn’t feature in any of the Helix mattresses – including the Midnight.
3. Best Cheap (Budget) Organic and Natural Mattress in a Box – Eco Terra
- Hot Sleepers: Those who want a cooler sleeping mattress will be glad to know that this mattress is made from natural moisture wicking materials.
- Naturalistas: Someone who likes the idea of sleeping on a mattress with less chemicals and more high quality natural ingredients.
- Active sleepers.
PROS
- It’s made from talalay latex, which is lighter and bouncier than normal dunlop latex.
- It features fabric encased responsive support coils, which means you’re unlikely to sink into this bed as you freely move around.
- Thanks to its excellent edge support, you don’t have to worry about falling off the bed when sitting on the edge to tie your shoes.
- It’s handcrafted from sustainably sourced, natural and organic materials. No toxic petrochemicals, chemical flame retardants or adhesives.
- Natural latex sleeps cool, making this the perfect mattress for those who sleep hot.
- You can’t remove and wash the cover, so you’ll have to purchase a separate waterproof mattress protector.
4. Best Cheap (Budget) Mattress in a Box for Active Sleepers – Purple
- People with back pain.
- Hot Sleepers: Thanks to the one-of-a-kind foam grid technology, air circulation is not a problem and you can expect to stay cool all night long.
PROS
- Considering the level of luxury that comes with this mattress, it’s surprising to discover how cheap it is; for as low as $650, you too can sleep like a king.
- It’s Durable: With the base layer foam so closely packed together, you can anticipate this mattress to last you a long time, much longer than its competitors.
- There’s adequate airflow, allowing for a slower heart rate and uninterrupted sleep of the highest quality.
- The Purple is comparatively large. This calls for one to get a little help when moving it, defeating the purpose of a bed in a box.
5. Best Cheap (Budget) Mattress in a Box for Athletes – Bear
- Athletes: This mattress has a wellness device called the celliant cover, something that proves useful to athletes in improving recovery times, helping with circulation while promoting quality sleep.
- Heavy Sleepers: Bear has an option for heavy sleepers; the Bear hybrid has coils which can take serious weight.
- Light Sleepers: Because of the foam formation of this mattress, movements are deadened, so someone on one side of the bed can’t disturb someone on the other side.
PROS
- At a price of no more than $800, the Bear is fairly affordable, especially if you consider how advanced the mattress is.
- No sleeping hot: The construction of this mattress allows for heat to draw away from the body while allowing cool air to swoop in.
- You get that memory foam feel that many of us like without all the density.
- It’s firmer than most mattresses and as a result, those with smaller bodies might not like it.
Budget mattress in a box buying tips
Service quality
A lot of the mattress companies that offer a cheap mattress in a box option provide a service that includes free shipping, a 100-night trial and even a money-back guarantee.
These are important industry standards to pay attention to, especially when purchasing a mattress online.
Certifications
There are still many manufacturers out there that use outdated and unhealthy chemicals in their production process. To weed such brands out of your search, make sure that the mattress you purchase is certified.
The most common certifications to look out for include CetriPUR and the US Standard-100 from ECOTEX.
For what it’s worth, mattresses that are made in the US typically feature the best materials and have no nasty chemicals to worry about.
Unboxing
Although the mattress in a box is well packaged, it can be really heavy. They often weigh about 60 to 100 lbs depending on the size, and the vast majority of available options come without handles, so you may want someone to help you unpack it.
Off-gassing
Some-but not all- mattresses in a box come with a slight odor at first. This is typically due to the adhesives or organic compounds that build up, and they can take a while to dissipate.
The general rule of thumb is to wait for 24 to 48 hours before you sleep on it. This is known as “off-gassing” the mattress.
Decompressing
Because it’s vacuum-packed, the mattress in a box can take anything from one to two days before it fully takes shape. So don’t be surprised if it looks a little flat when you initially unpack it.
But, some hybrid models inflate pretty quickly and can be ready to use within a few minutes.
Commonly asked questions
What is the bed in a box?
Mattress shopping used to be a headache. Logistics were a nightmare. Getting a moving crew, finding a pickup truck, bringing the mattress inside; this is what customers had to concern themselves with. The bed in a box is a life-saver, sparing buyers from all the hassle and leaving them with one concern; picking the right mattress.
The brainchild behind the idea is a trio from Johnson City, Tennessee, who introduced the Bed-In-a-Box concept to consumers in 2007.
Since then, companies like Casper, Tuft & Needle, and many others jumped on the bandwagon, making the Bed-In-a-Box concept not only popular but viable for many.
How is it packaged?
Before it’s delivered to your house, a mattress in a box is folded, compressed and vacuum sealed before it’s packed into a sturdy shipping box.
What if I don’t like the mattress?
Most companies that offer an affordable mattress in a box are willing to pick it up from you at no cost, and some will even help you to donate the mattress.
There will always be demand for mattresses. Until the day we stop needing sleep, mattresses will be made and sold by different manufacturers. But, it’s a really special thing when you can get a cheap mattress in a box delivered to your doorstep and with the ability to cater to your unique sleeping needs.