Labor Day is almost here and mattress companies have kicked off their sales. Our advice for buying a mattress is to never pay full price, and always look at deals with caution. Sale prices are usually the real MSRP in disguise. We keep track of prices throughout the year and have highlighted the deals that are actually good. All prices are for queen sizes.
Updated August 30, 2023: We’ve added deals from Allswell, Casper, and Leesa.
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Best Mattress Deals
Read our Best Mattresses and Best Organic Mattresses guide for more.
Enter code LDS25 at checkout to get this discount and two free pillows. This isn’t an uncommon sale price, but it has dipped since we checked last week. The Helix Midnight Luxe is our top pick overall. With this pricey bed, you’ll get six layers of foam and individually wrapped inner springs, making it more than 13 inches high. It’s medium-firm and comfortable for almost all sleeping positions. There are other firmness levels within the Luxe collection that we didn’t try.
Enter code LDS25 at checkout to get this discount along with two free pillows. This model from Helix is new to our guide, so we haven’t been tracking it as long. The current sale price is less than it cost last week, however, it’s still about $230 more than we saw during Prime Day. WIRED’s mattress tester Martin Cizmar has been sleeping on the soft Sunset model, but there are several firmness options to choose from depending on your needs. They’re 16 inches thick and come in two big, heavy boxes—the two pieces zip together to form one bed.
Photograph: Allswell
Unlike most mattresses, this already-cheap hybrid went down in price since we first tried it, but it’s still as luxe and comfy as $2,000 mattresses. Technically it is $282 off from Walmart, but the base price has dropped to $687 on Allswell’s website, which is lower than Walmart’s $779 price—if you purchase it directly from Allswell, it’s discounted to $515 ($172 off) with code BIGDEAL25.
The Allswell Hybrid is the best super cheap mattress we tried. It’s typically $349 from Walmart (Walmart owns Allswell) but it dropped to this price at the end of May. We’re not sure yet whether this is the new standard price, but if you need a bed and want to spend as little as possible, it’s a good choice. It feels much more expensive than it is, beating out other super cheap beds we tried. It’s medium-firm and the top layer of gel-infused memory foam keeps you cool. If you can spend a little bit more, the Allswell Luxe for $399 is even comfier (though not on sale).
Enter code USAMADE at checkout to get this discount. This isn’t the cheapest we’ve seen, but it’s a rare sale. It’s our recommendation for a kid’s organic mattress, made using certified organic cotton, wool, and latex. This price is for the twin size.
Enter code LDS25 at checkout for this discount and two free pillows. This mattress is a new pick in our guide and it’s even cheaper now than when the sale first started. If you want an organic mattress, it’s a good upgrade and a higher-end version of the standard model we recommend in our organic mattress guide. It’s comfy, and the medium-firm feel is great for most sleeping styles. It’s topped with a layer of blended cashmere for regulating temperature. The Birch Luxe is GOTS-certified organic and uses natural latex with no polyurethane-based foams.
This is the typical sale price we see, so it’s not a bad buy. However, it dropped to $1,117 during Prime Day. The Mint Mattress is our pick for pressure relief. You’ll sink into it more than any other medium-firm foam beds, but it’s still supportive and cool. The top foam layer springs back into shape once you’re out of it, so you shouldn’t come home to a Pyscho-esque indent.
Enter code LD2023 at checkout to get this discount and two free pillows. Molecule’s Hybrid Mattress is one of our honorable mentions. Unlike a lot of the mattresses we’ve tried, it’s not usually on a forever sale. This discount matches what we saw during Prime Day. It’s a comfortable hybrid bed, but it’s seriously lacking in edge support.
These Deals Are OK
The below mattresses are discounted, but they’re either not as good as they claim or we’ve tracked them going even lower.
Photograph: Dreamcloud
DreamCloud is one of our honorable mentions, and our tester says it was comparable to the comfort of the Helix Midnight Luxe. This price is affordable in the mattress world, but the sale isn’t quite as large as it seems. Every time we’ve tracked it, we see it either for $899 or $799. It also dipped lower this past weekend, so if you can keep an eye on it, you might save more soon. Still, it’s a good price if you want to buy it right now.
This is technically a sale, and it does reach its $1,495 list price, but it’s frequently at this price on Amazon. Still, this is the hybrid mattress you should buy if you simply don’t know what to get. It’s as default as you can get, with a good balance between soft and supportive. For a brand that basically put bed-in-a-box mattresses on the map, it’s a nice price. The Casper Original Standard Foam Mattress is also discounted to $1,036 ($259 off). We prefer the hybrid, but this is a classic all-foam option. Like the hybrid, this is a sale, but it does reach this price often both from Casper directly and Amazon.
Bear’s foam mattress is a new addition to our guide, so we haven’t had much time to track the price. However, we’ve seen it dip this low before. We’ll continue to track it, but this is not expensive by any means for a bed we really liked. It’s firm, but there’s also a pleasant hug-like feeling when you sink into the first layer.
We saw this mattress for $200 less last week. If you can wait, you may be able to save a little more, but this is the typical sale price we see. If you’ve ever looked up mattresses, you probably have seen Purple. This one isn’t a hybrid, but it has a comfortable, Jell-O-like cool feeling thanks to the brand’s signature silicone grid. Purple does have hybrids, but we haven’t tested them.
This innerspring mattress is new to our guide, and something to consider if you’re sick of all-foam mattresses that come in a box. We tried the version with Ultimate support and a Plush Pillow Top, which is more expensive than the base offerings that you see when you first enter the product page. We found that combination to have an excellent balance of softness and support. This won’t come in a box, so you’ll need to schedule delivery by truck, but thankfully, this modern innerspring doesn’t also require a box spring.
Though technically the Awara is priced at $1,399, it’s almost always $1,099 so this price is $100 off and matches what we saw during Prime Day. This is our affordable organic mattress choice and it’s made from from latex foam and organic wool. It’s supportive and bouncy, with little motion transfer, but we could feel the springs a bit more than the other mattresses we tried.
Our runner-up mattress is priced higher on Leesa’s website, but it’s typically $1,699 on Amazon year-round. This isn’t the best deal ever, and it was cheaper at the beginning of August so you’ll likely be able to save more if you wait, but still, we found that it was cool, cozy, and soft, yet firm enough to relieve some pressure while we fell asleep.
These Are Not Actually Sales
You can’t trust mattress brands and their sales tactics. If something is always on sale then it’s not really a sale, is it? That’s why we track prices to see what’s even more discounted than usual. These beds are all good options and top recommendations in our guides, but they aren’t actually discounted any more than we usually see.
- Avocado Green Organic Hybrid Mattress for $1,799 (With Code Labor Day): Avocado has a forever 10 percent off sale, but this is our top organic mattress pick and the only one WIRED senior writer Scott Gilbertson was able to agree with his wife on. Despite him liking firmer beds and her preferring softer ones, this was both without being too much of either.
- Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid Mattress for $999: This bed is always $999 both here and on Amazon. We’ve seen it dip even lower on Amazon, so if you can wait you may get a deal. This bed is very firm if that’s what you’re looking for.
- The WinkBed Hybrid Mattress for $1,499: We haven’t ever seen the WinkBed actually reach its $1,799 list price. It’s a good bed if you aren’t sure what you need, with fantastic edge support. It’s relatively firm, but there’s an added plush pillow top.
- Nectar Memory Foam Mattress for $699: Though the price jumped up to $799 for a moment on Amazon, this mattress is almost always $699. Nectar is a classic, comfortable memory foam mattress that’s great for side sleeping.
- Saatva Zenhaven Natural Latex Mattress for $2,945: The Zenhaven is a new pick for us, so we haven’t tracked it for very long, but it was actually cheaper at the beginning of the month. This mattress has one side that’s plush, and the other that’s firm. We noticed a difference, but not as much as having separate dedicated soft and firm beds.
