Like most latex mattresses, we think this one will be up your alley if you’re into that responsive, “on” rather than “in” feeling in a mattress, and you aren’t too bothered by your bed partner or pet moving around, as our motion isolation test determined that you’ll likely feel it. But the Birch Natural’s bounciness will only make any bedtime activities more fun, and its naturally cooling materials should help you keep any sweating contained to said activities.
The only downside: Considering this is one of the more expensive options on this list, we don’t love that it only offers a 25-year warranty (limited after 10 years) and 100 nights to try it out. (A lifetime warranty and a yearlong trial are ideal, in our not-so-humble opinion.)
The Brooklyn Bedding EcoSleep Luxe is a side sleeper’s dream. As the name implies, it’s a plush, eco-friendly-meets-luxury mattress that lands on the softer side of this list for those sleepers who prefer to feel like they’re sinking into the bed a bit.
Our Tester’s Take
Side sleepers, we ride at dawn (after a solid night of sleep, that is). Okay, not really, but we could take over if we wanted to: Studies have found that most people (around 54 percent) sleep on their side.
After rigorous spooning (sorry, testing), we found that the Brooklyn Bedding EcoSleep Luxe was made for us, with the perfect amount of plush softness to allow side sleepers’ hips and shoulders to get that contouring and sinkage that keeps the spine in alignment. We found that this mattress works well for back sleepers who prefer a softer mattress, too, but it’ll likely be too soft for stomach sleepers. (Wanna make it even softer? You can also add a pillow top to this one.)
Everything else we discovered testing this mattress wasn’t all that surprising considering it’s another hybrid latex and coil model: a decent amount of bounciness and responsiveness to help you do any moving around, excellent cooling, some trouble with isolating movement and edge support.
The Avocado Eco, an affordable, sustainable, and medium-soft mattress, is the best option for sleepers who tend to stay on their backs. It’s got a great balance of softness and support, and it scored well on our pressure relief test.
Our Tester’s Take
Back sleepers want to look for a mattress that hits somewhere between medium to medium-firm on the firmness scale, and offers solid pressure relief. The Avocado Eco is right on the money—and it helps that it won’t cost you all that much money for the value it offers, as one of the more affordable options on this list.
While we think back sleepers will have met their match, the Avocado Eco could be an option for side sleepers, too, or even stomach sleepers under 130 pounds. (Overall, we’d recommend that sleepers over 230 pounds look elsewhere, ideally at mattresses designed to provide more support.) Sleepers who tend to wake up sweaty will also appreciate the Avocado Eco for its breathable materials—organic cotton and wool, Dunlop latex (the less-fancy kind of latex, but still a breathable and durable material), and individually pocketed recycled steel coils. The Eco has that classic compromise we’ve come to expect from a latex and coil hybrid—pleasantly bouncy and responsive, but you’re gonna feel any bedfellows or pets squirming beside you with its just-okay motion isolation.
The Avocado Eco has some impressive eco-friendly credentials, including both GREENGUARD and GOTS certifications—plus, the brand says all materials are sourced from sustainable suppliers who are focused on reducing their footprint (and by proxy, yours).
The Awara Natural Luxury Hybrid boasts a firm layer of Dunlop latex and support system of individually wrapped coils, so it has all the perks of latex but the feel of a more traditional innerspring mattress.
Our Tester’s Take
Stomach sleepers, take note: One of our expert testers says the Awara Natural Luxury Hybrid is one of the best options for stomach sleeping he’s ever tried. (And to be clear, he’s tried hundreds.) We ranked the Awara Natural Luxury Hybrid Mattress as the elite of the elite when it comes to firm latex mattresses because it offers a near-perfect experience for stomach sleepers. One possible concern flagged by one of our testers: Because the layer of Dunlop latex above the coils is fairly thin, sleepers over 230 pounds may find themselves sinking all the way down into the coils, which may not be so comfortable.
Otherwise, though? We found little to complain about with this mattress. It doesn’t have any special cooling features, but performed just fine on our cooling test. It has excellent edge support, which means it’s great for couples who want to spread out and sleepers who struggle to get in and out of the bed, and it will probably last a long time. Plus, it’s got environmentally friendly street cred (aka lots of certifications verifying that the materials are good for you and the planet), and a generous lifetime warranty and yearlong trial, so you can check your mattress off your list of things to spiral about as you fall asleep.
Another thing we love about the mattress: For every product sold, Awara will plant ten trees—ten more reasons to sleep nice and sound.
