The 10 Best Mattresses for Side Sleepers in 2023

What's The Best Mattress For Side Sleepers

Mattress manufacturers are constantly trying to one-up the competition when designing the best mattress for side sleepers. And for good reason, over sixty percent of the world sleep on their side — that's a huge percentage of their customer base. While it’s great news for side sleepers, it doesn't make buying a new mattress any less daunting. For many, it can take weeks of research to rationalize spending more on a mattress than their first car. Studies show the average person spends one-third of their life sleeping. Don’t you owe it to yourself to sleep on the perfect mattress? SleePare peeled back the layers on hundreds of mattresses, both literally and figuratively, to find 2023’s best mattresses.

Below is a breakdown of which mattresses were superior for side sleepers, and why.

1. Helix Midnight Luxe

The Helix Midnight Luxe mattress is regularly topping lists for its premium materials, advanced technology, comfort, and support. It’s a favorite amongst side sleepers thanks to zoned technology and made up of over a thousand individually wrapped coils that provide a softer feel under your shoulders and firmer support under your hips. The pillow top offers exceptional airflow and cooling technology to keep even the hottest of sleepers cool at night.

Best For: A great choice for the side sleeper with back pain. Zoned support under shoulders and hips provides solid lumbar support to help align the spine while individually wrapped coils offer superior support and bounce.

2. Puffy Lux

The Puffy Lux is an all-foam mattress with four separate layers totaling twelve inches. What makes this a great choice for side sleepers is the seven-inch base of extremely dense foam offering exceptional support. On top (and exclusive to the Puffy Lux mattress) is the “Body Adapting Dual Cloud Foam” that contours to the body’s shape and provide deep pressure relief.

Best For: For side sleepers who prefer a softer, pillow-top feel.

3. Nolah Signature 12

Nolah Signature 12 boasts 2.5” extra-thick AirFoam™ technology which provides superior pressure relief for side sleepers. The mattress stays cool and contours the body without the sinking, trapped feeling often experienced with memory foam. A fun feature of the mattress is that it’s double-sided. There’s a little more firmness on one side to help you find your perfect sleep, or alternate every few months between soft and firm. The organic top is an extra bonus!

Best For: Great for those looking for an organic top layer and a softer layer offering superior motion transfer

4. Amerisleep AS4

The AS4 is Amerisleep’s most popular mattress amongst side sleepers. The Bio-Pur® comfort layer contours to your body and relieves pain-causing pressure points. This mattress has a little bounce, so side sleepers who move in the night never feel trapped when changing sleep positions. This mattress is built to last and comes backed with a two-decade warranty!

Best For: Stellar pressure point relief for those on the lighter side, who sleep predominately on their side. It does not offer solid support to those with a larger stature.

5. Brooklyn Bedding Aurora

The Brooklyn Bedding Aurora is one of the coolest sleep mattresses on the market. If you’re a hot sleeper, regardless of sleep position, this is the mattress for you. The Copper flex-foam cover is antimicrobial adding to the health of the owner and prolonging the life of the mattress. With 4.5” of comfort and pressure point relief latex-alternative layers, this mattress is a superior choice for side-sleepers on many levels.

Best For: Perfect for heavier side sleepers, people with latex allergies, and those looking for cool night sleep.

6. Nectar

The Nectar mattress has a softer-than-average top comfort layer that absorbs the hips and shoulders and massages pressure points to promote proper spinal alignment. Three inches of soft, slow-responding gel memory foam offers the traditional sinking contour of memory foam. Nectar mattresses are CERTIPUR-US® Certified and the cover is OEKO-TEX® Standard 100, Class 1 certified, making it the most eco-friendly choice on the list.

Best For: Best bang for your buck. Nectar offers a comfortable, supportive sleep for all shapes and sizes of side sleepers.

7. Leesa

The Leesa mattress has three layers of foam targeted to the needs of side sleepers. Each layer builds on the next to provide premium contouring, support, and pressure point relief. Micro pocket springs provide a unique support layer that adapts to your body as you move throughout the night. This is a great mattress for couples thanks to exceptional motion isolation.

Best For: Perfect for petite sleepers and those with chronic aches and pains.

8. Layla

The Layla mattress is another double-sided mattress offering a softer or firmer sleep. Layla is built with Density Copper Gel Infused Memory Foam, which molds to your body and pulls away excess body heat for a cool and comfortable sleep. Layla’s soft side is a favorite for its lumbar support and pressure point relief.

Best For: Great for relieving hip and shoulder pressure for side sleepers. The firm side is recommended for larger side sleepers.

9. Purple

The Hyper-elastic polymer material in the Purple mattress is unlike anything on the market and offers incredible pressure relief to side sleepers. The top layer feel is on the firmer side and it springs back very quickly. The Purple’s Smart-Comfort Gel grid provides just the right amount of softness needed to cradle the hips and shoulders while pulling away heat to provide a cool sleep.

Best For: Great for those who want a firm sleep and close contouring.

10. Casper Wave

The Casper Wave’s new Zoned Support™ is firmer under the hip region and softer in the area under the upper arm area, a perfect combination for side sleepers. Twenty-seven strategically placed Gel pods allow the foam to better contour for proper support in the hips and shoulders. The plush top cushions the body while aligning the spine. A great choice for couples with varying sleep positions and also provides virtually silent sleep and motion isolation.

Best For: Choose this one if you are light to average weight and sometimes roll to your back in the night.

What Side Sleepers Should Look for in a Mattress

Pressure point relief should be top-of-mind for side sleepers. Side sleepers need the perfect amount of lumbar, shoulder, and hip support to align the spine and relieve aches and pains, not create them. A firm mattress with a top layer soft enough to absorb the hips and shoulder is a great combo for the side sleeper.

1. Pressure Point Relief

You need the perfect amount of lumbar, shoulder, and hip support to align the spine and relieve aches and pains, not create them.

2. Softer Top Layer

A top layer like memory foam or gel foam absorbs and cradles the upper and lower body to relieve pressure points.

3. Great Airflow

If you're a hot sleeper, look for a top layer with great airflow and cooling technology incorporated into the design.

4. Easy Transitions

Side sleepers are known to move more during the night. A bed with a coil layer will conform to your body, but not allow you to sink so deep it prevents smooth transitions in the night.

5. Motion Isolation

If you share your bed, look for a mattress that allows for easy transitions and motion isolation.

Other Buying Considerations

When shopping for a bed, there are certain things all types of sleepers will want to consider. If you’re sharing the bed with someone who is not a side sleeper, their preferences will need to be taken into account as well.

Bed Firmness

Side sleepers need a firm bed to support the body, but not so firm your hips and shoulders are pressing into what feels like a board. You want to slightly sink into the mattress, not floating on top with your shoulders and hips carrying the burden.

Bed in a Box vs. Retail

The major difference between the bed-in-a-box and retail used to be not being able to test it out in the store. Now, with stores like SleePare, you can try a bed in a box before buying. Bed-in-a-box ships are lighter and more compact for easy maneuvering through narrow spaces. Retail mattresses come ready to sleep on, where a bed-in-a-box needs a day or two to fully fill in and air out.

Budget or Expensive

Whether your budget extends to the extra bells and whistles offered in more expensive mattresses, or not, there are exceptional choices across all price points. When you lay on your back or stomach, your body weight is more evenly distributed across a mattress. It’s a much different story for side sleepers, all the weight falls on the hips and shoulders. Regardless of budget or firmness preference, make sure the mattress relieves the pressure on your shoulder and hip bones.