


They examine its cradling capabilities based on how well it curves up beneath a heavy barbell. In the lab, our scientists check mattresses for heat retention by monitoring the bed’s temperature under a heated blanket. I assess a variety of criteria, including a mattress’s comfort, how well it cradles and supports my body in different sleep positions, whether it’s good at motion isolation (that is, whether or not I feel “motion transfer” disturbances when another person or my rather large cat moves around on the bed), and if it sleeps hot throughout the night.

In the home tests, I spend a full month sleeping on it. Our mattress testing has two key components: an at-home sleep test and lab tests. We put the Tuft & Needle through a month-long sleep test and lab tests to determine whether it retains heat, how supportive it is, and more.
