Articles · Mattress buying guide

Mattress buying guide

Our mattress buying guide breaks down the decision the way our showroom staff would: by sleep position, body weight, temperature sensitivity, pain points, and budget. Every article below is researched against the brands we actually stock, Tempur-Pedic, Stearns & Foster, Helix, Diamond, Southerland, Englander, Eastman House, and tested against what real customers tell us after they sleep on the mattress for a week. Whether you're shopping for your first king-size, replacing a 10-year-old set, or trying to figure out whether memory foam will sleep too hot, start here.

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Tape measure stretched across the width of a bare quilted mattress in a bright bedroom
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

How to Measure a Mattress (And Why Yours May Not Match the Chart)

A step by step method for measuring a mattress width, length and depth accurately, plus the standard US size chart and the reasons a real mattress often reads half an inch off.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Walnut sleigh bed with curved headboard and footboard dressed in white linens in a bright neutral bedroom
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

What Is a Sleigh Bed? Style, Mattress Fit and Whether It Still Works

A sleigh bed is a frame with curved, outward-scrolling head and footboards. Here is where the style came from, how much floor space it really needs, and the mattress thickness that fits inside one.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Wooden bed frame with evenly spaced pine slats and a center support rail, mattress removed to show slat spacing
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

Bed Slats Explained: How Many You Need and How Far Apart They Go

Bed slats should sit no more than 3 inches apart, and a queen or larger needs a center support leg. Here is the spacing, the slat count by size, and how to spot a base that is quietly wrecking your mattress.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Bare white mattress airing out in a sunny bedroom with a bowl of baking soda and spray bottle nearby to remove odors
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

How to Get a Smell Out of a Mattress: A Step-by-Step Guide

Most mattress odors come out with a vacuum, an enzyme cleaner, baking soda and fresh air. This step-by-step guide covers sweat, vomit, urine, mildew and smoke smells.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Oversized low platform bed with white bedding in a spacious bedroom, showing the scale of an Alaskan king bed
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

Alaskan King Bed: Size, Cost and Whether You Really Need One

An Alaskan king bed measures 9 feet by 9 feet, nearly twice the size of a standard king. Here is what it costs, the room it needs and the alternatives worth considering.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Lightweight woven cooling blanket draped across a bed beside an open window in a bright bedroom
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

Cooling Blankets: How They Work and Whether They Actually Help

What a cooling blanket really does, the three things that make one work, and how to tell a genuinely breathable blanket from a marketing label.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Tall upholstered linen headboard behind a neatly made bed with white bedding
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

Do You Need a Headboard? What One Actually Does

A headboard is optional, not required. Here is what one actually does for your bed and your wall, when it is worth the money, and when you can skip it without missing anything.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Adjustable bed base with the head section raised under a white mattress in a neutral bedroom
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

Do You Need a Special Mattress for an Adjustable Bed?

Most modern mattresses work fine on an adjustable base, but a few will fail quickly. Here is how to tell whether the mattress you already own will flex, and what to buy if it will not.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Cutaway view of a hybrid mattress showing pocketed coil rows and layered foam used for zoned support
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

Zoned Support Mattresses: What Zoning Does and Who Actually Needs It

Zoned support varies a mattress firmness from head to foot, firmer under the hips and softer at the shoulders. Here is how 3, 5 and 7 zone designs work and who benefits.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Wooden panel bed with a tall solid headboard and matching footboard in a bright neutral bedroom
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

What Is a Panel Bed? Styles, Support and How It Compares to a Platform Bed

A panel bed has a headboard, footboard and side rails with flat decorative panels. Here is how it supports a mattress, whether it needs a box spring, and how it differs from a platform bed.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Layered bed with white sheets, cream quilt, linen duvet and a knit throw folded at the foot
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

How to Layer a Bed: The Right Order, Step by Step

The correct order for bedding layers from the mattress up, how to combine a quilt and a comforter, and how to layer for a warm climate.

By LA Mattress StoreRead
Wooden bed frame leg resting on a black bed riser with storage bins tucked beneath the raised bed
Mattress Buying Guide | Find Your Perfect Mattress

Bed Risers: Heights, Weight Limits and How to Use Them Safely

What bed risers are, the heights and weight limits that matter, which beds should never go on them, and safer ways to raise a bed.

By LA Mattress StoreRead

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