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Waking up repeatedly at night due to a partner’s restless movements can affect your sleep quality and overall health. Shared body heat can make night sweats a regular occurrence with a heat-trapping mattress. If you’re sharing with a small infant or child, a mattress that is too soft can pose a risk for them.
And with two people’s weight, edges can compress to the point that rolling off an unsuitable or worn mattress can become a reality.
Yikes.
To avoid that, I’ve compiled a list of my best mattresses for co-sleeping, along with some tips and tricks on choosing the right mattress for you and your family in your home.
A Quick Preview
 | Best Overall - Editor’s Pick Puffy Mattress | Check Current Price Read more about this mattress |
 | Best Memory Foam Mattress Amerisleep AS3 | Check Current Price Read more about this mattress |
 | Best for Back Sleepers Winkbed | Check Current Price Read more about this mattress |
 | Best Extra-Firm Option Plank Mattress | Check Current Price Read more about this mattress |
Our Review of the 4 Best Mattresses for Co-sleeping
Best Overall — Editor’s Pick — Puffy Mattress
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Highlights
- Slow-adaptive layers allow for moderate motion isolation between partners for less disturbed sleep.
- A thick, 4-inch comfort layer provides adequate sinkage for increased comfort.
- A removable, stain-resistant cover allows for easier mattress care and a cleaner room.
The Puffy is my best mattress for co-sleeping as it has an incredibly slow response time, provides adequate cushioning, and has moderate edge support. Based on my reviews, the Puffy exhibits motion-isolating properties that couples can take advantage of, as it takes 1.7 seconds to bounce back from compressions fully. In comparison, the Puffy is more slow-adaptive than the Amerisleep AS3 (a similar all-foam model) by 0.8 seconds, meaning that the Puffy will feel more isolating and reduce disturbances caused by a restless partner, improving your sleep quality overall. It’s also firm enough to keep small infants supported.
The Puffy also boasts impressive sinkage, measured at 2.5 inches. This is enough to hug the body and release tension, spreading your weight over a broader area. And, the Puffy’s edge support is fairly good, ensuring you won’t feel like you’ll roll off the edge if you and your partner are lying close on the edge.
What I Don't Like About This Mattress
One feature I don’t like about the Puffy is that, due to its high level of sinkage, it may not adequately keep the spine aligned for heavier back sleepers over 230 pounds.
Read our full Puffy mattress review for more information.
Best Memory Foam Mattress for Co-sleeping — Amerisleep AS3
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Highlights
- Unique Bio-Pur® foam is slow to conform to the body, providing motion isolation for partners.
- Removable cover allows you to wash the top, helping keep your mattress fresh.
- Cooling technology helps keep your temperature neutral for a cooler sleep.
The Amerisleep AS3 is my best memory foam mattress for co-sleeping as it uses cooling technology, Bio-Pur® foam, and a removable cover. The Amerisleep AS3, according to my review, measured a surface temperature of 85.6 degrees Fahrenheit (anything under 90 degrees is enough to feel comfortable.) The Bio-Pur® foam and breathable cover channel heat away, helping you stay cool while sleeping with a partner. It performs better than the Plank in this category by 4.1 degrees, making the AS3 a better option for coolness. The Bio-Pur® foam also doubles as being moderately slow-adaptive, which is enough to capture and isolate most motion, so you’re less disturbed by smaller movements from a partner. And similarly to the Puffy, small infants will feel snug and supported.
The AS3 also comes with a removable cover, which can be unzipped in less than 10 seconds to have the top portion thrown in the wash, which means, similar to the Puffy, you have peace of mind when it comes to the occasional spill or stain.
What I Don't Like About This Mattress
One feature I don’t like about the AS3 is that, due to its soft core and comfort layers, it may feel too soft for heavier stomach sleepers over 230 pounds that need more support.
Read our full Amerisleep AS3 mattress review for more information.
Best for Back Sleepers — Winkbed
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Highlights
- Sturdy coil base gives a high amount of responsiveness, helpful for ease of movement and support for you and a partner.
- Plush euro pillow top helps to cradle and isolate motion, easing tension and reducing disturbances from a partner.
- Cooling technology, such as its Tencel® cover, helps to keep you cool even with extra heat from a partner.
The Winkbed is my best hybrid mattress for co-sleeping as it has pocketed coils for support, a 3-inch thick euro-pillow top, and good edge support. Based on my review, the Winkbed has some excellent bounce, totaling 9.89 inches (the minimum for a hybrid should be around 7 inches). This ensures ease of movement and support, so you’re not sitting too deep with the weight of a second person in bed. The plush euro pillow top also helps reduce motion transfer from your partner, having a slow-adaptive response from compressions at around 0.7 seconds. It does not isolate motion as much as the Puffy, but this is still relatively high for a hybrid mattress. Small infants need firmness and may benefit from this mattress more.
What stood out to me the most for the Winkbed was its edge support, sinking at only 2.36 inches (the maximum being 4 inches, based on our reviews, for good edge support.) That means you’ll feel well-supported at the edges.
What I Don't Like About This Mattress
One drawback I noticed about the Winkbed is that unlike the Puffy and AS3, this mattress does not have a removable cover, making a mattress protector more necessary to keep your mattress safe.
Read our full Winkbed mattress review for more information.
Best Extra-Firm Option — Plank Mattress
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Highlights
- Moderate edge compression indicates strong edges that can support you and your partner.
- Extra Firm side uses 0.75 inches of comfort layers, ensuring better support to align and support the spine of two people.
- Optional cooling GlacioTex™️ cover helps keep you and your partner from experiencing night sweats.
The Plank is my best extra-firm mattress for co-sleeping due to its Extra Firm side, moderate edge support, and optional cooling cover. Based on my tests, the Plank only exhibited 1 inch of sinkage on its Extra Firm side, meaning it’s a suitable option if you want to avoid excessive sinkage with the weight of two people. It’s strong enough to keep both of you supported, and can handle most weight categories, such as people over 230 pounds. It may not feel as comfortable as the Puffy, with the Plank firmer by 1.5 inches, but I found my hips and spine were adequately aligned. This strong foam core also translates to good edge support, where I only measured a sinkage of 4.1 inches (the maximum for good edge support being 4 inches). It’s slightly over the threshold but still can support two people on the edge comfortably. And its firmness is ideal for co-sleeping with a small child, as they need as much firmness as possible.
I also tested the Plank’s optional GlacioTex™️ cover, which kept the mattress temperature at 89.7 degrees Fahrenheit (just under the maximum of 90 degrees for comfort). This makes the Plank a viable option for keeping cool with a partner and adequately supported.
What I Don't Like About This Mattress
One feature I don’t like about the Plank is the cooling top panel of the cover, which makes the mattress feel a bit slippery.
Read our full Plank mattress review for more information.
Our methodology - Why I Picked These Mattresses
These were chosen as the best mattresses for co-sleeping as they all show qualities necessary for great partnered sleep (and sleep with a small child): edge support, cooling, and the ability to isolate motion. Edge support typically comes from a strong, durable core (like the Plank). Good coolness usually comes from gel memory foam (like the Winkbed), while motion isolation comes from a mattress’ memory foam density.
When choosing these mattresses, I looked for slow-adaptive foam with a bounce-back of at least 0.5 inches (except the Plank) to indicate motion isolation qualities. I also looked for edge compressions of no more than 4-4.5 inches, which means the edge is strong enough to support two weights. I also look for cooling technology, like the Plank’s GlacioTex™️ cover, with temperatures recorded no higher than 90 degrees Fahrenheit. When reviewing my mattresses, I also checked other criteria, such as comfort, sinkage, and how bouncy a mattress was. I will share more methodology tips later in the article so you can better choose a mattress for your home.
Factors to Consider when Choosing the Best Mattress for Co-sleeping
There are a few factors to consider when choosing the ideal co-sleeping mattress, which include:
- The size of the mattress.
- The mattress's firmness.
- The motion isolation ability of the mattress.
- The cooling qualities of the mattress.
- The mattress edge support.
The Mattress Size
The mattress size plays a significant role in how effective a mattress will be for co-sleeping. The best mattresses for bed sharing are usually larger in size, as this gives you more space to stretch out. Typically, a queen or king-size mattress is a suitable choice for co-sleeping.
The Mattress Firmness
The ideal co-sleeping mattress firmness needs to be supportive enough to support both of you while also being a mattress with enough motion isolation for restless sleepers. According to the Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, the best firmness to help ensure a balance between comfort, support, and motion isolation, is medium-firm (1)(2). This firmness also makes for some of the most durable mattresses, as they’re designed to hold more weight, making them last longer over time.
The Motion Isolation of the Mattress
The best mattresses for bed sharing usually have a high amount of motion isolation, as in how well they absorb motion from traveling across the bed. This quality can help you and your partner (and a small child) from disturbing each other during the night. Typically, these mattress use materials such as memory foam (like the Puffy) or latex, and are included in mattresses that don’t use fiberglass.
The Cooling Qualities of the Mattress
The cooling qualities of a mattress are essential for co-sleepers, especially if one of you becomes hot more easily. Typically, hybrid mattresses tend to be breathable, but some of the best mattresses without coils (such as the Puffy) use gel memory foam to help draw away heat.
The Edge Support of the Mattress
Good edge support of your mattress can be a key indicator if it is suitable for co-sleeping, as a mattress with strong edges has a stronger core. Stronger cores, made up of either a coil system (like the Winkbed) or high-density foam (like the Puffy), usually have longer warranties, and may even be considered one of the mattresses with a lifetime warranty (like the Puffy again). Mattresses with strong edge support usually are also counted among mattresses with free trials, as they’re made better than mattresses with weak edge support, and can support families better.
Places to Find the Best Mattress for Co-sleeping
The best mattresses for bed sharing can typically be found in these locations:
- Furniture stores.
- Online mattress stores
Furniture Stores
Furniture stores are an excellent option for finding suitable co-sleeping mattresses as they usually have a wider range of options than department stores. Furniture stores also usually have knowledgeable sales associates who can give insight into the selections available and help you find the best mattress that would suit you and your partner.
Online Mattress Stores
Online mattress stores are some of the most convenient options for finding a suitable and affordable mattress for co-sleeping. You can pursue collections from the comfort of your home. Plus, most online mattress stores have mattresses that come in a box and can be shipped directly to your home for a free trial period (like the Puffy).
Things to Avoid When Choosing Mattresses for Co-sleeping
When choosing a mattress for co-sleeping, the top things to avoid are:
- A mattress that is too small.
- Too soft or firm.
- Little to no motion isolation.
- Minimal edge support.
- Minimal cooling.
- Not knowing how to extend the mattress’ lifespan.
Too-Small Mattress
A mattress that is too small for co-sleeping can cause couples to bump into each other and unnecessarily disturb each other’s sleep. Smaller beds, such as doubles or twins, may be too small for most families.
Too-Soft or Too-Firm Mattress
Choosing a mattress that is too soft or firm for co-sleeping can cause discomfort and back aches due to the spine being out of alignment. A too-soft mattress can cause you to sink too deep in the layers, and the effect is doubled with two people. A too-firm mattress can cause discomfort for you and can cause problems for small children, as they need more firmness.
No-Motion Isolation
Choosing a mattress with minimal motion isolation means it’s easier for the motion to transfer across the mattress, causing more disturbances in the night for you and your partner. To get around this, choose a mattress with soft, slow-adaptive comfort layers (like the Puffy).
Minimal Edge Support
Choosing a mattress without edge support for co-sleeping can cause issues as two bodies mean extra weight, which can pile up on the edge and cause the spine to bend unnaturally.
Minimal Cooling
Choosing a mattress without cooling technology, especially when you’re sharing body heat while co-sleeping, can cause heat to build up faster and to a higher degree. Research has suggested that a mattress that keeps you warm or temperature neutral (away from hotter temperatures) can help improve sleep quality (3).
Not Knowing How to Extend Its Lifespan
There are a few tricks you should know about proper mattress care for co-sleeping to avoid choosing a mattress without knowing how to extend its lifespan. There is more weight involved with two people sharing a bed, so it’s essential to know how often to change your mattress and how often your mattress needs to be rotated to ensure optimal sleep and mattress life.
F.A.Q.
How do I know if my bed is too soft for co-sleeping?
You will know if your bed is too soft for co-sleeping if you or your family experience any sagging or excessive sinkage while sleeping together. This can include your weight pooling to the center of the mattress, causing your hips to dip and your spine to fall out of alignment.
Is memory foam safe for co-sleeping?
Memory foam is safe for co-sleeping, with its only drawback being that some memory foam can be heat-retaining. With you and your family sleeping together, this may cause heat to build up faster, making a mattress with memory foam more beneficial if it has cooling properties (like the Winkbed).
How firm should the best mattresses for bed sharing be?
Ideally, anything medium-firm or firmer is better for co-sleeping, keeping you on top of the bed as much as possible. This ensures you and your family have the support they need.
Conclusion
Choosing an ideal co-sleeping mattress doesn’t have to be challenging. As long as you know what to look for, like choosing a mattress that can isolate motion, while also being firm enough to keep you all supported, cool, and safely on top of the mattress together, you’ll be able to enjoy restful nights together.
The Puffy is my best mattress for co-sleeping as it has enough comfort layers to keep you, your partner, and a small infant comfortable and supported, and with enough motion isolation to keep you all undisturbed and sleeping blissfully.
Do you have a preferred mattress for co-sleeping? Let us know in the comments below!
References
- Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology (2021.) What type of mattress should be chosen to avoid back pain and improve sleep quality? Review of the literature. Retrieved from: https://jorthoptraumatol.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s10195-021-00616-5
- Research Gate (2003.) Effect of firmness of mattress on chronic non-specific low-back pain: Randomised, double-blind, controlled, multicentre trial. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/8998133_Effect_of_firmness_of_mattress_on_chronic_non-specific_low-back_pain_Randomised_double-blind_controlled_multicentre_trial
- NIH National Library of Medicine (2015.) Effect of different mattress designs on promoting sleep quality, pain reduction, and spinal alignment in adults with or without back pain; systematic review of controlled trials. Retrieved from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29073401/
Our research
27
Mattresses Considered
112
Hours of Research
2
Sleep Experts Consulted