How to choose the Best Mattress For Side Sleepers With Shoulder Pain and 6 mattress recommendations

List of 6 Best Mattresses for Side Sleepers with Shoulder Pain

Best Overall - Editor’s Choice — Puffy Lux Mattress

The reason why the Puffy Lux deserves to be among the best mattresses for side sleepers with shoulder pain hides in its feel. The Puffy is one of the most well-balanced mattresses I’ve tried. It offers just enough hug to envelop the protruding body parts gently but does not allow the spine to curve uncomfortably. Thanks to that, I woke up tension-free every morning when testing the Puffy Lux.

I also appreciate that this model does not sleep hot (which can be an issue for many side sleepers). The Puffy uses multiple foam layers, but they all have cooling properties. So, even though I experienced a more generous hug when sleeping on one side, I did not notice overheating during the night.

Runner Up - TEMPUR-Cloud

Next up on our list of the best mattresses for side sleepers with shoulder pain is the TEMPUR-Cloud mattress. This mattress can be good for shoulder pain relief because of its plush firmness level. The memory foam layer of the bed hugs tightly to the shoulder and hips for side sleepers and offers a pain-relieving cushion that is often missing with firm mattresses.

Despite the soft feel of the Tempur-Cloud mattress, I think that it’s not slacking in body support, as the base foam is quite thick. In addition, this Tempurpedic mattress can also be good for partnered sleepers because it isolates each sleeper’s movements.

Best Cooling Mattress - Eight Sleep Pod 3

Since side sleepers tend to sink more than other sleeper types, using a cooling mattress might be necessary to avoid night sweats. And as a plus, the cradling effect of ‘sleeping in’ a mattress can help ease off shoulder pain. In essence, the Eight Sleep Pod 3, which is an advanced cooling mattress, is a viable option for hot side sleepers with shoulder pain. The pod mattress has a comfort layer with adaptive memory foam for cradling pressure points and providing spinal balance when sleeping.

The Pod 3 mattress uses an electronic cooling system that water-cools the bed through ducts hewn into the mattress cover. The point of this pod design is to afford you the freedom to choose how cool or warm you want your mattress to feel.

Best Luxury Mattress for Partnered Side Sleepers — Winkbed

What’s the Deal with Shoulder Pain and Your Mattress?

Along with the sedentary way of life, injuries, and age-related changes in your body, your shoulder pain can be caused by your bed. 

Yes, I’m talking about your mattress, in particular. 

Here’s how it can harm you.

It’s Too Old

Everything has a lifespan, and mattresses do as well. An average mattress can offer you support and comfort for about 7-10 years, but if you purchased a low-cost model, chances are it will start to wear out even earlier.

The typical wear and tear can manifest as sagging, comfort layers going flat, or edges becoming weak. And here’s how these issues can contribute to your shoulder pain:

• Spine misalignment. An uneven mattress surface cannot properly adjust to your body curves. Instead, it may create awkward curves where they shouldn’t be — for example, in your shoulder area — and lead to straining and stiffness.
• Insufficient cradling. If you own a hybrid or innerspring mattress, you may start feeling the springs under the comfort layers. Coils may create too much pressure around your hip and shoulder areas if you sleep on your side, so you’ll wake up with pain. Foam mattresses are better in this case, but they also may lose resiliency and become softer over time, which, again, contributes to spine misalignment and muscle strains.
• A lower level of comfort. An old mattress can make you feel uncomfortable in your favorite sleep positions. As a result, you start to toss and turn more and get less restorative sleep. If you already have any health issues, a lack of sleep can aggravate them.

A mattress topper can rejuvenate the feel of your old bed and prolong its lifespan for maybe a couple of years. Still, you should consider replacing your mattress eventually if you want to get rid of the pain completely.

It’s Too Soft, Or Too Firm

Along with the age of the mattress, the wrong firmness level can ruin your sleep too. 

Now, let me briefly explain to you the universal firmness scale to prevent this from happening.

So, basically, all the beds can be divided into three firmness levels on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 stands for the softest and 10 for the hardest surface:

• Soft (up to 5/10). Soft beds can offer you a decent amount of sinkage and cradle your body really well. But that’s only if you’re a petite or average-weight sleeper. Big guys and girls may simply dive through all the comfort layers and land onto the dense core of the mattress, which will resist the pressure, making their shoulders hurt.
• Medium (5-7/10). Most of the quality mattresses for side sleepers with shoulder pain have this level of firmness. They can suit literally any sleeper and adjust well to the body shape without creating too much tension in the shoulders.
• Firm (7-9/10). Firm beds typically are a good pick for overweight sleepers. They can cope with increased weight. And instead of putting additional pressure on the shoulders, a firm mattress can feel pretty cradling. Note that heavier side sleepers are recommended to choose the firmness level that is closer to the lower point of the range — that is 7-8 out of 10, rather than 9/10.

Keep in mind that some brands use their own firmness scale, which could be very different — up to being a completely reversed version of the standard scale.

What Mattress Type Is the Best for Coping with Shoulder Pain?

As you know, there are four main types of mattresses on the market — foam, latex, innerspring, and hybrid one. 

But of course, not all of them will make a perfect choice for a side sleeper with shoulder pain. So, let’s see which one is the most suitable — and which is the worst.

Foam

Foam mattresses are the most common option on the market. Today, most manufacturers use either polyfoam or memory foam. You can also find a mattress that has both materials in different combinations. So, let’s break down how each of these configurations will perform:

• Polyfoam. Polyurethane foam is more springy and has that sponge-like feel. Although it’s not as conforming as memory foam, this material can still cradle your body in any sleeping position and has less pronounced thermoregulation issues. Thanks to a good rebound, polyfoam doesn’t make it difficult for you to move during the night. However, this type of foam may wear out faster than memory foam.
• Memory foam. This material is the queen of cradling, and I cannot stress that enough. No wonder it’s commonly used in hospital equipment, and if you’re looking for a really good mattress for side sleepers with shoulder pain — you’ll probably end up with a memory foam model. This material perfectly adjusts to your body curves and removes pressure in your hip and shoulder areas. But the main problem with memory foam is excessive heat retention, which may sometimes disrupt your sleep.
• Mixed foams. Mattresses with mixed foams typically are designed to offer you the balance between cradling and rebound, but the reality is usually a bit different. I recommend you testing such models at a local mattress store to see if their feel will actually work for you.

Infused foams are often used in foam mattresses as comfort layers. They’re typically a bit softer than non-infused foams and can mask the typical foam smell.

Latex

Latex, technically, is foam, too. It is made from the vulcanized sap of rubber trees. But unlike synthetic foams, latex foam has smaller pores and is denser, so you can expect a more prolonged lifespan — and higher responsiveness. The latter is an essential factor for individuals with mobility concerns. However, some people just don’t like the feel of latex. And latex mattresses are usually more expensive than other types.

A latex mattress can be a good solution for those side sleepers who tend to overheat during the night. Since latex is quite responsive, it wouldn’t hug the sleeper that much. And when sleeping on top of the mattress instead of being enveloped by its comfort layers, users typically don’t experience heat retention and can sleep cool. And while this has nothing to do with shoulder pain, a temperature-neutral environment can help side sleepers feel more comfortable and thus, sleep better.

Hybrid

Hybrid mattresses can combine foams, natural latex, and coils in different variations. And this is both a benefit and a drawback for shoulder pain sufferers. The thing is, not all combinations of these materials will make the mattress good for shoulder pain relief, so finding the right model can be quite a challenge.

But if you’re certainly determined to get a hybrid mattress, check these tips:

• look for models with at least two comfort layers over the coil system;
• choose firmness wisely (based on the info I gave you above);
• test your mattress at the store (or choose brands offering longer trial periods).

A hybrid mattress that has thick comfort layers can provide enough cushioning for one’s shoulders and hips when lying on the side. However, thanks to the responsive coils underneath, a good hybrid would also prevent unwanted spinal curvatures. By keeping one’s spine supported and shoulders cradled, a hybrid mattress can help relieve tension in the shoulders and potentially, alleviate the pain. But shoppers need to remember that this is possible only if they pick a proper mattress firmness.

Innerspring

Now, when it comes to innersprings, I don’t think that it’s a good choice for an individual with shoulder pain. 

Yes, these mattresses allow you to move freely around the surface, but they usually offer you only 1-2 comfort layers above the coil unit, which is not enough to cradle your shoulders and relieve the pressure.

That’s why sleeping on an innerspring mattress often causes painful pressure points in side sleepers, especially in the shoulders and hips. Because there’s not enough cushioning for the shoulders, they press hard against the mattress surface instead of sinking into it. Naturally, this can aggravate one’s shoulder pain.

Reading reviews from users that have pain conditions similar to yours can help you find out how a given model performs in real life.

Other Factors to Consider When Choosing a Mattress for Shoulder Pain Relief

Finally, let’s wrap up the remaining factors you should consider when choosing a quality bed for side sleepers with shoulder pain:

• Your current condition. If your pain is caused by a medical condition, your pain might be episodic. Thus, when you don’t have pain episodes, you might need a moderate amount of cradling, but when pain appears, a gentler hug might be needed. For this, I would suggest pairing your mattress with a topper so that you could add and remove the cushioning layer as needed.
• Thermoregulation. Poor heat removal can add some discomfort to your sleeping experience. Since side sleepers, especially those who are heavy, tend to sink more into the mattress layers, it’s advisable to choose natural materials or mattresses with coils for a more pronounced cooling effect.
• Durability. Durability defines how fast your mattress will start to wear out and lose its supportive properties, thereby becoming useless for your condition. To increase the chances of getting a durable product, look for high-grade materials and check the brand’s history on the market.

  For those shoppers who want to buy a memory foam mattress, it would be a good idea to pick models that use high-density foam. They do cost more, but denser foam also lasts longer. For hybrid mattresses, the rule is the same (for foam comfort layers). And concerning the coil support system, it’s better to choose models that use low-gauge coils. They are thicker, deliver more reliable support, and have a longer lifespan. Latex mattresses are usually among the most durable ones, but they also belong to a pricier category because of that.

• Motion isolation. Shoulder pain often causes sleepers to shift in bed. Whether they try to find the least painful position or switch sides from time to time to relieve pressure from the shoulders, they can be quite restless. This may be an issue for those who sleep with a partner, as movement can travel across the bed and wake them up. To avoid that, shoppers might want to consider slow-moving, motion-isolating mattresses. Memory foam typically performs the best in this case. Users may also consider hybrid mattresses, but only those models that have extra-thick foam comfort layers.

Conclusion

Sleeping with shoulder pain can be a real challenge.

Especially if you are a side sleeper. After all, curling up in bed feels great, but if you’re lying on a sore shoulder, your peaceful rest can turn into a nightmare.

Here’s the kicker though:

You can improve the situation by picking a suitable mattress. Keep in mind that proper firmness is the key. Petite and average sleepers would feel the most comfortable on soft and medium-firm beds, while heavier users need something medium-firm or firm when sleeping on one side.

Also, consider the mattress type. Foam and latex models offer the best pressure relief. However, foam is more cradling, while latex has a bouncier feel. As for the hybrid mattresses, they are popular among side sleepers due to the balanced conforming support they provide.

And if you are still feeling doubtful, allow me to recommend my personal favorite - the Puffy Lux. This hybrid mattress would be perfect for someone looking for a balanced combo of pressure relief and support. The Puffy effectively combines independent coils with hugging foam to aid proper alignment, comfort, and tension release. To me, that’s a winning combination of features, which I’m sure you will love too.