Best Hybrid Mattresses of 2021

Hybrid beds are designed to offer the best features of other mattresses while mitigating downsides. However, there are so many hybrid choices available that consumers can run into analysis paralysis. If hybrid mattresses have piqued your interest but you aren’t sure where to start in your search, this guide is perfect for you.

In this article, we outline the best hybrid mattresses for certain needs and sleeping types, and then we cover what to look for in a hybrid, the pros, and cons of this mattress type, and the types of sleepers hybrids serve best.

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The Best Hybrid Mattresses

• Editor’s Pick – Saatva Classic
• Best Plush Hybrid Mattress – DreamCloud Luxury Hybrid
• Best Hybrid Mattress for Side Sleepers – Helix Midnight Luxe
• Best Latex Hybrid Mattress – WinkBeds EcoCloud Hybrid
• Best Hybrid Mattress in a Box – Casper Wave Hybrid
• Best Cooling Hybrid Mattress – GhostBed Flex
• Best Hybrid for Athletes – Bear Hybrid
• Best Firm Hybrid Mattress – Layla Hybrid
• Best Hybrid Mattress for Back Pain – Leesa Hybrid
• Best Luxury Hybrid Mattress – Puffy Lux Hybrid

Editor’s Pick: Saatva Classic

The bottom line is that Saatva produces a great mattress. This innerspring mattress offers a level of support that you won’t find in most memory foam mattresses. Not only that, but Saatva also gives you some options for different firmnesses so you can better cater to your specific sleeping position and preferences. If you like a more traditional-feeling mattress, then this is going to be a great option.

Saatva may be built like a traditional mattress, but it can still show up on your doorstep…however, it won’t be in a box. You can expect delivery folks to arrive and go so far as to set it up in your bedroom. Nice touch!

You can read our full Saatva Review to learn more. 

Best Plush Hybrid Mattress: DreamCloud

The DreamCloud is a hybrid bed-in-a-box that contains coils and multiple layers of memory and latex foam. This luxury mattress is thick, durable and made with high-quality materials that can handle petite, average-size and heavy sleepers at an affordable price relative to other luxury mattress options.

We recommend the DreamCloud for people seeking a luxury option that doesn’t break the bank. With prices starting as low as $999, you can get the quality materials and durability of a luxury brand without emptying your savings account. Overall, this is an elegant bed that offers high-end features like a cashmere blend cover and a tufted design. It also comes with the company’s tiered Everlong Lifetime Warranty and a uniquely long trial period at 365 nights. 

Check out our full DreamCloud Review to learn more. 

Best Hybrid Mattress for Side Sleepers: Helix Midnight Luxe

Helix has made a name for themselves by offering so many different kinds of high-quality mattress options- they’re the brand for picky sleepers and people who just love having options.

All nine of Helix’s offerings are online hybrid mattresses, which means you’ll get the support from the coils along with the cushioning and contouring of the foam. Just because it’s not an all-foam mattress doesn’t mean the foam isn’t top-notch either. It’s eco-friendly and is engineered for support in the hips, shoulders and back. Plus, it’s breathable to prevent heat entrapment, making it one of the best mattresses for side sleepers. The Memory Foam Plus layer is designed to relieve pressure points and keep your spine aligned, along with the support of the coils.

Read our full Helix mattress review to learn more.

Best Latex Hybrid Mattress: WinkBeds EcoCloud

Made from Talalay latex, coils, cotton and wool, the EcoCloud excels in earth-friendly design. We’ve rated it around a 5 (medium) on our firmness scale, but lightweight folks may experience the bed to be more of a 6.5 firmness (medium-firm). At any rate, the Talalay latex and coils in the bed makes it responsive and bouncy. It’s best for back sleepers, but lightweight stomach sleepers might find the bed supportive enough to keep their spine in alignment. The mattress is also sold with a lifetime warranty and 120-night trial, making it a great choice for those who want to try out the bed before they purchase it.

Best Hybrid Mattress in a Box: Casper Wave Hybrid

The Casper Wave Hybrid is our pick for the best online hybrid mattress. Casper recently updated its flagship all-foam model and introduced the somewhat softer Casper Wave Hybrid. In this mattress, you’ll find almost all of the components of the original Casper with an added 7” pocketed coil system.

The Casper Wave Hybrid features the four memory foam layers found in the original Casper Wave, but it adds pocketed innerspring coils. The mattress is 13” thick and a little softer than average, coming in at about a medium on the firmness scale. The top comfort layer is open-cell foam, and it provides more bounce than memory foam.

The transitional layer of this mattress, a high-density polyfoam, provides zoned support at the hips and shoulders, translating to greater overall comfort. Finally, the base of pocketed coils provides some bounce. All of these elements together create a comfortable sleeping surface that feels cozy to the touch. 

Check out our full Casper Wave Hybrid Review to learn more. 

Best Cooling Hybrid Mattress: GhostBed Flex

If you can’t seem to sleep through the night without getting overheated and sweaty, the GhostBed Flex could help you experience cooler sleep. This hybrid mattress includes a layer of individually wrapped coils that promote airflow, but the cooling fiber woven into the bed’s cover is where this mattress really shines. This mattress should feel cool to the touch when you place your hands on the comfort layer. Moreover, a gel-infused memory foam and a “Ghost Bounce Layer” of latex-like material keep the cooling capabilities going deep into the mattress. It’s not the cheapest hybrid bed on the market, but that extra cost might just be worth it for a breezy, cool night of sleep.

Read our full GhostBed Flex Mattress Review to learn more.

Best Hybrid Mattress for Athletes: Bear Hybrid

If the thought of running miles on end or completing an intense yoga workout excites you, the Bear Hybrid mattress might be a great match for you. Specifically designed for those with active lifestyles, each Bear mattress includes a Celliant cover specifically designed to help muscles rest and recover after long workouts (or just long evenings sitting in front of the television). The Bear Hybrid mattress is a medium-firm firmness level (a 6 out of 10 on our firmness scale), which means it’s great for multiple sleep positions and can offer adequate support to heavyweight side and back sleepers.

While the Original Bear mattress is an all-foam construction, the Bear Hybrid includes innerspring coils that help facilitate airflow. That’s especially important for athletes, as well as anyone who tends to sleep hot and hates waking up sweaty. The coils within the Bear Hybrid mattress are also extra-strong specifically along the edges, which is perfect for helping athletes jump out of bed in the morning ready to crush their next workout.

Check out our full Bear Hybrid Mattress Review to learn more. 

Best Firm Hybrid Mattress: Layla Hybrid

The Layla Hybrid combines coils, memory foam and copper for a cool, supportive and cradling sleep experience. The individually wrapped coils reduce the motion transfer that you’ll find with traditional springs; they’ll also help keep the bed cool. On top of this, the cradling memory foam is infused with new copper cooling technology. The copper not only pulls heat away from your body, but disperses it away from you so it’s not trapped.

The bed is also made with zoned support foam, which means your hips will get the firm level of support they need while your shoulders sink more deeply into the bed, preventing morning aches. As an added bonus, the bed is flippable with a soft and firm side, so you can pick which works for you.

Read our full Layla Hybrid mattress review to learn more.

Best Hybrid Mattress for Back Pain: Leesa Hybrid

The Leesa is a hybrid medium-firm mattress that’s great for back sleepers and stomach sleepers. It does a great job of keeping the spine aligned while in multiple positions, which is very important in preventing and reducing back pain. Though it might not be soft enough for all side sleepers to achieve enough pressure support, combination sleepers will like the Leesa’s responsive feel and ease of movement. It’s more expensive and luxurious than the Leesa’s all-foam flagship bed.

Hot sleepers will love that the Leesa hybrid is made with more than a thousand breathable, responsive coils. The top layer also does its part to promote breathability, as it’s made with holes to encourage airflow. The transition layer, a level of memory foam, conforms to the body and relieves pressure, which is great for those struggling with back pain. What’s more, Leesa is a certified B-Corp company dedicated to providing beds to disadvantaged children.

Check out our full Leesa Hybrid mattress review to learn more. 

Best Luxury Hybrid Mattress: Puffy Lux Hybrid

Here at Mattress Nerd we have a saying: “The Puffy Lux Hybrid is a great mattress.” Why do we dig it so much? Mostly because it feels great to sleep on, especially for side sleepers, which most of us are. That said, it’s also a great bed for most back sleepers because of the support it offers around the back and hip areas. 

If you’re looking for a mattress to last a lifetime, you can’t go wrong with the Puffy Lux Hybrid. They even have the lifetime warranty to back that claim up.

Learn more by reading our full Puffy Lux Hybrid Review. 

Buyer’s Guide: What to Look for in a Hybrid Mattress

What is a Hybrid Mattress?

Hybrid mattresses, which combine two or more support systems and incorporate a wide variety of materials, are becoming increasingly popular among consumers. These mattresses typically marry an innerspring system and specialty foams.

Related: What are Hybrid Mattresses?

Creating a shortlist of suggestions for a hybrid mattress is like trying to predict a stranger’s coffee order. Do they prefer hot or cold? Decaf or caffeinated? Cow’s milk or nut milk? Do they like bitter roasts or a smooth, mellow taste? Are they an espresso enthusiast or a drip-coffee devotee? Similarly, the hybrid mattress market offers an option for just about every sleeper size, type, and preference, so it’s more helpful for us to provide general recommendations about what to look for with regard to quality. 

Materials

The materials in a hybrid mattress can vary greatly depending on the type of sleeper the manufacturer is targeting. In general, they’ll include a mix of coils, comfort layers, and cooling materials, with some mattresses including a pillow top for additional cushioning. Sometimes, gel memory foam or graphite infused foam will be used in the comfort layers to help with cooling. 

All of these factors will inevitably contribute to the price of the mattress. Things like a higher coil count in the support layer, or organic cotton and natural latex in the comfort layer will mean a bigger bill, but it also might mean more comfort. The most important thing is to make sure the mattress feels comfortable to you and meets your sleeping needs.

Firmness

A hybrid mattress is likely to be firmer than the average memory foam mattress. This is because of the coils used in most hybrid base layers. Some companies may offer firmness options for their hybrid models, but it isn’t industry standard. Generally, hybrids will hover around the 6/10 area on the mattress firmness. Whether or not this firmness will suit you will depend on several things, including sleeping position.

• Stomach sleepers need a good deal of hip support to sleep well, so firmer hybrids tend to work best for them.

Related: Best Mattress for Stomach Sleepers

• Back sleepers, similarly, will want something on the firm side to keep their hips from sinking too low and throwing off spinal alignment.

Related: Best Mattress for Back Sleepers

• Side sleepers, on the other hand, may want to look for something with better conforming abilities for the hips and shoulders. A firm hybrid with an added memory foam mattress topper should do them well. 

Related: Best Mattress for Side Sleepers

Quality

Beyond this, the quality of the materials used is significant. For example, natural varieties of latex will last longer than synthetic ones. In addition to examining the quality of the individual materials, consider the combination of materials. Some materials break down more quickly than others, which may shorten the mattress’ longevity, even if the manufacturer claims it will last a certain number of years. 

Benefits of Hybrid Mattresses

Among the greatest benefits of buying a hybrid mattress is the selection. Whether you like a soft or firm feel, latex or memory foam, a bouncy bed or one with slower response time, there’s bound to be something out there you’ll love. Here are a few of the standout reasons why a hybrid might be perfect for you

Cooling

Hybrid mattresses tend to sleep much cooler than other mattress types. The space between the coils tends to create more airflow throughout the mattress, and manufacturers incorporate a wide variety of materials, like open-cell and copper-infused foam, that further promote airflow throughout the top layers of the mattress. In fact, several of our selections for best cooling mattresses are hybrids.

Support and Comfort

Hybrids are also known for providing a nice blend of comfort and support, with these qualities coming from the foam layers and the innerspring systems, respectively. The extra support from the coil layer contributes to qualities like edge support and sinkage prevention, while the comfort from the layers of foam or latex helps with contouring.

Responsiveness 

They also tend to provide a bouncy feel that customers who don’t love the hugging, sinking in feel of an all-foam mattress may prefer. This bounciness also makes it ideal for combination sleepers who like to move around freely while they sleep. 

Cons of Hybrid Mattresses

Motion Transfer

While the added bounce is sometimes a favorite feature of hybrid mattresses, people who sleep with a partner that moves throughout the night might feel their movements due to the increased motion transfer. The top comfort layers will help with motion isolation to some extent, but it likely won’t be as effective as an all-foam mattress would.

Related: Memory Foam vs. Hybrid

Cost

Because of the combination of often expensive materials used, Hybrid mattresses can also be more expensive than beds made only with memory foam or innerspring. That said, you do get the best of both worlds with a hybrid, so it’s easy to justify the price tag. If you’re interested in budget friendly mattress options, take a look at our best mattresses under $1,000 and best mattresses under $500 pages. 

Weight

These mattresses also aren’t the most lightweight out there, as the foams, coils, and other layers tend to create a relatively thick and heavy end result, making them challenging to install and move around without another person or two to assist. 

Who is a Hybrid Mattress Best For?

While it’s nearly impossible to say whether a hybrid mattress will be right or wrong for you, hybrids are generally suitable for people with certain characteristics. 

• If you like a combination of the hug of foams and the bounciness of coils, you can find that in a hybrid. 
• The innerspring component of hybrids tends to offer more support than all-foam mattresses, making sleeping, reading, watching television, and, well, other bedroom activities more enjoyable.
• If you tend to sleep hot, hybrids offer great airflow and cooling properties. Even those that use memory foam in the top layer, which is known for body heat retention, usually have other features in the bed that offset it. The base layer of coils promotes breathability, resulting in better temperature regulation.

Who Should Avoid a Hybrid Mattress?

• If you’re shopping on a strict budget, finding a high quality new mattress may be difficult if you’re exclusively looking for hybrids.
• If you sleep with a partner, especially a restless partner, the bounciness created by the layer of coils could result in a small amount of motion transfer from one side of the bed to the other. We find that all-foam mattresses usually do a better job of suppressing and isolating motion. Check out our best mattresses for couples page if this is a concern of yours.  
• Different body types have different needs in a mattress. While heavier folks should appreciate the firmness that many hybrids offer, a petite person may be better suited to a softer, all-foam mattress. 

Related: Best Soft Mattresses

FAQ

What type of frame is best for a hybrid mattress?

Despite the dense support layer, a hybrid mattress should still be placed on a sturdy foundation, or, if you are using slats, a bunkie board. This is because the softer comfort layers benefit from a durable base. If you are using a metal bed frame, which is not recommended, you should be using a boxspring as well.

Related: Do You Need a Box Spring?

What is the best type of mattress, foam, innerspring, or hybrid?

That depends! Every mattress type is different; sometimes in subtle ways, sometimes in drastic ways. Whether one is better than another depends entirely on your preferences. For example, those who prefer a soft surface might be inclined to try a foam bed, but if they prefer a soft surface and are also prone to night sweats, then an innerspring mattress with a plush mattress topper might be a better bet.

You should always have a good understanding of your sleep preferences before you decide on a mattress type. And if you need more help, take a look at our best memory foam mattresses and best innerspring mattresses roundups.

Can you flip a hybrid mattress? 

No, you cannot. The innerspring layer must remain against the foundation. You should, however, rotate your mattress every several months to keep indentations from forming. 

Recap of the Best Rated Hybrid Mattresses 

See All Hybrid Mattress Reviews

If you still need guidance in your mattress buying journey, check out our ultimate mattress buying guide.