Helix vs. Leesa Mattress Comparison

The Leesa Original is an all-foam bed with a responsive feel. The Helix Midnight is a hybrid mattress with a traditional memory foam hug. The Leesa Original supports lightweight and average-weight sleepers, while the Helix Midnight offers enough support for sleepers of all weight ranges. Both of these beds provide excellent spinal alignment and pressure relief as mattresses for side sleepers and back sleepers. However, the Leesa Original is better for most couples, and the Helix Midnight is best for hot sleepers. 

In our Helix vs. Leesa mattress comparison, we outline everything you need to know to decide whether the memory foam Leesa Original or hybrid Helix Midnight has the features that can help you get the best sleep.

Comparing Helix Mattress & Leesa Mattress

Key Differences

• Temperature regulation: The Helix Midnight sleeps a touch cooler than the Leesa Original thanks to the breathability of its thick pocketed coil base layer. In contrast, the Leesa Original’s all-foam construction holds onto more body heat. 
• Construction: The Helix Midnight is a memory foam hybrid mattress made with four layers of foam measuring 12” tall. The Leesa Original is a three-layer memory foam mattress that’s 10” thick. The most significant difference in construction is that the Helix Midnight contains coils while the Leesa Original doesn’t. 
• Edge support: The Helix Midnight has sturdier edges due to the reinforced innerspring perimeter. 
• Body types supported: The Leesa Original’s thinner construction and all-foam build are best for people weighing less than 230 lbs. The Helix Midnight’s thicker layers and durable innerspring coil layer accommodate people of all body sizes. 

Key Similarities

• Sleeping positions: The Leesa Original and Helix Midnight are best for side sleepers and back sleepers, although both are okay for lightweight stomach sleepers. 
• Pressure relief: Both the Helix Midnight and Leesa Original generously cradle pressure points, limiting pain and pressure on areas like the shoulders, hips, and lower back. If you’re waking up in pain, check out the best mattress for back pain. 
• Feel: Both types of beds provide a solid level of responsiveness, which means that sleepers should feel as if they’re sleeping “on” the mattresses instead of “in” them.

Who the Helix Mattress is Best For 

Best For…

• Side sleepers of every body type: The Helix Midnight’s memory foam comfort layer gives at the shoulders and hips, limiting pressure for side sleepers no matter their body weight. It’s soft and supportive enough for all side sleepers. 
• People with joint pain: The Helix Midnight’s pressure-relieving memory foam layer is gentle on joints: an important feature if you have arthritis. 
• Hot sleepers who like memory foam: The Helix Midnight’s top layer has a slow-response, doughy memory foam feel. While this material can sleep hot, the breathable coils limit heat retention, helping you stay cool. 

May Not be Best For…

• Light sleepers who share a bed: The responsiveness of the coil layer may cause a small amount of motion transfer. If you’re a light sleeper, you may prefer a mattress with more motion isolation.
• Firm mattress fans: Even though the Helix Midnight is supportive, it is not firm. The top layer is ultra-conforming with a cozy feel.
• Most stomach sleepers: If you weigh more than 130 lbs and sleep on your stomach, you may not experience good spinal alignment on the Helix Midnight. The soft top layer allows the hips to sink in, which isn’t ideal in this sleeping position.

Read our full Helix Midnight Mattress Review to learn more! 

Who the Leesa Mattress is Best For 

Best For…

• People with back pain: The Leesa Original’s soft top layer and contouring foam transition layer provide exceptional spinal alignment for most sleepers, helping ease aches and pains. 
• Back and side sleepers: The Leesa Original pairs medium-firm memory foam with plush polyfoam for a sleeping surface that’s both supportive and pressure-relieving. The combination is comfortable for lightweight and average-weight side and back sleepers. 
• Couples and those who co-sleep: The Leesa Original provides superb motion isolation, which means you and your partner can move around without waking one another. Additionally, the medium-firm feel is likely to work for plenty of sleep positions. 

May Not be Best For…

• Heavyweight stomach sleepers: The Leesa Original’s top layers of foam are likely too soft to offer enough hip support for stomach sleepers who weigh more than 230 lbs. If you are in need of a more supportive mattress, see the best mattresses for heavy people.
• People who like bouncy mattresses: The Leesa Original has a memory foam mattress feel, so you won’t feel much bounce like you might with hybrid and innerspring mattresses.
• People who sleep hot: The Leesa Original has breathable polyfoam and a cooling cover, but these cooling innovations are probably not enough for the hottest sleepers.

Read our full Leesa Mattress Review to learn more! 

Deciding Between Helix & Leesa

Firmness / Feel

Here at Mattress Nerd, we rate mattresses on a 1–10 firmness scale, with 1 being the softest and 10 the firmest. Your weight and most typical sleep position are two factors that influence the right mattress firmness for you. 

Back and stomach sleepers usually prefer medium-firm or firmer mattresses. These beds keep the spine supported, while the medium-firm beds bring a touch of softness for comfort. Side sleepers need a bed with a softer firmness level for pressure relief, with most side sleepers preferring a mattress within the 3 to 6 firmness range. 

Lightweight sleepers may find that a plush mattress works better for them since they have less weight to sink into the bed, while heavyweight sleepers may need a firmer mattress for more support.  The Leesa Original mattress and the Helix Midnight both register at a 6/10 on the firmness scale, considered the softer end of medium-firm. This firmness supports average-weight and heavier side sleepers, all back sleepers, and lightweight stomach sleepers. 

Both of these beds have a hugging feel, especially for people weighing more than 130 lbs. The Helix Midnight is noticeably bouncier thanks to the coils in the support layer, making it easier to switch positions. For other responsive mattresses, see the best mattresses for combination sleepers.

Motion Isolation

When you toss and turn at night—or when you get in or out of bed—that motion can travel across the sleep surface and disturb a partner’s rest. A mattress that reduces motion transfer will help stifle movement at the source and allow both partners to sleep undisturbed all night long. 

While both the Leesa Original and Helix Midnight mattresses offer decent motion isolation, the Leesa Original generally does a better job at preventing motion transfer because of its all-foam construction, making it a better mattress for couples.

Edge Support

A mattress with good edge support allows you to lie or sit along the edge of your bed without feeling like you might slide off. 

The Leesa Original has adequate edge support when a sleeper rests right along the edge of the mattress, but sitting on the edge might feel a bit unstable. Because all Helix mattresses come with a tall layer of reinforced steel coils in the support layer, the Helix Midnight provides better edge support than the Leesa Original. If you are looking to make the most out of your mattress surface, see the best mattresses for sex.

Pressure Relief 

Pressure relief is important in a mattress because it means that areas of the body that stick out or are heavier don’t experience too much pressure. Typically, the softer a bed is, the greater the pressure relief. However, too soft of a surface can sometimes cause strain on other areas, so it’s all about finding the right balance. 

The Helix Midnight and Leesa Original are two of the best beds for pressure relief for back sleepers thanks to their balanced feel and close contouring. We also like both for side sleepers, although the polyfoam top layer of the Leesa Original gives a bit more for lighter folks, which leads us to recommend it over the Helix Midnight for lightweight sleepers. On the other end, Helix’s memory foam top layer and greater support outperform the Leesa Original when it comes to those who are heavier weight.

Spine Alignment 

Proper spinal alignment is important in order to limit back pain and feel refreshed in the morning. The Helix Midnight and Leesa Original both do an excellent job of cushioning side sleepers’ hips and shoulders, which allows the spine to maintain a healthy alignment. They also provide enough give at the lower back and support along the spine for back sleepers, although we recommend the Helix Midnight over the Leesa Original for heavyweight folks. 

Neither mattress is the best mattress for stomach sleepers. The surfaces of these beds are on the softer side, which can cause uncomfortable bowing of the hips when stomach sleeping. The one exception is for lightweight stomach sleepers who don’t put as much pressure on the surface. For these folks, either mattress should provide enough spine support.

Durability 

Well-made, high-quality mattresses should last for years without losing their shape or softening too much. That is why you should choose a bed with a strongly built base layer that includes a lot of support. Both of these mattresses are durable, but the 8” steel coils in the Helix Midnight make it slightly more durable than the Leesa Original. 

Temperature 

Sleeping hot is uncomfortable, which is why so many mattresses incorporate cooling technology into their construction. Despite sleeping cool for a memory foam bed, the Leesa Original’s all-foam build can trap heat next to the body. Because the Helix mattress includes individually wrapped coils, hot sleepers should feel cooler on the Helix Midnight. If you’re a hot sleeper, see our recommendations for the best cooling mattresses. 

Helix Midnight Mattress Construction

The Helix Midnight utilizes a medium-firm memory foam top layer that cradles the body for a traditional memory foam feel. The next layer of high-grade polyfoam (called Helix Dynamic foam) brings responsive support so you won’t sink in too far. The individually-encased coil support system adds a bit of bounce and breathability, keeping the sleeping surface cool. A final durable foam layer enhances the overall longevity of the mattress.

Leesa Mattress Construction

The Leesa Original mattress starts with a top layer made from a plush foam that’s easy to move around on. The middle memory foam layer brings stable contouring that distributes weight evenly, creating a pressure-relieving and supportive feel. The final layer of high-grade polyfoam adds stability and ensures excellent motion isolation so people can sleep together peacefully. 

Sizing & Price Comparisons 

Check out our Helix Mattress Coupons and Leesa Mattress Coupons for the best deal on a new mattress.

Shipping and Returns for Helix & Leesa

Helix Mattress

Helix Sleep ships its mattresses to all 50 states at no charge, and to parts of Canada for $250. After placing your order, you can expect your new bed to arrive within three to 15 business days. As a bed-in-a-box brand, the Helix mattress comes compressed in a box on your doorstep. Helix offers mattress setup for $149–$199, with an additional $75 fee for old mattress removal. 

The Helix mattress comes with a 100-night sleep trial period, during which you can try it out and decide if it works for you. After 30 days from the delivery date, you can return your Helix mattress for a full refund. 

Helix’s different mattresses come with warranties that range from the standard 10-year warranty to a more generous 15-year warranty. As part of Helix’s standard mattress line, the Helix Midnight has a 10-year warranty covering defects in workmanship and materials.

 Leesa Mattress

Leesa delivers its mattresses to customers in all 50 states for free, with no shipping options for international customers. Most orders arrive in three to 10 business days in a box at your door. Leesa’s white glove delivery service is more affordable than Helix’s. For just $150, Leesa sends a team to set up your new mattress and get rid of your old one. 

The Leesa Original mattress comes with the same trial period as the Helix Midnight. That means you have 100 nights to test drive your bed and a 30-day waiting period before you may return it. If you decide that it’s the one for you, it comes with an industry-standard 10-year warranty.

More Leesa Mattresses

See our full Studio by Leesa Mattress Review to learn more. 

See our full Leesa Hybrid Mattress Review to learn more. 

See our full Leesa Legend Mattress Review to learn more.

More Helix Mattresses

See our full Comparing Helix Luxe Mattresses article to learn more. 

See Helix Dusk Mattress Review to learn more.

Read our Helix Plus Mattress Review to learn more.

Haven’t made a decision yet? Check out these other comparisons:

• Helix vs. Casper
• Helix vs. Purple
• Helix vs. WinkBeds
• Leesa vs. Tuft & Needle
• Leesa vs. Layla
• Leesa vs. GhostBed
• Leesa vs. Amerisleep
• Leesa vs. Loom & Leaf
• Leesa vs. Purple
• Leesa vs. Brooklyn Bedding
• Leesa vs. Puffy
• Leesa vs. Saatva
• Leesa vs. Bear
• Leesa vs. Tempurpedic
• Leesa vs. Casper

Our Final Take

Both the Leesa Original and Helix Midnight are great mattresses for side and back sleepers, but they each have unique strengths. The Leesa Original mattress better isolates motion, making it a top choice for light sleepers who share the bed. The Helix Midnight is cooler and more durable, with superior support for heavier folks.