Our Expert Picks for Best Mattresses for Heavy People in 2025
Our team of nine mattress experts have been at it for years. We’ve tested and reviewed approximately three hundred mattresses and dozens of sleep accessories from bedding arrive top hat arrive headphones for sleeping. During this time, we established a testing method where every mattress is tested upon arrival at our Reno testing facility.
We take a holistic approach to mattress testing, which means our team is involved to make sure we’re representing all types of people. Our team has a mix of genders, body types and sleeping positions.
CNET mattress expert Owen Poole used a glass of water to test motion isolation.
Solidity
We assess and record two types of firmness: subjective and objective. When I test firmness, I lie on the mattress in each sleeping position and note how it feels on my back, belly, and butt. Our entire team is involved in this process to ensure firmness ratings are not based on one body type.
The Mattress Smasher 9000 objectively measures the firmness level of a mattress.
Objective sturdiness comes from our Mattress Smasher 9000. Not only is it an impressive orange color, but the bed’s firmness can be scientifically rated based on the strength of a 160-pound person. We always make sure to test the bed ourselves before putting the MS9K into use to ensure our experience is unbiased.
motion isolation
Motion isolation refers to the degree to which a bed inhibits surface motion. This may not seem like a big deal, but if you sleep with another person or furry friend, a bed with poor motion isolation can keep you awake at night.
To test motion isolation, we did two things. First, I lie on the bed and close my eyes while my teammates move around on the bed next to me. I do this in every sleeping position and rate the amount of movement I feel throughout. Next, we perform a water test, which involves placing a glass of water next to the bed and rolling it around. If water sloshes around or tips over, the bed will score lower for motion isolation.
edge support
If you’re like me and tend to sleep on the edge of your bed or have limited mobility, then you know how important edge support is. To test the strength of the perimeter of the bed, we sat and lay on the edge of the bed to assess how much the bed collapsed. If it feels like we might roll off or the edge collapses under our weight, then it doesn’t have good edge support.
Many of our favorite beds, like the Big Fig, feature strong edge support, which means you can sleep on the entire surface area of ​​the bed.
temperature
All beds in our laboratory are tested in temperature-controlled rooms. Many brands claim their beds are cool, but their performance doesn’t prove it. We are passionate about ensuring beds live up to their claims. We examine the bed’s construction and evaluate how cool it is based on our first-hand experience.
