The Lucid mattress is a firm bed that doesn't provide great support overnight and is more prone to motion transfer than many other options.
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Pros
Firm
Not as hot as some foam mattresses
Cons
Poor motion isolation
Feels cheap
4
Allswell The Allswell
4.0
Currently
Unavailable
The Allswell mattress is a best-seller from the bedding brand, offering a budget-friendly hybrid option for those who prefer a combination mattress.
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There’s no getting around it: Mattresses are expensive. Whether you’re looking to outfit a guest room, furnish your first apartment, or simply working with a smaller budget, you shouldn’t have to sacrifice comfort and support for affordability. That’s why we’ve rounded up the best Queen mattresses you can buy for less than $750.
Here at Reviewed, we’ve tested dozens of the most popular mattresses in our Cambridge, Mass., lab. After factoring in MSRP to find the best cheap mattresses, the Siena emerged as the best affordable mattress right now. It provides effective cooling, strong motion isolation, and sturdy edge support for an unbeatable price.
Sizes: Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King, California King
Price range: $499 to $999
Finding an affordable quality mattress is increasingly difficult, but fortunately, the Siena mattress fits the bill. The Siena Memory Foam mattress belongs to the same family of brands as Nectar and DreamCloud. Still, its offerings are more budget-friendly—the Queen Siena mattress is often available for just $799.
Our top-pick mattress features five layers, including three foam layers and a top quilted cover. Along with some excellent motion isolation, the Siena provides an impressive degree of edge support and cooling performance despite its low price. If you’re a back or stomach sleeper, the firmness of the Siena might be just the thing; however, those who prefer to sleep on their sides or are looking for a softer sleeping surface may want to look elsewhere.
Material: 2” gel memory foam, 3” transitional layer, 7” ActiveSupport base layer
Firmness: Medium-Firm
Trial length: 365 nights
Warranty: Forever
Sizes: Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King, California King, Split King
The Nectar Memory Foam Mattress is the best budget mattress you can shop for under $750. The Queen-sized mattress costs $699, but the brand frequently runs sales that reduce the price even further. When we began testing mattresses, this Nectar mattress held our top spot for years, and while it was dethroned, it’s still the best budget-friendly mattress you can buy.
Our tester noted that the Nectar mattress was a great choice for side sleepers, thanks to its plush surface. It was incredibly comfy to sleep on thanks to the fact that it quickly dissipated heat—warm spots quickly became cool after just a few minutes. During our lab testing, it scored particularly well at providing pressure point relief.
Tuft & Needle's Original Mattress offers a lot of bang for your buck.
Best under $500
Lucid 10 Inch Medium Gel Memory Foam Mattress
Queen mattress price: $339
Mattress type: Foam
Material: 6.5” base foam, 1” memory foam, 2.5” gel memory foam top layer
Mattress density: Firm
Sleep trial: 100 nights
Warranty: 10-year warranty
Sizes: Twin, Twin XL, Full, Full XL, Queen, Short Queen, King, California King, Split King
If you’re looking for a high-quality mattress under $500, you can’t beat the Lucid Mattress, a 10-inch gel memory foam mattress that retails for just $340 for a Queen. The Lucid Mattress didn’t excel in any of our lab tests—in fact, it ranks fairly low on our testing scale—but at less than $350, it performed just about where we’d expect (if not a little better).
The price point is the most appealing aspect of the Lucid mattress. If you’re shopping for your first apartment or a guest room, you can snag a full-sized mattress for under $300. The mattress itself is firm and keeps its shape well—making it a good choice for back sleepers.
If you prefer a softer mattress, you could pair the Lucid with a mattress topper for a more plush sleeping experience.
Editor's Note:The recommendations in this guide are based on thorough product and market research by our team of expert product reviewers. The picks are based on examining user reviews, product specifications, and, in some limited cases, our experience with the specific products named.
Sizes: Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King, California King
The Allswell is the most affordable mattress on this list, ringing in at $337 for a Queen. We haven’t yet tested this version, but when we reviewed the Allswell Supreme, we were impressed with its performance, finding it soft, supportive, and good at absorbing movement.
The Allswell is the brand’s flagship mattress. It’s a hybrid mattress, so it combines memory foam and innerspring coils to provide a comfortable sleeping surface. The brand says this is a medium-firm mattress, but reviewers say it leans on the firmer side (good for back sleepers!).
We are currently testing the Allswell mattress and will update this review once it’s live.
Sizes: Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King, California King
The Emma Original mattress retails for just $599, but thanks to frequent sales, it dips below that price quite often. At the time of publication, a Queen mattress is just $329—an impressively low price for its size.
Emma claims its mattress is cooling, soft, conforming, and provides excellent pressure relief. It’s comprised of five memory foam layers and stands at 10 inches tall. The brand says it’s got a medium feel, but its reviews indicate it’s on the firmer side.
We are currently in the process of testing the Emma Original Mattress and will update this review once it’s live.
Different sleep positions call for mattresses of different types—our testing looks for the best mattresses of each sort.
Our extensive suite of mattress tests take place in our Cambridge, Massachusetts, laboratory. Here are a few of the things we test for:
Pressure relief: Everyone’s needs are different, but we do our best to provide all the information you need to determine how each mattress’s support meets your needs. We use weights across the bed to see how quickly (and how much of) the weight sinks into the mattress.
Motion transfer: If you sleep with a partner or pet, you want to make sure you won’t wake up every time they toss or turn in bed. To test motion transfer, we use an accelerometer to register how much movement can be felt after dropping a 150-pound punching bag.
Heat retention: Mattresses need to be able to disperse your body heat quickly. Having a comfortable temperature is one of the chief factors that affects sleep quality. While some people naturally sleep hotter than others, nobody wants to wake up with night sweats.
Innerspring mattresses have a little more room for air to flow naturally. All-foam mattresses struggle a bit with heat retention, but there are materials and technologies that can help alleviate that issue. In our lab, we assess heat retention by microwaving silicone bead-filled bags and placing them on the mattress for several hours as we monitor the temperature.
Edge support: Using the same 150-pound punching bag we use for motion transfer, we roll it off the edge of the bed to see how much support the edge can hold before giving out.
How to Buy a Cheap Mattress
Mattresses are expensive. And since everyone needs a bed, you’re going to have to pay up sooner or later. There’s a world of affordable or budget-friendly mattresses out there, but there are also plenty that aren’t worth your time and money.
Mattresses typically last 10 years or so, and the average person’s budget is probably going to want to push past that, if possible. It’s important to get your money’s worth, perhaps more so in the budget space than anywhere else.
Researching the best cheap mattress for you
Start by doing your research. Expert, lab-tested reviews like ours are important, but also seek out plenty of buyer reviews.
Consider what’s important to you. Choosing a cheap mattress probably means that you’ll sacrifice a little in one area or another. The firmness level should accommodate your sleeping position. Firmer mattresses are great for back and stomach sleepers, while a softer mattress can alleviate pressure points for side sleepers.
Consider what’s most important to you, from motion isolation and edge support to firmness to heat retention. Think about where you are and aren’t willing to compromise to save money.
Use that sleep trial
The more mattress shopping moves online, the more crucial the “sleep trial” becomes. Mattress companies tend to offer a testing period of anywhere from 100 nights up to a full year.
Customers can try a new mattress and then decide if they’d like to exchange or return it for a refund. If you think you’d like to go this route, we suggest digging into a brand’s policies before adding to your cart. For instance, some brands may charge a processing fee or mandate that you own the bed for several weeks before initiating the return.
Consider the warranty
Beyond the trial period, you may also consider the warranty of the mattress. Mattresses often come with a 10-year warranty; some may go longer. Look at whether the warranty covers all issues, including accidents, or simply manufacturing defects. Find out whether routine wear and tear are covered.
One of the big factors that drives up a mattress price is material costs. Since you aren’t shelling out for higher-priced materials like high-density memory foam, cooling elements, or latex, make sure that what you do have is well protected by warranty.
Look for sales
Many of the mattresses on this list have a higher MSRP but are also nearly always on sale by anywhere from 10% to 20%. That’s what we mean when we mention “evergreen sales”. Some brands may also throw in freebies like bed sheets and bed pillows to help take the sting out of the sticker price.
In addition to certain brands that are always on sale, sales holidays are a great time to buy, as mattress offers are common. Certain holidays like Presidents’ Day, Labor Day Memorial Day almost always see serious discounts on mattresses.
Are cheap mattresses worth it?
Not all cheap mattresses are created equal. Some offer more quality and longevity than others. At the end of the day, it’s smart to get the nicest mattress your budget allows for, but that number is different for everyone.
One thing to consider is adding a mattress topper to your bed. That can be a great way to help get extra softness, firmness, or even cooling ability out of it. You can use a topper to enhance a new budget mattress. You might also use it to get a little extra mileage out of an existing mattress while you save up for a new one.
How do we determine an affordable mattress?
All mattresses on this list cost under $750 at the time of publication.
Nearly all mattresses are on the expensive side, and it also tends to be a space where you get what you pay for. Considering how much of your life you spend on your mattress, having one that’s uncomfortable or that falls apart quickly can be a huge problem. A bad night's rest can be a literal pain in the neck or back that impacts your mood, memory, and productivity the next day (or even for months on end!).
Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
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Kate Tully Ellsworth is the Executive Editor of Lifestyle & Commerce at Reviewed. She oversees editorial partner content that focuses on brands and products our editorial team and tested and loved. She also oversees Pets, Streaming, Sleep, Health & Fitness, Sex Toys, Style, and Parenting. You can find her work on Reviewed, USA Today, Taste of Home, Reader's Digest, and The Family Handyman.
Kate got her degree in English writing from Belmont University and enjoys writing about how to shop, where to shop, and when to shop. Her passions include Star Wars, baking, and the Great British Bake Off. She's based in Nashville, TN, where she lives with her beautiful husband and beautiful daughter.
Lindsey writes about sleep, lifestyle, and more for Reviewed. In her waking hours, she likes to spend time outside, read, cook, and bake. She holds a master’s in journalism from Boston University and bachelors' degrees in English Literature and Anthropology from the University of Utah.
Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.