Most adults sleep on their sides at least some of the time, and there's no shortage of mattresses that manufacturers claim are designed for this purpose. Side sleepers need mattresses that allow the arm and shoulder to sink in enough to relieve pressure, while still offering enough support for spinal alignment. While mattresses with a Medium or Medium-Plus firmness level are often best for side sleepers, it depends on the specific mattress's performance as well as your needs and preferences.
We've tested over 50 mattresses, and below are our recommendations for the best mattresses for side sleepers. For a wider view of the mattress market, see our recommendations for the best mattresses. If you prefer the contouring feel of memory foam, check out our picks for the best memory foam mattresses, or see the best cooling mattresses for more options for hot sleepers.
We've recently started testing mattresses. We purchase each unit independently from major retailers, just like you, to keep our reviews free of manufacturer influence. Each mattress undergoes the same tests to measure objective data on characteristics like firmness, cooling, and motion isolation, so you can easily compare results. Since we buy all our mattresses, we can tear them down layer by layer and isolate the mechanical properties of every component: quilted tops, foams, coils, and any special materials.
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Best Mattress For Side Sleepers
Side Sleeping8.3Light Weight7.6Average Weight8.4Heavy Weight8.9Firmness LevelMedium (47 Pa/mm)Longevity5.3Motion Dissipation8.5Cooling8.9See all our test resultsResponsiveness5.0The best mattress we've tested for side sleepers is the Casper Snow. This Medium mattress's upper comfort layer is made of very soft memory foam, which helps make it suitable for a wide range of side sleepers. It performs best for average-weight and heavier people, but regardless of your weight, it'll do a decent job of relieving pressure on your arm and shoulder. It also offers solid support for most people, which helps ensure you sink in evenly.
It also offers excellent cooling, so it's a good choice for hot sleepers, and its amazing motion dissipation means you can sleep peacefully with a partner. However, keep in mind that its soft, slow-moving memory foam comfort layers give it an enveloping feel. It's not very responsive, which makes it feel harder to move around on, and you might find it constricting. If you prefer to sleep 'on' and not 'in' your mattress, our next recommendation, the Helix Midnight Luxe 2025, is a better choice. Finally, note that the Casper's comfort layers use low-quality memory foam, and it may form permanent indentations sooner than mattresses that use higher-quality foams.
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Best Upper Mid-Range Mattress For Side Sleepers
Side Sleeping8.2Light Weight7.1Average Weight8.5Heavy Weight8.9Firmness LevelMedium (44 Pa/mm)Longevity6.8Motion Dissipation8.2Cooling8.2See all our test resultsResponsiveness8.2If the Casper Snow's plush, enveloping feel sounds like your worst nightmare, then we recommend checking out the upper mid-range Helix Midnight Luxe 2025 instead. Like the Casper Snow, it's a Medium hybrid mattress best suited for average-weight and heavier side sleepers as it'll offer decent support, while its soft upper layers allow your arm and shoulder to sink in, relieving pressure when sleeping on your side. The plush quilted top and memory foam upper comfort layer create a slightly enveloping feel. However, because of its much more responsive sleeping surface, you don't feel tightly hugged or stuck in place.
It offers great cooling, so it shouldn't make you feel overheated, even if you're usually a hot sleeper. The mattress's sides are reinforced with firmer coils and are difficult to compress, so you can comfortably sit or sleep near the edge of the bed. Its motion isolation performance is good overall, as well, although larger movements can make the mattress bounce or wobble for a moment. It's also moderately durable, but lower-quality foam in the quilted layer may lead to permanent indentations sooner.
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Best Mid-Range Mattress For Side Sleepers
Side Sleeping7.9Light Weight7.0Average Weight8.2Heavy Weight8.5Firmness LevelMedium (46 Pa/mm)Longevity6.3Motion Dissipation9.0Cooling8.4See all our test resultsResponsiveness8.7If you're looking for a slightly cheaper option, the Tuft and Needle Mint is the best mid-range mattress for side sleepers. This mattress has a Medium firmness level, but its upper layers are softer than the Helix Midnight Luxe 2025's. This helps it offer better body conformity for lighter individuals, making it more suitable for side sleepers in that weight category. It also offers great pressure relief for average-weight and heavier side sleepers and at least satisfactory support for most people, which helps keep your hips aligned with the rest of your body. Most of the foam layers are made of good- or high-quality foam, which will help it resist sagging for longer.
It's cooling enough for hot sleepers and also stands out for its fantastic motion dissipation performance, so you won't feel every move your partner makes. While you'll sink into it more overall than the Helix, its sleeping surface is responsive and not very contouring, so it has a less hugging feel.
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Best Budget Mattress For Side Sleepers
Side Sleeping8.1Light Weight7.2Average Weight8.4Heavy Weight8.7Firmness LevelMedium-Plush (39 Pa/mm)Longevity6.7Motion Dissipation9.4Cooling8.1See all our test resultsResponsiveness7.7If you're a side sleeper on a budget, check out the Silk & Snow Mattress. This all-foam bed-in-a-box has a softer feel and has a better overall body conformity performance than the Tuft and Needle Mint, which helps it offer better pressure relief overall. It's best suited for especially for lighter and average-weight side sleepers. Its gel-infused memory foam upper comfort layer allows you to sink in, but it isn't very contouring. It also responds quickly when you move, so it doesn't have a hugging feel. However, it's noticeably unbouncy, which makes it feel more difficult to move around on.
Despite its all-foam design, it offers an impressive cooling performance. Its superb motion isolation performance makes it well-suited for sleeping with a partner, since you won't feel most movements. It's also reasonably durable, since each layer is made of dense, good-quality foam. However, its edge support is just okay, so it's not ideal if you want a solid surface for getting in and out of bed. While it offers strong pressure relief for heavier individuals, you may want a mattress that also offers better support for people in that weight category.
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Best Cheap Mattress For Side Sleepers
Side Sleeping6.7Light Weight4.9Average Weight7.1Heavy Weight8.1Firmness LevelMedium-Firm (54 Pa/mm)Longevity6.0Motion Dissipation8.8Cooling8.3See all our test resultsResponsiveness8.1The best cheap mattress for side sleepers that we've tested is the Allswell Hybrid. This inexpensive mattress has a Medium-Firm feel and offers excellent body conformity for heavier side sleepers, relieving pressure on the arm and shoulder. It's also more supportive for people in that weight category than the Silk & Snow Mattress, which helps ensure you sink in evenly. While its somewhat firm comfort layers aren't very enveloping, memory foam adds contouring and helps with pressure relief. It's bouncy and responsive, so you don't feel stuck in place.
It offers a solid overall performance as well, with impressive cooling and excellent motion dissipation. Firmer coils along the sides help give it very sturdy edges, so you can comfortably sleep near the side of the bed. However, it only contains one layer of good-quality foam, so it's not a very durable mattress. It's also not as versatile as some of the previous picks: it doesn't offer enough pressure relief for lighter side sleepers, and while it's not a bad choice for average-weight side sleepers, you might prefer a more conforming mattress if you mostly sleep on your side.
Notable Mentions
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Casper Snow (Canadian Version):
The Casper Snow (Canadian Version) offers even better pressure relief for lighter side sleepers than the Casper Snow (U.S.). Its cooling and motion dissipation are similar, but its edge support is worse, and people in other weight categories can get better support and similar pressure relief from the U.S. version.
See our review -
DreamCloud Premier Hybrid:
The DreamCloud Premier Hybrid is a budget-friendly Medium-Plush mattress well-suited for average-weight and heavier side sleepers. It's a good alternative to the Silk & Snow Mattress if you want something bouncier, but its motion isolation isn't quite as good, and it's not as durable. It's also not as well-suited for lighter side sleepers.
See our review -
Saatva Classic (Plush Soft):
The Saatva Classic (Plush Soft) is a high-end Medium-Plush mattress that offers better pressure relief for lighter side sleepers than the Casper Snow. Like that mattress, it's cooling enough for hot sleepers, but its fairly weak motion dissipation makes the Casper a much better option if you sleep with a partner.
See our review -
Serta Perfect Sleeper Innerspring:
The Serta Perfect Sleeper Innerspring is a Medium-Plush mattress best suited for average-weight and heavier side sleepers. It's very conforming, like the Silk & Snow Mattress, but also a little more supportive. However, it's not as durable, has a much weaker motion isolation performance, and won't offer enough pressure relief for lighter side sleepers.
See our review -
Nolah Evolution:
The Nolah Evolution is a mid-range hybrid mattress with excellent pressure relief for average-weight and heavier side sleepers. Its highly contouring sleeping surface gives it a more enveloping feel than the Tuft and Needle Mint, but it's not as suitable for lighter side sleepers and offers worse support for almost everyone.
See our review
Recent Updates
Apr 14, 2026:
In the budget category, we replaced the Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid with the Silk and Snow Mattress, which offers better motion isolation, cooling, and durability. We also added the Nolah Evolution, Serta Perfect Sleeper Innerspring, and DreamCloud Premier Hybrid to the Notable Mentions.
Mar 13, 2026:
We've added the Silk & Snow Mattress to Notable Mentions because it's a good budget-friendly option for lighter side sleepers.
Feb 17, 2026:
We've updated our recommendations, adding mattresses that have recently been tested. The Allswell Hybrid and Helix Midnight Luxe 2025 have been added as picks, and the Saatva Rx and Casper Cooling Select have been added as Notable Mentions.
Jan 28, 2026:
We've updated the article to present recommendations by price. The Casper Snow, Tuft and Needle Mint, Beautyrest Mattress, Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid, and DreamCloud Classic Hybrid were added as picks.
Jan 13, 2026:
We removed the Sealy Posturepedic Plus Hybrid as the 'Best Medium-Plush Mattress For Side Sleeping' as it offers similar body conformity and doesn't perform as well as the Nectar Premier. We added the Brooklyn Bedding Signature Hybrid as an alternative for lighter side sleepers. We also added the Casper Snow as a memory foam pick, since it performs well for many side sleepers, and added the Saatva Classic (Plush Soft) to the Notable Mentions.
All Reviews
The recommendations above are what we think currently represent the best mattresses for most side sleepers. We factor in performance, price, availability, and feedback from our visitors. For more information on how we evaluate each mattress's performance for different weights and sleeping positions, see our Test Bench 1.1 Changelog.
Of course, the best mattress for you depends on your specific needs and preferences. If you'd like more options to consider, here's a list of all our mattress reviews so you can find the right fit.