Memory Foam and Memory Foam Mattress Buyers Guide
While memory foam was developed for NASA in the 1970's, it really only hit the consumer market in topper pads, and later their memory foam mattress, in the early 1990s. Since then, however, the
memory foam mattress has become the fasting growing segment in the mattress industry. With every year you see more and more companies are selling a memory foam mattress and memory foam topper pads, and it is very difficult for even those of us in the industry to keep up with all the new memory foam products coming out. What is a consumer to do?
Well, in this guide, I'm going to do my best to give you the straight story on what memory foam is, how it works, and what to look for in memory foam (density and quality, memory foam toppers vs memory foam mattresses, etc.). For those looking for a memory foam mattress, I've put together an additional guide, Picking a Memory Foam Mattress that I hope will help you sort through the different memory foam mattress options. If I don't answer one of the questions you have about memory foam or memory foam mattresses, please let me know so I can add it to these guides ( ). Armed with the information in these guides, I hope you are able to find just the right memory foam mattress, topper pad, or other product that fits your needs.
Brief History of Memory Foam
As much as memory foam sellers tout that it was initially developed for the space program, ironically it was never used in any space mission. The initial memory foam, known as T-foam, offgassed too much for use in a closed environment. But, thankfully, some saw the promise of memory foam for use in the medical industry to relieve pressure sores. Over the years memory foam was shown to be unique in the way it responded to temperature and also in ability to spread pressure over a greater surface area (and thereby reduce pressure points significantly). While the initial version of T-Foam did have a great deal of promise for as a bed topper or wheel chair cushion material, it did have issues with wear over time. This first generation of material just wasn't very durable, and would often compress or crack over time.
The first company to really realize the potential of memory foam for the consumer market was Tempur-Pedic ®. They had worked on creating their own version of memory foam, and came up with a foam they called Tempur ® that was much more durable and still had the pressure reducing benefits of memory foam. Initially this Tempur ® foam was used in medical settings, but soon they began to hear that patients who used the foam slept better, had less back pain or other pains in the morning, etc. A light bulb switched on over someone's head in Sweden, and Tempur-Pedic ® began to sell the products to consumers as well.
Coming from this medical background, Tempur ® foam was very expensive, and has stayed that way to this day. After a few years on the consumer market, though, other foam manufacturers saw the potential of memory foam and began to produce their own versions of memory foam. Since these manufacturer's came from the consumer foam business, rather than the medical business, their cost structure for memory foam was much lower and they priced their products at a fraction of the Tempur ® foam. As the years went by, memory foam became more and more popular, and now manufacturers all over the world are making their versions of memory foam.
But what you need to remember is that not all memory foams are equal. They differ a great deal in quality - density, hardness or softness, response to temperature, and also in their durability. In looking for the right memory foam for my new topper pads, I have looked at a number of products that are all 3 - 4 lb. density, and they really do differ in feel and quality a good deal. In the rest of this guide, I will try to share with you the types of things to consider when buying memory foam so that you can get the best product for your needs.
Memory Foam Really is Unique, and Has Unique Benefits
I've looked at a lot of bedding materials, from latex to cotton to wool. And there is just nothing like memory foam in the way it conforms to your body and reduces pressure points. That isn't to say that you would want a whole mattress made just of memory foam. Memory foam is just too soft a material and isn't meant to be supportive. So it works best when layered over a firm, supportive material. That is why you will mainly find memory foam as a 2" or 3" topper to be used on your existing, firm mattress or as a 2" or 3" topping layer in a new mattress.
There are a couple of reasons that memory foam is so unique. One is the way memory foam cells deform when under a load. Unlike standard foams that compress, but want to spring back to their original shape immediately, memory foam cells (as an open cell foam, which means the cells of foam have holes in them) compress fully and spread their air pressure to adjoining cells. This accounts for the way that memory foam actually reduces pressure points. And this ability of memory foam to deform also allows it to really conform to your body's shape. No other material has this custom shaping type of feeling that you get from memory foam.
In addition, memory foam is temperature sensitive. This means that at lower temperatures it is harder (more viscous), and at higher temperatures it is softer and bouncier (more elastic). Hence the reason memory foam is also known as visco-elastic foam. This temperature sensitive quality accounts for the melting feeling that you get lying down on memory foam, and also accentuates the custom molding affect of the foam. Some memory foam, like Tempur-Pedic ® are pretty temperature sensitive and can get firm even near room temperature. The memory foam is used in our toppers and mattresses, in contrast, has a broader range of temperatures where they stay nice and soft so they work well in different climates.
Not All Memory Foams are Created Equal
I think that it is great that a lot of manufacturers have begun producing memory foam. This has allowed the price of memory foam to come down and finally become an affordable product. And while this has also meant that a good number of quality memory foams have come onto the market, it has also meant that a greater number of low quality, cut rate foams have also appeared.
Memory foam isn't a commodity, and not all memory foams are created equal. As a general rule of thumb, you should avoid the really inexpensive pads or pillows you will find on the market. They are generally made of either low density memory foam or layered with other, cheaper foam products. These inexpensive memory foams just won't give the same comfort as higher density pads and will wear out relatively fast.
So what type of foam should you look for? This issue is somewhat different depending on whether you are looking to buy a memory foam mattress or a memory foam topper pad to put on your existing bed. That is because the memory foam in a mattress is bonded to the "mattress core", and as such can't be replaced so must not only be comfortable but durable as well. A topper pad, on the other hand, is less expensive and can be replaced if it wears out after a few years. So when you are buying a memory foam mattress, you need to look for one using a memory foam which is both comfortable and durable. With a topper pad, comfort alone is the main issue since you can easily replace the topper.
In a mattress, I think you should look for a mattress with at least 3" of medium to high density memory foam. 3" of memory foam gives you a good amount of material to cushion and conform to your body. While you could get by with 2" of memory foam in a mattress, 3" is just a plusher and more comfortable feel for most people. And it isn't so deep you sink in uncomfortably into the bed or lose the support of the base foam. I've seen memory foam mattresses that offer much deeper memory foam layers and they just feel like too much - you get sucked in and turning from side to side can be a real problem. And you just don't have the same support for your body and back as those memory foam mattresses that are 3" or so of memory foam.
As for the density of the memory foam used in a mattress, I've had a change of mind in this over the years. For a long time I've heard from customers that they liked the feel of the less dense memory foams often better than that of the "leading brand" because of these advantages. Until recently, though, I cautioned people about buying a mattress with these lower densities because of the issue. But as the latest generations of memory foam have become much more durable, I've found that certain medium density memory foams (I'm talking about those in the 3 lb density to 4 lb density range made by certain manufacturers) rate just as high in durability test. And these new generation medium density foams can have certain advantages over the higher density foams - they are softer, have better temperature sensitivity ranges (higher density memory foams sometimes are harder and stiffer at room temperatures), and have good pressure relief properties.
But there is still a lot of quality differences between memory foams, and so if you want to go with a medium density memory foam in your mattress because you like this softer feel you really need to ask about that particular foams durability. This was one of the key things we looked at when we were reviewing our The Healthy Foundations Memory Foam Mattress, which uses 3.2 lb and 3.4 lb density memory foam.. We knew from our customer testing that people really liked the mattress - in fact, the response was even more positive than when we had sold the "leading brand". But due to our concerns about the durability, we had the manufacturer do special durability testing (which involved a 330 lb roller making 30,000 passes over the mattress to simulate 30 years of use). And our The Healthy Foundations Memory Foam Mattress passed with flying colors. In addition, the formulation used in our mattress has been in production for years, and it has been proven to hold up very well over time (our manufacturer, for instance, has producing this particular memory foam mattress for over 5 years and had less than 0.1% returns due to any abnormality with the memory foam (and that is why they can offer a 20 year non-prorated warranty)). Nothing beats real world testing, and just because a foam tested well in artificial durability tests doesn't necessarily mean it will really work in your home. You'll avoid a lot of problems by sticking with a memory foam mattress that has a proven history of real world durability. You should look for this sort of durability testing and real world performance in any memory foam mattress you buy to assure that you are getting both the comfort and quality you are looking for.
If you are looking for a memory foam topper pad to put on your mattress, you have lots of options. In general, you will pay more for a higher density memory foam pad - it just costs more to produce a denser memory foam. Which ones do we recommend? Well, we've looked at a lot of topper pads, and we just felt the 4 lb memory foam we decided to use in our Memory Foam Topper Pads just had the nicest feel. And after selling thousands over the years, we know that they work really well for our customers. Often a 2" pad is sufficient for making a mattress much more comfortable, but we decided to offer a 3" version as well for those looking for a plusher feel. We've tried out the 5 lb density pads as well, but decided not to carry them because they really didn't offer any more comfort than our 4 lb pad - and in fact, the 4 lb pads really were softer and had a nicer feel to them (the 5 lb pads often felt somewhat stiff and not as user friendly). And we didn't feel that the premium you pay for the 5 lb density foam was really worth it. All you get for the extra price is a denser pad - and density doesn't equal comfort, it just means that the pads weigh more. We've found our 4 lb memory foam pads to really do the job and really offer the best value for the money.
Now a word of caution. When you are looking for any memory foam, you need to be careful what foam you buy. In my research into memory foam suppliers, I was kind of horrified at the different insider stories I heard. Things like manufacturers putting inexpensive fillers (like sand, etc.) into a foam to save money rather than the more expensive materials used in making a true memory foam. I also was cautioned about manufacturers who may unload bad pours of foam on unsuspecting customers in order to recoup their costs in pouring this foam.
These kinds of horror stories from foam manufacturing veterans really were eye openers to me. I had no idea that these kind of practices were going on, and I sure didn't want to my customers to end up with these lower quality products. That is one of the reasons I settled on my current mattress and topper pad suppliers. They both are very concerned about the quality of the memory foams they use, and only use those foams that are certified to meet very rigorous quality controls by the manufacturer.
Given these issues, I would urge you to really look closely at not only the density of the memory foam you are buying, but the source as well. You can trust the big name brands like Tempur-Pedic ® - they have a vested interest in assuring that their customers get only the highest quality products and don't sell bad pours of their foam. But if you buy off-branded or house brand memory foam, such as mine, you really need to ask questions about the source of the foam to see if the reseller really knows whether the foam is the actual spec they are advertising. While resellers probably won't tell you the specific supplier they are using (which, after all, is part of their competitive advantage), ask them if their supplier has a long standing relationship with the foam manufacturer, and whether their supplier independently inspects each batch of foam after it was received from the manufacturer to ensure that the quality is what it should be. And, like all things, if the price seems too good, it may well be an indication that something just isn't right and the foam may not be up to the advertised specs.
Density - the Real Story
When you buy a memory foam, you will pay more for a denser foam. It just costs more to make a denser foam - more raw material goes into making a denser substance. But density alone doesn't tell you about the feel or comfort of a memory foam. In it barest terms, all density tells you is how much the foam weighs. A 5 lb. density simply means that a cube of this material, which is one foot in each dimension, would weigh 5 lbs.
In memory foam, though, tends to have more of the special memory feel that makes the foam unique. A 2.0 lb. density memory foam just doesn't have enough density to give you the real memory feel that you get from the denser memory foams (the medium and high density memory foams). That is why I just don't carry the lower density memory foams (I don't carry anything less than 3 lb density memory foam). I've had a lot of people tell me to carry the lower density foams because they offer lower price points, but I just strongly feel that I only want to sell memory foams that offer the basic level of quality you can only get with the denser foams. So my minimum I will look at right now is the 4 lb. density we use for our topper pad and the 3.2 and 3.4 lb density foams we used in our mattress.
Can I Get By with Just a Topper, or Do I Need a Whole New Mattress
This is a question we get all the time, and not an easy one to answer. In general, though, if your mattress is basically ok but not as comfortable as you would like (looking for a softer feel, less aches and pains in the morning, etc), then a memory foam mattress topper may well do the job. To get a better feel for how a memory foam mattress topper can give you a better quality of sleep, see our
Memory Foam Mattress Topper Page and Buying Guide.
On the other hand, if your mattress is too soft, rock hard, or has compressed areas or dips, etc., then you really are better off buying a new mattress - a topper pad just can't help with these problems.
If you need a new mattress, what should you look for? Stay away from the pillow tops. The foam or other materials used in standard pillow tops tends to be fairly inexpensive and often will break down fairly quickly. So rather than buying a pillow top mattress, I instead advise people to buy the best, basic bed they can find and then add their own memory foam topper as a pillow top if they like. That way they get a quality topper (much higher density and quality than what comes in most, even expensive, pillow top mattresses). And then if the topper pad softens with use after a number of years (we see people replacing their topper after 4 - 5 years or more), you can replace the topper portion only rather than having to get a whole new mattress.
As for the basic mattress portion, most people stay with a good innerspring. But if you are open to it, I urge you to consider a good foam bed or even a latex bed. These types of bases just have a more substantial feel than other beds and wear like iron. It is important to get a good quality foam bed (2.2 density or up of high resiliency or similar foam), and latex is even denser but you pay a premium for it as well. Either way, your foam bed should be at least 5 - 6" deep. And it really is best to first lay down on the piece of foam or latex you will be buying to see if it is the right firmness. I know this isn't always possible since you may not have a store carrying foam or latex near you. But buying these kinds of beds over the internet based on their specs can be a crapshoot since the firmness of these kinds of beds varies a great deal at times. So if you do buy over the internet, make sure you can return the bed easily in case it is over firm.
What it you don't want to put together your own mattress, but would rather just choose a mattress that already puts together this type of quality/supportive base and comfort memory foam top layer? We've gotten lots of requests for this over the years, and after researching dozens of memory foam mattresses we finally have found one we feel comfortable offering to sell. Our new 10" thick mattress has 6.7" base of 2.2 lb density foam topped by 2.8" of 3.2 lb density memory foam with another .6" layer of 3.4 lb density memory foam in the mattresses' cover. This mattress' quality and comfort really made it stand out from all the dozens of mattresses we've tested in the last couple of years. We are offering a 365 day money back trial on this new mattress, so if you are in the market for a memory foam mattress we hope you will check out our new The Healthy Foundations Memory Foam Mattress.
