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You really can’t say that mattress type doesn’t matter. While one can give you the perfect night’s sleep, the other could be the mattress from your nightmares; so it’s important to know the difference and learn which one’s right for you. In short, memory foam mattresses either consist of one big slab of foam or have a variety of foam layers for added support. Spring mattresses have a core layer of springs and some soft (usually foam) layers on top to make them more comfortable.
Differences – Memory Foam vs. Innerspring Mattress
Spring mattresses are about 100 years older than memory foam mattresses. When they first came out in 1871, spring mattresses weren’t as comfortable as today, but they were a real prize compared to what was available at the time – large bags full of hay, wool, cotton, or down. Memory foam as a material was created in the second half of the 20th century. Developed by NASA to be used by astronauts, it became available for the general public in 1991. Since then, it’s been used in beds, pillows, and shoes.
Construction Differences
Spring mattresses have a base made of springs that are topped by a layer of foam. The top is usually quilted for plushness and a softer feel.
Cheap memory foam mattresses can be made of one big block of foam. You’ll notice that better models are made up of several layers – a firm layer as a core, a softer one as a support layer, and top layers which may have a cooling effect if they are infused with a cooling gel, for example. Many mattresses also have firm foam on the edges to give good edge support.
Both types of mattresses come in a variety of sizes and firmness levels, but there are some important differences between them when it comes to support, responsiveness, heat retention, and more.
Innerspring Pros
- Good air circulation between coils makes a cool mattress so you won’t sleep hot
- Great for stomach and back sleepers
- Cheaper than memory foam
- Responsive and slightly bouncy
- Traditional spring mattresses break in quickly (up to 30 days)
Innerspring Cons
- Can become noisy when it gets older
- Motion transfer might bother the partner
- Some innerspring mattresses might be too firm for some side sleepers
- Shorter lifespan than a memory foam mattress
Memory Foam Pros
- Provides pressure relief
- Good for side sleepers
- “Hugs” the body
- Fantastic motion isolation (no motion transfer)
- No need to flip the mattress
- Distributes body weight evenly
- Longer lifespan
Memory Foam Cons
- Accumulates heat, bad for hot sleepers
- More expensive than innerspring mattresses
- Strong chemical odor in the first period after purchase
- Takes longer to break in (up to 60 days)
- Doesn’t respond quickly to movement, some people may feel “stuck” in the mattress
Innerspring Mattresses in Detail
Not all spring mattresses offer the same feel and support. Cheaper mattresses typically have fewer coils (around 300). Coil count and coil gauge (thickness) play a big role in mattress quality.
So, what values are the best? The coil number is high if it’s between 800 and 1000 whereas the average coil gauge is between 12 and 15 (a higher gauge number means thinner coils and a less springy mattress).
Coil Types
If you’ve been shopping for a spring mattress recently, you’ve probably seen quite a few manufacturers bragging about their special pocketed coil systems. This is a fairly new system that has individually wrapped coils. Pocketed coils make a supportive mattress that’s more durable – but also more expensive than traditional spring mattresses.
A traditional spring mattress normally has an open-coil system where all coils are connected to each other and to the metal frame. Open coils come in three different types:
- Bonnell coils are the oldest and least expensive type. They have a round top and bottom and a spring in the middle.
- Offset coils have flat parts of the wire at the bottom and top loop of the coil. This way they are attached to other coils in the system so well that offset coil systems are noticeably more comfortable and better at body contouring.
- Continuous coils are made up of several single-wire rows. Each wire is very long and shaped in such a way to mimic the springiness of a regular coil, but with improved support.
The coil support system is just a part of the support layer of a spring mattress. It’s usually topped off with a foam layer. This may be latex foam, memory foam, gel-infused foam, polyfoam, or simply cotton, wool, or other natural materials.
If the mattress construction is such that there’s a thick layer of foam (or more often, several layers) on top of the spring system, we call it a hybrid. Hybrids are more durable, but also more expensive. Some of our favorite spring mattresses are actually hybrids and they pretty much cancel out most of the cons that a traditional innerspring mattress has.
Memory Foam Mattresses in Detail
The simplest and cheapest memory foam mattress you can find out there is basically the type that Mainstays sells. On the other side is Amerisleep with their special plant-based foam which is more responsive than traditional memory foam.
Unlike spring mattresses, an all-memory foam mattress feels like it’s pressing against your body.
All foams are made of crude oil derivatives except for plant-based memory foam Bio-Pur from Amerisleep and real natural latex made of rubber-tree. This is why they release an unpleasant smell when they are new. This is called off-gassing and manufacturers promise it’s harmful, although it may cause allergic reactions or some breathing issues (mainly to highly sensitive people).
Memory foam was developed by NASA and has a specific viscoelastic feel. Since it’s also high-density foam, it offers little resistance when pressed, so after you release the pressure it will be getting back to its original shape very slowly. This quality may help people with joint and muscle pain as it relieves pressure points, but it may not be desirable for weak or elderly people who might have trouble changing positions or even getting out of a memory foam bed.
Memory Foam Mattress Construction
If you look at high-quality memory foam mattresses, you’ll find that they have a complex construction. For example, they may have a firm support base, then a softer layer of a different memory foam type, and finally a cooling layer. Memory foam beds are pretty bad at allowing the heat to escape, so mattress manufacturers usually work on developing technologies to make their memory foam mattresses cooler.
Sometimes that is gel memory foam, sometimes copper-infused memory foam, and sometimes special channels in foam designed to let the body heat dissipate. If you don’t have cooling gel memory foam as a part of your mattress but really wish you did, here’s some good news – ranking no. 4 on our Best Mattress Toppers list is Ghostbed gel memory foam topper. It’s infused with gel and has air channels among other (literally) cool features.
Good memory foam mattresses have covers made of breathable materials to compensate for the heat retention by the foam itself. Better steer clear of memory foam mattresses with polyester covers.
Foam Density
Foam density measures just how thick the foam is – how much a cubic foot weighs. If you want very flexible and responsive memory foam, look at low foam density (1.5-4 pounds) and if you want more durable and less flexible foam, look at 5.5 pounds or more (it goes up to 8 lb/ft3). Anything between 4 and 5.5 pounds is medium density.
Chemical compounds of a low and high-density foam mattress can be identical and foam density is the only difference. The low-density one is lighter just because it has more tiny air chambers. Bear in mind that low-density foam costs less, is less durable, more responsive, and the mattress itself won’t be as heavy. Low density also means that a new mattress will break-in faster but also offer less pressure relief.
Technically Not Memory Foam but People Don’t Really Make a Difference
We’ve noticed that lots of people just say “memory foam” when they mean “foam”. To be honest, the word has been used and advertised so much that it’s no wonder everyday people mistake memory for any other foam.
So, to reiterate – memory foam has low resistance and after you apply pressure, it takes time while it slowly takes its original shape. If the foam springs back to its original shape right away, it’s not memory foam.
Here are other types of foam that your mattress may be made out of, that aren’t actually memory foam:
- Polyurethane foam. Memory foam is also made of this material, but memory foam is known as “low-resistance polyurethane foam”. Simple polyurethane is the lowest quality and cheapest mattress foam there is.
- High-resilience foam (HR foam) is much denser, firmer, and assumes its original form much faster than memory foam. It’s frequently used inside the mattress as a support layer below memory foam layers.
- Latex foam has a good reputation because it’s made of the rubber tree and as a natural material, it’s safe, durable, and good for the environment. There are also synthetic latex and synthetic/natural latex mix that are not as expensive, but they are not as durable and supportive.
If you’re not a fan of memory foam beds, you can always work your way around them and get a mattress that has foam, but no memory foam.
Which Mattress is Better? Innerspring vs. Memory Foam
We can’t actually say one is better than the other, but we can argue who each mattress type is better for.
An innerspring mattress is a better choice for:
- back and stomach sleepers
- hot sleepers
- people on a budget
- lightweight sleepers
- those who don’t want a heavy mattress
A memory foam mattress is an ideal mattress for:
- side sleepers
- heavier sleepers (up to 250lbs)
- those who need pain relief and pressure relief
- couples (great motion isolation)
- those who don’t want to have to flip their mattress
What’s up with the weight?
You may have noticed that we recommend none of these two mattress types for individuals heavier than 250lbs. This is because the ideal mattress for them is a hybrid and to be on the safe side, look for a hybrid with latex foam. Those are the most durable and will be able to give you proper spinal alignment and support – much better than a memory foam mattress or a spring mattress.
Hybrid Mattresses – a Bit of Both
Hybrid mattresses can’t be placed into one category. They may have several layers of foam, but they aren’t foam mattresses because of the springs. But although they have springs, they aren’t spring mattresses because of several layers of foam.
Here’s an example of what a Dreamcloud hybrid looks like. Some manufacturers may even add many more foam layers than this.
However, since today’s society has high comfort standards, it’s actually becoming less common to find a mattress that’s just innerspring. This is why a hybrid mattress is becoming synonymous with an innerspring mattress.
With a hybrid, you can enjoy the best of both worlds – the airflow and body heat dissipation of a spring mattress, pressure relief and pain relief of a memory foam mattress, motion isolation of memory foam, natural spinal alignment of a spring bed, and durability of … a hybrid mattress! Because hybrids are more durable and longer-lasting than both mattress types.
How to Choose the Right Mattress?
There are pros and cons to memory foam, to spring beds, to hybrids, to soft and to firm mattresses; but when you choose the perfect mattress, you’ll stop even thinking about it as you’re likely to just wake up fresh and pain-free.
Stop and Think
Before you start exploring your options, you need to ask yourself some questions. Think about the purpose of the mattress, if it’s for a single person or a couple (motion transfer), consider your body weight, sleep position, if you don’t want to wake up feeling numb on certain pressure points (hips and shoulders, for example), if you have any allergies or sensitive airways, and if you sleep too hot.
You have to decide for yourself if you need a firmer or a softer mattress, whether you need a Queen or a King, and so on.
Process of Elimination
Once you define what you need, you can look for which mattress can meet those needs. Most manufacturers tell you outright whether their mattress was designed to keep you cool, alleviate pressure points, etc. One by one, eliminate mattress types that don’t work for you. When you narrow your choice down to several models, start looking at reviews from various sources.
There’s a lot to buying a mattress. We can’t just say – this one’s good. We need to know what your needs are and then we can say – this one’s good for you. We even have a detailed post on all the important things to consider when buying a new mattress and what each feature is good for.
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With over 5 years experience writing about sleep and mattresses, she's considered one of the go-to experts on the topic.
She likes cycling, nature, art, and languages. She pays special attention to providing you with accurate and useful information when it comes to your sleep quality.
After solving her personal sleep and tiredness problems, she is on to help others by sharing this invaluable information.
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