Best Place to Buy a Mattress
Buying a new mattress is a big investment that you’ll end up living with for 15 to 20 years, depending on the quality of the product you buy. So it’s important to make sure you thoroughly investigate your options before you make your choice. To that end, where you buy your mattress will have a lot to do with determining the options you have.
If you’re buying brand-new you have two main choices: purchasing from a retail store in your area or purchasing online. While it’s true you still can do catalog shopping in some cases, it is so rare as to not garner much attention. As far as buying from a retail outlet you can choose a dedicated bedding store, a general furniture store that sells bedding, or a closeout store that sells discontinued and unclaimed merchandise. When you shop online you’ll most likely be purchasing from distributors who represent a single manufacturer or stores that sell several different manufacturers simultaneously.
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In-Store Mattress Shopping
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To say which type of shopping is better really depends on your personal preference. Older individuals will generally prefer the retail store, because that allows them to speak with salespeople in person and try out mattresses before they buy. Some people also prefer the “live shopping” experience more. But more than likely you won’t find any difference in actual quality when comparing similar mattresses from well-known manufacturers.
The most significant benefit of shopping at a retail store is the ability to lie down on several different mattress models and test them out. Should you decide to shop in this way, make sure you take your spouse with you if you’re married. A mattress feels very different when two people lie on it, as opposed to one, so you don’t want to make decisions without both of you present. Also, be sure to give a mattress enough time (10 to 15 minutes) before you make a decision. It may seem like a lot of time to be lying on a mattress in the public store, but you really need that time to see how your body will react. You don’t sleep for a mere two minutes every night; don’t expect to be able to form a fair opinion if you don’t take the 15 minutes or so to let your body settle in.
The downside to shopping at retail outlets tends to be the price and a shorter trial period than companies who only sell online. Remember that a retail store has a lot of overhead to pay for; overhead that’s built into the retail price of the mattress. Also, keep in mind that going to a closeout sale or unclaimed merchandise center to save some money usually also means you’ll have to settle for lower quality. There’s a reason why mattresses end up at these two types of stores; it’s not because they are high-quality items that dominate the market.
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Online Mattress Shopping
What are the pros and cons of shopping online?
The broadest appeal of online shopping tends to be its convenience. In other words, rather than spending an entire day traveling around town and lying on mattresses, shopping online means you can do it from the comfort of your own home — even while doing something else at the same time. Whenever you have a few empty minutes, you can pop on a website and look at some of their different mattresses. You can send links back and forth to your spouse and carry out a lengthy discussion about your mattress needs without dealing with the pressure of salespeople.
Price also tends to be lower when you shop online. But if this is your sole motivation, be careful to pay close attention to shipping charges. Sometimes those shipping charges can be excessive, resulting in a total cost that’s actually higher than purchasing at a retail store. Along those same lines, look for return policies and who would pay shipping in such an event. Buying a mattress online that you end up being dissatisfied with could be a nightmare if you ever have to return it.
The biggest downside to shopping online is that you don’t get to test out your mattress before making your purchase. No two people react to the same mattress in the same way, so taking mattresses for a “test drive” is the best way to know how you will feel on any given model. Thankfully, it’s not as much an issue today as it was in the past. That’s because many online companies have responded to this dilemma by offering a free in-home trial.
Under one of these trial programs, you order your mattress online and then have a specified amount of time from the day it arrives to try it out. If you decide to keep it, the transaction is completed, and you are the owner of a brand new mattress. If you choose to return it, you will be refunded any amount of money you already paid. If you’re going to buy a mattress online, a distributor with this type of in-home testing option is a wise idea.
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Are warranties the same with both shopping options?
In most cases, warranties are offered by the manufacturer and not the distributor or retailer. Therefore, it shouldn’t matter whether you purchase your mattress online or at a retail store. The warranty should be the same because the mattress is the same. That said, many retail outlets and online stores offer their own limited warranties or guarantees. You should make a point of asking about them and making sure you understand them before you make your purchase – especially return policies.
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Is there anything else I need to know about purchasing mattresses?
There are different types of mattress constructions that you’re probably already familiar with: innerspring, latex foam, memory foam, waterbed, adjustable air, and organic. The construction method you choose will depend pretty much on your personal preferences to find the best mattress for firmness, overall comfort, and materials used. But more important than all of those things is the manufacturer itself. In North America and Europe, mattress manufacturers are generally held to very high standards enforced by law. That’s not the case in many Asian and Middle Eastern environments.
Be careful about purchasing mattresses from places like China and India. That’s not to say you can’t find quality in such manufacturers, but that it’s much more difficult. If you purchase your mattress from a European or North American manufacturer, you’re going to get something that is at least moderate quality, if not excellent. If you purchase outside of those two areas, quality begins to deteriorate as you go through the list of manufacturers.
Remember, it’s never a bad idea to walk out of a store and go home to look up manufacturers online. The mattress will still be there tomorrow; there’s no reason why you can’t do a little research today.
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