Best extra firm mattress of 2024

Testing mattresses is what we do. With over 200 mattresses under our belt, we’ve spent thousands of hours testing and reviewing beds. During our years of testing, we have established several procedures that rate each mattress on factors such as firmness, motion isolation, durability and edge support.

Firmness and feel

We assign each mattress a number on our firmness scale of 1 to 10, which corresponds to industry terms such as “medium” or “medium firm.” When testing firmness, we use the perspective of different body types to get a complete picture of a mattress.

When assessing the feel of a mattress, we pay attention to how it feels during testing. Are we going to sink in or are we on top of it? We also see how the materials react when we remove the pressure. Some foams retract quickly, such as latex foam, while more traditional memory foams take some time to react, making it more difficult to change positions.

Motion isolation

Motion isolation may not seem like a big deal, but if you sleep with someone who moves around during the night, you know how crucial it can be to a good night’s sleep. We have a few methods for testing motion isolation. First we see if our tester can sense the movement of the person tossing and turning next to him. Then we use a glass of water at the end of the bed and roll around to see if it falls over. If it does, the bed doesn’t have the best motion isolation.

Sustainability

We look at the construction to see how durable and supportive a bed will be. We do this by cutting open the bed and checking the layers inside. Beds with an innerspring system or pocket springs usually last longer and offer more support.

Edge support

Edge support is another one that may not seem that important, but it does matter if you need access to the entire sleeping surface. Edge support indicates how strong the perimeter of the bed is. We test this by sitting on the edge of the bed. If the edge sinks under our weight, it doesn’t have good edge support.

CNET editors choose the products and services we write about based on editorial merit. When you purchase through our links, we may receive a commission. Read more about how we test mattresses.