To buy the best mattresses, you don't need to go to a store. In 2020, there are numerous companies that will sell you a ‘mattress in a box’ online. But Casper was the very first, launching in 2014 as a feisty startup aiming to turn the mattress industry on its head and cut out the numerous middlemen.
Casper attracted much ridicule at the time from those who thought consumers would never want to buy a mattress without first trying it out in store. But with the support of social media personalities such as Kylie Jenner, it proved them wrong, and today is worth over a billion dollars.
The original focus of the company was a single mattress, the Casper: a high-quality, custom multi-layer foam mattress that could fit, compressed down, in a small box and deliver a luxury mattress experience by mail at a bargain price. Today Casper offers a recently revamped version of that original mattress, along with three other models: the Element, the Wave Hybrid and the Nova Hybrid.
Casper mattresses have for many years been sold on both sides of the Atlantic. However, in July 2020, Casper announced it was winding down its UK and European operations, to focus solely only selling directly to USA-based customers.
See how the Casper compares to its main rivals:
What types of mattress does Casper sell?
The Wave Hybrid mattress is made up of five distinct layers of support
Casper sells four mattresses, each of which comes come in six standard sizes (Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King and Cal King) and fits regular sheets. These models cover a range of prices (but bear in mind there are regular Casper mattress promo codes and coupons to take the price down).
The Casper Original, which starts at $595, is a foam mattress is based on three layers: a top layer of breathable aerated foam; a second layer of foam divided into different zones, and a third layer of high-density poly foam. Alternatively, you can choose a Hybrid version of this mattress, which instead uses pocketed coils as the third layer.
The next price-level up is the Nova Hybrid, which starts at $1095. This is made up of a top layer of aerated foam for breathability, followed by two layers of zoned foam, and a sturdy core of pocketed coils.
At the top end of the scale is the Wave Hybrid, which starts at $1495. This luxurious mattress is made up of five layers. From the top down, these are: 1in of open-cell polyfoam, 1.5in of open-cell latex, 1.5in of zoned memory foam, 1.5in of polyfoam with gel, and 7in of pocketed coils surrounded by polyfoam.
Finally, the most budget friendly Casper mattress, which weirdly doesn’t appear on its main mattress web page, is the Element. Constructed of just two layers of two layers of polyfoam, this is the only to buy if you're looking for the best cheap mattress deals.
Are Casper mattresses good quality?
The Casper Nova Hybrid mattress
One of the big themes of recent years in the mattress world has been the backlash against traditional memory foam mattresses. Yes, they provide a good level of support by moulding themselves to your body in a way that pocketsprung mattresses can't. But there’s often a feel of deadness to them, as if you’ve sunk into them and you can’t get out, as well as issues with overheating in high temperatures.
Mattress brands have taken various approaches to squaring this circle, and Casper’s innovation is to blend different types of foam (an approach they call ‘hybrid foam') and in some of its mattresses, coils, to create the best of both worlds. So do they succeed?
In general, yes. Casper mattresses do give a more consistent level of support than traditional sprung mattresses, while still providing a level of firmness and comfort that avoids the feeling of being trapped. And their use of aerorated foams is successful in keeping their mattresses cool, even in hot weather. So whether you’re looking at independent expert analysis or customer reviews, the same message keeps coming across: this is a quality brand.
It’s not, admittedly, a brand many people seem to fall in love with; but by the same token, there’s not a lot of Casper haters out there. It’s just a company that does its thing well, reliably and consistently, and there’s a lot to be said for that.
Of course, not every Casper mattress will suit every person. For example, the cheapest Element mattress is only really going to be comfortable if you’re a back sleeper who weighs less than the average person, while a side sleeper who weighs over 250lbs should probably opt for the sturdier Wave Hybrid mattress. But on the plus side, by keeping their range limited to just four mattresses, it’s much easier to choose the right model for your needs.
And if it turns out you don’t like the mattress, you can always take advantage of the 100-night sleep trial and return it. The one thing to bear in mind is that Casper asks you try the mattress for at least 30 days to get used to it. Over the longer term, meanwhile, you have a ten-year limited warranty to cover repairs and replacements.
What is the best Casper mattress?
The Casper Original is still the company's best mattress overall
The best Casper mattress in terms of overall value for money is the Casper Original. Based on the original Casper mattress from 2014, this model has been updated in 2020 with a nicer design, a very lovely knit-polyester cover, and a construction based on three foam layers.
This combination of a strong support core, a clever zoned system in the middle, and a responsive layer of open cell foam on top, now perforated to help with airflow, is an absolute winner. The result is a medium feel in terms of firmness, one that moulds to your shape and gives good pressure relief, yet which doesn’t give you that sinking feeling and has a little more bounce than the average foam mattress.
We also love how this mattress stays temperature-neutral whether your room is hot or cold. And overall, it strikes an excellent balance between the softness of memory foam and the responsiveness of springs; all at a very reasonable price.
There's not much to say beyond that, to be honest, and this isn't the most exciting mattress you'll ever buy. But it is solid, well constructed, comfortable and great value, and at the end of the day, that's probably going to benefit you more than clever gimmicks or groundbreaking design.
