Casper vs Nectar: Which mattress is better?

We are putting two of the best mattress brands up against each other once again: this time the showdown is Casper vs Nectar. Both are hugely popular mattresses, and feature multiple layers of memory foam, providing exceptional comfort and breathability.

So, if you’re thinking about a mattress refresh, read on to see how these two popular brands stack up against each other. The Nectar gives customers a brave but respectable ‘forever’ warranty, while the Casper provides a 10 year promise. We do like the sound of Nectar’s ‘sleeping on a cloud’ claim (and were impressed in our Nectar mattress review) but Casper’s  ‘meticulously designed for superior sleep’ seems tempting too.

Both memory foam mattress brands boast five star reviews from customers and critics, as well as oodles of happy sleepers. But there are differences to discover between the two, so we're taking a closer look at what they can offer in our Casper vs Nectar showdown. 

A note before we start: if price is a big consideration, be aware that there are plenty of cheap mattress deals all year round, so chances are you won't need to pay ticket price. Head to our dedicated Casper discount codes and deals page, or our Nectar mattress discount codes and deals page, for the best current offers for both brands.

• If Nectar takes your fancy, explore our Emma vs Nectar comparison too
• What about Purple? Here's our Casper vs Purple mattress showdown 
• Browse our pick of the best weighted blankets around, to help calm you down

Casper vs Nectar: design

Both mattresses have been designed by sleep professionals with the aim of providing the perfect night’s sleep. Each looks sleek, fuss-free and contemporary in a combination of grey and crisp white.

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The Casper  

The Casper mattress is 24cm deep shared between four layers of foam. Each layer plays its own part in creating a comfortable night’s sleep. The breathable top layer helps to control temperature throughout the night, minimising any possibility of overheating. Beneath, the high-density memory foam and polyurethane foam layers contour to your body shape, relieve pressure and distribute weight evenly across the mattress.

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Nectar

The Nectar mattress slightly outsizes the Casper with its 25cm depth, it's also comprised of a generous three foam layers as well as two layers of viscoelastic foam, which has been 'Certipur' certified. It’s topped with a cooling cover to ensure airflow as you turn in your sleep. This combination is not only designed to adapt to the contours of the body, but also to provide relief to pressure points throughout the body. 

Winner: Casper 

It’s really tricky to decide between the two based on their design alone, as you can see they are very similar indeed. They share the same depth and comparable comfort qualities. One thing that could swing it however, is the Casper’s removable cover. This can be washed at 40 degrees, helping to keep your sleep space that extra bit fresher!

Casper vs Nectar: Price

If pricing is the deciding factor for you in moving forward with a purchase, this section is where your interest may be piqued. The price of course depends on the size of your mattress, but there are some fairly significant differences here between our candidates.

• The Casper RRP: single - £400, double - £600, king - £700, super king - £800
• The Nectar RRP: single - £599, double - £699, king - £799, super king - £899

As you can see, there’s a full £99 RRP price hike for Nectar on all sizes. Important to note though, is that you get some ‘freebies’ thrown in with the Nectar mattress. With each purchase you will receive two premium pillows worth £70, free delivery and a stonking 365 day trial period. You can sleep all over the mattress for a full year and still send it back if you discover it’s not for you. Casper on the other hand offers a 100 day trial period – still pretty generous it’s fair to say.

Winner: Casper

Genrally speaking, Casper remains cheaper across sizes and offers a long window of opportunity for you to give it a test run at home. Not as long as the Nectar though, so if you need time to feel sure about this not insignificant purchase you may want to opt to pay a little extra, and get those pillows thrown in too.

But be sure to look out for offers and discounts (our mattress deals guide is a good place to start). Nectar often comes up with some pretty impressive discounts. Our up-to-the-minute pricing information below will tell you which brand has the best bargains today.

• Cheap Casper mattress deals
• Today's best Nectar mattress deals

Casper vs Nectar: Comfort and firmness

Let's face it...the mark of a great mattress will always be about how comfortable it is to lie and, ultimately, sleep on. That's generally what memory foam mattresses excel at. But, of course, everybody is different. What feels like a fantastically luxurious mattress to one person might be the next's worst nightmare. Some folk prefer firm, others soft. There are people who run hot at night, while others like to be warm and cosy.

To give you an idea of what kind of night's sleep Casper and Nectar are likely to give, we've tested them both to give our impressions. Plus, we've dived into customer reviews to learn what other people think of their purchase.

The Casper  

Are Casper mattresses any good? Casper's website talks about its feature mattress having high-density memory foam  weight distributing transition layers – we found that those components add up to a product that's ideal if you tend to sleep on your side. And the open-cell top layer serves two functions, both keeping us cool when we tested it and providing a welcome bit of bounce. But if you're averse to softer mattresses, this might not be the best fit for you and might immediately make up your mind to go for the Nectar instead (if the additional price doesn't out you off).

Of those customers who have bought and lived with the Casper, feedback is on the whole very positive. At the time of writing, its Amazon score was 4.3 from well over 200 customers and counting. Of the 70%+ people who gave it five stars, the focus is all about the premium levels of comfort. Although reports from reviewers with back pain issues are pretty mixed. Trust Pilot has an impressive 4.5 stars for Casper, with a massive 3,000+ comments and most of the negativity citing delivery problems as the main issue.

Nectar

Nectar's memory foam mattress is on the medium-to-firm side of the support spectrum, which should cater to most sleeper types. We were really taken with just how comfortable it was - presumably thanks to its combination of adaptable top layer and supporting base. This feels like top-of-the-line mattress making.

The Trust Pilot ratings are much of a muchness with those of Casper, but it we were honestly quite surprised to see that purchasers from Amazon were less keen - the overall rating was just below the four-star mark when we checked. It seems that the firm build of Nectar's mattresses was largely to blame for negative feedback. So if that sounds like it could be a concern of yours, we'd suggest heading to our best mattress countdown and choosing one that is a bit more your style.

Winner: Nectar

In our own experience, the Nectar gave us a much more satisfying experience when we tried out both mattresses. Yes, it's on the firm side (and so, once again, we suggest avoiding if you prefer something softer), but it's a fantastic all-rounder and feedback from most customers affirms our views in that respect. That's not to put down the excellent Casper, but we'd always choose Nectar if our only consideration was pure comfort.

Casper vs Nectar: the small print 

We've taken a look at the boring stuff, so you don't have to! Here's the information you need on trials, returns and warranty lengths.

The Casper 

If you've been shopping for a mattress-in-a-box you'll likely see very similar benefits across brands. Casper mattresses come with a 10-year guarantee, a 100-day free trial period, and free returns for unsatisfied customers - similar to most of its competotors.

Nectar

Wow! Nectar really puts the cat among the pigeons with its...wait for it...ONE YEAR home trial. Yep, you get a full 365 days to try out the mattress and then have the company collect it if you decide it's not for you. On top of that there's the brand's 'Forever Warranty' - another name for a full lifetime guarantee.

Winner: Nectar

Nectar has really taken a look at what most of the competition is doing and has tried to trump it. These are really eye-catching features in a market where a lot of the players tend to look very similar indeed.

Casper vs Nectar: which one should you buy? 

There's a good reason why we have Nectar placed above Casper in our dedicated best mattress guide. In fact, there are several. It's a comfier product, in our view, with those showstopping trial and warranty benefits thrown in, too.

That all said, we'd be surprised if you were disappointed with your purchase of The Casper, if you ended up deciding that the financial saving you'll make in the short term is worthwhile. It's still a manufacturer of excellent mattresses, with customer feedback that actually tops Nectar.