Best mattress shops

We've asked more than 2,500 UK mattress owners about their shopping experiences to reveal the best and worst places to buy a new mattress — whether you want to shop online or in-store.

Our latest survey rates mattress shops including Bensons for Beds, Furniture Village, Ikea and John Lewis on the quality their products, range, advice and delivery. 

Already know where you want to buy? Read our guide to the best mattresses.

Best and worst high street mattress shops

Which? members can log in to unlock the scores and detailed information on each mattress shop. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.

The top mattress shop in our survey received a Which? customer score of 83%, although it wasn't rated the very best for value for money.

Best and worst online mattress shops

Most high street mattress retailers have an online presence, and there's also an increasing choice of online-only retailers such as Emma and Eve, which sell their own-brand 'bed-in-a-box' mattresses direct.

None of the online mattress shops in our survey did badly — all received customer scores of more than 77% and were rated at least satisfactory for all other aspects of their service. 

That said, there were were some differences that could turn your mattress-buying experience from a chore to a pleasure. 

Which? members can log in to unlock the scores and detailed information on each mattress shop. If you're not yet a member, join Which? to get instant access.

If you're still stuck on which mattress to buy, let alone where to buy it, discover the best mattresses for body support and durability in our mattress reviews.

Should you shop for a mattress online or in-store?

In short, try a combination. Visiting a store lets you try out mattress materials and different levels of firmness, so it's easier to figure out what works best for you. Try to lie on mattresses in your normal sleep position for around 10 minutes — it's worth feeling slightly silly to guarantee a good night's sleep. 

A third of the people in our survey said they bought their mattress at least partly because it felt comfortable in the shop, and half of mattress buyers visited a store to try out a mattress before buying. 

Buying online can offer more flexibility — especially if something is wrong with the mattress.

Many online bed-in-a-box mattresses, from brands such as Emma, Eve and Simba, recognise that their online-only offer limits your ability to try before you buy. 

Most offer trial periods of up to 200 nights, giving you a much better chance to test your mattress. During this time you can usually return the mattress for a refund or exchange – just make sure you read the terms and conditions carefully before buying.

Need more advice before you buy a mattress? Read our how to return a mattress for top tips.

Which brand makes the most comfortable mattresses?

Before you head to the shops or search online, make sure that the mattress you're buying is the right one for you. Our robust tests can tell you how durable a mattress is, whether it will last the test of time before you need to replace it, and whether it feels warm or cool to sleep on, as well as its firmness rating and how breathable it will be. 

However, our tests can't tell you how comfortable you'll find it. Comfort is so subjective that we leave it up to you to tell us what you think. We survey mattress owners and ask them about the mattresses they own.

The best mattress brands get the full five stars for comfort, with our top-scoring brand achieving a Which? customer score of 87%. Compare that with the brands at the bottom of the table, which have customer scores around 70-71% and a middling three-star rating for comfort, as well as just two stars for value for money. 

Find out our full survey results by in our guide to the best mattress brands.

If you already know which brand you'd like but want to narrow down your specific mattress choice, head to our mattress reviews to find out which mattresses made it as Best Buys, below are links to some of our most popular brands. 

• Emma mattress reviews
• Eve mattress reviews
• Ikea mattress reviews

How we rated mattress shops

In August 2021, we asked 2,851 members who had bought a mattress in the past five to 10 years whether they were satisfied with the shop they bought it from and whether they'd recommend it to a friend. We combined these ratings to create a customer score for each mattress brand. 

We also asked members how they'd rate the shop for quality of advice, range of mattresses, value for money and ease of arranging delivery.

Our retailer survey covers buying a mattress only. Head over to our guide on the best furniture and homeware shops if you want to find out how retailers such as Dreams, Furniture Village or John Lewis do when it comes to buying furniture.

Not yet a member? Join Which? today to get access to the results of our mattress shop survey, plus find out how more than 100 mattresses scored when we put them through our lab tests.