1) The salesman is there to answer your questions. Don’t ask him to suggest a bed. He will suggest what he wants to sell you and not what you should buy.

2) IMHO Get a name brand. It isn’t that there aren’t a number of good non-name brands, but name brands have spent literally millions on research and development of products for healthful sleep.

3) NEVER ever EVER pay what the tag says. ALWAYS ask for a discount! ALWAYS! They CAN and WILL give it to you.

4) If you can buy from a name brand discount or liquidation center. You will generally speaking save from 50%-80% off retail…not suggested retail…

5) ALWAYS lay down on a mattress. Don’t sit on it. Sitting on a mattress to try it out is like test driving a car by simply turning the key…it tells you nothing! You need to see the way the mattress interacts with your body. A salesman can not tell you which bed feels best you you! If we are talking premium line name brand matts…they’ll all be pretty good. Get the one you like the FEEL of.

That should help…

There are basically five standard types of mattresses. Adjustable mattresses are used for hospital-type beds. While adjustable beds can be invaluable for health issues for many people, the cost may be prohibitive to the average shopper.

Air mattresses, aside from the camping variety, are brands like Sleep Number. While these are a premium mattress, and therefore much more expensive type, they still have decent performance. Air mattress systems are relatively new so the realistic longevity of the mattresses is still a bit in question. The thing to watch out for is compressor issues unrelated to the feel of the mattress.

Premium foam brands, such as Tempurpedic, also earn high marks but may be far too hot in feel to the average consumer. Visco memory foam is very conforming but lacks any type of breathabilty and is therefore known for being warm. Probably better used in the northern states and not so much in warmer climates. A good alternative to visco is latex mattresses. Completely “green” mattresses that are 100% bio-degradable. You can find latex made by most of the name brand companies.

Innerspring mattresses are probably what you grew up using. There are numerous brands of innerspring mattresses, ranging from poor to excellent quality. Stick with the name brands as they spend a goodly amount of resources on research and development. Try to look for the “4 S’s”, which are Sealy, Simmons, Serta, and Spring Air. Most premium name brands that utilize visco memory foam also use cotton layers for breathability on top of the mattress. This keeps the conformability of the visco while providing a cooler sleep surface.

Water beds are largely an item of the past and may be difficult to get service on or even to find in today’s market. At one time though they were one of America’s largest sellers.

A wide variety of these mattresses can be found in abundance at regular retail location throughout metropolitan areas like Los Angeles.