Adjustable Mattress vs. Adjustable Frame: Similar but Not the Same

One of my pet peeves arsenic a master mattress tester of complete 5 years? Using nan titles “adjustable mattress” and “adjustable frame” interchangeably erstwhile they are, successful fact, different things altogether. It doesn't thief that these products travel up wrong nan aforesaid hunt and are often branded arsenic nan aforesaid thing—of people they’re going to get mixed up.

It’s clip to group nan grounds consecutive and “adjust” your knowing of each things adjustable mattresses. Under my helping you spell to statesman this journey.

Adjustable Mattresses

What is an adjustable mattress? Simply put, it's designed to fto users modify really soft- aliases firm-feeling they want their furniture to be. Adjustable beds don’t travel nan aforesaid layout arsenic a normal mattress, because they impact soul aerial chambers that thief you execute nan firmness you’re seeking. While a glorified aerial mattress whitethorn travel to mind (and arguably, that is fundamentally what it is), location is simply a batch progressive successful nan worldly constitution here. To pump up these aerial chambers, location is truthful overmuch tech, tubing, and incorporated programming by measurement of embedded machine chips and apps progressive pinch an adjustable mattress. Hence, they aren’t fund buys.

Take Sleep Number, for example. While it isn’t nan only mattress tin of adjusting its ain firmness, it is 1 of nan priciest and astir renowned fixed nan incorporated apps, slumber tracking, and other features, depending connected nan exemplary you spell for. For example, nan Sleep Number Climate360 (5/10, WIRED Review) is astir $10,000 and lets you besides set somesthesia arsenic good arsenic firmness).

Depending connected nan marque and exemplary you choose, different communal characteristic among adjustable mattresses is nan expertise to displacement nan apical and bottommost some up and down. Some models whitethorn not see this, depending connected nan marque and iteration, but it’s besides a driver of cost. This characteristic is wherever adjustable frames and mattresses are astir apt getting confused, arsenic nan furniture is capable to execute this scope of mobility only pinch nan usage of an adjustable frame.

Adjustable Frames

Many brands (like Sleep Number) will urge you adhd an adjustable framework to your acquisition truthful you tin bask nan afloat offerings of your caller mattress. Other times, you tin acquisition an adjustable framework (also known arsenic an adjustable base) to usage pinch a regular bed-in-a-box mattress.

In these cases, it’s perfectly important that you corroborate nan mattress—whether it's representation foam aliases a hybrid—is capable to activity pinch an adjustable frame, lest you break nan soul support system. The easiest measurement to verify is to scope retired to a brand's customer work squad to corroborate whether nan furniture you're considering useful pinch an adjustable frame. Never presume you're bully to spell correct disconnected nan bat. But support successful mind that you will only beryllium capable to move nan mattress to various angles, not set nan wide firmness. Also, from experience, let’s opportunity you put a hybrid mattress that’s approved to usage connected an adjustable frame—the popping of nan pocketed coils wrong isn’t nan astir pleasant sound to perceive to. Or feel, for that matter.

Stay Flexible

To recap: You can usage an adjustable mattress without an adjustable base. But if your mattress has nan capacity to move its caput and ft successful a vertical motion, and you’re paying for this characteristic pinch nan wide costs of nan bed, are you genuinely enjoying nan afloat offerings of nan furniture (and what you paid for)? Similarly, you tin usage an adjustable guidelines pinch an approved mattress, but you’ll only get nan up-and-down mobility and not nan assortment of firmnesses. Is it worthy it to acquisition some to usage together? It depends, but if you person these options disposable to you pinch your bed, I’d opportunity yes. That way, you tin get nan afloat enjoyment and offerings from some furniture and base.

Aside from nan elevated (pun intended) value tags progressive pinch adjustable mattresses and bases, location are immoderate different downsides you request to consider. In my experience, getting adjustable mattresses and bases group up is rather cumbersome, arsenic they're dense and will impact other cords and bits required for nan physics portions. The upside, though? Many group who person an adjustable bed, base, aliases some see them to beryllium absolute crippled changers, for situations for illustration reference successful bed, watching TV pinch your feet kicked up, aliases dealing pinch aesculapian concerns for illustration acerb reflux. That's different perspective to see (I americium connected a rotation pinch these puns and I will not beryllium stopped!).