Note, I'm not in any way affiliated with justad.com. I just love their product, the people and the price they sell it for. I also posted this as a reply in the Ask a Mustachian section, but I believe it deserves it's own post in this section. I've done a TON of research into buying the most cost-effective mattress possible over the years, and this is what I've finally come up with.1) I love comfort. I'm not like MMM. I prefer to be comfortable at all times. I also love sleep.
1a) I like nice stuff, I just don't like paying full price for it.
2) Never buy a pillowtop mattress. It wears out too quickly and makes the valleys where you sleep. It will drive you insane. It doesn't matter how much you pay for it, it will suck after 5+ years.
3) Buy the best firm mattress you are willing to spend money on. We bought a king firm mattress and foundation and frame for ~$900 4 years ago. We bought it at an expensive, local furniture store.
4) Buy a memory foam mattress topper.
4a) There is foam, and then there's memory foam. Memory foam is where it's at for the real long lasting comfort. There's memory foam from Wal-Mart, Target, Sams, Costco, etc. It's all the same no matter how cheap or expensive they are trying to sell it for. It's gonna be awesome for the first year or two, then it'll wear out. They just don't sell the same quality stuff that you'll get with a Tempurpedic mattress topper. Costco toppers are great for spare bedrooms that won't be used every day, they aren't gonna cut it for your main bed however.
4b) Tempurpedic mattress toppers will last a really long time, you'll sleep better than you ever have before, but they are expensive. Can easily run over $1k.
4b) Instead, go to
http://www.justad.com/4c) Talk to Rebecca. Tell her how soft or firm you want the topper to be. Listen to her, she will help you find the right height and weight you need. She'll charge $100-200 more than big-box stores but it is worth every penny. I'M TELLING YOU IT'S THE EXACT SAME MATERIAL AS TEMPURPEDIC. It's just hundreds upon hundreds of dollars less because she doesn't offer a lifetime warranty and sell through a retail store.
4d) Now you can flip/turn both the topper and the mattress all you want. You'll get several more years out of the topper than normal. After 5-10+ years, when the topper finally wears out, just buy another one for $200-300 (or whatever memory foam is running those days) and the mattress may never need to be replaced. You are gonna sleep better than you ever have, and you didn't need to spend $2-3k every 5-10 years to do it.
5) Each spouse buys the other a legic, Tempurpedic pillow for ~$100 as Christmas presents. Sorry, I don't have a cheap way for those yet. However, now you won't want to wake up and go to work, they are THAT amazing. This is ideal if you are FIRE, you can just sleep all day and night and only wake up to eat and go to the bathroom.
