Last April, I visited the 3Z Brands mattress showroom in Phoenix, Arizona. I got the chance to sample more than 40 mattresses from big-name brands, including Brooklyn Bedding, Leesa, Nolah, and Bear.
As I moved around the showroom, I ranked each mattress from my favorite to my least favorite. The Bear Natural Mattress was one of the final few I tried and it rocketed straight to the top of my list. 'Firm but not too firm,' I wrote in my initial notes: 'this is the frontrunner.'
I liked the Bear Natural Mattress so much that I asked founder Scott Paladini if I could take one home for testing. Now, I've spent the whole summer sleeping on the Bear Natural Mattress, scoring it for comfort, support, cooling, and motion isolation. I'm pleased to report that the Bear Natural Mattress excels in (almost) all areas.
As H&G's specialist Sleep Editor, I lead a team of expert testers in the search to find the world's best mattress. Together, we've tested everything from memory foam models to high-tech hybrids. I'm a big fan of latex hybrids, like the Bear Natural Mattress, which combine the airflow and support of an innerspring with more natural materials. Bouncy and breathable, I'd recommend the Bear Natural Mattress for hot sleepers, anyone in search of pressure relief, and anyone who struggles with mobility.
Bear Natural Mattress review
Like any box mattress, the Bear Natural came vacuum-packed into a cardboard box. The night before I wanted to start testing, I pulled my mattress out of the box, onto the bed frame, and cut the plastic. Then I left it alone for 24 hours, which proved plenty of time for the mattress to expand and for the chemical odor of mattress off-gassing to dissipate.
Bear Natural Mattress Specifications
Who would the Bear Natural Mattress suit?
- All sleep positions: the Bear Natural Mattress is listed as medium-firm, which is the best mattress firmness for most sleepers. I found that there was enough give to cushion my hips, knees, neck, and shoulders, but not so much that I felt I was sinking into the mattress. I tend to sleep on my stomach, but I've shared this bed with friends who sleep on their back or sides, and I've only heard good things.
- Hot sleepers: I struggle with night sweats, especially during the summer, since my house doesn't have an in-built HVAC system. I need a cooling mattress more than most, and I've managed to sleep comfortably on the Bear Natural Mattress.
- Anyone who struggles with mobility: the combination of responsive latex and supportive springs gives the Bear Natural Mattress a lovely bit of bounce that makes it much easier to get into and out of bed.
- Anyone in need of pressure relief: latex is made to mold to the shape of your body, cushioning your joints and supporting your spine. Bear Mattress promises 'the best sleep for your active life.' While I'm no athlete, I can come back to this mattress bone-tired after a day's hike or a long gym session and feel better for it in the morning.
What's it like to sleep on the Bear Natural Mattress?
- Comfort: when I first sampled the Bear Natural Mattress, I was fresh off the back of an international flight and running on four hours' sleep. I think I could have slept on just about any mattress in that showroom, but I felt the most aligned on the Bear Natural Mattress. When I brought the mattress home for testing, I grew to appreciate the comfort on a whole new level. The medium-firm feel strikes a great balance between comfort and support. I've had a few friends sleep over since I started testing the Bear Natural Mattress, and back, side, and stomach sleepers alike get comfortable quickly. That's why I'd recommend the Bear Natural Mattress for couples who share a bed, but not a sleep style.
- Support: the coils inside the Bear Natural Mattress are arranged in ergonomic zones. Some have a higher gauge, which means they feel thicker and firmer, while others have a lower gauge, so they feel softer and springier. I definitely appreciated the targeted support, which gives you the feeling that you're sinking into the mattress around your hips and shoulders, without actually swallowing you up. I will say that it took me a week or two to get used to the ripple effect on the surface of the mattress that comes when some springs are firmer than others.
- Cooling: the Bear Natural is a latex hybrid mattress. That means it's lined with steel coils, which compress and depress beneath your body weight to enhance airflow throughout the mattress. Up top, you'll find a thin layer of natural latex with an open-cell structure to stop heat and moisture from settling into the mattress. Unlike a few of the mattresses I sampled in the 3Z factory, the Bear Natural doesn't feel cold to the touch, but it still kept me cool and dry. I managed to sleep through heatwaves in the absence of AC without kicking off my comforter, which is a pretty regular occurrence in the summer.
- Motion isolation: a bouncy mattress is great for getting into and out of bed, and it makes it much easier to switch positions in the night, but it does mean you might be disturbed by your partner's movements. To replicate the feeling of a partner tossing and turning, I filled a glass of water and set it on one side of the bed – that's me. Then, I applied pressure across the mattress, getting closer and closer to the glass − that's my partner, moving in the night. The closer I came to the cup, the more it started to shake, and eventually water spilled all over the bed. While a level of motion transfer is normal for a hybrid mattress, I'd recommend something more solid for light sleepers, such as the Tempur-Pedic ProAdapt Mattress.
- Edge support: according to their website, the Bear Natural Mattress features a row of reinforced steel coils spanning the circumference of the mattress to enhance edge support. When I sat on the side of the bed, I did start to sink a few inches, but that's understandable when all my weight is concentrated in one place. When I slept on the side of the bed, and distributed my weight more evenly across the mattress, I felt well supported. Still, for superior edge support, I recommend another hybrid – the Saatva Classic Mattress.
- Sleep trial: the Bear Natural Mattress comes with a 120-night mattress sleep trial. That's enough time to test your mattress for four months, through a change in the seasons, before you need to commit to your purchase. 120 night is a pretty typical length for a sleep trial, but it's far from the gold standard: some of the best places to buy a mattress offer 365-night trials.
- Warranty: the Bear Natural Mattress comes with a lifetime limited mattress warranty that covers all the usual defects in materials or workmanship. What 'limited' means in this context is that if you find a fault with your Bear Natural Mattress, you're entitled to one replacement. If you find another fault with your replacement mattress, you're no longer covered by your original warranty. In order to make a claim, you must be able to prove that you've set your Bear Natural Mattress on a 'firm, rigid, non-flexible surface with an ample center support leg,' according to the terms of the Bear Mattress warranty.
How does the Bear Natural Mattress rate online?
Bear files all their mattress reviews in a separate section of the website, so you won't see any reviews for the Bear Natural Mattress beneath the product listing. This strikes me as a little strange − it feels like a way to hide what people really think about Bear, but I've toured their factory and slept in their showroom, so I don't think there is anything to hide. It was only when I searched for 'Bear Mattress Customer Reviews' that I found the right page, but there are no entries for the Bear Natural Mattress – perhaps because it's their newest model.
Should I buy the Bear Natural Mattress?
Technically, the Bear Natural Mattress is listed for $2,305 for a Queen, but it's often listed for less in the mattress sales − right now, you could save yourself $800 and get it for $1,499. I'd happily pay that price for natural latex and supportive springs.
This is the second Bear mattress we've tested now, hot on the heels of the Bear Elite Hybrid. I took a quick cat nap on both mattresses out in Arizona, and I don't think there's much between them – in fact, they're listed for exactly the same price. For me, though, the Bear Natural Mattress wins every time with its medium-firm support and natural cooling system.
How we test mattresses
I put a lot of thought into how we test mattresses. I carefully assign each mattress to its ideal tester, taking into consideration the range of ages, weights, and sleep styles in our expert testing pool. For the sake of a fair fight, we score each mattress against the same criteria: comfort; support; breathability; and motion isolation.
We also consider all the practical aspects of buying a mattress, from the details of delivery to the length of the mattress sleep trial. Where possible, we compare our findings against verified customer reviews to give you the fullest possible picture of what it might be like to sleep on this mattress. Finally, we bring it all back to the price of the product to help you determine value for money.
