Oura Ring 5: Two minute review

I've been going around in circles writing this Oura Ring 5 review. On the one hand, I find the health insights equally fascinating and motivating just like the best smart rings, and its new discreet design is without a doubt comfortable to wear all day long.

But it's worth noting that when you stack up the monthly subscription and optional charging case on top of the starting price for the standard finish, you're looking at the better part of $600 / £600 / AU$750 to own it for a year.

That said, its ability to track more than 50 health and wellness metrics, such as sleep quality and stress levels, is undeniably enticing for anyone wanting to be more aware of their body — and the launch of this newest model brought a whole host of new insights, which I'll go into later.

The Oura app does include a lot of context about how these measurements can be interpreted and how they contribute to‚ for example, determining how prepared your body is for the day ahead based on a range of metrics, which Oura calls your 'Readiness Score'. But, this can sometimes only scratch the surface.

Sometimes these assessments have been known to trigger misguided concerns For example, I got 'major' warnings from a feature called 'Symptom Radar', which tracks your respiratory rate and body temperature to flag signs of strain. What it didn't take into account was that a woman's body temperature naturally rises after ovulation, making its assessment unnecessarily worrying for anyone who didn't know that. But it's worth keeping in mind that it takes a little while for the app to figure out your baselines, so any early scores should be taken with a punch of salt.

As for its claim to be the world's smallest smart ring at launch, this really does hold up — its lightness makes it disappear on your finger, making it ideal for everyday wear. With six stylish finishes and an even more scratch-resistant titanium surface, it's no wonder it's made headlines in the wearable tech space, with plenty of influencer reviewers fawning over the all-new Oura Ring 5.

But Oura has been facing increasing privacy backlash after deepening its partnership with the Department of Defense in the US last year, although it doesn't use data from any of its users other than federal employees as part of this arrangement. It's also worth keeping in mind that there have been studies raising concerns about 'health data anxiety', but Oura has made sure that the app encourages members to focus on long-term changes rather than the day-to-day readings.

By now you've definitely noticed my to-ing and fro-ing as I work through every side of the Oura Ring 5 to reach an honest review. I won't say it's the most perfect smart ring on the market — that would be ignoring too much — but I will say it comes close. At the end of the day, I'm a sucker for brilliant tech, which the Oura Ring 5 definitely is.

Oura Ring 5: Price and availability

• $399 / £399 / AU$649 (each) for two base finishes
• $499 / £499 / AU$799 (each) for four premium styles
• $5.99 monthly subscription (priced in USD across all regions)
• $99 / £99 / AU$159 for the Oura Ring 5 travel case

The Oura Ring 5 costs an extra $50 / £50 / AU$80 — or $100 / £100 for a premium finish — compared with the Oura Ring 4, which launched in 2024. (Australian pricing doesn't appear to carry the same premium finish gap.)

Beyond the high-gloss gold and silver finishes, you're paying an extra $100 / £100 / AU$150 for any of the four premium styles: a softer gold, brushed silver, matte black, and — the color I tried — deep copper rose.

Add the $5.99 monthly subscription, and you're looking at up to $670 / £670 / AU$1,029.88 to own an Oura Ring 5 for a year, if you go for the most expensive finish plus the travel case.

That's no small sum when most smart rings on the market cost less and many don't require a recurring subscription. There are also plenty of wearable alternatives that track the same health vitals, which makes this very much a luxury purchase.

• Value score: 2/5

Oura Ring 5: Design

• The closest a smart ring has come to looking like luxury jewellery
• Extremely low-profile and light, making it comfortable to wear all day
• An easy-to-use companion app with a clean UI

By far the best justification for the Oura Ring 5's high price tag is that it could easily pass for a piece of jewellery. That's largely down to a 40% decrease in size from the previous model, the result of Oura redesigning the entire core.

That freed up space to drop multiple sensors, but it hasn't made the Ring 5 any less accurate — Oura has increased the efficiency of the remaining sensors to offset the loss. The titanium surface is also more scratch-resistant; I can't compare it directly to a previous model, but it hasn't picked up a nick yet.

What I can say is that the Oura Ring 5 is significantly smaller than the Ring 4. Holding it up against a previous-generation ring (admittedly the bulkier ceramic finish), I was shocked at how noticeable the size difference is. It's lighter and far more comfortable to wear, since it doesn't protrude — and therefore doesn't rub against — my finger as much.

That same design ethos carries through to the Oura app, which has a minimalist interface that isn't cluttered with numbers and graphs. Instead, data is presented as scores with percentages and ratings for each health vital. It's easy to use, though it's worth noting that the app needs a certain amount of data to establish your health baseline, so you won't have access to every feature right away.

• Design score: 5/5

Oura Ring 5: Features

• Tracks vitals including body temperature, heart rate, and respiratory rate
• AI wellness assessments for sleep, stress, resilience, and more
• Activity tracking lags behind more dedicated fitness wearables

After two weeks of wearing the Oura Ring 5, I've unlocked most features — sleep, resilience, and activity scores — which now populate what was once a fairly bare home screen.

The Oura app works best with more data, so it's constantly prompting you to add new "tags" to your day's timeline. Some are automatic, like detecting exercise, while others — what you ate, or what kind of activity you did — require manual logging.

The app's other three main sections cover your vitals, a health assessment area, and an LLM chatbot you can talk to about your data. That last part matters, because as I mentioned above, there's plenty of room for misleading interpretations if you don't understand the many factors behind your body's vitals.

I got a lot out of learning more about my sleep quality and general heart health (the app has a neat feature that lets you feel your heartbeat throughout the day via your phone's haptic feedback), but what I'm most interested in unlocking next are the new women's health features, such as Hormonal Birth Control, which builds on the existing Cycle Insights dashboard with what Oura calls a "first-of-its-kind" view into how biometrics shift across hormonal and hormone-free days.

While I find the wellness insights genuinely useful, the ring is nowhere near as practical as a dedicated fitness tracker. Without GPS — it relies on a paired device for location — and limited to activities compatible with wearing jewellery on your hand (so no weightlifting without a third-party silicone band over the top), it falls short, even with the addition of real-time tracking — which, again, you can only view through a paired device).

• Features score: 4/5

Oura Ring 5: Performance

• Battery life has increased to seven days
• Automatic activity tracking has been accurate
• Sleep and heart rate tracking data is in line with our benchmark device

One of the biggest improvements that the Oura Ring 5 brings over the Ring 4 is that has managed to squeeze out a whole extra day of battery life, despite the ring itself being redesigned to be 40% smaller.

During my testing, I found it lasted a whole seven days on one full charge. But I was more impressed with was how quickly you can charge the smart ring. From a fully drained battery, it took less than an hour until it was all way back up to 100%, which means it's very easy to top it up throughout the week whenever you're, say, washing dishes or having a shower.

For the most part, I kept the Oura Ring 5 on throughout the day, allowing it to track my vitals as I moved from home to work to seeing friends, exercising and cooking, which it does very well. Most of the automated tracking suggestions were accurate, allowing me to quickly confirm all of the day's activities when I next checked into the app.

This same accuracy extends to the sleep data, which is the absolute highlight of the Oura Ring 5's feature set. I found the insights both enlightening and motivating, especially after getting my first sleep score as (like any gamification effect) I began trying to reach a new higher level. My testing also confirmed this when my readouts for my average heart rate managed to be within 3 BPM of the Polar H10 chest strap, which is the gold standard for consumer heart rate and workout accuracy as it uses actual ECG (electrocardiogram) technology.

Average heart rate

Oura Ring 5

115

Polar H10

112

037.575112.5150

Average heart rate Data

Product	Value
Oura Ring 5	115
Polar H10	112

• Performance score: 5/5

Oura Ring 5: Scorecard

Oura Ring 5: Should I buy?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Also consider

How I tested

I wore the Oura Ring 5 for two weeks, draining the battery completely (despite the app advising against letting it go below 30%). I have some gaps in my data from forgetting to put it back on, but I mostly didn't take it off. I tested the ring's heart rate monitoring accuracy against the Polar H10 chest strap, and compared its design to a ceramic Oura Ring 4.

• TechRadar is running a live Q&A in the lead-up to our Oura Ring 5 review
• Leave a comment with what you're most interested in hearing about below
• You can ask questions all week before the Q&A closes

The Oura Ring 5 only started shipping just over a week ago, but it's already causing a stir, with early impressions mostly positive across the board — thanks to being such a substantial, visible upgrade over the previous model.

I'm currently testing what Oura claims to be "the world's smallest smart ring", and while I can't yet access every feature in the app — some require at least 30 days of continuous wear to establish personal health baselines — the ring design itself is a big step up.

It's significantly more petite than the Oura Ring 4, both in form and weight, which gives it a much better fit and makes it more comfortable to wear. While I'm still in the process of determining a final verdict on its performance, accuracy and value, I'm happy to answer any questions you might have.

Want to know if it feels noticeably different compared to the Ring 4? If you can still wear it while typing or lifting weights without it feeling bulky? Or how long the battery really lasts? Drop your question in the comment box below, and I'll get back to you.

This live Q&A will remain open until early next week, when my Oura Ring 5 review will be published. Because I won't yet have unlocked every new feature that's available, my verdict will be based on an early assessment of what I have been able to test in just over two weeks.

That's why I'm opening this testing period up to you. I want to know what your biggest questions are about what could be the best smart ring available. Of course, I'll be looking at its price, design, features, and performance to determine a final value score, but I know that won't cover everything.

There are countless questions I imagine many of you will likely have before clicking buy on a $399 / £399 / AU$649 smart ring — or $499 / £499 / AU$799 if you're considering one of the more premium finishes — so let me know what you're weighing up, and I'll try to help where I can.

What are TechRadar saying about the Oura Ring 5?

I already know from the early results of the poll above that most TechRadar readers don't want to spend the extra $50 / £50 / AU$80 that the Ring 5 costs over the Ring 4, but many of you said you would wait to see what the reviews say.

If that's you, this is your chance to get a behind-the-scenes look at the testing process. As I noted above, I haven't yet been able to explore all the new features Oura Ring 5 brings, but some of the basic features are unlocked after 10 days of wear, so I can give you early answers on whether they're actually useful.

Which brings me to another caveat, because I live in the UK, I don't have access to every new feature that Oura is currently rolling out, which means I won't be able to test the new 'Lab Uploads', 'Brain Health Study,' and 'Health Radar' at all.

That's a shame because those three features are among the most sought after, judging by the results of the above poll, which shows that the majority (40%) of TechRadar readers are most excited to try 'Health Radar: Blood Pressure Signals'.

'Brain Health Study', 'Nighttime Breathing', which is part of 'Health Radar', and 'Lab Uploads' also ranked highly among readers, raising the question of whether the Oura Ring 5 is most suited to those who live stateside.

Let me know if missing out on those new features is a deal breaker for you? I'll be considering all aspects, like these regional limitations, in my review.

My non-negotiable for summer sleeping is a great eye mask. I'm ultra-sensitive to light when I'm trying to sleep, and even though I have blackout blinds, I find the morning light creeping in around the edges is often enough to wake me unpleasantly early. My eye mask is even more essential for travel — you can never trust that your accommodation will have suitably heavy curtains for blinds to keep the light out.

I tried plenty of eye masks during my time as a sleep writer, but I've ended up with just two that I use all the time. My at-home mask is the Drowsy silk sleep mask. This one is wide, flat, soft and super luxurious. It cocoons the top half of my face with its smooth Mulberry silk, turning down all the sensory information to help me nod off.

For travel, I use the Ostrichpillow sleep mask. This one is less expensive and more robust than the Drowsy, so I'm happier cramming it into my travel bag. The molded eye cups create a complete blackout, so it's amazing when used in very light situations like an airport or coach.

In recent years, we've seen a spate of more hi-tech sleep mask options hitting the market. These include masks that have built-in speakers (as an alternative to dedicated sleep headphones), masks that apply gentle, soothing pressure, and masks that gently warm your eye area. These won't be for everyone, but then sleep is a very personal thing — if you spot something that sounds good to you, it's well worth a try.

Read on for a rundown of the best sleep masks on the market, including my own personal summer saviors. I'll start with my US picks, or you can jump down the page for my UK options.

US: super sleep masks

UK: super sleep masks

This year, one of the biggest sleep trends is ‘dark showering’ — turning down the lights while bathing in the evening to get your body and mind ready to rest. The idea isn’t brand new, but as the seasons change and nights get shorter in the northern hemisphere, it makes sense that people are trying to optimize their bedtimes.

As the Guardian explains, the idea is to block out distractions, calm your nervous system, and practice mindfulness before bed. According to sleep scientists, it can have real benefits, with warm water reducing your core body temperature and low light signaling that it’s time to get ready to sleep, causing the release of melatonin.

If you want to try dark showering (or bathing if you prefer the tub), smart lights are a good way to do it. You can schedule them to dim to help you get into a regular routine, and set the brightness so you’re still safe in the bathroom.

That’s not the only way lighting can help you get a better night’s rest, though. I asked an expert from Signify — the company behind Philips Hue and WiZ smart lights — for some recommendations to help you get more out of your smart lamps and bulbs in the evening, and again in the morning when it’s time to rise and shine.

“Light is one of the most important environmental signals influencing the body’s internal clock, also known as the circadian rhythm,” said Signify’s spokesperson. “This biological system helps regulate sleep–wake cycles and responds strongly to changes in light throughout the day.

“Exposure to brighter and cooler-toned light in the evening can delay the body’s natural transition toward sleep, while lower light levels and warmer tones are generally associated with more relaxing environments before bedtime.

“Because of this, we recommend reducing brightness and using warmer light settings during the evening hours. These lighting conditions resemble the natural decrease in daylight after sunset and can help create a calmer atmosphere that supports bedtime routines.

Smart sunsets

I’ve tested a lot of sleep tech over the years, and I’ve found wake-up lamps are particularly tricky to get right. Ideally, the light shouldn’t wake you the moment it comes on; instead, it should brighten very gradually, like dawn through the canvas when you’re camping.

In my experience, many of them simply can’t dim low enough to wake me gently. Worse still are the lights with ‘nature’ sounds that are looping snippets of audio — usually only a few seconds long - that sound horribly compressed. It’s not a great way to start the day.

If you're on a budget, the Beurer Wake Up Light WL50 is a good option. It offers a broad spectrum of light temperatures, meaning it can wake you with warm light that gradually brightens and then cools, and it dims lower than most other lights in its price bracket (under $100 / £70 / AU$150).

I recommend skipping its wake-up noises, but it doubles as a radio and Bluetooth speaker, so you can connect it to your phone and wake up to your chosen music as a backup in case the light alone isn't enough to rouse you.

The lamp that’s working for me right now is the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer, which casts indirect light by shining onto a wall rather than directly into the room, and offers extremely low dimming. If you also want a light that can double as a reading lamp, the Philips Hue Twilight could be the one for you. It’s not quite as versatile as the Wall Washer (it can’t be connected to a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box and used as part of an entertainment system, for example), but it provides you with focused white light that lets you enjoy a few pages of your favorite book before turning in for the night.

The Philips Hue app provides sunrise and sunset automations that can be triggered at a specific time or upon a particular event. I wake up at the same time most days, so the sunrise is on a timer, but bedtimes can vary, so the ‘Go to sleep’ automation is triggered by a smart switch attached to my bedside table.

“By allowing Philips Hue users to schedule gradual light transitions in the evening and morning, the system helps create consistent daily lighting routines that align more closely with natural light patterns,” explains Signify’s spokesperson.

If you want to get creative with your lighting, Google Home and Alexa+ let you describe the type of lighting you want using natural language — so you could ask for soft evening light, or a dim glow for your night time shower routine, whichever smart lights you own.

• Fitbit rolls out some "significant updates" to its app for Premium subscribers
• This will include a 15% boost to "sleep staging accuracy"
• Google is also letting you link your health records to the Fitbit app in the US

If you subscribe to Fitbit Premium, you're about to get some new features inside the Fitbit app, as part of the Personal Health Coach feature that launched last year — and one of the upgrades is a better detection algorithm for judging when you're actually asleep.

As per Google's announcement, the incoming updates will apply "an additional 15% increase in sleep staging accuracy" to your stats. The algorithm should be better than ever at recognizing when you're sleeping and when you're just relaxing with a good book.

Google says it's pumped more training data into the sleep tracking AI, so your naps and sleep stages should now be more accurately tracked. That in turn will mean more useful insights and advice as to how to improve your sleep schedule and overall health.

The updates will track "not only how much sound sleep you got, but how long it took you to get there" Google says. These upgrades should start appearing over the next few days for those using the Personal Health Coach (which remains in "Public Preview" status).

A fuller health picture

There are some other improvements to talk about too. Google says it's adding the ability to link your health records to the Fitbit app, for users in the US — again, this only applies to Premium subscribers with access to the Public Preview of the Personal Health Coach.

Connecting health data will mean you get a "fuller picture of your health" according to Google, and it's keen to emphasize the tight security and privacy controls around the feature. None of this health data will be public or used for ad targeting.

One example Google gives for how this can be useful is if you're trying to lower your cholesterol: the health coach will be able to see exactly where you're at with this, rather than giving you generic guidance that could apply to anyone.

Other imminent upgrades include support for continuous glucose monitor devices in the Fitbit app. If you're a Premium subscriber and haven't already signed up for the Public Preview of the health coach, you can check your eligibility here.

I looked at my watch. It was only 1pm, and Bulbasaur was already asleep.

For the last few days, I have been getting to grips with Garmin's new Pokémon Sleep integration, released to coincide with last week's World Sleep Day (and the long-running franchise's 30th anniversary).

As well as integration with the Pokémon Sleep app, the collab also debuted new watch faces that react to your current sleep and Body Battery. As Garmin users likely know, Body Battery is a metric that helps determine daily readiness for activity, a score from 0-100 based on sleep quality, activity, stress and heart rate variability. Body Battery depletes during the day, and gets restored at night.

A Body Battery of 100 means you're fully rested and ready to take on the day, resulting in a happy, energetic-looking Pokémon pal on your wrist. This particular Pokémon Sleep integration feature is very clever: it's like a Tamagotchi for adults, and you 'feed' the digital animal by taking care of yourself and getting good sleep.

I hadn't seen Bulbasaur look happy and energetic at all, even after I first downloaded the Pokémon Sleep watch face on my Garmin Fenix 8 Pro (the best Garmin watch overall, if you don't mind paying the premium) the previous day. As soon as I enabled the integration and picked my Pokémon, Bulbasaur's face dropped into a neutral expression, then a droopy, tired one, falling asleep around 8pm. It was another four hours before I finally followed suit and went to bed.

I woke up with a Body Battery of 49. Not only had I exhausted my reserves the previous day, but I only regained around 40% of my capacity, despite a decent-ish sleep score of 78. Consequently, Bulbasaur awoke looking tired, and fell asleep by the early afternoon as my Body Battery score depleted once again.

I knew what was to blame, of course: I'm in the middle of a very busy house move, which also includes a fair bit of renovation. I've been spending evenings and weekends packing, painting and DIY-ing, cursing to myself as I attack skirting boards with the wrong type of saw for the job, shirking water for coffee, and throwing salty frozen meals in the oven at 9pm because I'm too tired to cook. None of this is conducive to waking up well-rested.

I've been tempted to take my watch off for this, or least disable the Pokémon Sleep integration so I don't feel responsible for a sleep-deprived starter 'mon. A report from Newcastle University found that fitness trackers can actually be a source of stress, citing research indicating that "the negative psychological reactions that arise from the features and designs of fitness technologies — such as feedback systems, goal-setting functions, and gamified or social elements.

"For instance, unmet goals or negative feedback can make consumers feel anxious and guilty, while comparative aspects of these technologies are associated with stress."

In what was already a stressful time as I juggled work and the house move process, the pressure to take care of myself could have piled yet more stress on. Gamifying wellness means you feel good when you 'win', but you also feel bad when you 'lose'. A bad sleep score on my wrist makes me feel like I've failed in a way, but waking up to an exhausted little plant-creature adds another emotional layer to the disappointment.

Nevertheless, I was determined to see Bulbasaur happy. Despite being as busy as ever and eating late yet again, I made a concerted effort to optimize my sleep as best I could over the next two nights. I rehydrated as soon as I got in, made a point of switching a mid-stress comfort snack (chocolate) to a healthy one (apple), and eventually went to bed armed with a chamomile tea and a book, leaving my phone in the other room. No more doomscrolling to distract myself from my lengthy jobs list.

Success! After night two, Bulbasaur awoke with a big smile on its face, feeling happy and energized. It lasted around 30 minutes before his expression shifted back to neutral, indicating that I still had a ways to go to improve my Body Battery score, but I did manage to snap a picture as soon as I saw it.

This is the brilliance of Garmin's new Pokémon Sleep integration: Bulbasaur managed to convince me (via emotional blackmail) that even a little self-care is worth it, as I'm now equipped with more energy to attack another busy week. Pokémon's shameless gamification of my health helped me reclaim a nightly routine, even if it guilt-tripped me into it.

The watch faces are free to download if you're a Garmin user. If Bulbasaur doesn't do it for you, there's 47 other Pokémon to choose from, as well as a 'Snorlax & Friends' watch face – here's how to download your watch face of choice.

Sleep is incredibly important to all kinds of aspects of your wellbeing. You probably don't need me to tell you that, and you probably don't need a special, dedicated week to amplify your awareness of the importance of sleep, either.

That said, Sleep Awareness Week (8-14 March) is happening right now, and it's as good a time as any to address any bad habits you might have fallen into. I spent a year as a Sleep Editor, and I'm well aware of the wide range of gadgets and gizmos on the market that are designed to help improve your slumber. Below I've gathered together some of the most highly rated sleep gadgets, many of which come with TechRadar's personal seal of approval.

Wake-up lights are designed to rouse you from your slumber with a gentle morning glow (rather than yanking you from the land of nod with some aggressive beeping) but they also have features to help you drop off. Most can mimic a sunset, and many have white noise features too. For the distraction-blocking noises without the light, I've included a number of dedicated white noise machines in my Collection, too.

And those of you with a bed-mate who doesn't wish to participate in your chosen soundscape can take things in-ear with the Soundcore Sleep Earbuds. These have a layerable white noise library, meaning you can pick up to three sounds and adjust the volume of each one to create an ultra-specific soundtrack to nod off to.

Data fans might want to consider investing in a sleep tracker — TechRadar's Fitness Editor declared the Samsung Galaxy Ring's sleep-monitoring features "truly excellent", and if you some want a wearable, the Withings Sleep Analyzer under-mattress sleep tracking mat could be well worth checking out. Data on its own won't help you sleep, but it can help you pinpoint specific issues for you to address.

Finally, if you really want to go all-out, the Eight Sleep Pod is a smart mattress cover that offers dual-zone cooling and heating to your exact preferences, plus in-depth sleep tracking and all manner of other features on top. It's wildly expensive, but can you really put a price on a great night's sleep, hmm?

Sleep is an incredibly personal thing and there's no one-size-fits-all solution, so have a browse through the options below and see if there's something that appeals to you and your nighttime habits.

The best gadgets to help you sleep

Given that sleep is essential for maintaining our physical and mental wellbeing, you may well want to gain more insight into your rest. If so, I've got good news for you. One of my favorite sleep trackers I've tested is currently on sale: you can buy the Oura Ring 3 Horizon Gold – Size 9 from Best Buy for $381.99 (was $449).

Not only is this a significant saving, but it's almost $120 cheaper than the upgraded Ring 4. That makes it an excellent choice if you're not fussed about the latter's more comfortable build or slightly boosted accuracy.

Hands down its best Presidents' Day sales price though is the fact you can pick up the Oura Ring 3 Heritage Black – Size 11 from Best Buy for $254.99 (was $299) – that's a seriously good saving given it contains all of the same smarts. Alternatively, if black's not your bag, you can also get the Heritage – Size 11 in the same gold finish as the Horizon from Best Buy for $381.99 (was $449).

Want more detail on these bargain ring deals? Check them out below.

As I've always struggled with fatigue, I'm fascinated by the kind of information that sleep trackers can unlock. I recently tested 3 top sleep trackers to see if they could detect my sleep apnea and as a part of that I spent several months with the Oura Ring 3 pretty much glued to my finger, meaning I've got a lot of – excuse the pun – hands-on experience with it.

During all my time living with the device, I've learnt it really does offer some superbly detailed sleep analysis. I definitely concur with our Oura Ring Gen 3 review in which we said it's 'one of the most accurate sleep trackers we’ve tested' – whether you're wanting to monitor your sleep latency, oxygen saturation, or sleep cycles, it offers impressively precise data.

And while it's now been succeeded by the Oura Ring 4, most of the improvements to the latter focus improved comfort and increased accuracy. The Ring 3 is still able to track the same metrics and offers the same feature set, meaning it's still a great choice if you don't quite think you can afford to stump up the $349 or $499 for its equivalent Black or Gold models.

If you fancy something with a screen or just don't see yourself as a ring person, don't worry: our guide to the best sleep trackers offers plenty of alternative ways to supervise your shuteye.

More of today's best Presidents' Day sales

• Amazon: 45% off TVs, AirPods, air fryers & vacuums
• Apple: iPads, AirPods & MacBooks from $99
• Best Buy: $1,000 off TVs, laptops & headphones
• Dell: laptop deals from $249.99
• Home Depot: 40% off appliances, furniture, grills & tools
• Lenovo: 45% off laptops & tablets
• Lowe's: up to 40% off appliances, furniture & tools
• Samsung: up to $2,000 off appliances, TVs & phones
• Target: 40% off clothing, tech & furniture
• Walmart: furniture, cheap TVs & vacs from $69
• Wayfair: 54% off furniture, rugs & decor

A proper night's rest is absolutely essential for our well being. In light of that, it's no wonder so many of us are keen to gain greater insight into our sleep quality. Increasingly, smartwatches and fitness trackers are kitted out with features to help us better understand our shuteye – and are offering solutions to help us detect whether we're experiencing diagnosable disorders like sleep apnea.

I'll be honest: as someone who lives with sleep apnea, I have a bit of a vested interest here. Given how long it took me to understand what was going on with my sleep, I've often wondered if I'd had access the best sleep trackers on the market, whether I could have solved the puzzle much earlier than I did.

A lot of my adult life I've dealt with severe fatigue. We're not talking a little bit of tiredness – we're talking about that feeling where you've not slept for 36 hours and have nothing left in the tank. At random times throughout the day, my brain will try to flick the consciousness off-switch and it takes every fiber of my being to wrench its hand away from the controls.

Naturally, as a result, I've always been interested in sleep tracking-wearables like the Apple Watch Ultra 2, Oura Ring 3 or Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic. I remember the first time I used a fitness band with sleep cycle tracking – my sleep wasn't so much fragmented as much as sliced into carpaccio. Even taking the accuracy of the data with a pinch of salt, I could see that I was waking countless times throughout the night without ever remembering I'd done so.

So after several years of looking for explanations for my fatigue and finally persuading my doctor to enroll me in a sleep study, I wasn't surprised to be diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea. I exhibit the classic symptoms. Broken sleep? Check. Daytime fatigue? Check. Snoring? Based on how often my girlfriend jabs me in the ribs during the night: big check.

Sleep apnea is caused by the airway closing during the night and stopping you breathing; this starves your brain of oxygen and forces it to wake you up in the middle of a sleep cycle to reopen the airway. As a result, regular awakenings, broken sleep cycles interrupting deep sleep and low blood oxygen are huge warning signs for sleep apnea.

Coupled with some of the negative health implications – including increased risks of heart disease, strokes and motor vehicle collisions – these telltale signs make it pretty clear why so many of the best fitness trackers like Apple Watches have recently gone all-in on detecting sleep apnea symptoms. Given some estimates put the rates of people living with the disorder as high as 10% of the population, there's a lot of users whose lives could be improved if they had a warning they were affected.

But how effective are they? If only we had a guinea pig who had been diagnosed with sleep apnea, had access to all of the sleep trackers mentioned above and was willing to spend several months surveilling their snoozes in the name of science... Oh wait! I know just the guy for that. Me.

Here's what I found when I pitted the Apple Watch Ultra 2, Oura Ring Gen 3 and Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic against my fragmented sleep.

Apple Watch Ultra 2

I feel like it's probably worth getting this out of the way: the Apple Watch Ultra 2 didn't issue any sleep apnea alerts. In fact, spoiler alert: none of these trackers offered a clear cut warning that I suffer from a diagnosable apnea.

But, as many of them are at pains to point out, they're not intended to be used as diagnostic tools – in fact, the Ultra 2 explicitly asked me during setup whether I'd be diagnosed with sleep apnea, presumably so it could warn me away from taking its lack of alerts as a sign my health was now hunky dory.

Which is probably a good thing. Because the Watch Ultra 2 rarely even logged that I had any breathing issues during the night. Literally the only occasion it flagged my breathing disturbances as elevated was on a night I'd been out for drinks for a co-worker's birthday – it's hardly a news flash to me that the booze might have suppressed my breathing. More troublingly, it also entirely missed other nights where I actively woke myself up gasping for air – so rather than a pinch of salt, I'd take its results here with the whole shaker.

That's not to say it didn't provide any hints something was up with my breathing though. The Ultra 2 did often log that my O2 saturation would drop during the night, regularly falling as low as 94%. That's not a huge red flag in of itself – a healthy range is anything from 95% to 100%, so I'm not miles outside the norm – but it was my first real indication it was detecting something odd was going on here.

OK, so maybe breathing isn't its strongest suit. But what about sleep tracking in general? Could it detect some warning signs in my general sleep patterns?

I'd say the Ultra 2's sleep tracking seems a lot more robust and granular than its respiratory monitoring. Certainly, what I saw here reflects my understanding of how sleep apnea fractures your sleep. With all those micro-interruptions of my breathing, my sleep cycles look incredibly fragmented – most of my sleep data sees me ping-pong between core sleep, REM and wakefulness in quick succession, while restorative, deep sleep comes in brief fragments, if at all.

However, there are still some pretty anomalous readings dwelling in this data. I'd expect my awakenings during the night to be brief – so brief in fact, I usually don't remember more than about a third of them – but the Apple Watch Ultra 2 sometimes would show me as being awake for an hour or sometimes two in the middle of the night. And trust me, if I'd surfaced for the length of a Lord of the Rings movie in the middle of the night, that's the kind of thing I'd think would stick in my mind.

It's possible this in itself is illuminating. If my core sleep is so liminal, so light and fragmentary, that distinguishing between it and true wakefulness baffles Apple's tracker, then that could be a sign my sleep is disordered and in need of investigation. But if you're wanting clear answers, rather than having to read the digital tea leaves in this way, I imagine you're not going to find this kind of equivocal insight that helping.

Oura Ring (Gen 3)

Alright, confession time: I'll admit that the Oura Ring Gen 3 has never claimed that it's able to detect sleep apnea. But given its newer sibling, the Oura Ring 4, is our pick for the best sleep tracker you can get with a subscription and its known for the troves of health data it can track, it seems unnecessarily obstinate to not check out how it stacks up.

Despite the lack of dedicated sleep apnea alerts, I actually found the Ring Gen 3 to be a lot more detailed and accurate than the Apple Watch. Not only does it consistently show the low levels of restorative deep sleep I get but it captures a lot of events I recognize.

One night in particular, I remember having trouble getting to sleep for several hours, after having spent the weekend entertaining guests and their toddler, as well as staying up a little too late. Not only did the Oura Ring capture this precisely, it also shows how I struggled to get into REM sleep – I remember in clear detail how shallow my sleep felt and how I was unable to enter dream sleep. That's an impressive level of precision.

And while the Ring Gen 3 isn't willing to suggest specific diagnoses, it definitely detects some issues with my night-time respiration. Most evenings it would register Breathing Disturbances and, while it clocked these as 'few' rather than the higher frequency detected by my sleep study, I'm impressed that it does at least pick up on the fact my breathing stops.

The Oura also unlocks a wealth of insights on top of sleep cycle and breathing tracking. Case in point: when my sleep has been particularly poor, it shows that my sleep debt was not only high but has brought me to the brink of sleep bankruptcy. That's helpful to know, as a few extra naps and more time in bed will hopefully help me pay some of this back.

And it's nice how some of these additional data points actually add further context to understanding how poor sleep impacts the rest of your life.

For example, there are some days it accurately clocked that my stress levels were spiking at work after several nights of really bad sleep, which I was definitely conscious of at the time. While these relationships aren't necessarily causal – the week in question, I think I was self-medicating with increased caffeine intake, leading my stress levels to spike – it has been invaluable in helping me understand how my sleep relates to other elements of my physical and mental wellbeing.

On top of this, I could then use the Oura's data to see the impact my poor sleep had on my ability to recover from this stress, or my readiness for the day ahead. Having that extra level of insight goes beyond being a warning system for sleep issues and actually starts to become a meaningful tool to help mitigate some of the ways it actually impacts your day.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic

I had high hopes for the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic. Looking at the list of metrics it can track, it promises a trove of data. Even if it doesn't come with the sleep-tracking rep of a device like the Oura, at a glance it seems to offer really granular insights into your night's rest.

Unfortunately, the more I dug into the data, the more I questioned the precision of its tracking. On some occasions, it shows me getting a tiny amount of deep sleep, while on others it shows me getting just as much deep sleep as REM. As a result, my deep sleep score often showed as being 'good', even on mornings I woke up shattered.

The Watch 8 Classic also makes some odd assumptions about restfulness. According to the Samsung Health app, my restfulness score is usually 'fair' to 'good' – despite the fact it's showed I've woken up more than 20 times and spent a cumulative 90 minutes of the night awake. That's because it classifies waking events as unproblematic as long as you quickly return to sleep – an assumption that doesn't concur with the medical literature around sleep disorders like sleep apnea.

And unlike the other two wearables I tested, even its sleep times didn't seem all that reliable. Several times it logged me as taking a nap during the working day – at times I can see I've sent colleagues Slack messages and can see time-coded edits I've made to articles. Either I'm being 'Severanced' by my innie while I sleep or the Samsung sometimes struggles to differentiate between sleep and focused productive time.

That's a real shame as the level of detail the Watch 8 Classic records elsewhere is genuinely very decent. For instance, rather than the simple nightly range for blood oxygen the Watch Ultra 2 offers, the Samsung Health app offers a very granular blood oxygen graph with precise peaks and troughs throughout the night.

This makes it far easier to see if there's correlation between your O2 saturation and awakenings. One night where I had a particularly broken sleep in the early morning, it showed my blood oxygen dropped multiple times down to 79% – a definite warning sign for apnea events.

Similarly detailed movement and snoring graphs open up even more opportunities for this kind of comparison and insight, to the degree that I wish the Watch 8 Classic's rivals above would offer similar levels of insight.

If scrutinizing hard data isn't your bag, Samsung does offer some fluffier ways to understand your sleep data. Honestly, its Sleep Animal feature – where you're assigned a critter based on your sleep habits – felt a little like astrology to me, with the categories broad enough that they felt mere millimeters deep. I'm a Deer sleeper apparently because, like the skittish ruminant, I wake up easily. Insightful.

Samsung's sleep coaching habits feel a lot more practical to me. While a lot of them are common knowledge – like avoiding caffeine after 5pm or getting out of bed quickly – I can see why having a checklist to run through each night would be helpful. Being able to compare how many you completed to how well you slept is a great way to see how these healthy habits work for you.

Honestly, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is the wearable I found least helpful with my sleep apnea. While some of its features are top tier for things like tracking blood oxygen and how much you move during the night, its sleep stage and total sleep time tracking aren't accurate enough that I'd ever totally trust it was giving me the full picture.

Verdict

OK, so first thing's first: none of these devices alerted me to the fact I was experiencing sleep apnea. I'm not totally surprised by this – while the Oura Ring Gen 3 doesn't offer this functionality, the manufacturers of the other devices could not be clearer that they're not to be considered of diagnostic standard. They may flag sleep apnea events if you're experiencing them but the lack of notifications does not mean you aren't suffering from disturbed night time breathing.

However, all three devices offered enough info that I could tell something wasn't quite right with my sleep. Out of the three of them, the most reliable and insightful for me was the Oura Ring Gen 3 – its sleep phase tracking always seemed to align with my recollections of my night's sleep. Moreover, it provides the most insights into what your poor sleep actually means for you. Certainly, it's the tracker I'll continue to use to give me insight into how my sleep apnea impacts upon my sleep.

Fundamentally, though, this might be the most important advice I've ever offered: if you're worried you might be suffering from sleep apnea, don't rely on a sleep tracker to guide you. Speak to your doctor about your fatigue.

A sleep study is the gold-standard when it comes to diagnosing disordered sleep – mine cleared up the mystery of my fatigue in a single night and has allowed me to tackle my sleep apnea head on. Sleep trackers are a great tool for gaining a little extra insight but, if you have concerns about something that might be negatively impacting your health, only a doctor can truly help you be sure.

• Windows 11's January update has a new bug
• This is reportedly causing sleep mode to fail on some older PCs
• The glitch also locks up the system, requiring a hard reset – although there's one possible workaround you can try to resolve it

Windows 11 has run into more problems with its latest update, and now some users are suffering at the hands of a bug affecting sleep mode.

Windows Latest reports that a number of Windows 11 users are finding sleep mode no longer works after installing the January update (KB5074109, which was released just over a week ago).

This pertains to what's known as the S3 sleep state, which is the original sleep mode for Windows, and so this won't affect newer PCs (as they don't use this, and I'll come back to why shortly). In this sleep state, everything is powered down (display, processor, even the system fans) except for the RAM, which stays alive (maintaining whatever you're doing).

According to one user, the problem is as follows: "After installing KB5074109, the sleep function does not work. On going to Power and pressing Sleep, the screen goes blank, but the PC does not power down. The only way to get the PC to restart is to do a hard restart, i.e. hold the power button down on the PC until it turns off, and then restart. This happens every time I go into Sleep mode."

There are similar reports on Reddit and elsewhere, and unfortunately, as described, this isn't just about sleep mode failing to kick in, but also the fact that the PC effectively crashes, and needs a hard reboot to recover.

Another Windows 11 user observes that the problem has hit three of their PCs (one running Windows 11 Home, and two using Pro editions of the OS). They further note that the problem vanishes when the January update is removed, and returns when it's reinstalled, suggesting this is definitely an issue with KB5074109.

Analysis: insomniac computers

The S3 sleep state only pertains to older PCs, because newer devices running Windows 11 will use modern standby instead. So, as noted, if you have a PC which was bought this decade you likely won't run into any trouble with sleeping, and not with your laptop certainly – all contemporary notebook models have shifted to modern standby (known as S0 'lower power idle'). This may not be the case with all desktops from this decade, mind – for example, my computer is five years old and still uses S3 sleep.

But mostly, if you have a newer machine, you'll likely avoid this gremlin in the works. Those with an older PC who are encountering problems may have to simply avoid using sleep mode – which is hardly ideal, although there is one potential workaround you can try.

According to a Feedback Hub post that Windows Latest spotted, a possible solution is that if you have a USB webcam attached to your PC, you can try unplugging it. That may just do the trick – but otherwise, there are no other suggestions as to how this bug might be sidestepped.

This latest reported bug with the January update comes on top of issues with the classic Outlook app (with POP accounts) whereby it freezes up, and a bug that means some PCs won't shut down. The latter is a nasty one, but it only affects enterprise users with a certain feature enabled, so it isn't something your average person has to worry about, thankfully.

A third bug that Microsoft has acknowledged is an issue with Remote Desktop Connections failing to work, although the good news is that emergency fixes have been deployed for those latter two issues – hopefully fixes will be inbound for the Outlook problem, as well as the sleep bug, soon.

Finally, I've also noticed some user complaints about weird issues with their keyboard and mouse after installing the January update. All in all, then, it's not a great start to the year for Microsoft.

None of the men in my family are good sleepers. When we were children and young teenagers, my Dad would struggle with his sleep – a vicious cycle of working late, commuting, getting up, and doing it all again, day after day, year after year. It meant that he rarely felt rested, and, as we grew, my brother and I found ourselves grappling with the same issues: grogginess during the day, but total inability to sleep during the night.

For years, it felt biological; something in my genes or anatomy that decided I was neither an early bird nor a night owl—rather, it felt like I had inherited a clock that never really kept the right time. No matter how much I tried to tweak it through my twenties, the biological mechanism seemed set to run slightly off, leaving me perpetually out of sync with the rhythm of the day and reliant on various external stimulants, from magnesium and coffee to intense, pre-dawn workouts that would leave me wrecked by the evening.

Today, I’m in my early thirties and, as more responsibilities (and external anxieties) get added to the pile, I’m finding that my state of restfulness and readiness is where my days are won and lost.

On the rare occasion I’ve slept well, I genuinely feel like I can achieve anything, and feel more sociable with a sunny disposition to match; but on the more frequent days I’ve underslept, feelings of dread, anxiety and poor mental health abound. When there’s such polarity between these two states of being, it can feel like a raw deal. With elements of my mental and physical health on the line, something had to change.

The Expert

Up to this point, I hadn’t fully grasped what systematically poor sleep can do to your body – insomnia, for example, has been found to increase stress levels, memory and production of stress hormones – but I had unknowingly been feeling the early signs, with patchy memories and simple tasks often feeling overwhelming on my tired days.

A need to understand these risks, know the factors behind them, and ultimately vanquish them was what led me to Dr Sophie Bostock, a sleep scientist who specialises in helping more people to sleep well. Together, across a four-week experiment, Dr Bostock helped identify what elements of sleep I was struggling with and why, and helped me add various strategies — ranging from simple behavioral changes to cognitive games — to my new arsenal.

Alongside Dr Bostock’s tried-and-tested method, I used the Oura Ring 4, TechRadar's health and fitness device of 2025 and one of the best sleep trackers, to help me keep tabs on my sleep, activity, readiness, stress levels and heart health, each a fundamental element in my journey to improve my rest and recuperation.

The Game Plan

During our first meeting, I described to Dr Bostock how I see sleep as the fourth estate of a well-rounded wellness — alongside effective exercise, nutrition and recovery — and have written about each topic widely, but struggle to grasp what makes effective sleep so elusive, and it starts with how much I actually need. “A minimum of seven hours’ sleep is protective for adults,” she explains. "We're all different but you need to work out your sleep needs; it might be less, or it might be more.”

As a self-defined ‘seasonal sleeper,’ in which I sleep well for a batch of two to three weeks, then struggle for the same amount of time, Dr Bostock quickly dismantles several of my long-held beliefs about sleep, and begins to form a clearer picture of where I’m slipping up.

"If you're getting anxious and dissatisfied overnight, ultimately it's that daytime function—the ability to focus or write—that is probably going to be the most important metric."

Interestingly, our experiment began by identifying my habits at the start of the day—rather than at the end. More specifically: what time I’m getting up, and understanding how to use the stress hormone cortisol to my advantage.

“Waking up at the same time every day helps maintain a regular rhythm,” explains Dr Bostock. “When you have a regular rhythm, you get a surge of cortisol in the morning that helps you get out of bed.” This “vital morning surge of cortisol,” she says, is instrumental in that get-up-and-go feeling that I often lack after a poor night of sleep. On the flipside, “missing out on sleep also puts the body into a state of hyperarousal, which makes subsequent rest less restorative,” she explains.

By forcing myself to get up at the same time every single morning — my time was 7:30AM, crushing any chance of weekend lie-in — I began to re-train my circadian rhythm: the body's natural, roughly 24-hour internal clock that regulates sleep-wake cycles. “The circadian rhythm involves cortisol, as well as melatonin, which helps cue the body for sleep,” Dr Bostock explains.

In practical terms, this meant that whether I went to bed at 10PM or 2AM, I should fundamentally stick to my wake-up time—and that’s where the difference would be made.

My second tactic, as advised by Dr Bostock, was being far stricter about my exposure to daylight, especially as I had decided to take on the experiment during winter, where darkness makes up to 60-70% of the day.

“At this time of year, we get lagging melatonin because we haven't had enough daylight during the day to remind the brain that it’s time to switch off.” Not only would fresh air and light exercise give me a boost in energy if I were feeling flat, it would also provide “the most powerful signal you can give to your internal body clock to stay aligned,” says Dr Bostock. “Morning light is the ultimate anchor for your internal body clock and helps your brain anticipate exactly when to wake up.”

Combining this with research published in Frontiers in Psychology, in which just 20 minutes of sitting or walking in nature is enough to significantly lower cortisol levels, a daily total of 90 minutes spent outside became the absolute minimum and would pay dividends in improving my sleep.

For both of these shifts, Dr Bostock likened their importance to the demands of physical training. Improving my sleep is built on the same core values as any physical training, she explains. “It's all the same things, discipline and consistency—that's it.”

The System Reboot

Despite having interviewed neuroscientists about the toll of doomscrolling and the hazards of digital lifestyles, I’m overly reliant on my smartphone (if you feel the same way, here's 3 ios tricks to curb doomscrolling). Although Dr Bostock didn’t suggest any major overhauls on my tech use, she offered a few practical pointers that were simple in execution but no less significant in their impact.

One of the most effective suggestions was to leave my phone in a different room once I was going to bed — ideally, turn it off even an hour or two before that — thereby eliminating the temptation to scroll in bed. However, this isn’t about blue light exposure (“the light intensity that you get from a phone or a laptop is really relatively low,” says Dr Bostock), but about what we’re seeing on our screens.

“We use phones to deflect uncomfortable feelings in a constant stream of content,” says Bostock. “We can’t necessarily blame the phone for that — it's the uncomfortable feelings and thoughts that actually are keeping us awake at night.” Enough said.

In addition, I toggled my iPhone’s colour to black and white (long tap on the home screen > edit > customise) to make the apps’ colour schemes less appealing, and use f.lux on my laptop, a software that made my computer screen a warmer, amber color, while I worked.

The results

After a week or so of cementing these habits into my daily routine, things began to click into place. As my conversations with Dr Bostock never centred around caffeine or alcohol intake, these areas didn’t require much adjustment; however, I did approach other habits and situations with a fork in the road mentality: whatever I was doing, it would either help aid me in my mission to better sleep, or hinder it. An evening session on the PS5 with friends, for example, would be less beneficial than turning off the TV at 9PM and picking up a book.

Before the experiment, my moods would peak and trough — punctuated with sunny highs and gloomy lows — yet as I continued to work with Dr Bostock’s insights and advice, these moments would begin to soften and everything (everyone, more like) seemed more amicable and approachable as the weeks progressed.

“Daytime function is the gold standard metric for how well you are actually sleeping,” Dr Bostock would confirm, as we discussed my sleep and stress data from the Oura Ring 4. “Your ability to focus and feel good in yourself is what defines a quality night.”

Digging deeper into the data, there’s a clear shift between the days preceding the experiment and the weeks during and after. My REM sleep increased by 40 minutes on average, and greater stints of deep sleep — 90 minutes or over — became far more frequent. The effects of an improved REM sleep pattern left me re-energised in mind and body, a direct result of my work to improve my circadian rhythm.

The same can be said for my periods of deep sleep. As the Oura identified, periods of 90 minutes of deep sleep are when muscles grow and repair and the immune system is refreshed—helping me dodge any signs of winter flu and wake up fighting fit, or as close to it as possible. Elsewhere, my light sleep improved — “it’s crucial for motor focus and memory consolidation,” says Dr Bostock — and my stress levels rarely peaked enough for me to get concerned.

As with physical training, there were plenty of personal bests, including one night with 10.5 hours of total sleep in mid-December — numbers I hadn’t seen (or felt) since I was a teenager recovering from a festival. Below, you can see a few examples of screenshots from the Oura app.

Despite these successes, my familiar pattern of good and bad sleep would eventually return. The difference, after four weeks with Dr Bostock, is that setbacks no longer feel like a permanent biological flaw, but a temporary glitch — one I now know how to course-correct with a few behavioural adjustments rather than an immediate admission of defeat.

“Sleep science really isn’t that complicated, but it does require discipline and consistency,” Dr Bostock told me during our final session. “If you can say, ‘I did this and it made a difference,’ that’s hugely valuable.”

At the start of the experiment, I was fixated on chasing a perfect sleep score of 100 on my Oura. By the end, I’d realised that better sleep isn’t about hitting a single, ideal metric, but about showing up consistently and using data to keep yourself honest. These days, I’d happily take an 85 or 90 — and my wife will just as happily take an earlier bedtime.

The Soundcore Sleep A30 are, as you can tell from their name, billed as sleep earbuds. They’re designed to help you drift off more easily, mask snoring and stay comfortable all night.

But they’ve become my go-to earbuds over the past few months. And because I review audio gear for a living, that's not something I say lightly. Most earbuds pass through my life briefly, then move on. But these didn't. They stayed on my desk, in my bag and in my ears more often than I expected – and let me be clear: I was often wide awake.

They’re not the most impressive-sounding earbuds I own, and I have access to plenty of others (see above, and what I do for a living). Yet these tiny less-than-perfect buds have turned out to be perfect for me, and here's why.

It's all about the design

Earbuds like these tend to get boxed into a single use case. You’re meant to think of them only at night, only in bed, only when something has gone wrong with your sleep. But that framing undersells them. Because in day to day life, their biggest strength is simply how small, comfortable and unobtrusive they are.

Because they’re engineered for sleep, they’re small, light and secure in a way that most true wireless buds aren’t. A tiny stability wing (of which there are several sizes to choose from) tucks neatly into the outer ear, locking the bud in place without pressure.

The result is a fit that feels considered and not at all intrusive. It's subtle but makes a big difference when you're wearing them for long stretches.

They're noticeably lighter than most earbuds I own, and it's the kind of difference you immediately feel. The main body is so low-profile they sit like tiny buttons in your ears, instead of jutting out. That matters for sleep (especially those of us who sleep on our sides), obviously. But it also mattered far more during the day than I expected.

I’ve got awkward, small ear canals and I’m fussy – if something feels unstable, it’s out within seconds. But these stay put through pretty much anything.

Built for bed but great for day

Yes, comfort is the obvious win here. But the real surprise has been how that comfort spills over into everything I do during the day, too.

I have thick hair, I live in woolly hats at this time of year and 50% of the time I wear glasses. Big over-ears are a no-go with glasses, a hat and a hood in winter. Even streamlined buds can snag on my hair or jut out just enough to feel irritating under a hat. But these don't.

Their low profile means nothing catches on them. Not hair, hoods, glasses or scarf fluff. Once I realized just how secure they are, I started wearing them for walking, working, even running, yoga sessions and handstand practice – whatever I do, they stay secure.

I never would have pointed anyone towards sleep-focused buds as workout companions, but the fit has been that reliable for me.

Quietly capable sound

Sound isn't the headline feature here, and that's okay.

I wouldn't reach for them if I wanted to sit down and really listen to one of my favorite albums at home. But for quieter listening, think podcasts, audiobooks, meditation tracks, they're clear, comfortable and easy to live with.

During the day, that translates well enough for walks, workouts and background listening when I'm writing. Bass is a little flat and the soundstage can feel pinched, but for everyday listening, especially on the move, I've never felt short-changed.

Battery, sleep tools and smart touches

As you'd hope, the sleep features here are really extensive. I don't use them for sleep now as I use them for walking and working out, but you'd like to know a bit about what makes them so specifically special for sleep, right?

You can use them like regular buds and stream your favorite tracks. But, in the app, there's a library of sleep-focused soundscapes, from waves to crackling fire, and they're all customizable with extra layers or density. There's also a Brainwave Audio section with binaural beats.

You get some sleep tracking too. It's not as detailed as some sleep specific trackers, like the Oura ring, but it's more useful than I expected.

Snore-masking is clever. The snug seal plus ANC already cuts a lot, but the case has a built-in microphone that listens out for snoring and adjusts what you're listening to in real-time. I found this worked surprisingly well.

You also get thoughtful extras, like bedtime reminders, a personal alarm, and a "find device" sound to save you from hunting a rogue bud in the sheets.

Their battery life is a little disappointing. You can get around 6.5 hours from them with ANC on when you're streaming. But the case offers up to 45 hours of top-ups, which makes up for it.

Speaking of the case, it's lovely. Compact, shaped like a hockey puck, and topped with a smooth, sliding lid. You can genuinely slip it into a pocket.

An unexpected, all-day winner

Yes, these are sleep earbuds first and foremost, and they really excel at that. But the traits that make them great for sleep – tiny size, lightweight build, secure fit and low profile – make them unexpectedly brilliant during the day too.

They've reminded me that comfort and design can matter more than raw audio power and performance, especially when I'm out and about. They're not my best-sounding buds, but they're not meant to be. They're simply the pair I've found myself reaching for time and time again because they fit my life without effort.

Sometimes the "right" tech isn't the most premium or the most powerful. Instead, it's the product you keep using, almost without even thinking. And for me, that's the Soundcore Sleep A30.

As someone who likes sleep, I’ve tested my fair share of sleep-tracking devices, but I’ve yet to find a pair of sleep earbuds that actually improve my slumber, rather than just adding one more obstacle between me and a good night’s rest.

It’s not an easy job. While the best sleep trackers can take a hands-off approach (apart from in the case of the best smart rings) and simply feed back on how well you napped, sleep earbuds are generally tasked with actually improving your slumber. Some people are wearing them in lieu of reusuable earplugs, such as Loop, with an added audio element. I’ve tested ones with pretty neat features but others that flew too close to the sun, and made sleeping even more of a chore.

I’ve become jaded about a few top brands because of terrible sleep headphones I’ve tested in the past, but my interest was piqued when a new up-and-comer contacted me to test their alternative.

AI health assistant app Fitnexa has released its first physical product, called the SomniPods 3. These are, according to the brand, the thinnest ANC-toting sleep earbuds released so far, and are designed to work hand-in-hand with the app’s various features.

If you’re confused by these being the brand’s first buds, but bearing a ‘3’ – so was I, but I couldn’t find any evidence of the existence of a SomniPods 2. And don’t get these things confused with the SomniBuds, which are also sleep earbuds but from a totally different company.

To test whether Fitnexa could win where other brands have left me cold (and restless), I tested the buds for a few weeks.

Fitnexia SomniPods 3: Price and availability

The SomniPods 3 cost $149.99 wherever you are in the world – when you buy them, it’ll convert the price to your local currency. At the time of reviewing, that’d be about £115 or AU$232, though whenever you read this, your currency’s value compared to the dollar will dictate exactly what it costs.

As I’ve implied, you need to use the Fitnexa app in order to use the SomniPods, but it's free to download and use. Mostly.

By ‘mostly’, I mean that there’s an optional premium mode called Fitnexa Plus which costs $9.99 per month (exactly £7.64 / $15.48 at the time of writing) or $2.99 per week (£2.29 / AU$4.63).

Fitnexa Plus isn’t necessary for using the SomniPods 3, and in fact I didn’t use it to write this feature. If you do sign up, it gets you quite a few extra features like voice input to log your workouts or nutritional intake, much higher-caliber analysis of your blood sugar and nutrition, advice and suggestions on your next meal, personalized recipes and weekly and monthly health reports, amongst other features.

An app-le a day

I ummed and erred about how much to feature the Fitnexa app itself in this feature. While the SomniPods are designed to be one component of the larger health picture of the app, the app isn't strictly my focus during testing – the buds were. That’s possibly for the best, because I had some problems with the app.

At its core, Fitnexa is used as a fitness and health hub. You use it to log every bite you eat, every sip you drink, every workout you do and, with the SomniPods, every second of sleep. Then the app can suggest workouts, give you overviews of your health and give you ideas for meals, all through the interface of a chat box with a creepy-looking AI trainer. You can pick between three trainers, but they all have that drab veneer of an AI image – was it too hard to take photos of three real people?

Some aspects of the app work incredibly well. I was particularly staggered at how smart the food-recognition feature was – I could send a snap of basically any food and the app would recognise what it was, even if it was partly-concealed by a pita or wrap, and give a smart nutritional break-down.

A feature of Fitnexa Plus is that it can help guide your nutrition and diet. As I said, I only used the standard tier of the app (the free one), but if the advice was nutritionally sound, I can see it being a fantastic fitness feature. I love apps that come up with recipe ideas based on what you own, and this is another apparent feature of the app. In general, I’d say for people trying to eat healthier, the app could be great.

But there are some problems too. Naturally, sending every iota of your daily data is a time-consuming process, and I frequently skipped logging glasses of water or snacks because I just couldn’t be bothered. The app was quite buggy, logging me out for no reason and hiding my data until I logged back in. It was an absolute pain to navigate, and I’d have to click randomly around in the hopes of finding the particular menu I was looking for. And if you’re not a subscriber to the app’s premium mode, you can only send a certain number of queries, logs or commands a day. How many? I’ve no idea; it was quite inconsistent in my testing, but Fitnexa’s materials say only one.

Then there are the standard issues with any chatbot that make them so bizarrely inhuman. Lana, the assistant that my app defaulted too, was overwhelmingly positive about every single thing I logged. I don’t need to know that my handful of peanuts was a good snack. And I also didn’t take to how Lana was reactive, responding to my commands and prompts, rather than being proactive and sending me suggestions and urges to exercise or drink water at the right times. I understand that this is how AI works – you need to spend credits to get responses and all that – but it’s not how an actual trainer would work. A drill sergeant, Lana is not.

A dream to wear, or ear-ritating?

So far in this article about the Fitnexa SomniPods 3, I’ve spent ages writing about the app and have barely touched on the sleep earbuds themselves. Let’s change that.

They come in a puck-shaped charging case. I don’t underestimate the artistry of a good charging case, and I’m a fan of both the color and feel of the SomniPods’ offering – it certainly doesn’t feel cheap.

The buds themselves are nice and small, measuring 3.3g each – of course you’d hope so, given Fitnexa’s claims about the buds' size, but it’s good to see that it’s true. They have flared silicon tips, which felt saggy, but I suppose that helps them fit in your ear better, and the box includes a variety of sizes including some non-flared ones.. The buds also have ear wings, which are an extra design feature certain headphones have to keep them wedged in your ear better – again, the box offers a few sizes.

It took me a few nights to find the knack to inserting the SomniPods into my ear – they’re small enough that the correct twisting maneuver takes some attempts. Once in the ear, they’re mostly out of sight and out of mind, and I rarely felt like I could consciously notice them, The buds don’t protrude far, so I could sleep on my side without issue. I’ve tested certain buds where the discomfort of lying on them in certain ways would wake me up, but there’s none of that here.

I must say, that on most nights during the testing process, the SomniPods felt quite loose in my ear, and I sometimes went to sleep worrying about where they’d be when I woke up. On every morning, though, I’d find them where I expected them – in my ear. I suppose it just takes a few weeks of wearing them to get use to how they feel (and the feel never actually affected my sleep at all).

SomniProblems

Wearing the buds is a simple, stress-free experience. Unfortunately, at least during my testing, actually getting them to work wasn’t.

Pairing the buds was simple, but I thought that was all I’d need to do to get them to work. I set them up, popped them in my ears and went to sleep, repeating this process for about four nights in a row. I think it’s important to avoid looking at the results when I test sleep tracking tech, in order to avoid orthosomnia, a situation in which obsessive use of sleep tracking gadgets can have a negative affect on sleep. Obviously that would really skew my testing data, and I avoid it by avoiding looking at my results for the first few days of testing.

This turned out to be a bad idea, because I was nearly a week into my testing when I discovered that the buds hadn’t tracked any of my forty winks. Oops.

When I looked further into the Fitnexa app, and specifically the SomniPods’ page in it, I discovered a slider for ‘Sleep Mode’. I was on Auto, which supposedly detects when you fall asleep and starts the tracking automatically, but in my case it hadn’t done so. Thankfully, there’s an option simply called ‘On’, which guarantees that it’ll track sleep – afterwards in my testing, I made sure to turn this on just before I went to bed every night.

The next problem was that my sleep data wasn’t reliably shared to the app. I’d wake up to find that there was sometimes no data, but historical data was starting to show up. Again, cue more testing and playing about, until I discovered the cure. Sleep data is only shared between the buds and app when they’re paired, but when I put the buds in their case and closed the lid upon waking up, the connection was severed. The data was only fully shared the next night, when I put the buds in my ears. Solving this one was simple – I’d leave the cover of the case open for a few minutes after returning the buds, and when I did this, I finally got my information on the app.

I list this all not to unduly criticize Fitnexa, but to give other owners some suggestions if they’re having trouble with the buds.

Spending a night

So what are the buds actually like to use, when working properly? Well, I’m happy to say that they’re pretty good, although there are still one or two issues.

The buds have a 11-hour battery life, which I’d say is enough for a full night’s rest for most of us. However if you turn on noise cancellation, they only have 5.7 hours in the tank. Because of this I never slept with ANC turned on, as the buds would run out of charge long before I’d wake up. For what it’s worth, I did test their ANC during the day – it’s not Bose-level or anything, but it’s pretty solid and I imagine it’d plaster over gentle background noises during the night, as well as take a dent out of louder annoyances like engineering works or noisy neighbors.

It’s easy for me to say that a better battery life would improve future models of SomniPods, but I’m not sure that’s true. The passive noise cancellation of the buds in my ears was more than enough to stop any sounds around me, and a bigger battery would require a bigger bud – I think I prefer them how they are.

Another potentially-great feature which is lacking, and can be solved pretty easily, is sleep sounds. This is pretty common in sleep earbuds, offering you gentle noise to fall asleep to. But the SomniPods 3 only have four (ocean, rain, wind and white noise), and they’re all incredibly short. I found it quite distracting trying to fall asleep to the sound of rain, when it’d fade to silence and then start the loop again every 20 seconds or so. Other options I’ve tested last a lot longer, or at least have a seamless loop so you don’t know you’re only listening to a half-minute of audio.

What’s curious is that the app has quite a few other sleep sounds, including waterfalls, farm noises and snowy footsteps. You can play these from the app, but it didn’t track my sleep when I did so, and I couldn’t find a way to replace the four on-bud noises with the alternatives in the app. Possibly my error, but I tried hard – if such an option exists, it’s way too well hidden.

What I don’t recall seeing in sleep earbuds before, is an equalizer. These are commonplace in standard earbuds, letting you personalize your audio by bumping up the bass or stripping out the mids, but I was initially surprised to see a 10-band one available in the Fitnexa app alongside some presets. It took me a while to figure out that this is for people who like to fall asleep to their own music, and it’s a neat touch.

The night-time twist

There’s one more thing that you’re expecting me to talk about; I talked about the SomniPods 3 results and then slipped in a whole separate section before even analysing these results! Now, I finally get to explain the headline.

Lots of what the SomniPods track is the kind of metric you normally see in sleep-tracking earbuds. There’s a breakdown of your slumber time in deep sleep, light sleep and waking time, as well as a graph breaking them down over time. It all looked accurate to me, except one or two times when it curiously stopped tracking early.

You of course can also see the duration, and a count of how much of your night was actually spent in bed. For me these were always the same, but if you go to the toilet frequently in the night, this’ll be a really insightful stat.

But the metric I found really fascinating was sleep position. The buds track whether you’re sleeping on your left side, right side, back or front, and even tells you how many times you turned over during the night and per hour.

I haven’t tested every pair of sleep earbuds, but I can’t say I’ve ever seen this before, and it found it fascinating. My turnover rate was nearly identical every night, at about 3 times per hour, and I generally spent about 70% of every night on my right side… all except on one night, which was 92% on my left.

I found it really fascinating to examine these stats, and align them with other factors; whether or not I’d drunk alcohol, whether or not I had a hot water bottle, how late I went to sleep, whether I read before bed or played video games. Honestly, I’m very keen to get scientific about this, and change variables each night while I examine the stats to see how it changes. I only ever tested the buds in my own bed; is the 70/30 ratio my standard or due to something about this crib?

I mentioned earlier in this article orthosomnia, which is when your sleep tracking negatively affects your actual sleep. This is generally linked to negative feelings towards sleep scores or metrics from your tech: wanting to get good numbers in some arbitrary sleep score, or trying to get the exact amount of light or deep sleep that scientists say the average human needs.

To me, interesting metrics like sleep position are a great antithesis to orthosomnia. I’m at no risk of subconsciously trying to maintain my three-flips-per-hour ratio, but instead it’s fostering me to engage with my sleep circumstances in a positive way.

As you no doubt can tell if you’ve read this whole article, I had mixed feelings about Fitnexa’s SomniPods 3. They have a few glaring issues, both in the features they offer and how they operate within the app. But they’re the comfiest and lightest sleep earbuds I’ve ever used, and collect some interesting metrics that pushed me to really think about my sleep.

I can’t say that I’d buy the SomniPods as they are now, but all that stands between them and greatness is software changes – things that are easy for Fitnexa to roll out over the air. Perhaps if your new year’s resolution is to sleep better, they’ll be ready in time for them.

If you sometimes have trouble waking up in the winter, you're not alone. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine suggests that the shorter daylight hours during winter can throw off your body's timings, making you feel more sleepy and sluggish during the day.

If this is seriously affecting your everyday life then you should speak to your doctor about the possibility of seasonal affective disorder (SAD). According to to the NHS, signs of SAD can include persistent low mood, irritability, loss of pleasure or interest in normal activities, and difficulty concentrating. Your doctor will be able to listen to your experiences, and suggest lifestyle changes, therapies, or other treatments that can help.

If you're not experiencing serious problems and are just finding yourself a little more reluctant than normal to pry yourself out of your warm bed, a wake-up light might help make mornings a little easier. These are special lamps that work by simulating a sunrise, slowly brightening over the course of several minutes rather than jolting you awake like the alarm on your phone. Think of being gently roused by sunlight filtering into your tent on a camping trip, and you'll have the right idea.

I've tested a lot of the best wake-up lights during my time at TechRadar, and overall there's one that really shines: the Philips Hue Play Wall Washer.

Simulated sunrise

If you're familiar with Philips Hue lights, you might be surprised that my number one pick is the Wall Washer rather than the Philips Hue Twilight, which is designed specifically for use on your nightstand. Turn both lamps around and you'll see that they are quite similar, with a stack of LEDs down the back that throw a diffuse gradient of color onto your wall.

The key difference is that the Twilight also has a front-facing task light for reading before bed, but the Wall Washer has the edge when it comes to versatility. When connected to a Philips Hue Play HDMI Sync Box it can become part of your home theater system, synchronizing with what's on your TV screen to make movies and games more immersive − something the Twilight can't do.

The Wall Washer is more discreet too, looking less like a conventional table lamp, so you can place it anywhere you want to add some indirect lighting.

Whether you choose the Twilight or the Wall Washer, it's those stacked rear lights that provide the gentle illumination necessary to help you fall asleep and wake gradually, and they shift brightness more smoothly than any other lamp I've tried. Even the premium Philips SmartSleep Sleep and Wake-Up Light can't compare. That's important, because sudden changes in illumination can shock you awake as abruptly as a trilling phone.

Color temperature is also important. Some wake-up lamps only have one light temperature setting, but the Twilight and Wall Washer gradually change from warm to cool light like a real dawn. Both also start out extremely dim, ramping up the brightness gradually so you're not jarred into consciousness.

Soft sounds

Nature sounds are a feature you won't get with either of these lamps, but personally I don't think that's a bad thing.

Many of the wake-up lamps I've tested over the years offer a menu of audible options to help ease you in and out of sleep – usually nature sounds like birdsong or rainfall, with a dash of white noise. These can be useful, particularly if you're struggling with racing thoughts, but wake-up lights tend to play very short sound clips of sound on a loop, which tends to be more annoying than relaxing. They often have poor-quality speakers too, which make the sound doubly irritating. A five-second loop of a blackbird trapped in a cola can is nobody's idea of a good time.

If you want to fall asleep or wake to gentle ambient sounds, I think you'll be better off with something like the Soundcore Sleep A20, Bose Sleepbuds 2 or Amazfit Zenbuds. These are soft earbuds that play a selection of soothing sounds, are designed to be comfortable even when you're lying on your side, and can even track your sleep overnight (though you can't use them as regular Bluetooth headphones).

It's a good idea to have some sort of backup alarm, just in case the Wall Washer is so gentle and you're so exhausted that you manage to sleep right through, but in my experience that rarely happens – and even when it does, waking to an already lit room makes the switch to consciousness less of a shock.

It's transformed my mornings, and if you struggle to peel yourself off your pillow first thing, it might just help you, too.

A good pair of sleep earbuds is such an asset if you enjoy dropping off to white noise while dampening ambient sounds around you.

The Soundcore Sleep A30 earbuds are a feature-packed pair of sleep earbuds, boasting a range of useful functions including sleep reports, auto-off options, ANC, and more. They have a list price of $229.99 / £199.99, which is pretty pricey, but worth it if you love the idea of listening to music, podcasts, or customized white noise while snuggled up in bed.

I like settling down to sleep sounds, especially if my brain is still buzzing after a long day, but what soothes me one night may prove distracting on another. This is where the Soundcore Sleep A30 earbuds have come in really handy, thanks to their customizable white noise feature.

I found plenty to choose from in the Soundcore app’s audio library, including some lovely preset AI brainwave tracks, some of which are based on the starry sky, the ocean, and the forest. I actually preferred listening to these for relaxation or as background music while I worked, because the variety of sounds could prove a distraction when I was trying to drop off.

The white noise library was the perfect fit, however, thanks to the great selection of different sounds themed around colored noise, nature, life, meditation, and more. The thing I loved most about this feature was that I could layer up to three of the sounds and adjust the volume of each one, meaning I could fine-tune the individual elements to my satisfaction.

I must admit, some of the colored noises available were brand new to me. I’ve heard of white, pink, and brown noise before, but the Soundcore Sleep A30s audio library enlightened me to green, gray, orange, and red noise. None of the colored noises were my jam, though, to be honest, but I think that’s due to me having tinnitus and finding them a little overwhelming.

What I really loved were some of the layerable sleep sounds. There are options like tranquil forest, hail, rain, and piano music, but my personal favorites were the thunderstorm, rain, and ocean waves. I turned the thunderstorm lower than the other two elements, so it sounded distant, and set the rain to be a touch louder than the sound of the waves, and it was perfect for me to drift off to sleep to.

There are also some sounds that will please those who enjoy a bit of ASMR, with options including a cat drinking, a keyboard typing, and boiling soup, though that's more toward nightmare territory in my case.

If you happen to prefer listening to your own music or podcasts before dropping off, the Soundcore Sleep A30 earbuds have you covered there, too, as they can play content from other apps. What’s more, there’s an auto-off timer that can be set, or you can make use of the sleep detection feature, which means you won’t wake up to find yourself several chapters too deep into your audiobook.

One important factor to consider when choosing a pair of sleep earbuds is how comfortable they are when sleeping on your side. I have fairly petite ears, and I struggle to get a good fit with earbuds in general, so my managing editor gave them a go for me both at home and on his travels so that I could get a second opinion.

I would describe the comfort levels when sleeping on my side wearing the Soundcore Sleep A30 earbuds as manageable. I was able to get a fairly decent seal with the smallest memory foam ear tips, but it wasn’t perfect, and the body of the bud was a touch uncomfortable in certain positions, though I still found I could sleep through the night with them. I will note that I have sensory sensitivities, so I may well have been more over-sensitive than others would be, but I would advise caution if you also happen to have ears that are on the small side.

My managing editor had a little more luck with them, finding them to be comfortable in general. He did find that they stuck out just enough that he needed to adjust his usual position slightly when lying on his side to accommodate them, but noted that this may be due to the fact that he uses a memory foam pillow.

If your ears are smaller than average and you struggle with earbud fit generally, then I highly recommend checking out our pick of the best earbuds for small ears.

Overall, the Soundcore Sleep A30 earbuds look like a great choice for those who want to experiment with different white noise and sounds for falling asleep to, or even as pleasant background noise for studying or working.

If comfort is your main priority, and you’re happy to drift off without the help of white noise, then I highly recommend the Loop Dream earplugs, which have been the comfiest earplugs I’ve ever slept in.

You might also like

• I'm a side sleeper who’s tested four different pairs of reusable earplugs over the last two weeks – and these were the comfiest to sleep on by far
• The best noise-cancelling earbuds for all budgets, as chosen by TechRadar experts
• A gentle reminder to clean your earbuds and headphones: study reveals they may carry 10x more bacteria than a toilet seat

Not all mattresses are designed equally, and if you're looking for a superior level of comfort, then we think it has to be Beautyrest. With luxury mattresses as well as adjustable base sets, you can get the complete package from a name you trust.

And thanks to a Labor Day sale, you can save up to $900. You can choose from a range of options with different levels of firmness and features to meet your needs. Scroll down to discover our top picks from the sale.

If you'd like to know about other ways to save, then head over to our Beautyrest coupon codes hub for all the latest offers.

Beautyrest Labor Day Sale

Our top picks from Beautyrest

Why we love Beautyrest

Beautyrest is a mattress brand owned by Simmons Bedding Company and has been on the market since 1925. Known for its luxury product range, the brand rose to prominence in part thanks to promotion by some well-known figures such as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Mattresses are manufactured with premium breathable cooling materials and designed with the brand's trademark Pocket Coil technology. All of this contributes to the level of comfort and support that the body craves.

Most Beautyrest orders include free White Glove delivery, which means a number of free services are included as part of your order. Upon arrival, RXO will set up one bed in a room of your choice.

Serta is the go-to company for anyone wanting a comfortable bed and mattress combo. Their iComfort Pro or Serta iComfort products are some of the best mattresses around, while the baselogic foundation works for a range of sleepers thanks to its adjustable design.

Why not join Serta in celebrating Labor Day by saving up to $925 on mattresses and bases. The offer is available on a select range of products, and we've picked out our favorites down below.

If you'd like to explore other ways of saving money at Serta, then head over to our dedicated Serta coupon codes hub for more offers.

Save up to $925 on mattresses and bases

Our top picks from Serta

Why we love Serta

Serta is well known for selling the best mattresses, protectors, bed frames, pillows and sheets. With a focus on using high-quality materials, including inner springs, gel-infused memory foam, latex and hybrids, Serta delivers time and again.

It has four mattress collections to choose from: Serta, Perfect Sleeper, Arctic and iComfort. Each mattress has a select set of features which give them their individuality. The Serta website is incredibly easy to navigate, and you'll quickly be able to find the best mattress for you.

The best way to help guarantee a good night's sleep is to buy a mattress and base that deliver a superior level of comfort and support. By investing in the latest coil technology, temperature management, and pressure relief materials, your body will have the very best chance of enjoying all the precious sleep you need.

If you're craving this type of mattress but haven't been able to afford it, we have a big money-saving 4th of July sale just for you. Right now, at Beautyrest, you can save up to $700 on mattresses and adjustable base sets.

The sale runs until July 8, 2025, so if you're keen on taking advantage of the discounts, we suggest you don't hang around. If you missed this deal, you can also check out our Beautyrest coupon codes hub for the latest ways to save.

Save up to $700 at Beautyrest

Our top picks from Beautyrest

Why we love Beautyrest

Beautyrest mattresses feature premium breathable cooling materials and are designed with the brand's trademark Pocket Coil technology. The company's attention to detail and quality results in the creation of mattresses that offer superior comfort and the support that the body craves.

Beautyrest is a mattress brand owned by Simmons Bedding Company and has been on the market since 1925. Known for its luxury product range, the brand rose to prominence in part thanks to promotion by some well-known figures such as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Serta is inviting you to join them in celebrating the 4th of July by saving up to $725 on select mattress sets. The deal is available on the ICOMFORT PRO™ and PERFECT SLEEPER X™, and others.

As manufacturers of some of the best mattresses around, Serta is known for delivering quality at an affordable price. That way you can guarantee you'll get a great night's sleep without breaking the bank.

This sale ends on July 8, 2025, so if you're looking for a new mattress, now is the time to buy. If you'd like to explore other ways of saving money at Serta, then head over to our dedicated Serta coupon codes hub.

Save up to $725 on select mattress sets

Our top picks from Serta

Serta: a name you can trust

Serta manufactures and sells the best mattresses, protectors, bed frames, pillows and sheets. That means all of your sleeping needs are taken care of by the much-loved brand.

The company has four mattress collections to choose from, including Serta, Perfect Sleeper, Arctic and iComfort. Every mattress is made up of high-quality materials, including inner springs, gel-infused memory foam, latex and hybrids, which are a combination of springs and foam.

Big Fig is offering some great savings across all their products in celebration of the Fourth of July.

By using the code 'FIREWORKS' at checkout, you can save a whopping 25% off any Big Fig mattress. That includes the Classic, Luxe, and Firm models, all designed and manufactured by Big Fig.

The savings don't end there! When you add a mattress to your cart, you’ll also get 25% off sitewide, including the adjustable base, platform bed, foundation, and bedding – like the Premium Cooling Sheets and Adjustable Pillows.

If you missed out on this deal, check out our Big Fig promo codes hub for more ways to save money right now.

Today's Big Fig Deal

Our top picks from Big Fig

Why we love Big Fig

Big Fig mattresses support 550 lbs per sleeper and use a combination of high-density foam and individually wrapped coils to prevent mattress sag and deliver quality support, as well as firmer edge foam to give you plenty of edge support.

To keep things from getting too hot in the night, there's also ThermoGel cooling technology in the fabric cover, as well as perforated gel-infused latex foam underneath to allow plenty of airflow and breathability.

Every mattress is also backed up by a 20-year warranty, which demonstrates Big Fig's belief in their products. The guarantee includes both free repair and free replacement for the entirety of 20 years.

• Garmin has unveiled a new sleep tracking wearable
• It's yours for $169.99 / £149.99 / AU$299
• The band is able to track multiple metrics while you sleep

Much as I love my Garmin Instinct 3, I don't like wearing it while sleeping – it's not uncomfortable, but it's too chunky and heavy for bed. Now there's an alternative for me and everyone else who owns one of the best Garmin watches: the Index Sleep Monitor.

The newly unveiled wearable looks like an oversized Whoop tracker. Crucially, it's screenless and lightweight, so it shouldn't interfere with a good night's sleep – and it can last a week between battery charges. There are even two sizes to choose between, either small/medium or large/extra large.

This isn't a totally unexpected development: earlier this month we saw a leaked video showing off what we now know is the Garmin Index Sleep Monitor in action. Details such as the week-long battery life were leaked too.

It's a wearable for sleep tracking and sleep tracking only, and it's available now for $169.99 / £149.99 / AU$299 on the Garmin website – though at the time of writing, shipping times are listed as 3-5 weeks (US and UK), and 4-7 business days (Australia).

9 key features to know about

Garmin wearables are usually some of the most comprehensive around when it comes to features, and the Index Sleep Monitor is no different. There are a total of nine different metrics tracked by the armband.

They are sleep stages (light. deep, and REM), heart rate variability, blood oxygen saturation, breathing variations, respiration rates, skin temperature (including extra menstrual cycle tracking for women), what Garmin calls Body Battery energy levels, and stress tracking. The ninth and final metric is an overall Sleep Score.

Add in a smart alarm feature that gently vibrates you at a time to fit in with your circadian rhythms, and it's an appealing overall package. As usual with Garmin devices, everything syncs back to the Connect app on your phone.

Garmin has also addressed another issue with sleep trackers: cleanliness. The Index Sleep Monitor band can be washed in a gentle cycle, once the actual monitor is removed, so it stays as fresh as your pajamas.

You might also like

• Polar has announced it's launching a screenless band too
• The best devices for tracking your sleep
• The Venu X1 says a lot about how Garmin is changing

Looking for a mattress that is specifically designed for a bigger figure. If you're a plus-size sleeper, the Big Fig mattress is made for you. And right now you can order one without it making a huge dent in your bank balance.

By using code 'NOSWEAT' at checkout, you can save a whopping 25% off any Big Fig mattress. That means the Classic is now only £1549, the Luxe is down to £1799, and the Firm is just £1299.

If you missed out on this deal, check out our Big Fig promo codes hub for more ways to save money right now.

Today's Big Fig Deal

Our top picks from Big Fig

Why we love Big Fig

Big Fig mattresses support 550 lbs per sleeper and use a combination of high-density foam and individually wrapped coils to prevent mattress sag and deliver quality support, as well as firmer edge foam to give you plenty of edge support.

To keep things from getting too hot in the night, there's also ThermoGel cooling technology in the fabric cover, as well as perforated gel-infused latex foam underneath to allow plenty of airflow and breathability.

Every mattress is also backed up by a 20-year warranty, which demonstrates Big Fig's belief in their products. The guarantee includes both free repair and free replacement for the entirety of 20 years.

When you lie down at the end of a long day, you want to make sure it's onto a mattress that is both comfortable and supportive. That way, you can rest assured your mattress isn't going to get in the way of securing the precious shut-eye your body deserves.

Serta manufactures some of the best mattresses and are currently running a Memorial Day sale where you can save up to $925 at Serta. Offers are available on a select range of mattresses and bases, and we've picked out our favorites down below.

The sale runs through to May 27 2025, so if you're looking to upgrade, then we'd recommend taking a look at which deals are available. If you'd like to explore other ways of saving money at Serta, then head over to our dedicated Serta coupon codes hub.

Our top picks from Serta

Why we love Serta

Serta sells a variety of sleep products, including the best mattresses, protectors, bed frames, pillows and sheets. It has four mattress collections to choose from: Serta, Perfect Sleeper, Arctic and iComfort. These collections are made up of high-quality materials, including inner springs, gel-infused memory foam, latex and hybrids, which are a combination of springs and foam.

If you’re unhappy with your order, you can return it within 120 days of receiving it, thanks to the Serta 120-Day In-Home trial. To start a return, fill out the returns form on the Serta website.

We all know how important a good night's sleep is. Waking up refreshed and able to take on the day with vigour makes life so much more rewarding. To make all this possible, you need a mattress and base that provide a superior level of comfort and support. For that you need look no further than Beautyrest.

And thanks to a Memorial Day sale, you can save up to $900 at Beautyrest. You can choose from a range of options with different levels of firmness and features to meet your needs. Scroll down to find out more details on all the best deals that are available.

All offers run between April 29 and May 27 2025, so if you're keen on taking advantage of the discounts, we suggest you don't hang around. If you missed this deal, you can also check out our Beautyrest coupon codes hub for the latest ways to save.

Our top picks from Beautyrest

Why we love Beautyrest

Beautyrest is a mattress brand owned by Simmons Bedding Company and has been on the market since 1925. Known for its luxury product range, the brand rose to prominence in part thanks to promotion by some well-known figures such as Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Mattresses are manufactured with premium breathable cooling materials and designed with the brand's trademark Pocket Coil technology. All of this contributes to the level of comfort and support that the body craves.

Most Beautyrest orders include free White Glove delivery, which means a number of free services are included as part of your order. Upon arrival, RXO will set up one bed in a room of your choice.

The humble smartwatch has come a long way since the days of the enthusiast projects of Pebble and the Apple Watch Series 0. To quote Elrond, I was there, 3,000 10 years ago, on day one when the Apple Watch launched in stores. I’ve been using, selling, and writing about them ever since.

Smartwatches continue to impress and push the boundaries of exercise tracking, health features, communication, and beyond, and I’ve loved every minute of it. But even after 10 years, there’s one area of my life I’m yet to surrender to a smartwatch, and that’s sleep.

Despite the best Apple Watches coming with watchOS 11’s Vitals feature, or the best Garmins delivering their wonderful Body Battery and Training Readiness stats, I refuse to wear a smartwatch for sleep tracking. But what on earth would possess me to do such a thing?

Sleep is one of the most important factors in maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and tracking it with data can give you brilliant insights or even catch dangerous diseases like sleep apnea. Some of my reasons are practical, but they’re merely side effects of tackling a much more significant problem I’ve found during my personal experience with sleep tracking. Here’s why I never wear a smartwatch to bed.

Battery life

I’ll start with a couple of the bonus benefits I’ve found over the years of not wearing a smartwatch to bed. A crucial one is battery life. My weapon of choice is the Apple Watch Ultra 2, and not wearing it to bed, between one half and a third of the 24-hour day (depending on how long I sleep), hugely extends battery life.

Unless you’re rocking a premium Garmin or the best running watches out there, just not wearing your watch to bed and turning it off instead is a super-easy way to extend your watch’s battery life.

Comfort

Another minor reason I’ve found myself choosing not to wear a watch to bed is comfort. Perhaps I’d grow into this over time, but wearing a watch to bed after all this time without one feels pretty alien, almost like I’ve not quite finished getting ready for bed.

In my head, it feels a bit like going to bed with my shoes on, or a coat. Wear your smartwatch for too long, and it all starts to get a bit sweaty and grubby. I really appreciate the time in bed without my smartwatch, which helps me keep on top of grime and lets my wrist breathe. This is why people wear the best smart rings instead.

The truth: It makes me feel worse

I’ve tried various sleep tracking methods over the years, from smartwatches to simple apps that live on your smartphone and stay open while you sleep. Everyone has a slightly different approach to the art, but the results are usually broadly similar.

When you wake up, you get some kind of metric from your device or app of choice, telling you how you’ve slept. If you pay extra, you also get to play back the audio recordings of all the funny noises you make during the night, or the violent outbursts of gibberish as you talk in your sleep.

In all my brief experiences using sleep tracking tech, I always return to the same issue. No matter how I feel in the morning, or how I think I’ve slept, I eventually become a slave to the number presented to me when I awake. I can’t count how many times I’ve woken up in the morning feeling a certain way, only to be told by a smartwatch or app that I actually had a rubbish night’s sleep. Without fail, I immediately feel terrible. What I thought was a decent night’s sleep suddenly becomes a disaster, and I find myself on the back foot before I’ve even crawled out of bed.

There are so many times that I’ve woken up feeling just fine, good even, only to be told my sleep score was 6 out of 100 and that I should feel dismally tired instead. Within minutes, I inevitably find myself feeling that way. You never quite manage to shake that feeling of tiredness throughout the day, and crucially, I often find it increases the pressure of the following night's sleep too. With one bad night in the books, you feel compelled to try and do better the following evening, and as we all know, trying to sleep well is one of the easiest ways to ensure you never do.

The upshot? Sleep tracking is a handy and valuable tool for some, but I’ve just never found a way to make it work. I’d love to incorporate it more into my life, but all my experiences thus far have found it to be way too intrusive and more harmful than helpful. So sorry, Garmin, Samsung, and Oura, you can keep your sleep scores and your Body Battery, I’m sticking to good old-fashioned vibes when the alarm goes off. At least for now.

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Purple specializes in mattresses, bedding, bed frames, seat cushions and other sleep accessories that help deliver a good night's sleep. They design and manufacture a variety of mattresses, including the Essential, Premium and Luxe collections.

They stand apart from their competition by guaranteeing comfort and support thanks to its GelFlex Grid that is built into its mattresses. It was also their cooling capabilities that saw them shoot up to the top of our best cooling mattress guide.

With Black Friday suddenly upon us, Purple.com has a fantastic offer on mattresses and bases. That means, for a limited time only, you can bring the overall cost down by up to $1,500. Find eligible products on Purple's Black Friday page.

With this deal expiring on 9th December, you may well have missed out on the offer. Fear not. Purple has some fantastic deals throughout the year and you can find them on our Purple coupon codes hub.

Our top picks from Purple

Why we love Purple

Purple is known for their fantastic customer service, as evidenced by the fact that if you buy one of their Hybrid Premier mattresses, they'll set it up in your home for free. This service is available on Purple, Purple Plus, and Purple Hybrid mattresses but at an additional charge of $200.

Purple customers can take advantage of the referral program that offers discounts every time they refer a new customer to Purple. This reward is typically around $75 off a mattress purchase and $50 off a pillow or bedding purchase.

If you love Purple's products, then you can sign up for their newsletter for all the latest news, product launches and sales. new sign-ups will also benefit from $50 off their first mattress purchase.

Emma Sleep is a leading sleep brand that operates in over 30 countries. They manufacture a wide range of sleep-related products, including mattresses, pillows, and bedding. They are unique in allowing customers to try their mattresses in the comfort of their home with a 200-night trial.

The 10-year manufacturer's warranty provides long-term peace of mind. Confidence in their products stems from in-depth research and testing to create mattresses that truly meet a wide range of sleep needs. This demonstrates a clear dedication to customer satisfaction.

If you're looking for a new mattress, then make use of our exclusive Emma Sleep code at checkout to benefit from a $70 discount when you spend $700. We've also collated all the offers available over at our Emma Sleep coupon codes hub.

Top picks from Emma Sleep

Enjoy the very best comfort with Emma Sleep's hybrid mattresses, meticulously crafted to provide spinal alignment and support for any sleeping position. Their mattresses are also conveniently vacuum-packed and rolled up for easy delivery.

Recognized for their exceptional quality, Emma Sleep mattresses have won numerous awards across the globe and are a trusted brand.

With Amazon Prime Day in full swing, there is a good chance you’re looking to invest in some gadgets, maybe even something that can help you get a good night's rest and start the day a bit better.

Enter the Hatch Restore 2, a smart sound machine with a built-in light that can mimic sunrise or sunset to let you catch the all-important Z's and maybe even train you not to hit the snooze button. For Prime Day 2024, Amazon is ushering in a record-low price of just $144.99 – meaning you’re saving $55. 

And unlike the countless other devices eyeing for a spot on your nightstand—aka Echo Spot, Nest Hub, or a HomePod Mini—the Hatch’s only purpose is to make sleep better. It’s also the number one bestseller on Amazon in “sleep sound machines.” Oh, and I sleep with one on my nightstand. 

Prime Day deal: Hatch Restore 2

My favorite thing about the Hatch Restore 2 is that it doesn’t set out to do much. Even during setup, it’s remarkably easy and only requires a brief setup via the companion app for Android or iOS. From there, you can choose to sign up to get access to premium sounds – or even embark on a free trial – and then you can start looking at unwinding or sleeping under Rest and pick out your all-important moment. 

For one, if you need white noise – or maybe ocean waves crashing or the sound of a washing machine – blaring at a loud volume to drown out noisy neighbors, the Restore 2 gets seriously loud. You can get complete control via the app or manually by tapping the front. You can also control any amount of light, should you want to use that feature. 

Like any modern smart lighting solution, the Restore 2 is surprisingly good at mimicking sunrise or sunset. It’s also remarkably simple, with only two buttons on the top – one for stopping the morning moment – aka your smart alarm – and another for engaging the various unwind modes. 

At just $144.99, there has really never been a better time to get the Hatch Restore 2. I’ve been using mine for several weeks after seeing it go viral on TikTok and Instagram. I've seriously enjoyed it, from feeling more rested at night to not being worried about nighttime noises keeping me up.

More Prime Day deals

• Amazon Devices: Fire TV Stick from $14.99
• Apple: AirPods + Apple Watch from $69
• Audible: three months free
• Back to school: essentials and tech from $5
• Beauty: 80% off viral products
• Cameras: $100 off GoPro bundle
• Clothing: up to 66% off Levi's and Sketchers
• Gaming: free PC games until July 16
• Headphones: up to $120 off Bose, Apple + Sony
• Health: electric toothbrushes from $14.99
• Kitchen: up to 44% off Ninja and Keurig
• Kindle: three months Kindle Unlimited
• Laptops: record-low prices for MacBook Air
• Music Unlimited: five months free
• Phones: Samsung and Google Pixel from $249
• Smart home: up to 61% off cameras
• Tablets: iPads and Samsung from $64.99
• Toys: up to 40% off Lego and Toniebox
• TVs: cheap TVs from $64.99
• Vacuums: Shark and Bissell from $81.99

Eight Sleep has released the new Pod 4 and Pod 4 Ultra smart mattress covers, which offer temperature regulation, snore detection, heart rate tracking, and other features designed to aid sleep. 

Like its predecessor the Pod 3, the cover can be used on any existing mattress, so  if you think you’ve already bagged one of the best mattresses, you won’t have to worry about upgrading. 

The Pod 4 and Pod 4 Ultra pack all the basic tracking functions from heart rate variability, respiratory rate, to sleep stage tracking - the sort of functions you might find on the best fitness trackers, featuring a total of 36 advanced biometric and environmental sensors.

There are a number of exciting new features that set it apart from its previous models, Eight Sleep states the Pod 4 has been “clinically validated” to enhance your sleeping experience, adding an extra hour to your sleep time while reducing your wake time, up to three hours per month. 

Its major algorithm boost over the Pod 3 helps to improve snore detection by up to 45%, picking up on snoring for up to two individuals in one bed, without the added hassle of relying on wearables. 

The new mattress base, exclusive to the Pod 4 Ultra, adjusts to provide ‘Reading’ and ‘Sleeping’ body positions. If the Pod 4 Ultra picks up on snoring, the Base can respond by elevating the head, reducing and even stopping snoring, all without input from the user. Clever, eh? The Pod 4 also packs a new thermal engine which, according to Eight Sleep, will be able to reach temperatures as low as 55 degrees Fahrenheit in hot weather conditions.

The Pod 4 is available now for $2,549 / £2,699 / AU$3,999, and Pod 4 Ultra for $4,049 / £3,849 / AU$6,249.  

Analysis: The internet of things

Smart mattress covers fall into that category of tech that makes you ask the question “why?”, much like wearable exoskeletons or AI-powered shoes. However, a mattress cover which can auto-regulate temperature, act to prevent snoring as it happens, and track your health like one of the best sleep trackers certainly sounds appealing.

According to Eight Sleep’s CEO Matteo Franceschetti, “most humans spend one-third of their lives sleeping on foam mattresses that do nothing to improve their sleep”. So with the launch of the new Pod 4 and Pod 4 Ultra, the mission is simple; to “continue to prove that technology can be used to understand what each person needs for optimal sleep”. 

Turns out the best smart rings, billed as the sleep-tracking form factor to watch in 2024, aren't the only game in town. Who needs a ring to improve your bedrest, if your bed does the job by itself? 

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We all have days when we use our phones right before going to bed, even though we know we shouldn’t. Admit it. We know our phones keep us awake. Some people try to mitigate the negative effects on sleep with blue-light glasses, which claim to block out rhythm-affecting blue tones in screen light, but if you’re using a fitness tracker (and if you are, it’s probably one of the best sleep trackers or best fitness trackers from our lists) you’ve likely had at least one morning when you’ve woken up, checked your stats and seen exactly how little sleep you had the night before. 

It turns out, it’s not the blue-light effect from your phone that’s keeping you awake at night, according to sleep scientist Dr Sophie Bostock. I met Dr Bostock at an event to celebrate the launch of the OnePlus Watch 2 Nordic Blue in Helsinki, and she was able to answer a few burning questions about late-night phone use. 

“There are several aspects of light which affect your circadium rhythm. Brightness of light is really important. If you get very bright light it’s going to activate the receptors, which contain a pigment called melanopsin, in the back of your retina. This sends a message to the clock in your brain which tells you to be alert. 

“This pigment is more sensitive to light in the blue visible end of the spectrum, true, and when you look at a phone, it tends to be rich in blue wavelength light. But that is completely irrelevant if the light from your phone is very dim. 

“The light you typically get from your phone is about 80 lux. Usually, in the studies used to look at impact on your circadian rhythm, you expose someone to at least 2000 lux, perhaps 5,000 lux. A SAD lamp is usually 10,000 lux. The light from your phone’s impact on circadian rhythm is negligible.”

So if it’s not the blue light beaming from your phone, what’s actually keeping you awake? Dr Bostock had the answer. 

“Research has found using the bright light element of your phone only delays sleep for around 10 minutes. People getting locked into losing track of time, delaying sleep because of what they’re doing on their phone, probably delays sleep by closer to an hour. Relative to that sleep displacement, the blue light exposure is negligible.” 

Fear around phones comes from massive large-scale studies that state people who use phones before bed sleep really poorly, so the conclusion was always ‘phones must be causing poor sleep’. 

“There are two more aspects to consider. One is that people leave their phone by their bed, while it pings and alerts during the night… but phones can be helpful, some people use it as a distraction. Audiobooks are phenomenally popular.”

While Dr Bostock’s main advice is to keep your phone out of the bedroom to avoid the temptation to doomscroll, if you use it to play sleep-aid content, it’s perhaps worth keeping it across the room on another surface, out of arm’s reach. 

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Cozy Earth Silk Pillow: two-minute review

I’m always on the hunt for the next great pillow. I’ve tested dozens of high-end bed pillows, and several were very good. However, the Cozy Earth Silk Pillow may be the very best pillow that I’ve ever tested (it’s definitely in my top five). I love thick, plush pillows, and this one falls in that category. However, it’s the reason why this pillow is so thick and plush that impresses me: it’s made of mulberry silk.

Now, silk in general, is a soft and luxurious material. But mulberry silk takes this experience to another level. I’ve tested mulberry silk pillowcases and head scarves that reduce hair frizzing and dryness. I also have mulberry silk pajamas that are also luxurious and tend to wrinkle less. And my mulberry silk sleep eye mask is smooth and cooling.

But how would a pillow with silk filling perform? Marvelously. The 100% mulberry silk filling is both strong enough to be durable, and soft enough to feel like I’m at a 5-star hotel. And the bamboo cover is also smooth and soft to the touch. While the pillow is soft, it also provides enough support that I avoid waking up with aches and pain. It works well for back and side sleepers, but may not be ideal for stomach sleepers. 

I tested a pair of the Cozy Earth Silk Pillows for over two weeks to see how they compare to the rest of the best pillows on the market. And if you really want to elevate your sleep comfort to another level, check out our guide to this year's best mattresses for all budgets.

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow review: price & value for money

• Luxury pillow with a premium price
• 100-night trial period, 10-year warranty
• Currently 20% off

At $299 (currently on sale for $239.20) in the standard size, the Cozy Earth Silk Pillow is absolutely a premium pillow – and it’s at the top of that category as well.  However, this long-strand mulberry silk pillow is like the crème de la crème of pillows. I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re on a budget, but if you’re prepared to splurge, it’s definitely worth considering.

The king size pillow is regularly $349 (currently on sale for $279.20). Cozy Earth also makes a Bamboo Down Alternative Pillow for $115, and a Bamboo Down Alternative Body Pillow for $195.  

Another one of the best pillows I’ve ever tested is the Purple Harmony Pillow, which combines a honeycomb-patterned GelFlex grid over a latex core. It’s a super-squishy pillow that moves when I do, and has temperature-regulating features. The pillow comes in a low, medium, and tall pillow height, making it ideal for any type of sleeper. The pillow, which should only be spot-cleaned, is $199.

If you prefer a down pillow, the Casper Down Pillow has a multi-chamber design. The outer pillow consists of ethically-sourced 80% white duck down, and a 20% feather outer chamber. The inner pillow consists of 60% white duck down and 40% feather inner chambers. This provides an ultra-soft experience, similar to sleeping on a cloud, but also thick enough to be supportive. The pillow is cool to the touch, machine washable, and regularly priced at $139.

Cozy Earth provides free shipping for thes pillow. There’s also a 100-night trial, and a 10-year warranty. In comparison, Purple Harmony provides a 100-night trial period and a 1-year warranty, and Casper provides a 30-day trial period and a 1-year warranty.

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow review: design and materials

• 100% mulberry silk fill
• Bounces back but needs to be fluffed
• Breathable bamboo viscose shell

The Cozy Earth Silk Pillow is filled with 100% mulberry silk that’s made exclusively for the company. It provides a supremely comfortable feel that’s soft as a cloud, but also thick enough to be supportive. The long strand mulberry silk is actually softer than other types of silk, and this is what creates such a luxurious feel.

Some pillows start off feeling soft, but then they start clumping – meaning there are soft spots in places, and also spots where the filling is now missing. However the filling in the Cozy Earth pillow never clumps. In fact, Cozy Earth guarantees this won't happen.

I have a set of standard size pillows, but they're also available in king size. The cover is made of 100% premium viscose from bamboo, which is designed to stay cool.

The pair of Cozy Earth Pillows arrived safely in a cardboard box. Inside, each pillow was in a stylish fabric bag with zipper closure, along with vegan leather handles and trim. I’d give the company full marks for presentation. Upon unzipping each bag, the pillows were encased in plastic as a sanitary measure. Since the pillows were not compressed, they didn’t have to expand, and I was not subjected to any off-gassing.

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow review: care and allergies

On its website, Cozy Earth recommends spot cleaning or dry cleaning the silk pillows. However, according to the tag attached to the silk pillow, it can be machine washed in cold water using normal detergent. However, no fabric softener or bleach should be used. Also, the pillows should not be put in a spin cycle. They can be machine dried on normal, or hung to dry.

The website also recommends using a protective pillowcase – in fact, a pillowcase is required to validate the manufacturer’s extended warranty. Cozy Earth also states that if you’re using a pillowcase and washing that pillowcase on a regular basis, then regular or excessive washing of the pillow is unnecessary.

Cozy Earth also recommends fluffing the pillow on a regular basis to maintain the loft and shape. In addition, it can be aired in the sunlight occasionally to keep it fresh. The pillow is OEKO-TEX certified, which means that it’s free from harmful chemicals. 

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow review: comfort & support

• Plush yet supportive
• Best for side or back sleepers
• Refluffing is recommended

For over two weeks, I slept on a pair of Cozy Earth Silk Pillows to see how comfortable and supportive they were. The pillows provided an extremely comfortable experience, while also being supportive.

The pillows had a cloud-like softness, and were light and fluffy. They’re stuffed with 100% mulberry silk, which has a luxurious feel. The light and airy pillows were also able to cradle my head and neck in cocoon-like comfort. However, they bounced back when my head moved to another position. 

Since the pillows have a mid to high-loft, they were the perfect height for me. I’m a combination sleeper, and this height works well for side and back sleepers. However, for sleeping on your stomach, the pillows may serve to be too high. Granted, not all side, back, and stomach sleepers are alike, so keep that in mind.

Cozy Earth recommends fluffing the pillows on a regular basis. In lieu of doing this, I just tossed them in the dryer for a few minutes.

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow review: temperature regulation

Mulberry silk is designed to resist mildew and eliminate moisture better than cotton, and I found that the Cozy Earth Silk Pillows kept me warm at night while sleeping. In addition, the cover is made from a 100% premium viscose from bamboo fabric, which is also designed to provide a smooth and cool sensation.

Even underneath winter bedding, the pillows seemed to regulate my body temperature, so I never woke up hot.  I tested the pillows during the fall/winter season, in Birmingham, AL, which tends to have mild winters.

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow review: specs

Should you buy the Cozy Earth Silk Pillow?

Buy it if...

✅  You’re looking for a luxury pillow: This 100% mulberry silk pillow isn’t cheap. It’s a top-of-the-line pillow that’s designed to provide the ultimate in luxury. Sleeping on the pillow feels like your head and neck are cocooned in comfort, but it’s also supportive enough to avoid any aches and pains.

✅ You don’t like down or down alternative: Down pillows can poke you and may cause your allergies to flare up. On the other hand, down alternative pillows may not provide the same level of comfort. The Cozy Earth Silk Pillow is an alternative to both.

✅  You want a breathable pillow: The fill and the cover combine to provide a pillow that doesn’t trap heat. It regulates your body’s temperature to keep you cool while you sleep.

Don’t buy it if...

❌ You’re a stomach sleeper: The pillow is a better choice for side and back sleepers. If you tend to sleep on your stomach, you may find the loft too high to keep your head and spine aligned while you sleep. As a result, you may wake up with aches and pains. 

❌ You like to adjust the fill: While the cover does unzip, technically, the pillow isn’t designed to add or remove fill. Doing so may render your pillow useless, and also void your warranty.

❌ You like to wash your pillows and covers: Cozy Earth recommends spot cleaning or dry cleaning your pillow. If you’re the type who likes to wash pillows on a regular basis, again, you may end up voiding your warranty. And even if you do wash it, the company warns against using the spin cycle, so it will take forever for the pillow to dry.

How I tested the Cozy Earth Silk Pillow

I slept on a pair of Cozy Earth Silk Pillows for over two weeks, testing for performance, comfort, and support. These tests were conducted during the fall/winter season. Since I tend to sleep hot – but I love all of the stylish fall and winter bedding – I slept with the HVAC off to avoid getting overly hot in my mild climate.

• View the Zoma Livingstone bed at Zoma

Zoma Livingstone bed frame: two-minute review

Zoma is best known for its mattresses, but it also makes accessories including bed frames. For this review I tried out the Zoma Livingstone, the only one in the range to have under-bed storage. So how does it compare to the best bed frames?

At TechRadar we review plenty of the best mattresses, and it helps have a decent bed frame to complement your mattress. I recently reviewed the Zoma Hybrid mattress, but this frame can be used with all hybrid, foam and innerspring mattresses. I was pleased that I felt supported on this frame. It’s suitable for holding a combined weight of 500lbs, and I didn’t get any creaking from moving about on the mattress or when launching off the side of the bed to get up in the morning (or during the night).

It’s available in a double and king size (I tested it in the king size), and it’s only available in grey. This is the colour of the plush material that upholsters the frame. It’s a neutral tone that I feel will suit a range of bedroom themes, regardless of how comic book character or plain you’ve opted for.

It was a total pain to assemble though. The Zoma Livingstone arrives in three boxes, flat-packed. It took three hours for two of us to put it together. This was because the instructions are not easy to follow, and all the different-sized nuts, bolts and washers are mixed in with each other. The lifting mechanism is also heavyweight, and I struggled to reach towards the back of underbed storage because I couldn’t lift the mattress and frame any higher.

Priced just under £1,000, is the Zoma Livingstone for you? Keep reading my review to find out. Note, this particular Zoma frame is only available in the UK – Zoma US has its own separate range.

Zoma Livingstone bed frame review: specs

Zoma Livingstone bed frame review: price & value for money

• Available in double and king size only
• Only available to buy direct from Zoma
• High price for a flat-pack item of furniture

The Zoma Livingstone is available in a double and king size, only. At the time of writing the double was out of stock and no price was displayed. The king size has an RRP of £999. It is towards the upper price range of an under-bed storage frame which is likely to be due the use of a quality material and reinforced frame structure.

While I can’t deny that the material is lovely and the structure is solid, it does arrive totally flat-packed. Generally, flat-pack furniture means a lower price – but not in this case.

The Zoma Livingstone does get discounted, but not often. At the time of writing it was full price. You also get free shipping, although there’s no option to upgrade) and 1-year guarantee.

Zoma Livingstone bed frame review: design & materials

• Use of high-quality materials
• Reinforced design
• Available in a double or king size, only

The Zoma Livingstone is an ottoman-style bed frame. This means that there is integrated under-bed storage which is accessed by a lifting mechanism.

It’s made with a combination of sprung wooden slats and a solid metal frame, upholstered in a grey plush material. This material is sumptuous to the touch, and easy on the eye. It’s not available in any other colour.

The frame is also the only one in the Zoma bed frame range to offer storage. The Zoma Genesis is the closest match which exudes a similar grandeur with large headboard and linen upholstery; Zoma Fusion is also wrapped in a linen upholstery yet has a 94cm headboard and the Zoma Astley is crafted from solid hardwood. The Genesis is available in double, king and super king sizes, the Fusion is available in a single, double and king size and the Astley is available in a single, double and king size.

The only sizes that the Zoma Livingstone is available in are double and king size. The double measures 145 x 204cm and king-size measures 160 x 214cm. The headboard height is 110cm on both available frame sizes.

While there are no visible cleaning instructions to reference on the frame, it does say in the assembly instructions that “for cleaning you may use a damp cloth (not wet)”. The instructions also advise that the frame may stain or mark if allowed to come into contact with wet or damp objects as the materials used have not been Scotchgarded.

Zoma Livingstone bed frame review: performance

• Solid and comfortable to rest on
• Decent amount of storage
• Heavy to lift, despite the hydraulics

The Zoma Livingstone is a lovely bed to look at, and sleep on. The design and materials have made it an attractive frame to have, with the neutral décor being suitable for any bedroom theme.

To sleep on it was solid. I didn’t notice any noise from the bolts (or other components) when turning in the night. It didn’t creak when launching off the edge of the mattress during the night, or in the morning, either. Zoma advises that it can comfortably support up to 500lbs; my husband and I have a combined weight of 434lbs and have no complaints about the support.

The Zoma Livingstone is suitable for all types of mattress (hybrid, foam or innerspring). The Zoma Hybrid mattress (also on test) felt well supported, however it didn’t fit the frame entirely; there’s a few inches of space between the mattress and the edge of the frame. Although this didn’t affect the performance, it did mean that dust gathered – and it became a trap for socks. We also frequently bumped our legs into the edges of the frame, which is something that we haven’t had before when the edge of the mattress meets the edge of the frame, or overhangs.

One of the most attractive aspects of the Zoma Livingstone was, for me, the storage underneath. The amount of storage available is the size of your mattress (double or king size) which is loads. To access it, there’s a material tab attached to the base end of the frame – this needs to be tugged upwards. I found that the combined weight of the mattress and the  base made them quite hard to lift, so I wouldn’t recommend this frame for anyone who needs to be able to easily access storage with little effort. 

While the suspended frame and mattress stays in place thanks to the hydraulic lifts, I also struggled to access the storage towards the head of the bed because the frame will only lift to 40in / 101.6cm. The fabric cover that attaches to the underside of the frame with Velcro wasn’t quite large enough, either, so we had a flappy end piece that was detached underneath the headboard-end.

Everything stayed in place when lifting the bed. To put it back down, I found it easier to push the suspended mattress and frame down with my hands, rather than pull the material tab, which I’m certain would cause friction burn and a pulled muscle if yanked on too hard.

Zoma Livingstone bed frame review: customer experience

• Good customer service up to the point of delivery
• Unclear assembly instructions takes 2 adults, 3 hours
• No option to upgrade

Within a few days of the order for the Zoma Livingstone being placed, I received a text message confirming a delivery time slot. On the day of delivery I received a phone call from the delivery drivers to say that they were on their way and that they would be with me within the hour. The customer service was seamless, from that point of view.

The Zoma Livingstone arrived in three boxes. I wasn’t expecting this. Given the size and shape of the boxes (big and thin), my first impression was a bit of an “uh-oh” moment; it was totally flat packed. The delivery drivers wouldn’t carry the boxes up our stairs; it was delivered to our hallway, only. There was no option to upgrade.

If there was an option to upgrade, I would have totally paid the money to have the bed frame delivered to our bedroom and assembled; it was a nightmare. The boxes were big and heavy to carry up the stairs. Although I managed to do this on my own, I advise that two people carry the boxes. 

Assembly of the Zoma Livingstone was made difficult by the unclear instructions, and components not being marked. All the nuts, bolts and washers were mixed together, and there were three different sizes of them. It took a while to sort through all of them, and yet more time to measure them to figure out what should go where.

With the help of my mum, it took almost three hours to assemble the Zoma Livingstone. While all the necessary parts were included, it would have been super helpful to have the nuts, bolts and washer sizes clearly marked to take the guesswork out of it all. There was a lot of faff and fiddling with the small parts to get them secured onto the frame, too. Had partial assembly been a delivery upgrade, it would have been welcome.

It’s worth noting that the instructions are written in a small font and not very well laid out for easy reading. There's also no digital version of the instructions added to the website, which is something I feel would be helpful if you ever misplace the instructions after taking it down for a house move or (like me) you’re triple checking that it’s been set up correctly if something isn’t quite right.

I struggled to get the lifting mechanism to work. At first, I thought it was broken. But then I asked a brand rep to send over the instructions (because I misplaced them) and I figured out that the hydraulic arm had been installed the wrong way round. FYI: the thicker part of the hydraulic arm needs to be secured to the base, not the bit that lifts. This issue was resolved and I was able to access the storage beneath.

The Zoma Livingstone comes with a one-year warranty. This isn’t a very long time considering the price you pay for it, the effort required to assemble it and the fact that competitors who are offering similar frames provide a five-year guarantee.

Should you buy the Zoma Livingstone bed frame?

Buy it if…

✅ You need storage space: The Zoma Livingstone is an ottoman-style storage bed which lifts the mattress (with a firm pull of a tab) to access the storage space beneath.

✅ You want a plush-looking frame: High quality material has been used to wrap around the frame, and it looks fancy.

✅ You already own a mattress: There’s no need to go out and buy a new mattress to fit on the Zoma Livingstone; It’s compatible with foam, hybrid or innerspring mattresses.

Don't buy it if…

❌ You're on a budget: Priced at £999 for a king-size, the Zoma Livingstone is not a cheap bed frame. There are much more affordable options to choose from.

❌ You don’t do flat-pack: Just don’t get the Zoma Livingstone if you don’t like flat-pack. It's a hefty piece of bedroom furniture that took three hours for two people to assemble.

How I tested the Zoma Livingstone bed frame

I slept on the Zoma Livingstone for 4 weeks. I assembled it myself (with my mum's help) and have used it to store bed linen. I tested it in the king-size frame, alongside the Zoma Hybrid mattress.

When you're curled up on your best mattress, it can feel like the rest of the world simply disappears. But as comfortable as your bedding cocoon might be, if you want to get the best night's sleep, then it's important to consider your entire sleep environment – and that includes the temperature in your bedroom. 

“We suggest maintaining a cool bedroom temperature for optimal sleep,” says James Higgins, founder and CEO of Ethical Bedding. "It supports the body's natural dip in core temperature that occurs during sleep, promoting deeper and more restful sleep cycles.” In the bedroom, this translates to an ambient temperature around roughly 65 degrees Fahrenheit / 18 degrees Celsius.

A cooler bedroom isn't just a way to save on your heating bills – these lower temperatures are a way to keep your environment in sync with your circadian rhythms. In this guide, we'll take a look at why lower temperatures are better for your rest, plus some advice on how to achieve that perfect sleep environment.

How temperature affects sleep

Ambient temperature plays an important role in how well we sleep, so you want to avoid a bedroom that's too hot (or too cold). A study from 2015 found that high temperatures could cause fatigue, while research from 2022 linked increased temperatures during the night to worse sleep efficiency and quality. And a 2012 2012 study concluded that temperature was a key factor in sleep quality, with heat affecting sleep stages and thermoregulation.

If you're struggling to sleep in hot weather, try opening a window at night or using an electric fan to cool the room. Taking a lukewarm shower in the evening and drinking a glass of cold water can also help keep your body temperature down. 

And consider the role your bed itself might play. A cooling pillow is an easy way to upgrade your sleep setup – we have some excellent options in our best pillow guide – or if you regularly struggle with night sweats, consider investing in one of the best cooling mattresses.

Can it get too cold in the bedroom?

Although we recommend keeping the bedroom on the cooler side – so your environment supports your body as it prepares for sleep – don’t make your bedroom frigid. “There is a point where the room gets too cold,” says Lisa Artis, deputy CEO at Simba Sleep’s charity partner, The Sleep Charity. She warns that a cold bedroom “could cause you to wake up and take a while to get back to sleep while you warm up. Especially when the outside temperature drops to its lowest in the early hours.”

Temperature, light, and comfort are all important for achieving a good night's rest, and if your icy bedroom leaves you shivering, it will be hard to get comfortable. We have some advice on how to keep your bedroom warm without turning the heating on, so you can stay cozy during a cold snap.  

And sometimes, it is better to prioritize comfort over the cooler nights. Dr Lindsay Browning, psychologist, neuroscientist and sleep expert at And So To Bed suggests that, “when you are unwell you might want your room a little hotter or cooler than ‘sleep recommendations.’ It's always important to listen to your body and do what feels right for you.” 

However, as anyone who has spent the night searching for the cooler side of the pillow can attest, a lot of the time, what your body wants is a lower temperature in the bedroom. Below, we've rounded up some of our favorite bedding choices for maintaining this perfect ambient temperature. 

Bedding for maintaining the right temperature

For UK sleepers...

For US sleepers...

In recent years there has been an increasing amount of interest in how music can be used to help aid sleep. We're not talking about white noise here – we're talking about actual songs with melodies and, sometimes, lyrics. There have been a number of studies digging into the particular musical characteristics that help you physically relax and unwind.

Emma – one of our best mattress brands – was so intrigued by the idea that it worked with a composer to create its own album of original compositions, scientifically designed to be the perfect sleep playlist. Scores of Sleep, Vol 1 is now available to stream for free on Spotify, and includes 11 original tracks that form one ultra-soothing bedtime album. 

At the launch event (where pretty much everyone nodded off), we spoke to Angela Kondinska, a neuroscientist and sleep specialist who now works on the Emma product development team, to find out more about the potential of music to help us wind down. Here are her tips for how to integrate music effectively into your sleep routine. 

1. Look for these specific characteristics

There have been a few studies exploring the relationship between music and sleep, but the one that inspired Emma's album came from the Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus. The 2023 study analyzed over 220,000 tracks from Spotify sleep playlists, looking for common characteristics. 

It found that, compared to playlists in general, sleep music tended to be:

• Quieter
• Less energetic and less lively
• More likely to be acoustic 
• More likely to be instrumental (without lyrics)
• Less 'danceable'
• Slower

I imagine none of those will come as a particular surprise, but they're still worth bearing in mind when selecting an album or playlist to put on in the evening. Anything that makes you want to get up and dance, or sing along, is likely having the opposite effect to the one you're looking for. 

2. Pick whatever genre appeals

At part of the Aarhus study, researchers conducted some analysis into if certain genres were better suited to sleep music than others. In that study, based on Spotify's genre tags, the most popular genre was 'sleep' (not terribly helpful, with ~47k occurrences), followed by pop (~30k) ambient (~13.5k) lo-fi (~13.5) and rap (~7k occurrences; a bit of a curve ball). 

However, other studies had different results. A 2018 study from the UK found classical music the most popular for sleep (32%), then rock (11%) and pop (8%). An Australian survey from 2020 that asked participants what kind of music helped them sleep, and found that classical was most widely effective (18.5%), then pop (12.3%) and ambient (12.3%).

The Aarhus study concluded that, "The studies agree that no single type of music is most listened to by the general population to fall asleep, accentuating the need for music-based sleep interventions to include many different choices of genres." 

That's good news, because another part of Angela's advice is to focus on your own preferences when choosing what music to integrate into your bedtime routine. Trying to force yourself to do anything – whether that's listening to a certain type of music or taking up evening yoga, or whatever – isn't going to be relaxing if you don't naturally find it relaxing. Even if it's 'supposed' to be good to sleep. 

"The more we say, 'Okay, you have to do this, [the more] stress builds up, and then we end up sleeping less because of the stress," she elaborates. "The big thing is likability, so people should enjoy the songs they listen to." Aside from the original Emma sleep album, the brand has a range of playlists in different genres for people to explore. So if you're more of a hip hop person than a classical person, there's a playlist for you...

3. Make it repetitive 

Once you've found your playlist, give it a chance to work. "What usually brings a lot of relaxation is repetitiveness. Our brains love being able to predict something," says Angela. Listening consistently each night, at the same point in your evening routine, will help amplify the relaxing properties of your sleep music. 

If, once you've given it a fair chance, it's clear that music isn't going to be the thing that helps you drop off, try something else. "Allow yourself to explore in a curious way. There's a long list of sleep tips. Try out different things… and see what works," suggests Angela. "If [one thing] doesn't work, that's okay, because there's something else that will work." 

Many of us will spend at least part of our evenings scrolling social media. And while you probably have an inkling it might not be the best thing to promote sleep, you might not have really considered the impact it could be having on your nightly routine. We spoke to a sleep expert to dig into exactly why browsing social media is such a bad idea before bed, as well as providing some easily actionable tips to help you limit your evening doomscrolling.

How can social media impact your sleep? 

"Several studies have found a link between excessive social media use and sleep difficulties," says Theresa Schnorbach, a psychologist and sleep scientist who works with Emma (one of our best mattress brands).

"Social media is deliberately designed to stimulate and excite you – that is precisely why it is so addictive and entertaining! As a result, we quickly lose track of time while watching videos or other content, and can easily spend hours on our smartphones, although we could have been sound asleep long ago."

Isn't it the blue light that's the problem? 

Most evening screen time conversations are in the context of the dangers of blue light. Put simply, studies like this one suggest that blue light is especially effective in suppressing melatonin (the hormone that prepares the body to sleep). So staring at a phone screen will make you feel awake and alert – not ideal when you're meant to be winding down. 

However, Theresa thinks the focus on blue light might be overshadowing the real problem. "[The addictive nature of social media] has shown to be in fact more dangerous than the blue light that is so often talked about in the media," she says.

How to limit your evening screen time

Cutting down on social media time is easier said than done. Here are some tips for adding structure to your evening, with activities that will help you wind down, rather than perk up. 

1. Set an alarm or screen limit

Going in with a vague plan to 'cut down on social media in the evening' isn't going to be effective for most people. Create some self-imposed rules that mean you actually stick to your intentions. "Setting an alarm for bedtime or using screen limit features on apps can help a lot to prioritize sleep," suggests Theresa.

Recommendations for when to stop looking at social media in the evening vary, but a minimum of one hour before you plan to go to sleep is a good starting place. If you have a smart speaker, you can set up an Alexa sleep routine that kicks in at the same time each night and doesn't require screens to switch on or off. 

2. Swap in other activities

"To promote relaxation in the evening, make time for activities that are actually good for you," suggests Theresa. "Be it reading, going for a walk, listening to calm music, connecting with family and friends, yoga or more. Just stay away from activities that are too stimulating or trigger negative feelings."

All of these activities can help the body prepare for sleep, so pick the ones that appeal to you rather than trying to micromanage your sleep based on what others say should help. Using music to help you sleep is something Emma has been looking into specifically recently, and even coming up with its own album of original music that has been scientifically designed to be the perfect sleep playlist.

3. Try a bedtime box

If you're struggling to put your phone down, you could try a bedtime box. This is essentially a box of activities or evening essentials (a book, some sleep tea... whatever appeals to you). Take it out in the evening when it's time to start your nightly routine, then remove the nighttime contents and replace it with your phone or tablet. That then gets put away for the night, to be retrieved in the morning. As well as creating a clear break between 'daytime' and 'sleep time', the idea of having specific activities that you save for bedtime might help turn it into something you look forward to.

Whether you’re a casual exerciser or a seasoned athlete, you probably wouldn’t mind adopting foolproof, healthy hacks to improve your physical abilities. Perhaps you already have a few in your toolkit, such as cross-training and staying on top of your protein intake and hydration status. 

Yet there’s one in particular that’s completely free and proven to improve everything from endurance and reaction time to muscle recovery, as well as providing countless benefits for your overall health. In case you haven't guessed, it’s simply getting enough sleep – and sleeping well, at that (ideally on the best mattress for your sleep requirements).

Read on to discover how the quantity and quality of your sleep can either help or hinder your physical performance and overall fitness regimen.

The relationship between sleep and exercise

A bidirectional relationship exists between sleep and exercise. Not only can exercise improve sleep by helping to regulate your circadian rhythms (aka biological clock or sleep-wake cycles) and assisting thermoregulation to induce sleep, but getting enough shuteye can also benefit your physical performance in a number of ways.

A large body of research demonstrates the benefits of improving sleep duration in athletes. A 2017 review published in Current Sports Medicine Reports notes that increases in sleep duration and quality alike are linked to improved performance, competitive success, and a lower risk of injury and illness in athletes. As such, adequate sleep can optimize health, enhance athletic output, and boost participation during training.

More specifically, a range of studies have investigated the impact of set hours of sleep amongst different types of athletes:

A small 2019 study (of 9 participants) found that cyclists and triathletes maintained better endurance after extending their usual sleep time by 30 percent over 3 nights, concluding that they should sleep more than 8 hours per night to optimize performance.

A small 2011 study (of 11 participants) found that men’s college basketball players who slept for more than 10 hours a night for up to 7 weeks experienced faster sprint times, improved shooting accuracy, increased vigor, and a stronger sense of physical and mental well-being during practice and games.

A small 2015 study (of 12 male and female participants) found that college tennis players who increased their sleep by approximately 2 hours, to sleep at least 9 hours daily (including naps) for a week, significantly improved their serving accuracy.

By and large, athletes and those who train rigorously will require more sleep than most people, due to their extensive output and subsequent heightened requirements for recovery. Still, these results show just how crucial getting enough quality sleep truly is, when linked to various markers of physical performance and well-being.

Frequent sleep issues will take a hit on your health in general, creating a domino effect that can hinder your athletic abilities.

“This could include feeling tired all the time, being more likely to have impaired decision-making and reaction times while working out where you could get hurt, and having trouble with performing at your best both physically and mentally,” says Dr. Harris. “Poor sleep can also disrupt your hormones and weaken your immune system, making it harder for you to get the most out of your workouts and increasing the risk of you getting sick.”

Disturbed sleep can affect everyone from occasional joggers to elite athletes. For instance, a 2022 study published in the journal Frontiers in Physiology investigated 10 NBA seasons’ worth of data to see how jet lag affected pro basketball players’ performance and game outcomes. Home teams subjected to eastward jet lag (i.e., in which they ‘lost’ time and played in direct opposition to their biological clock) were linked to:

• Reduced wins
• Fewer points scored
• Fewer rebounds
• Less effective field goal percentages

The researchers concluded that this type of circadian rhythm disruption — which involves impaired sleep quality — may have significant consequences on both game performance as well as recovery.

The bottom line

In short, if you want to improve pretty much any marker of athletic performance as well as facilitate recovery thereafter, it’s imperative to prioritize sleep as best you can. “To stay healthy and perform your best while exercising, it's important to get enough good quality sleep every night,” Dr. Harris reiterates. Doing so won’t only support the likes of vigor, speed, endurance, and reaction time — but also more generally promote hormonal health, immune function, and physical and mental well-being.

Even one night of poor rest can throw your exercise regimen or sports performance off track. In these cases, it’s best not to exert yourself too much as you may heighten the risk of injury and adverse outcomes. “Getting a bad night's sleep can make you tired the next day and affect how well you exercise, but an easy fix for this is to make sure you get enough rest that night and the nights following,” says Dr. Harris.

Of course, sleeping well is often easier said than done, namely if you have a history of sleep issues. In addition to following healthy dietary, lifestyle, and sleep hygiene practices, it’s best to consult your physician or a sleep specialist if you struggle with sleep regularly. This will benefit both your physical performance and overall health, helping  you to score wins at the gym, during sports, and wherever else life takes you.

I've been using an eye mask every night for over a decade, and at this point, I consider a mask almost as essential for good sleep as my bed. Still, while I recognize it's worth investing in the best mattress, I always opt for cheap eye masks. So when offered the opportunity to switch my basic £6 mask for the £160 Aura smart sleep mask I was curious, but skeptical. How much can you really improve an eye mask?

But the Aura mask isn't any old sleep mask. It's a smart mask, fitted with a built-in light and speakers, connecting to the Aura app via Bluetooth to bring you wind-down meditations and wake-up lights. Head to my Aura smart sleep mask review, to learn more about what it does and how it works. It's expensive for an eye mask, but it's also unique. If you want all the benefits of using a sleep mask combined with a meditation app and a sunrise alarm, there's nothing else like the Aura.

Having used the Aura for several weeks, I can definitely see the benefits of this high-tech upgrade. With that said, I'm not ready to write off the cheap-and-cheerful basic masks I've been using for the past 10 years, especially if all you're looking for is a dark environment to help you drift off. Here's are 5 things I've learned... 

• Save 39% on the Aura Smart Sleep Mask via Aura

#1. The Aura does the basics better

Mostly what I want from a sleep mask is for it to keep things dark and stay on my face – two things my £6 eye mask does pretty well. So I was surprised to find that one of the biggest benefits of the Aura eye mask was just how much it improved on the basics.

My regular eye mask does a good job at blocking out light. I have an east-facing bedroom that catches the sun pretty early in the summer, and with my eye mask on, I can avoid being woken up two hours before my alarm is set to ring. 

However, I didn’t realize how much light got around my mask until I switched to the Aura. This was total darkness. With my regular eye mask, I can notice a difference when I hold my hands in front of my face. With the Aura, if I held a pillow over my face there was no change in the light level. It could have been midnight or noon, and I wouldn't have known.

Compared to the elasticated band of a standard eye mask, the Aura also has a more secure and comfortable fit. The wide straps of the Aura come with a slight stretch, a velcro fastening, and an anti-slip design on the interior, and together these features ensure the fit is just right. Ii was also comfortable from the get go (elastic eye masks tend to be too tight at first) and didn't budge during the night even when I tossed and turned (I've woken up with my normal mask around my neck on more than one occasion).

Is this worth the £150 price jump? On its own, no, but it's essential that Aura covers these basics to make the sleep mask functional. The reality is that if you use the Aura overnight, the blackout feature is the one you'll be getting the most use out of. In addition, if the Aura runs out of battery (which I'll cover in more detail below) these basics ensure it remains functional.

#2. In-built light is a major benefit

The main feature of an eye mask is to block out light, a feature I highly appreciate at 5am when the sun floods my east-facing bedroom. But at 7am, when I need light to indicate to my body clock it's time to wake up, this blackout is less desirable. Until now, the only way to deal with unwanted darkness has been to remove my mask when my alarm goes off, press snooze, and doze a few more minutes in the day light.

The Aura, however, neatly navigates the entire problem with an efficient solution. Fitted with an internal LED light, the Aura slowly increases brightness just before your alarm is set to sound, for a natural feeling wake-up similar to the best wake-up lights. While it can't entirely match the sunrise, it's significantly better than the total darkness I usually get when waking up with an eye mask. And because the light is determined by my alarm, it doesn't wake me up before I'm ready (something I can't say about the sun).

By fitting this light, Aura has taken one of the biggest downsides of an eye mask – total darkness in the morning – and turned it into an advantage. With the wake-up light, I had a gentle brightness kicking my body into gear whenever I wanted to get out of bed, and not a minute before.

#3. The sweaty head problem got worse

A sweaty head is a typical downside of the eye mask, and while the Aura can improve on a standard mask in a lot of ways, this is still an issue. If anything, the Aura makes overheating worse. Bigger and bulkier than your usual sleep mask, the Aura adds extra fabric to my face in a way that's particularly noticeable on warm nights.

If you struggle with the night sweats, this is going to be a major disadvantage. Instead of the Aura, you might want to consider a fabric upgrade – a breathable and moisture wicking silk sleep mask can help keep you sleep in hot weather. Otherwise, if you want to use the Aura, expect a few sweaty mornings (and maybe think about investing in one of the best cooling mattresses).

#4. An eye mask can be part of your sleep routine

Putting on my eye mask was always the last thing I did before going to sleep and while I recognized it was essential to my sleep hygiene, I wouldn't have considered it part of my bedtime routine.

But the Aura eye mask makes itself part of your bedtime routine. The built-in speakers play your choice of wind-down meditations and white noise, for an immersive experience beneath the mask. Used in bed, it's great for people like me who struggle with the transition from 'awake' to 'ready for sleep'. You're essentially being forced to into a calm, relaxing headspace.

With the Aura on, you can't do anything but pay attention to what's happening inside the mask. And because of that total blackout and secure fit, you have to make a conscious decision to remove the Aura. With a normal sleep mask, it's so easy to lift the corner, take a quick peak at your phone, and expose yourself to blue light.

Before the Aura, I thought the only role my sleep mask played in my rest was to block out light. The Aura shows that an eye mask can contribute more than just a dark environment, especially for those who might find stress or anxiety keeps them awake (many of the meditations are focused on achieving a calm mind). 

#5. Charging is a pain

To use the Aura sleep mask properly, you need to charge both the mask itself and your phone (for access to the Aura app). A basic eye mask never needs to be plugged in – something I hadn't considered an advantage until I forgot to charge my Aura.

Aura does inform you of the exact battery life when you connect to the app, and I highly recommend checking this when you wake up in the morning. It's very easy to underestimate how much battery you need to get through the night, which is I learned the hard way when the mask died at roughly 4am one morning.

The Aura alerts you when it's powering off and that's not something you want to hear in the midst of your dreams. But it's better than not being informed, and only discovering the mask has shut down when you aren't woken up. Luckily, when it happened to me, I had set my phone alarm to ring a few minutes after the (presumed) Aura alarm, so the loss of power wasn't a huge issue. However, having had it happen once, I can't bring myself to use the Aura without a back-up alarm. Just in case.

Without any power, the Aura is still useful as an eye mask (see the total blackout mentioned above). However, it loses a huge amount of functionality. And while consistent charging is something you'll learn in time, when the Aura loses battery, you miss out on a vital part of your pre-bed routine, plus your morning alarm. And with fewer opportunities to power up (it can't be done overnight because the cable connects to the mask) charging becomes a habit you need to develop fast.

It it worth upgrading your sleep mask?

I'm going to cop out here and say yes and no. It's a major price jump from a simple sleep mask to the Aura smart mask, but you also get a lot of unique benefits, including the speakers and wake-up lights. And the Aura also has the advantage of doing the basics better, which means you're still getting total darkness and an improved fit.

However, if the blackout effect is all you're after, a basic eye mask is almost as good as the Aura and significantly cheaper. Plus, you don't have to worry about charging it. And it won't ever run out of battery when your alarm is set for early the next morning.

A warm shower is a relaxing part of the bedtime routine, and when you're ready to drift off at the end of your wash, who wants the rude awakening of a hot and noisy hair dryer? But before you put your wet head on your best mattress, you need to think about what that water might be doing to your bedding.

Rex Isap, bed expert and CEO at Happy Beds warns that sleeping with wet hair is bad for more than just your split ends. “When your pillows and bedding absorb the water from your hair, it creates the perfect breeding ground for bacterial and fungal growth as they thrive in a damp environment."  

And all that growth doesn't stay tucked up in your pillow. As Rex explains, "this fungi could then be transferred to your scalp or face, putting you at risk of fungal infections." Gross and dangerous – here's why it really is worth grabbing your best hair dryer before bed.

#1. Wet hair can result in a moldy mattress

Going to bed with wet hair might seem like a harmless habit, but it could be causing serious harm to your mattress. “If the water from your hair touches your mattress during sleep, this could cause water damage," warns Rex.

“Water-damaged mattresses are more susceptible to the growth of mold," says Rex. "If inhaled or touched, this could result in an allergic reaction such as red eyes and sneezing." 

Once a mattress is wet, it takes a long time to dry. Beneath the bedding, this moisture can't dissipate, and instead gets trapped within the layers of your mattress. As well as mold, this damp can allow dust mites and bed bugs to thrive, as well as result in staining – "not to mention the fact it could cause an unpleasant smell in your bedroom,” says Rex.

If you've gone to sleep with wet hair the night before, instead of making your bed first thing, pull the sheets back in the morning and give your mattress time to breathe. And if you're worried your previous pre-bed shower routine might have damaged your mattress, we have some advice on how to get rid of dust mites and how to get rid of bed bugs. 

The best mattress protector can help limit harm from wet hair, while investing in the best mattress topper can provide an extra barrier of protection. But keep in mind that if you sleep with damp hair, it isn't just the mattress that will be suffering...

#2. You might end up with neck ache

Going to bed with wet hair and waking up with a pain in the neck? It's not just a coincidence – there's an unexpected connection between the two. “Wet hair can result in the fillings of your pillow being unevenly distributed," explains Rex. "This will affect how supportive it is." 

Instead of gently cradling your head, this uneven distribution can hold your neck at an uncomfortable angle. As Rex says, "this can lead to physical issues such as back and neck pain, as your neck and spine should be aligned when you sleep."

Wet hair is also a reason why pillows can turn yellow, especially if you haven't done a very good job washing out the shampoo and conditioner. And similar damp staining might mean you have a lot of work to do next time you clean your headboard. Although, at least when your headboard gets damp, it isn't against your skin. Which brings us to the next problem...

#3. Damp pillows can cause skin infections

As Rex mentions, going to bed with wet hair turns your pillow into the kind of damp, warm environment that bacteria and fungi love. When you lie on your pillow, this fungi can then transfer to your bare skin, potentially resulting in an infection.

“One of the most common fungal infections of the skin is ringworm, which can cause a dry, scaly, or itchy patch on the affected area. It is frequently spread through contact with items infected with this type of fungi, including bedding, according to the NHS website," says Rex.

Worried about infections? We have some advice on how to clean your pillows, which you should aim to do roughly every six months (even if you always go to bed with dry hair). Additionally, it's worth investing in some pillow protectors – fabric socks that sit between your case and pillow. This added barrier can prevent too much moisture from your damp hair seeping into your pillow.

But the best solution is to simply dry your hair before going to bed. If you don't have a hair dryer, we can help you find one that will make drying your hair as quick and easy as possible – check out our guide how to buy a hair dryer.

What to do if you go to bed with wet hair

Despite your best intentions, do you still find yourself occasionally going to bed with wet hair? Here's what you can do to limit the damage it does to your mattress. 

#1. Get rid of the worst of the moisture

While dry hair is best, if you don't have time for a full blow dry routine, the next best option is to remove the worst of the moisture. Use a microfiber towel or have a quick blast with the hair dryer so your hair isn't sopping wet by the time you get into bed.

#2. Regularly clean your mattress

You should deep clean your mattress twice a year anyway, but if wet hair is causing water damage, you might need to do it more regularly. However, stripping the bed, washing your sheets, and spot cleaning stains once a week gives the mattress a chance to air out and you a chance to deal with small problems before they become major issues. This regular cleaning doesn't have to be a massive chore – you can clean your mattress with household products, and if you wait until the last hours of the weekend for your big tidy, you might even find this so-called Sunday reset helps you sleep. 

#3. Invest in mattress and pillow protectors

It's worth buying mattress and pillow protectors even if you don't go to bed with wet hair, as they help keep your sleep setup as fresh as possible. As well as adding a barrier between you and your bedding, these protectors are significantly easier to wash than a mattress or pillow. So if things do get damp, you can simply whip off the protectors, give them a wash, and keep the mattress beneath clean.

Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow: two-minute review

The Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow is the cheapest pillow of the two that Panda makes, but it doesn’t skimp on quality. It’s one of TechRadar’s best pillow selections and offers a luxurious feel with its soft bamboo cover. I’m a huge fan of the Panda Hybrid Bamboo mattress, which is rated by TechRadar as one of the best mattresses currently on sale in the UK. But how did the pillow match up?

Like most memory foam pillows, the Panda isn’t going to win any design awards. It’s a lump of memory foam (three layers, to be exact), covered with a mesh polyester internal pillow protector and finished with a bamboo/polyester cover. Pick the pillow up and feel it, and it’s a different story. The bamboo cover feels luxurious to the touch and is really soft – this is a pillow you’ll want to lay your head on. I love the little panda face in the corner as well.

Not everyone is a fan of memory foam and, as someone who loves a soft pillow, I did initially find the Panda way too solid. But over time, I appreciated the neck support. As a lightweight side and back sleeper, the loft suited me perfectly. However, both my husband and I found it difficult to change positions on the pillow and neither of us particularly enjoyed the moulding sensation of the memory foam. However, if you are a fan of the memory foam ‘hug’, the Panda is a great pillow to go for. At under £50 it’s also very good value for a high-quality memory foam pillow.

Panda Bamboo Pillow review: price & value for money

• Mid-range pricing, but a premium feel
• 30-day trial and 10-year warranty
• Rarely discounted

The Panda pillow retails at £44.95 and comes in one size, fitting neatly into the mid-range pricing bracket. With its high-quality bamboo cover, it feels like a premium pillow and looks extremely smart (or, at least, as smart as a lump of foam can look). There’s a 30-day trial period, which is a real godsend if you’re not used to the feel of memory foam and need time to decide if it suits your sleeping style.

The 10-year warranty is particularly generous for a pillow – none of the other pillows in our best pillow round-up have longer than three years. And if you decide during the 30-day trial period that the pillow isn’t for you, you can return it for a full refund. Next day delivery and returns are also both free.

Panda discounts aren’t common. I’ve seen the occasional 10% off, but this is generally only around major sales events. I'd recommend bookmarking our mattress deals page, as it will keep you up to date with when the brand is having a sale. 

Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow review: design & materials

• Removable and washable cover
• Three layers of visco memory foam
• Internal mesh polyester inner cover

Like most memory foam pillows, the Panda is essentially just a lump of memory foam and not particularly enticing shape-wise. At 12cm deep, 40cm wide and 60cm long, it’s slightly shorter than a standard pillow at 70cm, but it still fits neatly into a pillow case. The 70% bamboo cover is the winning touch here – it feels soft and luxurious, and really adds a premium touch to the pillow.

I also really liked the inclusion of the inner mesh polyester cover, which acts as a natural pillow protector. This is stitched around the pillow to help protect the foam. Speaking of the memory foam, it’s Reach-certified, meaning no harmful chemical were used during manufacturing. And the bamboo cover is naturally breathable, antibacterial and hypoallergenic, making this a great choice for allergy sufferers.

The pillow arrived wrapped in a reusable bamboo bag and a 100% biodegradable box, made from recycled paper that can obviously be recycled again. It was ready to sleep on straight out of the box and, somewhat unusually for memory foam, I didn’t notice any off-gassing at all.

Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow review: care & allergies

The bamboo cover is removable and can be washed on a cool wash of up to 40 degrees before being hung to dry. The memory foam can only be spot cleaned but, with the two covers in place, it should be well protected.

The memory foam in the pillow is Reach-certified and the pillow conforms to the OEKO-TEX standard, meaning that the whole pillow is free from harmful chemicals that could cause skin irritation. As I already mentioned, the bamboo cover is also naturally breathable, antibacterial and hypoallergenic, making this a great choice for allergy sufferers.

If you join Panda’s mailing list, the brand protects five trees. And the pillow is vegan- and bird-friendly, as well as only using bamboo from FSC approved forests where wildlife habitats are protected and monitored.

Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow review: comfort & support

• Medium-firm feel
• 12cm loft
• Best suited to back and side sleepers

As I mentioned at the top of this article, I had some quite differing feedback on this pillow from people I asked to test it. Both my husband and I struggled with the ‘hug’ of the memory foam, although it’s clearly not as pronounced as with some memory foam pillows. Despite this, I could see and feel how supportive it was around the neck and do think it would be an excellent choice for those prone to neck pain.

I would describe this pillow as medium-firm, with a medium loft of 12cm. It’s pretty lightweight for a memory foam pillow and overall it retained its shape well after getting up in the morning. But my husband, who weighs more than I do, found it quite difficult to change position during the night, feeling that the memory foam had a tendency to settle in one place, which then made his head just want to fall back into that ‘groove’.

Side and back sleepers should enjoy the feel of this pillow, which is nicely supportive but doesn’t throw the spine out of alignment. But a friend who sleeps on her stomach who tried the pillow felt that her head was being raised too high to keep the spine aligned.

I also gave the pillow to another friend who usually sleeps on a Tempur memory foam pillow. He had quite a different experience. As someone who is used to the heavier Tempur pillow and the more pronounced ‘hug’, he felt that the Panda wasn’t supportive enough for side sleeping. He also felt that the Panda compressed far more than a Tempur pillow and offered less resistance to a sleeper’s head. My feeling is that this makes the Panda pillow an excellent choice for memory foam novices, combining the best of memory foam along with a lighter feel.

Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow review: temperature regulation

Memory foam is notorious for trapping heat, which can make for an unpleasantly hot sleeping experience. But Panda has been clever here with the inclusion of a bamboo cover.

Bamboo is naturally breathable and helps to encourage airflow. This, combined with the inner mesh cover, meant that I never felt warm on the pillow. Neither did my husband, which is perhaps of more relevance, as he has a tendency to sleep warm. The pillow doesn’t feel cool to the touch but does feel fairly neutral. For context, we were sleeping in a room that was around 14-15C overnight.

Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow review: specs

Should you buy the Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow?

Buy it if...

✅ You sleep on your side or back: The Panda pillow is nicely supportive and does a good job of keeping the spine aligned in both these sleeping positions. And while there is a distinctive memory foam ‘hug’ to the pillow, you won’t sink in too far.

✅ You sleep hot: Memory foam is notorious for trapping heat, but the Panda’s bamboo cover did an excellent job of keeping my husband (a hot sleeper) cool and comfortable through the night.

✅ You suffer from neck pain: Once you get used to the feel of the Panda pillow, you will start to see how supportive it is around the neck. If you suffer with neck pain, this pillow could help to alleviate it.

Don't buy it if...

❌ You’re a stomach sleeper: This pillow’s loft is too high for a stomach sleeper and is likely to throw the spine out of alignment if you’re lying on your front. Instead, consider a low loft foam pillow such as the 8cm Levitex Sleep Posture Pillow.

❌ You change positions a lot: The Panda pillow wasn’t always easy to change sleeping positions on, with the foam wanting to push a sleeper’s head back to their original sleeping position. A more traditional pillow, such as the Simba Stratos Pillow that's filled with down-like fibre clusters, might be a better alternative.

❌ You’re not a fan of the memory foam ‘hug’: Even though the Panda has quite a light memory foam ‘hug’, it still contours and wraps itself around your head to a certain degree. For some people, this will just be a feeling that they can’t get used to; for more bounce and less hug, try the Origin Coolmax Latex Pillow.

How I tested the Panda Memory Foam Bamboo Pillow

I slept on the Panda pillow for two weeks and also asked my husband and other friends to try the pillow out for differing opinions. There’s only one style and loft of pillow available. I tested the pillow during both a slightly chilly spell and an unseasonably warm patch, which gave a great indication of how the pillow performed in different temperatures. I also tested the pillow in a variety of sleeping positions to see which were most comfortable and supportive.

Resident Home – parent brand of Nectar and DreamCloud, among others – released its Cloverlane Mattress in late 2023 as a direct response to the popular Saatva Classic. From the Euro-top and gold and white color scheme to multiple firmness levels with an emphasis on lumbar support, I think it's clear where Resident drew its inspiration from. But as you'll find out in my Saatva Classic vs Cloverlane Hybrid showdown, each mattress stands out for its own reasons.

The Saatva Classic emerges as the winner here – it does reign as the best mattress overall. However, the Cloverlane is a slightly better value since it offers most of the same perks and a comparable level of performance to the Saatva for less money. (It's also available as a full-foam bed, if that's your preference.) Still, if you have the cash to splash, I think it's worth spending it on the meticulously-handcrafted Saatva.

Keep scrolling for my complete head-to-head between the Saatva Classic and the Cloverlane Hybrid. You can also check out my Cloverlane Hybrid Mattress review or read our Saatva Classic mattress review to help you arrive at a decision. Both beds are discounted during regular mattress sales so no matter what, you'll be scoring a deal. 

Saatva Classic vs Cloverlane Hybrid: Specs

Saatva Classic vs Cloverlane Hybrid: Design

• Both mattresses feature three firmness levels & chiropractor approval
• The Saatva Classic is a handcrafted innerspring with minimal foam
• The Cloverlane is a mass-produced, foam-heavy mattress

Both the Saatva Classic and the Cloverlane Hybrid come in three firmness levels and share a few design elements: a Euro-top with specialized lumbar zone quilting and gold accents against an off-white exterior. Chiropractors rate them as some of the best mattresses for back pain, with Saatva being awarded a seal of approval from the Congress of Chiropractic State Associations, and the Cloverlane receiving an endorsement from the American Chiropractic Association. 

The Saatva Classic is an innerspring hybrid with minimal foam. There is a localized strip of memory foam paired with Saatva's Lumbar Zone Active Spinal Wire, plus high-density foam rails for edge support. The rest of the mattress consists of pocketed coils with a reinforced middle for lower back support, and a base of 13-gauge tempered steel springs to prevent sagging and trapped heat. The 3-inch Euro pillow-top is wrapped in an organic cotton cover with a specialized botanical antimicrobial treatment to prevent mildew and mold.

The Cloverlane Hybrid is much more reliant on foam. There's also an all-foam version with a 9-inch foam support core instead of 8-inch wrapped coils with a dense foam wall found in the hybrid version. Both iterations feature a 2.5-inch layer of transitional support foam and two inches of gel-infused memory foam, with a half-inch thick strip of latex across the middle for lumbar support. It's capped by a 1.75-inch plush foam Euro-top cloaked in a moisture-wicking blend of polyester, cotton, and polyethylene. 

Aside from firmness, Saatva also allows you to tailor the height of the mattress to your comfort (11.5 or 14.5 inches). Meanwhile, the Cloverlane is adorned with 16 brass air vents for added breathability. You'll find side carry handles on the Cloverlane and the 14.5-inch Saatva Classic. Saatva makes it clear they produce mattresses without fiberglass, but it's unknown whether Cloverlane mattresses contain fiberglass. Both beds use CertiPUR-US certified foam.

In my opinion, the craftsmanship is what truly sets these two mattresses apart. The Cloverlane isn't poorly made, but its poly-blend cover doesn't look or feel as luxe and cozy as Saatva's tufted organic cotton cover. Plus, each Saatva Classic mattress is handcrafted to order at one of its US-based factories while the Cloverlane is mass-produced and placed in a box (albeit flat), which means you may risk some off-gassing the longer it's sealed.

Winner: Saatva Classic. Design-wise, there are similarities but Saatva's beautifully handcrafted beds take the W here. Both mattresses arrive flat via free White Glove Delivery, but the Cloverlane still arrives in a box and opts for a more utilitarian poly-blend cover, which I think diminishes the "luxury" vibe the brand is aiming for. However, I do give Cloverlane credit for adding side handles, which will make it easier to rotate and move.

Saatva Classic vs Cloverlane Hybrid: Price

• Cloverlane hosts an evergreen sale that cuts up to $700 off
• Saatva mattress sales range from $200 to $500 off
• Both include free in-room delivery, a 1-year trial, and forever warranty

The Cloverlane launched in late 2023 with up to $700 off the retail price, and that offer has held steady with a queen-size going for $1,499. These sale prices apply to the hybrid and full-foam versions of the Cloverlane, which is an unusual (but welcome) practice since hybrids typically cost more. You can add a specialty cooling cover with extra heat-wicking fibers for $199 extra, or add a bedding bundle with down pillows, percale sheets, and a mattress pad (up to a $696 value) from $199

Saatva mattress sales run all the time but those deals are more fluid. Regular discounts shave $200 to $300 off the list price, but we occasionally host exclusive offers that cut as much as $500 off, dropping the price of a queen Saatva Classic to as low as $1,595. (It regularly fetches around $1,800 during standard sales after another bump in MSRP.) 

Price-wise, the Cloverlane costs around $100 to $400 less than the Saatva Classic, though that differential will vary based on whatever promotion Saatva is running at the time. Both beds include a one-year trial, a lifetime warranty, and free White Glove Delivery with optional mattress removal – although Saatva adds foundation removal. Returns are free with the Cloverlane; Saatva charges a $99 fee. 

Winner: Cloverlane Hybrid. An evergreen discount of up to $700 won't leave you wondering how much you'll save on a Cloverlane mattress (provided the ticket price remains steady, of course). It's less than the Saatva Classic while offering most of the same amenities – with free returns, to boot. Among luxury mattresses, the Cloverlane is one of the best values out there.

That said, if you have the extra cash to spare, I'd strongly recommend spending it on the Saatva Classic, which boasts a nicer quality of craftsmanship and comes with free foundation removal if you need it.

Saatva Classic vs Cloverlane Hybrid: Comfort & support

• Saatva and Cloverlane both come in three firmness levels
• Each mattress also features targeted lumbar support
• However, the all-foam Cloverlane may offer more sinkage

The Saatva Classic and Cloverlane Hybrid both come in three firmness levels that equate to plush (3-4/10 firmness), medium-firm (5-7), and firm (8). We've personally tested the Firm Saatva Classic and a Plush Soft Cloverlane Hybrid.

Variable firmness allows you to choose a bed that's a right fit for your sleep style and body type. Softer mattresses are ideal for smaller individuals and side sleepers while firmer beds will suit heavier bodies and stomach and back sleepers. Medium-firm beds should work for back and combi sleepers, as well as those with back pain.

Don't expect much sinkage with either the Saatva Classic nor the Cloverlane Hybrid. The Saatva Classic is mostly made of coils which gives it a bouncier feel, even at its softest. Meanwhile, I slept on a Plush Soft Cloverlane Hybrid and was surprised at how solid it felt the first couple of weeks – and even after breaking it in I still felt it skewed medium-firm. There's a chance the all-foam version of the Cloverlane yields more of that sink-in sensation if that's what you're after, but you'll still need time to break it in.

The Saatva Classic and Cloverlane Hybrid sport stronger coils and specialty quilting in the center to promote proper alignment. To relieve lower back pressure, Saatva incorporates a memory foam lumbar crown and an Active Spinal Wire while Cloverlane uses a strip of latex. Each bed uses different measures to accomplish the same thing, but in my opinion one isn't noticeably better than the other here. (I tested the Saatva RX mattress, which has a similar construction to the Saatva Classic.)

Winner: Draw. The Saatva Classic and Cloverlane Hybrid offer multiple firmness options and targeted lumbar support so you can choose the level of comfort you need without sacrificing proper alignment. For a more pronounced sink-in sensation, you may want to opt for the all-foam version of the Cloverlane.

Saatva Classic vs Cloverlane Hybrid: Performance

• The Saatva Classic's design is built for cooler sleep
• The Cloverlane's foam helps it excel in motion isolation
• Choose the Saatva Classic for consistent edge support

In addition to comfort and support, we also evaluate how well a mattress can regulate temperature (so you don't overheat at night), isolate motion (so you and your partner don't annoy each other with your movements), and how sturdy the edges are (so you'll know how much of the surface you can comfortably use).

Temperature regulation

The Saatva Classic and the Cloverlane Hybrid each do a fine job of preventing heat from being trapped. Given its lack of foam and dual layer of coils, Saatva may have a tiny edge here, although the Cloverlane's brass air vents are a nice touch. Still, if you deal with severe night sweats, one of the best cooling mattress may be a proper fit.

Motion isolation

Motion isolation prevents movements from traveling across a mattress surface. This is where the Cloverlane Hybrid's use of foam works to its benefit, as it does a great job of dampening most movements. The firmest version of the Saatva Classic also performs well in this area, but you should still anticipate some bounce. Memory foam mattresses tend to be the most effective at limiting movement so the all-foam Cloverlane might be your best bet if you sleep with a restless partner.

Edge support

Edge support is important to anyone wanting to use the full surface of their mattress for sleeping, or who needs a sturdy edge to push up off in the morning. The Saatva Classic's high-density foam rails yield fantastic edge support whether you're sitting or sprawling. Notably, this appears to be the sentiment across Saatva's spectrum of firmness levels. In contrast, the edge support of the twin Plush Soft Cloverlane Hybrid I tested was inconsistent, particularly when sitting along the middle perimeter. However, there's a possibility that firmer, larger versions of the bed fare better here.

Winner: Saatva (but barely). The Cloverlane Hybrid and Saatva Classic are near-equal when it comes to overall performance, but sturdier edges and a slightly cooler sleep experience put Saatva just over the top. If you're most concerned about limiting motion transfer, either version of the Cloverlane Mattress should be on your radar. 

Saatva Classic vs Cloverlane Hybrid: which one should you buy?

Buy the Saatva Classic if...

✅ You're willing to spend for a handcrafted luxury mattress: You'll pay more for a Saatva Classic than a Cloverlane Hybrid, but in return you'll have a beautifully handcrafted mattress that's made to order and delivered straight to your bedroom, with mattress and foundation removal if you need it. 

✅ You want a mattress made without fiberglass: Cloverlane doesn't make it clear whether it uses fiberglass, but Saatva proudly advertises its use of a natural, plant-based thistle flame retardant in place of fiberglass. If you're sensitive to fiberglass or simply prefer not to sleep on a mattress that has it, go with the Saatva.

✅ You have mobility issues: With its exceptional edge support and the ability to choose your mattress depth, the Saatva Classic will offer peace of mind to sleepers who need to take their time getting in and out of bed due to an injury or health condition.

Buy the Cloverlane Hybrid if...

✅  You want the same perks as a Saatva for less: The price differential between the Cloverlane and Saatva Classic may only be a matter of a few hundred bucks, but for the most frugal shoppers among us, every dollar counts. You can spend less for a Cloverlane Mattress while availing of most of the benefits that come standard with a Saatva. 

✅  You want a mattress that's mostly (or completely) foam: The Cloverlane is available as a hybrid or all-foam mattress, with no change in price between them. If you want the deep pressure relief and superb motion isolation of a foam-based bed, you'll have that option with the Cloverlane. Even if you choose the Cloverlane Hybrid, you'll still find more foam within than you would with the Saatva. 

✅ You'd rather not pay for returns: Both mattresses come with a one-year sleep trial, but Cloverlane covers the return delivery fee if it doesn't work out. (Saatva charges $99.)

Those on the quest for better sleep have probably heard that bright lights and restful slumber are incompatible. Evening screen time can affect how well you sleep, as can light pollution from the street that illuminates your room when you’re tucked under the covers. 

Exposure to either source can throw your circadian rhythm (AKA sleep-wake cycles) off balance, thus standing in the way of falling asleep quickly and achieving quality rest, even if you've invested in the best mattress. However, you may be surprised to learn that a very specific type of light exposure in the evening can actually improve sleep… and it’s none other than the light from a sunset.

Keep reading to learn about the primary benefits of watching a sunset and how doing so can boost your sleep quality and well-being. Plus: what to do to mimic the restorative powers of natural sunlight for better rest.

How light exposure affects sleep

Just as your diet, exercise routine, and general health status can dictate how well (or how poorly) you sleep, so can your exposure to light throughout the day.

“Light is an important modulator of sleep (and wakefulness),” says Nilong Vyas, MD, board-certified pediatrician, sleep coach, and founder of family sleep consulting service Sleepless in NOLA in New Orleans, Louisiana. Again, it holds a massive influence over your circadian rhythm. “When this system is in harmony, it promotes physical and emotional benefits.”

In simple terms, bright light exposure signals wakefulness, which makes it beneficial in the morning. Meanwhile, darkness is conducive to settling down to sleep at night.

“Before the overt use of artificial lights and electronic devices and less frequent outdoor time, the rising and setting sun set people's sleep-wake cycles,” Dr Vyas explains. “However, we now have to put more effort into optimizing our cycles through systematically timed light and dark stimulation.”

These points considered, Dr Vyas says specific light wavelengths can signal to the brain that it’s time to wake or sleep. “Exposing the retinas to light at certain times of day helps set the sleep-wake cycle,” she shares, which is where the benefits of watching a sunset for sleep comes in.

According to a 2020 study published in the journal Current Biology, the light wavelengths at both sunrise and sunset have a major impact on brain centers that regulate not only your internal clock but also alertness, mood, and cognitive function. The researchers explain that the cone photoreceptors in the eyes respond to:

• Short wavelength blue light, such as the kind illuminating your devices and streaming from artificial light sources
• Long wavelength orange and yellow light and contrasting light, which exists at sunrise and sunset

The latter wavelengths can be immensely helpful for your sleep patterns, as it “stimulates the cone photoreceptor inputs to specific neurons in the eye that regulate circadian rhythms.”

3 benefits of watching a sunset

Dr Vyas says that watching a sunset can improve sleep in a few ways.

1. It boosts melatonin levels

“The sunset activates the signal to the brain that it will soon be time for sleep by increasing melatonin levels,” she says. Melatonin is the famed sleep hormone, and its night time release is crucial to facilitate a smooth transition from wakefulness to sleepiness.

(Exposure to blue light and environmental light pollution close to bedtime suppresses the secretion of melatonin, Harvard Health explains — hence why both sources are red flags as far as sleep hygiene is concerned.)

2. It promotes deeper, more restorative sleep

“Increasing exposure to light waves at sunset resets the circadian rhythm, precipitating deeper and more restful sleep overnight,” Dr Vyas continues.

3. It supports relaxation and sleep latency

“If done regularly, watching the sunset can be an activity that creates a relaxation state in the body,” the sleep expert continues. Watching the sunset can inspire a sense of awe, which — when experienced on a daily basis — can reduce stress and help alleviate somatic health symptoms including insomnia and fatigue, per a 2023 article in the journal Scientific Reports.

When your body and mind are at ease — from watching a sunset, enjoying fresh air in nature, or any combination of contributing factors — you set the stage for shorter sleep onset (aka sleep latency), says Dr Vyas. In other words, you’ll have a much easier time drifting off to sleep.

How to mimic a sunset if you can't see one

Though it’s a worthy goal to watch a sunset — for your sleep, relaxation, and exposure to nature’s wonders alike — it might not be possible to catch it regularly. In this case, you have a few options at your disposal.

“If watching the sunset regularly is too difficult, several devices are available for purchase that mimic evening lux values to improve overnight sleep quality and quantity,” Dr Vyas shares. Many of today's best smart lights have settings that can mimic a sunset. 

One option is the TUO Circadian Smart Bulb, which uses patented, UV-free technology based on findings by the University of Washington’s leading vision and neuroscience centers (including the research cited above). This light connects to WiFi and adjusts based on your personalized sleep schedules and lighting preferences, helping to mimic both a sunrise and a sunset.

Other lighting technology such as SAD lights and sunrise lights are also available, though they won’t target the same part of the eye (and elicit the precise benefits of a sunset outlined above).

All the while, there’s no shortage of hacks to optimize your sleep that include but go beyond lighting considerations alone. Some of the most effective and foolproof sleep hygiene tips worth adopting include:

• Limiting screen time in the hours leading up to bed
• Dimming lights as part of your bedtime routine
• Investing in blackout curtains or shades to block light pollution
• Setting a cool and breathable bedroom environment
• Using a white noise machine or app to drown out noise pollution
• Ensuring you have the best mattress for your body type and sleeping position

Hello to the long weekend and an extra big hello to a massive mattress saving – the Nectar Memory Foam mattress is currently 20% off, taking a double down to just £480. That's the cheapest price we've seen for this mattress since we started recording prices in 2022 – we recommend spending your bank holiday weekend snatching up this bargain. That way, by the time the next bank holiday rolls around (May 6th, not that I’m counting), you’ll be able to celebrate your lie-in in style. 

The Nectar memory foam mattress is a hugely popular bed with a versatile sleep surface and a strong all-round performance that has earned it a place in both our best mattress and best memory foam mattress guide. You can learn more about our experience with our Nectar memory foam mattress review. 

Otherwise, keep on reading to see why this Nectar mattress deal should bring some sunshine to your Easter weekend. And if that doesn't catch your eye, you can find the rest of the spring savings with our mattress sales hub.

This deal is for the UK Nectar memory foam mattress – if you're in the US, you can get a queen size Nectar memory foam mattress for just $649 in the Nectar spring sale, which is an equally impressive saving (although, you won't get the long weekend thrown in for free as well).

Buy it if...

✅ You want a mattress that cradles you: The Nectar memory foam mattress doesn't have the deep sink of a softer all-foam mattress, but it's also not a bed you lie on top of. Instead, those cushioned upper layers will gently cradle your body, with an initial softness that gives way to a sturdy support.

✅ You want premium extras: While the Nectar is a mid-range mattress, the extras are undoubtedly premium. You can enjoy a 365-night mattress trial – that's a full year to try out the bed – plus a lifetime guarantee with your purchase. 

✅ You share a bed: Good motion isolation is when a mattress is able to absorb movement on one side so it doesn't disturb a person sleeping on the other. The Nectar memory foam mattress is great at this and, combined with the versatile sleep surface, this makes it a particularly comfortable choice for couples.

Don't buy it if...

❌ You're a side sleeper with a lightweight build: The Nectar mattress has a medium-firm feel without the plush cushioning of other memory foam mattresses. Lightweight side sleepers might prefer the softer surface of the Emma Original – you can learn more with our Emma Original mattress review (and there's 20% off with the Emma spring sale).

❌ You want a more luxurious feel: As a mid-range mattress, the Nectar doesn't deliver the premium sleep experience that you might expect from the very best beds. In our Panda Bamboo Hybrid mattress review we noted how this bed suits similar sleep styles (back and combi) while also delivering a luxury finish. There's a rare Panda 25% off sale running right now.

❌ You sleep hot: Memory foam mattresses can sleep hot and while the Nectar isn't terrible in this area, frequent night sweat-sufferers might prefer a more breathable bed, such as the Nectar Premier Hybrid. Our tester was impressed with the overall cooling capabilities during our Nectar Premier Hybrid review, and this bed is in the same Nectar Easter sale, with a double down to just £740.

Browsing our guide to the best hybrid mattresses and wondering whether this type of bed is right for you? Most of the best mattresses around are hybrids, and there are some excellent advantages to this build style. So if you're shopping for a new bed, it's a good place to start.

By definition, hybrid mattresses are multi-layered mattresses that contain at least two different types of materials. It can be any combination of materials, but hybrids usually combine springs with some kind of foam. And while their properties vary depending on their exact design, hybrid beds can be excellent at delivering support, pressure relief, and cooling. 

We've taken a look at the down-sides of buying a hybrid mattress, but now it's time to explore the flip-side: what are the advantages of buying a hybrid bed? And as you're about to find out, there's quite a few of them. Let's get started...

#1. Good temperature regulation

If you tend to wake up sweaty and uncomfortable – even in the middle of winter – then you want to pay attention to this performance factor. A mattress with good temperature regulation stays an even, cooler, temperature throughout the night to prevent you from overheating. And it's an area where hybrids beds can excel. 

The dense structure of mattress foams mean they can cling on to body heat. Manufacturers have come up with all kinds of fancy ways to stop memory foam mattresses from sleeping hot – we’re talking copper-infusions, phase-change materials, perforated air channels, and that’s just the tip of the all-foam cooling iceberg. But if your mattress also contains coils, it's always going to be better at regulating temperature. The gaps between the springs leave space for air to circulate, allowing heat to dissipate.

Of course, some hybrid mattresses are better than others at cooling. If your hybrid has a thick layer of memory foam at the top, it still might run a bit warm. But, overall, we expect the majority of hybrid mattresses to offer better temperature regulation than an all-foam mattress. (If you really struggle with overheating at night, you want one of the best cooling mattresses.)

#2. Stronger edge support

If the center of your mattress feels sturdy but the sides sink as soon as you sit on them, your bed has bad edge support. Edge support refers to how stable the perimeter of the mattress is, and it’s a necessary component if you push against the edge of the bed to get up in the morning (particularly for those with poor mobility). It’s also an important feature for those who share a bed, especially if your partner likes to stretch and you often find yourself clinging to the edges.

Overall, hybrids tend to have better edge support than all-foam mattresses. Hybrid beds can increase edge support by using thicker, stronger coils at the perimeter, adding foam railings to the side, or a combination of the two. If you want to starfish across the full surface of the bed without feeling like you're rolling off, it's worth considering a hybrid.

#3. They’re easy to move around on

The spring layer found in most hybrids makes them more responsive and easier to change position on, compared to a slow-moving foam mattress. With a bouncy hybrid, you can switch sides and the surface will meet your new position almost immediately, allowing you to stay comfortably supported even if you toss and turn. Beds with more sink, like many of the best memory foam mattresses, can be a struggle to move around on, as the foams hold onto your old position.

#4. They suit back and stomach sleepers

We tend to associate hybrid mattresses with a firmer feel and memory foam mattresses with a softer feel. Now, there’s lots of variation within that (there are softer hybrids and firmer memory foam mattresses) but broadly, hybrid beds have a more supportive feel than a cushioned memory foam.

This makes them a good choice for those who sleep on their back or stomach and therefore requires extra support at the hips or lower back. We also recommend hybrids for those with heavier bodies, as the combination of coils and cushion materials can provide head-to-toe support. All the mattresses in our best mattress for bigger bodies guide are hybrids.

#5. Hybrids are versatile

Hybrids are mattresses that combine two types of materials – and that leaves a lot of room for variation. Typically, hybrids consist of springs and foams. Some use more springs and less foam, others opt for more foam, less springs, and some have an even balance of the two. Check out two of our favorite hybrids – the Saatva Classic and the Helix Midnight. In our Saatva Classic mattress review, we noted the thin layer of foam meant this hybrid felt more like an innerspring mattress. Whereas in our Helix Midnight review, we found the multiple layers of foam created a more sumptuous experience.

You can also find a wide range of comfort materials used in hybrids. Some stick with softer memory foams, others use latex (most of our best organic mattresses combine springs with latex), and you can even find natural cushioning materials, such as wool. And there are plenty of spring variations to consider as well. Although many hybrids use just one layer of springs, some have multiple, including layers of responsive micro-coils.

And a hybrid doesn't need to be springs and coils. That might be what we expect from a hybrid mattress, but technically any material combination can count. Check out our Purple mattress review – this bed contains a GelFlex Grid and foams, giving it a completely unique feel.

All this results in a style of bed that suits a vast range of people. So if you're thinking of buying a new mattress, a hybrid is a great place to start trying out different surface feels, to see what you need in a bed.

Can’t start your day without a hearty dose of coffee? Regularly brew a cup of green tea after lunch? While these caffeinated drinks offer health benefits that go beyond helping you perk up and stay focused, relying on them in high quantities and/or drinking up too late in the day could mean bad news for your shuteye come nightfall, and having even the very best mattress may not be enough to lull you off to sleep.

If you can’t bear to part ways with your go-to sources of caffeine, it’ll be in your best interest to at least cap off intake at a certain point in the day; it's also useful to know that the best time in the morning to drink coffee is 10am, not first thing.

We spoke to a dietician to discover if there’s an ideal time to stop caffeinating for the sake of better sleep, and also learned why caffeine and sleep are at odds with each other, as well as finding out about some surprising sources of the stimulant you may also want to steer clear of.

When should I stop drinking caffeine before bed?

“It is suggested that most people should stop consuming caffeine at least six hours before bedtime [to avoid] disruptive effects on sleep,” says Amy Shapiro, MS, RD, CDN, founder and director of Real Nutrition in New York City.

According to a 2013 study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, participants who consumed 400 milligrams of caffeine 0, 3, or 6 hours before their regular bedtime led to significantly disturbed sleep compared to placebo groups.

People who are sensitive to caffeine and/or have ongoing sleep issues may want to cease caffeinating even earlier than the six-hour mark. On the other hand, some may take to a post-dinner shot of espresso just fine and have no difficulty catching their ZZZs within a few hours’ time.

In short, the ideal caffeine cutoff time will be based on the individual, so the six-hour mark is a decent general guideline. “The timing may vary due to the high variability of individual responses to caffeine consumption based on sex, age, diet, health, metabolism etc.,” Shapiro explains. “Depending on the individual, the effects of caffeine consumption can last up to 12 hours.”

The amount of caffeine present in the beverage will also play a role, she adds. For example, a large cup of coffee can pack over 400 milligrams of caffeine, while a bottle of iced tea can offer 20 to 50 milligrams per serving. Caffeine content will vary based on factors such as the size of the drink, brands, and brewing times.

What caffeine does to your body

“Caffeine is a stimulant that increases activity in your brain and nervous system, and increases circulation of neurotransmitters including cortisol and adrenaline,” Shapiro explains. (Cortisol is known as the stress hormone yet it also helps us stay alert. Similarly, adrenaline helps prepare us for fight-or-flight mode and allows us to react quickly.)

Short-term effects of caffeine, she continues, typically include:

• Mental alertness
• Physical energy
• Increased breathing
• Faster heart rate

Caffeine isn’t without its risks. Shapiro warns that high doses, frequent use, or potential adverse effects may include:

• Restlessness
• Excitement
• Tremor
• Anxiety
• Headaches
• Insomnia
• Physical and/or psychological dependence

Why caffeine disrupts sleep

Most people reach for caffeine since it helps them stay awake, so it makes sense that it’d be at odds with falling asleep.

“Caffeine acts primarily on receptors in the body that are related to functions of the brain associated with sleep, arousal, and cognition,” Shapiro explains. “Adenosine receptor agonists in the brain generally promote sleep, and caffeine promotes wakefulness by antagonizing [i.e., inhibiting or counteracting] those receptors.”

In other words, caffeine disallows certain sleepiness cues to kick in when they should—which is how coffee, caffeinated tea and the like can prevent a good night’s rest.

In addition to affecting sleep latency (i.e., the time it takes to fall asleep), caffeine may also worsen sleep quality. In a 2021 randomized controlled trial in healthy men, published in the Journal of Biological Rhythms, those who had 150 milligrams of caffeine three times in the daytime over 10 days experienced the following sleep issues compared to a placebo group:

• Delays in REM sleep (a sleep stage that heavily influences subjective sleep quality)
• Greater difficulty waking up
• Feeling more tired upon arising

What foods and drinks contain caffeine?

You likely already know that coffee, some teas (namely black and green tea), and energy drinks contain caffeine. However, they’re not the only dietary items that pack the stimulant.

According to Shapiro, additional sources of caffeine you may want to cut off by the afternoon include:

• Soft drinks, such as soda
• Gum
• Some protein bars
• Chocolate/cacao
• Some medications

Moreover, it’s worth remembering that the terms ‘decaf’ and ‘caffeine-free’ aren’t interchangeable. The former indicates that caffeine was removed from a given product and trace amounts will likely remain present. Meanwhile, the latter indicates that caffeine wasn’t in a given product (such as the majority of herbal teas) to begin with.

The takeaway

If you struggle to fall asleep at night, you may find relief by ceasing caffeine intake 6 hours before bedtime. However, since caffeine tolerance varies by the individual, you might need to extend this timeline, sometimes to as long as 12 hours.

It could also benefit your ZZZs to reduce the amount of caffeine you consume (i.e., going from two cups to one cup daily) or perhaps even slowly taper off caffeine entirely.

Last but not least, you can always add items that promote better rest—such as chamomile tea and tart cherry juice—into your nightly regimen.

Our best hybrid mattress guide contains some of the most popular (and most comfortable) beds on the market, so if you're thinking of upgrading your sleep setup, this is an excellent place to start. And occupying the top spots on our list are two incredible beds – the DreamCloud mattress and the Helix Midnight mattress. But which hybrid is right for you?

Here at TechRadar, we've had the opportunity to test out both these mattresses – head to our DreamCloud mattress review and our Helix Midnight mattress review for the in-depth results. To cut a long story short, these hybrid mattresses use a combination of springs and foams to deliver exceptional support, and they're both good enough to earn a place in our overall best mattress guide.

In this article, we'll break it down and compare exactly how the the DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight match up in a range of specific areas. Overall, we think the DreamCloud mattress is the better hybrid bed, winning three categories and drawing the fourth. An affordable yet high quality bed, the DreamCloud hybrid mattress has a versatile sleep surface that will suit a range of people. 

However, this isn't quite the runaway victory you might expect from those results. The Helix Midnight puts up a good fight, especially as the softer surface makes it one of the very best mattresses for side sleepers as well as those with a lighter build. Preference plays a big role in which mattress to choose, so let's dive into this DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight showdown and see what's happening.

DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight mattress: specs

DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight mattress: design

• Both hybrid mattresses containing a combination of springs and foam
• Both feature a variety of foams, including memory foam
• Premium upgrades available for both – more layers and increased cooling

Both the DreamCloud and the Helix Midnight are hybrid beds, meaning they contain springs and foams (you can learn more with our memory foam vs hybrid mattress explainer). 

The DreamCloud contains six internal layers, plus a cashmere upper cover and a shift-resistant lower cover. At the top is a layer of quilted gel memory foam, designed to be both contouring and breathable. Beneath this sits a layer of support foam, followed by a layer of adaptive, cushioning, gel-infused memory foam, before a dynamic transition foam. Next comes the springs – individually wrapped coils, with thicker springs placed around the perimeter for support. Finally, there's one more layer of foam, this time to provide stability at the base.

The Helix Midnight features five internal layers, plus a breathable knit cover (or you can upgrade to the GlacioKnit cooling pillow top cover, for roughly an extra $350). The top layer consists of a Helix-blend memory foam, crafted to provide sleepers with unique pressure relief. Beneath this sits two layers of response foam, offering cushioning alongside ergonomic support. Then there's the individually wrapped springs – up to 1,000, depending on the mattress size – with reinforced coils at the lengthwise sides. At the base is a layer of DuraDense foam, for stability and durability.

The DreamCloud has the slightly more complex design, and it also comes with handles, which make it easier to move. The Helix Midnight is both handle-less and heavy (a queen weighs 100 lbs, compared to the 78 lbs DreamCloud). If you want to shift the Helix Midnight, you'll probably need to call in a second pair of hands.

If you like the sound of either mattress but you'd prefer something a little more luxurious, good news: you can opt for a premium upgrade. For the DreamCloud, you can upgrade to the Premier, which is taller with upgraded cooling, or the Premier Rest, which is even taller again and has even better cooling. 

But for the biggest choice of upgrades, check out the Helix Midnight. This is available as the the Helix Midnight Luxe, which is taller, comes with a cushioned pillow top cover, and has an additional layer of cooling memory foam. Or there's the Helix Midnight Elite – it's more than twice the price, but you'll get two additional layers of micro-coils, plus a GlacioTex cushioned cover is included as standard. For a more affordable upgrade, add the GlacioTex cooling pillow top cover to the Helix Midnight (you can also add a GlacioTex cover to the Helix Midnight Luxe). There are a lot of ways to customize this bed.

Design winner: DreamCloud

The DreamCloud just takes this thanks to its extra layer and the convenient handles. But it's a tough call, as they're both solid designs.

DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight: price & extras

• DreamCloud is lower-mid range with a year trial and lifetime warranty
• Helix Midnight is mid-range with a 100-night trial and 10-year warranty
• Both mattresses are always discounted

DreamCloud is priced at $1,332 for a queen, which puts it in the upper mid-range price bracket. However, you never have to pay full price at DreamCloud. Sales run throughout the year, with a queen typically sold for $799. If you're lucky, you might be able to grab it during a DreamCloud half price sale, when the queen sells for $665, putting it in the lower-mid range.

Similarly, while the Helix Midnight has an MSRP of $1,373.80, you should never pay full price. The Helix Midnight evergreen sale always knocks off 20%, taking a queen down to $1,099 and you can expect Helix to throw in a freebie as well (typically a pillow set). And like DreamCloud, Helix occasionally offers a bigger discount – you'll often be able to nab 25% off around the major sale days.

In the evergreen sale, the DreamCloud offers incredible value for the price. It has a luxurious look and feel, and while it might not deliver the longevity and performance of a premium mattress, it goes above and beyond the mid-range price bracket. And although the Helix Midnight isn't quite so affordable, it's still great value for money.

When it comes to extras, DreamCloud again over-performs for the price: you get a full 365 nights to test the mattress, plus a forever warranty. The 100-night mattress trial and 10-year warranty of the Helix Midnight can't compare (although these are fairly standard extras).

Price winner: DreamCloud

DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight: comfort & support

• DreamCloud is a medium-firm bed (7.5/10)
• Helix Midnight is a medium bed (5.5/10)
• DreamCloud is best for back sleepers, Helix Midnight suits side sleepers 

DreamCloud describes the hybrid mattress as "luxury firm", rating it 6.5 out of 10 on the firmness scale (with one being super-soft and 10 being ultra-hard). Our tester disagreed slightly, rating it as medium-firm and placing it at 7.5 on the scale.

This makes the DreamCloud a pretty versatile mattress. Our tester found it comfortable in a range of sleep positions, and rated it highly for alleviating joint and back pains (it's one of our best mattresses for back pain). The medium-firm feel will probably suit back sleepers best, but it can also work for side and stomach sleepers. However, lightweight side sleepers might need something softer, while stomach sleepers with a heavier build might prefer something firmer. Overall, however, this is a mattress with a wide appeal.

We typically expect hybrid mattresses to be on the firmer side, but the Helix Midnight bucks that trend with a medium feel and a contouring effect. The official rating from Helix spans five and six out of ten, and our tester largely agreed, rating it a 5.5 (or medium).

A softer feel provides more cushioning at the pressure points, which is why we recommend this bed for side sleepers – in fact, the Helix Midnight is among the best mattresses for side sleepers. However, back and stomach sleepers, as well as those with a heavier build, might need to opt for something firmer.

Comfort winner: draw

It really comes down to personal preference here, as the DreamCloud and Helix Midnight suit different sleep styles. Want something firmer? Go for the DreamCloud. Prefer a softer cushioning? Helix Midnight is the winner.

DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight: performance

• Both are breathable mattresses (with cooling upgrades for hot sleepers)
• Both have strong motion isolation
• DreamCloud offers slightly better edge support

We test all our mattresses in three key areas: temperature regulation, motion isolation, and edge support. These attributes help us understand how the mattress performs during the night.

Despite neither mattress being a cooling bed, we were impressed with the temperature regulation of both the DreamCloud and the Helix Midnight. Hybrid mattresses are typically breathable thanks to those open coils, and these beds stay an even temperature throughout the night. Very hot sleepers might want to invest in a cooling upgrade – the premium version of both beds come with increased cooling capabilities – but the average sleeper should be pleasantly comfortable.

Motion isolation refers to how much disruptive movement travels across the bed. Simply put, if one person moves, can the other person in the bed feel it? Both the DreamCloud and Helix Midnight mattress impressed our testers with how well they trapped motion, meaning if you share with a restless partner, you should be able to sleep undisturbed (or, at least, not go barreling towards a sleep divorce).

Finally, edge support. This describes how strong a mattress is at the perimeter. Do the sides collapse when you push against them? Or can you sit on the edge of the mattress and still feel a sturdy support? While both mattresses are rated highly in this category, the DreamCloud just comes out on top. With the Helix Midnight, our tester felt the edges showed a "notable amount of sinkage" when they were reclining at night. This sinkage wasn't an issue with the DreamCloud.

Winner: DreamCloud

DreamCloud vs Helix Midnight: which should I buy?

Buy the DreamCloud if...

✅ You sleep on your back: The DreamCloud offers good support for a range of sleeping positions, but the medium-firm feel is best suited for back sleepers. it hits the sweet spot between supporting and cushioning, offering impressive pressure relief while keeping your spine aligned.

✅ You push against the edge of the bed to get up: With reinforced coils placed around the perimeter of the mattress, the DreamCloud provides edge-to-edge support. If you push against the side of the bed to get up in the morning, you'll find a stable base with the DreamCloud.

✅ You're on a tighter budget: You never have to pay full price for the DreamCloud hybrid, with an evergreen discount making this mattress excellent value for money. Even better, you'll get a 365-night trial to decide if the bed's for you, plus peace of mind thanks to a lifetime warranty.

Buy the Helix Midnight if...

✅ You sleep on your side: Softer than your usual hybrid, the Helix Midnight offers comforting pressure relief for side sleepers. Your hips and shoulders will feel cushioned while the spine has ample support, for a dreamy experience.

✅ You want a hybrid without the bounce: Due to that layer of springs, hybrids are known for being bouncier beds than their all-foam counterparts. However, the softer top foam layers of the Helix Midnight give the bed a plusher feel, resulting in a mattress that provides a contouring pressure relief, instead of the responsiveness of a traditional hybrid. Although not quite the 'hug' you'd expect from the best memory foam mattresses, the Helix Midnight offers a nice middle ground.

We might traditionally associate Easter with chocolate and bunny rabbits, but how about bamboo, pandas, and a brand new mattress? With 25% off the Panda Bamboo Hybrid mattress, now is the perfect time to treat yourself to a premium sleep experience. But act fast, as Panda sales are rare, and they never last for very long.

The Panda Bamboo Hybrid has earned a spot in our best mattress guide thanks to its overall quality build and highly supportive feel – you can learn more about why we rate this mattress so highly in our Panda Bamboo Hybrid mattress review. One of the best hybrid mattress picks, the Panda is perfect for stomach and back sleepers, or anyone seeking a long-lasting, supportive bed.

Not sure if this premium bed is the one for you? Stick around to discover why this spring saving from Panda is one mattress sale you don't want to let pass you by. 

Buy the Panda Bamboo Hybrid mattress if...

✅ You want to invest in quality: Our reviewer was impressed with the thoughtful build, overall durability, and luxury feel of this mattress. We think this bed is worth the money at full price, which makes this rare sale an opportunity to grab a bargain.

✅ You sleep on your back or stomach: With a medium-firm feel and strategically zoned springs helping keep the spine aligned, the Panda hybrid is a good choice for stomach and back sleepers. It's firm enough to keep the hips and lower back supported, while the soft bamboo cover and comfort foams add gentle contouring and cushioning.

✅ You want edge-to-edge support: Thanks to its impressive edge support, you can make the most of every square inch of the Panda hybrid surface without sinking. Good edge support also helps those with limited mobility who need to push against the side of the bed to get up. Press against the sides of the Panda and you'll find a stable base.

Buy the Panda Bamboo Hybrid mattress if...

❌ You're a lightweight side sleeper: The Panda hybrid is a versatile mattress, but lightweight side sleepers might find it a little too firm at the hips and shoulders. In our Brook + Wilde Elite mattress review, we were impressed by the multitude of firmness options – lightweight side sleepers should opt for 'medium' or 'soft'. You can claim 50% off the Brook + Wilde Elite with the code UPTO60.

❌ You're on a tight budget: The Panda is a premium-priced mattress. While this discount is a big one, it's still not the most affordable bed. Check out our Emma NextGen Premium mattress review for a more budget-friendly hybrid with a similar feel. A double Emma NextGen Premium mattress is just £503.30 in the Emma spring sale. Alternatively, consider a mattress topper. In our Panda Bamboo mattress topper review, we found it was a budget-friendly way to update an old mattress. And it's just £125.96 for a double in the Panda sale.

❌ You're sensitive to strong smells: Our tester noted a strong mattress off-gassing smell that hung around for a week once the Panda Bamboo was set up. This scent should disappear eventually, and ventilating the room can help it clear quicker, but for those first few nights, you might experience a bit of a smell. 

If you want your best hybrid mattress to provide you with supportive sleep for as long as possible, you need to take good care of it. More often than not, that means you have to rotate your hybrid bed.

Rotating a hybrid adjusts where the pressure is placed overnight. Instead of always lying on the same springs and foams, causing them to repeatedly compress and eventually sag, your weight will be distributed to different parts of the bed. Rotating can keep your best mattress at its best. In this guide, we’ll dive into rotating a hybrid mattress, including when you don’t need to do it. For more information on how, when, and why to turn your bed, check out our guide to flipping and rotating mattresses.

Rotating a hybrid can be a little difficult, because the presence of springs mean they tend to be heavy beds (that’s one of the disadvantages of a hybrid mattress). However, it doesn’t need to be done very often, and it’s worth the effort for the comfort regular rotation will deliver. And on the flip side, most hybrid mattresses don’t need to be flipped.

But before you start moving your bed around, keep in mind that you don’t need to rotate all hybrid mattresses. Some hybrids feature zoned layers that are designed to only be used one way round.

When not to rotate a hybrid mattress

Some hybrid mattresses contain zoned support – extra reinforcement where your body needs it most. In many cases, this zoned support is at the center of the bed, so the mattress can be rotated without affecting the feel. However, sometimes this reinforcement is more localized, and rotating the bed will put the support in the wrong place. This will make the mattress uncomfortable to sleep on, and it can also affect the longevity. 

If you’re not sure whether you need to rotate your hybrid mattress, check any information that arrived with the mattress when it was delivered, or head across to the brand website, where you should find the information you need.

Two hybrid mattresses that require rotating

And one that doesn't

I fell asleep at the last press event I attended. It's not as bad as it sounds. In fact, instead of being wildly unprofessional, it was actually what the hosts were hoping for.  

The event was to launch Scores of Sleep, Vol 1 – an album that's been composed specifically to lull you to sleep. Emma (one of our best mattress brands) looked at a study exploring the characteristics of sleep-promoting music, then worked with composer Torben Brüggemann to create a series of original tracks that would provide the perfect bedtime playlist. 

The whole thing was performed live, with Torben on keyboard, along with an electronic artist and string quartet, to an audience tucked up on Emma mattresses. Sure, it's one of the weirder press events I've been to, but it certainly illustrated how effective Emma's album is: I fell asleep during the final tracks, but judging by the (thankfully quiet) snores around, I was one of the last to nod off. 

Not everyone has a string quartet to serenade them off to sleep, but Scores of Sleep, Vol 1 is available to stream for free on Spotify, so you can listen to it from the comfort of your own bed. Perhaps it'll be even more relaxing without an array of strangers snoozing nearby? I couldn't say.

Sleep music characteristics

What makes Emma's sleep album so effective? There have been a few studies exploring how we use music to regulate our behavior in everyday life, but Emma's starting point was a 2023 study from the Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus. Researchers analyzed over 220k tracks from Spotify sleep playlists to find common features. 

Compared with other general playlists, they discovered the sleep tracks tended to be quieter, less energetic and less 'danceable', so the listener is less motivated to move to them, as well as being more likely to be acoustic and instrumental. They also found a specific tempo (around 105 BPM) that was most relaxing. These characteristics were used to inform Emma's original compositions.

How to use music in your evening routine

I spoke to neuroscientist and sleep specialist Angela Kondinska, who now works on the Emma product development team, to find out more about the brand's vision for the album. She explained that the idea of releasing it on Spotify was so that people could use it how they want to, whether that's to help them relax before bed, as part of their sleep routine, or as a playlist to actually fall asleep to.

She's also keen to emphasize that one of the most important things when it comes to any aspect of your evening routine is to find something that appeals to you, rather than trying to shoehorn something in just because you've been told it should help. Lots of people find white noise soothing, for instance, but if irritates you it's never going to help you relax and sleep. (In general, Angela thinks it's time to stop micromanaging sleep.)

"The big thing is likability, so people should enjoy the songs they listen to," she says. If Scores of Sleep isn't your thing, it's far from your only choice. In fact, Emma has also curated a range of sleep playlists, in genres from pop to hip-hop, as well as rating popular artist's most sleep-inducing tunes. 

Bedrooms should be a sanctuary for sleep; a place where you can switch off from the world and focus on relaxation. So it's no wonder that sleep experts are united in their dislike of the office bedroom. But for many remote workers, a desk in the bedroom is a necessity for quiet working conditions, even if sleep suffers as a result. 

I'm a hybrid worker, and when I'm at home, my bedroom is my office. However, I really love my sleep and having spent three years working from the same corner of my room, I've found ways to stop my home office from disrupting my dozing. And because I know how important it is to get as much sleep as you need, I want to share my tips with you.

But before we get started – if your office is in the bedroom, it's important that your setup is as comfortable as possible. Our best mattress and best pillow guides ensure your sleep is supported, while our guide to the best office chairs can take care of you during the day.

Why are bedroom offices bad?

Having your office in your bedroom erodes the distinction between 'work' and 'rest', as these two very different activities happen in the same place. This can cause the stresses of the day to follow you into the night, making it harder to fall asleep and stay asleep. 

Without a clear separation between your office and your sleep environment, you might struggle to switch off at the end of the day. Your desk is just over there, why shouldn't you check a few emails before settling in for the night? But this is a bad idea on several levels. 

As well as exposing yourself to sleep-disrupting blue light, you'll also be exposing yourself to the stress and anxiety associated with the office. (No matter how much you might love your job, answering emails is no replacement for counting sheep.) Rest, relaxation, and work can become jumbled into one big mess, resulting in disrupted nights and a lack of focus during the day.

How I make my bedroom office work

While I'd rather my desk wasn't in my bedroom, unfortunately, it's the only viable place for it to be – and I know many people share the same problem. But after multiple years working from the same corner, I've come up with some tricks to ensure I don't take a day at the office to bed with me:

1. The morning is just as important as the evening

I can talk a lot about how important it is to put away work at the end of the day (and I will do, in a bit). But it's also important to step away from work at the start of the day. During what might be considered my commute, I make a conscious effort to stand back from the 'office' part of my bedroom until my work day officially starts.

The 10-3-2-1-0 sleep method recommends stopping work two hours before you go to bed, and I recommend echoing that in the morning. By giving myself at least an hour away from my desk, I can wake up, get ready, and get my brain into gear before starting work. By waiting for my drowsiness to (mostly) clear, I avoid associating sleepiness with checking my emails.

2. Introduce lots of light

My desk is in a corner that doesn’t get a lot of light (and, unfortunately, in a country that doesn’t get a lot of sunshine). This isn’t great for my circadian rhythm, which needs light in the morning to help me feel awake, and dark in the evening to help me drift off. Low light all day means my body clock isn't sure what's going on.

For that reason, on the days when the clouds aren’t cooperating, I use a SAD wake-up lamp to create my own daylight. Giving off a strong white light, the lamp makes it feel like a bright morning, even when my desk is still in the dark. In the afternoon, I either switch it off or swap to a softer, calmer light to get me ready for the evening wind-down. This way, when I go to bed at night, the lighting doesn't remind me of being in the office, and my body clock feels like it has followed the natural rhythms of the day. Which brings me to my next point...

3. Get outside at the end of the day

Remaining active is an important part of sleep hygiene, and exercise can help you sleep. But when I'm working from home, I lose out on a lot of basic activity simply because all my rooms are so close together (my best fitness tracker might barely register triple digit steps). To counter this, I make an effort to get out almost as soon as I finish work every day. Not only does this get me moving, which helps me sleep, it also sets a distinct end to the day, which, again, helps me sleep.

On the occasions when I can't get out for whatever reason, I make sure to leave the bedroom when I put my work down. Even if it’s just to go and stand in the kitchen, stepping back from the office means I can’t pick up my laptop for just a few more minutes that accidentally stretches into an hour. 

4. Stay out of bed

With the bed right behind my desk chair, it can be hard to resist the lure of crawling under the covers with my laptop. But I've tried working from bed and as well as being super uncomfortable (beds are not made to be desks) it's also disastrous for my sleep and my work. During the day, it feels like I should be sleeping. At night, I can't shake off the feeling that I should be at work.

To help me resist bed working (it's harder than you think – I write about mattresses all day), tidying my sheets is an important part of my morning routine. I also quickly declutter my bedroom, so it feels less like a cozy bedtime space, and more like a work environment.

5. Stick to a bedtime routine

I'm a hybrid worker, and the days I'm in the office look very different to the days I spend at home. To avoid this from completely disrupting my schedule and giving me social jet lag, I try to keep to a consistent bedtime routine.

I start my wind-down at roughly the same time every night, whether I've been at home all day or I'm not long off the train. And while my mornings look pretty different depending on where I'm working, I try to keep some consistency by setting my 'at-home' alarm within an hour of my 'in-office' alarm. By giving myself time in the morning to wake up and time in the evening to switch off, my work feels contained, and doesn't encroach on my sleep.

The best hybrid mattresses are among the very best beds around. They're breathable, they provide excellent support and pressure relief, and they suit a wide range of sleepers. So are there any down-sides to a hybrid mattress?

As a general rule, hybrid mattresses are heavier, more expensive beds, with a higher level of motion transfer. But before you assume a hybrid isn't the best mattress for you, check out this guide, where we'll talk you through the down-sides of a hybrid bed (and why they might actually turn out to be an advantage).

Hybrids are usually more expensive

Hybrid mattresses have a reputation for being a more expensive style of bed, and that’s generally accurate. The majority of mattresses in our best luxury mattress guide are hybrids, and when considering how much to spend on a mattress, prepare for a higher price tag if you're set on a hybrid.

But there's a reason why you can expect to pay more. Hybrid mattresses take their name because they’re composed of two or more different materials (typically springs and foams, but there are variations). The price of these different materials, combined with the complexity of the manufacturing process, leads to an increased cost for the consumer.

While hybrid beds might pricier on average than memory foam or innerspring mattresses, you can still get a hybrid on a budget – several are featured in our guide to the best cheap mattresses. 

And at the other end of the spectrum...

Hybrid mattresses have more motion transfer

Motion transfer refers to when movement made on one side of the bed can be felt on the other. If your mattress has good motion isolation, your bed partner can toss, turn, and even get out of bed, and you’ll hardly know they’re moving. The best memory foam mattresses have excellent motion isolation, as the dense foam absorbs the vibrations from tossing and turning.

But because hybrids are often built with coils, they tend to be bouncier, resulting in increased motion transfer. There are ways to limit this. Many hybrid beds use pocket coils rather than a continuous coil, because the individual pocketing helps contain motion. In addition, top layers of cushioned comfort materials (often foams) can absorb movement before it reaches the springs. So even though when comparing memory foam vs hybrid mattresses, memory foams will generally have better motion isolation, hybrids can still be a good choice for couples.

Hybrid mattresses are heavier

With all those weighty springs, hybrid mattresses can be a heavy beds. Take one of our favorite hybrids, the DreamCloud. A queen-size DreamCloud hybrid weighs 78lbs (roughly 35kg). In comparison, in our Nectar memory foam mattress review, we noted a queen weighs only 66lbs (roughly 30kg). Both beds are from the same parent company (Resident Home) but have a noticeable weight difference.

Because of this extra weight, hybrid mattresses can be hard to maneuver. If you live alone, you might want to pay for white glove delivery to get your bed setup (or enlist several helpers). And once it's on the bed frame, you might find it harder to clean the mattress.

This might be where you expect us to explain how sleep brands are reducing the weight of hybrid mattresses – but that’s not really happening. It’s just something you have to expect with a hybrid. But luckily, you rarely need to flip a hybrid mattress, and as they can last for a while, once your bed is in place, it should only need to be moved slightly every few months to be cleaned (and sometimes rotated).