 | VS. |  |
|---|---|---|
| $935 – $2,195 | Price Range | $748 – $1,248 |
| Up To $250 Off Applied In Cart | Offer | 25% Off + $250 In Free Accessories Code: SLEEPRV25 |
| Best For |
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| 365 Nights | Trial Period | 365 Nights |
| Lifetime | Warranty | Lifetime |
| Free Shipping and Returns | Shipping Options | Free Shipping and Returns |
| Shop Now | Shop Now |
If you’re on short on time (or you just don’t feel like reading a lot), below is a short summary of the primary differences between these two beds.
- Feel – The Saatva mattress has more of a traditional innerspring/pillow top feel, while the Bear mattress has more of a pure play memory foam feel.
- Price – The Bear mattress is much more affordable.
- Heavy People – The Saatva mattress is more ideal for large body types.
- Firmness Options – The Saatva mattress is available in three different firmness profiles.
- Celliant Cover – The Bear mattress has a Celliant cover that is supposed to help with recovery and promote restful sleep.
Those are just the quick hit summary points, though. There’s a lot more information and data you’ll want to consider before making a final decision. Keep reading to learn more about Saatva and Bear.
UP TO $250 OFF APPLIED IN CART
Inside the Saatva Mattress
To put it simply, the Saatva mattress is built like a tank. The bed is constructed with a mix of high-quality coils and foams. Here is a quick look at the composition of the bed starting from the bottom.
- Steel Coil Innerspring Unit – This is the foundation for the mattress and ensures the bed won’t sag or develop body impressions over time.
- Individually Wrapped Coils – This layer provides even more support and helps to minimize motion transfer.
- Memory Foam – The layer of memory foam acts a transition in the bed by providing deep pressure relief and comfort.
- Euro Pillow Top – Provides another layer of comfort for sleepers.
- Organic Cotton Cover – Wraps the pillow top giving the mattress a premium look and feel.
- Dual Perimeter Edge Support System – The bed uses a dense foam encasement around the perimeter.
As you’ve probably gathered by this point, the Saatva mattress is not your average mattress in a box. This is a premium online bed that offers ample support and will last a long time. The Bear mattress, on the other hand, is comprised entirely of foam. We’ll discuss the construction of the Bear mattress in more detail later in the review.
What Does The Saatva Mattress Feel Like?
As you would expect given its construction, the Saatva mattress has an innerspring type feel. The bed is bouncy, supportive and responsive.
However, the transition layer of memory foam and soft euro pillow top provide an element of comfort that we think most sleepers will enjoy. Overall, the euro pillow top gives the bed more of a neutral foam feel but with a little but of bounce thanks to the dual layers of coils beneath. All in all, if you tend to gravitate more towards traditional feeling beds, we’d bet you’d really like the Saatva mattress.
As you will discover later in this review, the Bear mattress uses a memory foam top layer and as a result, has a memory foam feel.
Firmness Options & Sleeper Types
One of the selling points with the Saatva mattress is that you can choose the firmness profile you want. The bed is available in three different options – Plush Soft, Luxury Firm and Firm. Here is a quick video that Jeff on our team published that walks you through how the three options differ.
The Luxury Firm model is the company’s best selling mattress. Saatva states that over 80% of consumers prefer this model. We think the Luxury Firm mattress lands around a medium firm on our scale. As such, we’d recommend this model for primary back and stomach sleepers.
If you’re a primary side sleeper, you should opt for the Plush Soft model as it provides a bit more pressure relief for your hips and shoulders. Lastly, we’d recommend the Firm model for extra large body types or people who just really like or need an extra firm mattress.
If you’re the type of person who prefers softer beds, be sure to check out our list of the top rated soft and plush mattresses.
Ideal Choice For Heavy People
Last up here, we’d like to point out that we think Saatva is an excellent choice for heavy people (250+ lb). Typically, hybrid and innerspring beds are more ideal for large body types since coils are generally more supportive and durable than the dense foam foundations that all-foam beds (like Bear) use. Heavy people exert quite a bit more force and pressure on beds than small and medium size individuals so the extra support truly is important. Luckily, with two separate layers of coils, the Saatva mattress is more than capable of properly supporting big folks.
To be fair, Bear does offer a hybrid mattress that contains pocketed coils. If you like the sound of Bear but you’re a larger individual, be sure to check out our full Bear Hybrid review. This model uses a Celliant cover just like the Original Bear mattress.
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Bear Is More Affordable Than Saatva
If you’re working within the confines of a limited budget, Bear is the way to go. Comparing MSRPs, a queen size Bear mattress goes for around $800, while a queen size Saatva mattress goes for around $1,575.
Also, Bear is more aggressive when it comes to discounts than is Saatva. The company typically offers anywhere from $75-$150 off their beds. Be sure to check the green box at the top of your screen to see what the current promotion is.
Saatva doesn’t regularly offer sales or promotions but occasionally they will offer a discount around major holidays. The price cut is usually in the $50 to $200 range. As such, it might a be a good idea to check Saatva.com to see if the company is currently running a sale.
The Foam Layers Of The Bear Mattress
The Bear mattress is made up of three separate foam layers that total 10″ thick. Here is a bit more detail about each layer starting from the bottom.
- High-Density Support Foam – This layer is the foundation of the mattress.
- Responsive Transition Foam – Acts as a soft transition from the firm foam layer below.
- Graphite-Gel Memory Foam – This is the true comfort layer for the mattress. The graphite-gel that is infused in the top layer is designed to help regulate your sleeping temperature.
Wrapping the three layers of foam is a breathable and removable cover that uses Celliant fibers. What is Celliant you ask? Let’s cover that in the next section.
Special Celliant Cover
This is one of the big selling points with the Bear mattress. Celliant is an infrared textile that is recognized by the FDA as a health and wellness product. In Bear’s words, Celliant turns your body’s natural energy into infrared light, which in turn leads to more restful sleep, faster recovery and increased energy levels.
Now let me just say up front that we aren’t scientists here at The Slumber Yard so it’s tough for us to truly opine on this subject. We can’t say for certain whether it works or doesn’t work. However, with that said, if Celliant is good enough for the FDA, it’s good enough for us. Given this, we think the Bear mattress is an excellent option for athletes or anyone who lives a rather active lifestyle. In fact, Bear took the top spot on our list of the best mattresses for athletes and runners.
Feel & Firmness Analysis
The Bear mattress has a memory foam feel, which shouldn’t come as huge shock considering its top layer. However, it’s not your typical soft, sink-to-the-bottom of the bed memory foam type feel. The Bear mattress is actually slightly firmer than your average memory foam mattress and doesn’t have an overwhelming stuck-in-the-mud feel. Overall, we’d say the bed lands around a medium to medium-firm on the firmness scale.
Of course your weight plays a role in how firm or soft a bed feels, though. For example, the heavier you are, the softer a bed will feel and vice versa. The rating above is based on an average size person (150 to 200 pounds).
Given its firmness designation, we think the Bear mattress is most ideal for back and stomach sleepers. We like that these types of sleepers lay more on top of the bed rather than it it. A lot of times with memory foam beds, back and stomach sleepers sink-in too far to the point where their spine is no longer in proper alignment. Luckily, with Bear, that’s not the case.
When it comes to side sleepers, the answer of whether the Bear mattress is desirable largely depends on your weight. Petite side sleepers will likely find the bed is just a tad bit too firm, however, if you weigh closer to the 200 pound mark, we think the Bear mattress will work just fine. The top layer of memory foam, despite its firmness, actually does a pretty good job of conforming and contouring to your body’s shape (i.e. pressure relief for your hips and shoulders).
Bear vs Saatva – Which Bed Should You Get?
You made it to the end of the comparison. By now, you hopefully a much better understanding of how these two online beds differ. Just to round things out though, let’s quickly run through the major decisions points once again in case you’re still up in the air as to which bed to purchase.
- Price – If you’re looking to spend as little money as possible, Bear is the answer. You’re looking at about $650 for a queen size after discount.
- Feel – If you like memory foam, the answer is simple – Bear. If you want more of a traditional innerspring/pillow top mattress, Saatva is the ticket.
- Heavy Individuals – If you weigh over 250 pounds, we’d strongly recommend Saatva or the Bear Hybrid for added support.
- Active Lifestyles – If you’re an athlete or someone who works out religiously, you’ll probably appreciate the Celliant technology the Bear mattress offers.
That’s it for the main part of this comparison. Hope you found it helpful. Keep reading to learn more about the policies each company offers in terms of shipping, returns, trial periods and warranties.