Written by
McKenzie Dillon
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Lindsay Boyers CNET Contributor
Lindsay Boyers is a certified nutritionist and published book author who writes articles and product reviews for CNET's health and wellness section. Her work also appears on mindbodygreen, Healthline, Verywell Health and The Spruce. When she's not actively searching for the best products at the best prices, she's most likely creating new recipes, reading in her hammock or trying to force her cats to love her.
McKenzie Dillon Writer
McKenzie, a Certified Sleep Science Coach and proclaimed mattress expert, has been writing sleep content in the wellness space for over four years. After earning her certification from the Spencer Institute and dedicating hundreds of hours to sleep research, she has extensive knowledge on the topic and how to improve your quality of rest. Having more experience with lying on mattresses than most, McKenzie has reviewed over 150 beds and a variety of different sleep products including pillows, mattress toppers and sheets. McKenzie has also been a guest on multiple radio shows including WGN Chicago as a sleep expert and contributed sleep advice to over 50 different websites.
Expertise Certified Sleep Science Coach, Certified Stress Management Coach, Bachelor of English.
With 5+ years of mattress testing experience, we use our different sleeping position and body type perspectives to offer well-rounded, honest reviews.
How we sort our mattresses
Best full-size mattress for hot sleepers
Cocoon by Sealy Chill Memory Foam Mattress
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Best full-size mattress for back pain
Amerisleep AS2 Hybrid
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A full-size mattress can be quite versatile. Whether you're on the market for your first mattress or need one to make a smaller space more comfortable, or are just on a budget, a full mattress can be a good option. You get everything from a full-sized mattress that you would expect from any of the standard sizes, including back pain relief and edge support. You get them with all kinds of materials as well. That means you can get a firm bed, or a softer mattress in full-size, including softer and firmer mattress picks, classic memory foam mattress picks, and hybrid or innerspring mattress options.
There are a lot of questions you need to answer when trying to buy a mattress. Do you sleep on your back, or are you primarily a stomach sleeper? Do you prefer a soft mattress, a firm mattress or a medium-firm one? Do you prefer latex foam and want a high-density foam mattress, or an innerspring mattress or a hybrid mattress (innerspring with a foam layer)?
CNET's team of nine sleep experts has spent years testing beds, and we're here to help you make the decision. With around 300 beds under our belts, we know which mattresses will help you get quality sleep each night. The mattress industry is huge, so there are a ton of options, but we've picked the best full-size mattresses you should consider buying.
What is the best overall full-size mattress?
The Layla Hybrid mattress is our top pick due to its impressive features. Including its soft cover, the mattress is made of several layers of copper-infused gel memory foam, support foam and individually wrapped coils. The copper-gel memory foam helps to keep sleepers cool at night and the coils keep the motion transfer to a minimum. What makes this mattress stand out is that the Layla Hybrid is flippable; one side is soft and the other is firm.
Video: Best full-size mattresses for 2024
Watch CNET video producer Owen Poole review the best full size mattresses for 2024.
Best full-size mattresses of 2024
Layla Hybrid
Best overal full-size mattress
Our take - The Layla Hybrid is constructed of several layers, including a gel memory foam, airflow support form and individually wrapped pocketed coils that add extra support and just enough bounce. It's soft and comfortable, but also supportive like it was contouring my body in all the right places without sinking too much. This hybrid mattress also had very little (if any) motion transfer. I wasn't disturbed or jolted awake when my partner tossed and turned.
8.5 /10
SCORE
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Type
flippable hybrid mattress
Firmness
Medium to medium firm: (6)
Warranty
10-year limited warranty
Cocoon by Sealy Chill Memory Foam Mattress
Best full-size mattress for hot sleepers
Our take - The Cocoon by Sealy Chill Memory Foam mattress is the perfect marriage of softness and the right amount of mattress firmness support. While having some firmness level is important, you also want it to have enough give to contour your body and alleviate pressure, which is exactly what The Cocoon offers. If your mattress firmness level is too soft, it can lead to back pain and many restless nights.
7.8 /10
SCORE
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Firmness
Firmness information not available
Sleeper Type
back, stomach, combo
Helix Midnight Luxe
Best full-size hybrid mattress
Our take - The Helix Midnight Luxe is an excellent mattress for when you're not really sure what you want, or which type of mattress is best for you. When it comes to firmness, this mattress is rated a 4 to 7 out of 10, which means that its firmness level is roughly equal parts soft and firm and may work well for most sleepers.
Looking for a new mattress? With this CNET-exclusive deal, you can take 27% off Helix sitewide and get two free pillows with any mattress purchase. This is the biggest discount available -- you won’t find it anywhere else. Use code CNET27
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8.3 /10
SCORE
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Amerisleep AS2 Hybrid
Best full-size mattress for back pain
Our take - If you suffer from back pain -- or you don't have any pain and you want to keep it that way -- the Amerisleep AS2 Hybrid is an excellent option for you. It's made with a specialized layer of proprietary memory foam, called Bio-Pur, that contours your body and offers pressure relief for your back, hips and shoulders. It has a medium-firm mattress feel that provides enough support to keep my spine properly aligned, but still felt soft enough to have some give for my pressure points. I'd mostly recommend this bed to combo, back and/or stomach sleepers because it may not be soft enough for side sleepers in the long run.
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8 /10
SCORE
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Firmness
Firmness information not available
Warranty
20-year prorated warranty
Purple Restore Hybrid
Best full-size mattress for stomach sleepers
Our take - The Purple Restore Hybrid mattress is a dream. With its proprietary Purple Grid, it's different from any other mattress I've tried -- in all the best ways. Unlike memory foam, which is the foundation of many of these direct-to-your-door mattresses, the Purple Restore Hybrid bed is made from a hyper-elastic polymer grid formation that feels strong and supportive, but somehow still soft and plush.
8.5 /10
SCORE
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Avocado Green
Best full-size organic mattress
Our take - If you're looking for a comfortable full-size mattress minus any potentially harmful chemicals, the Avocado Green is the mattress brand for you. It's constructed of cotton, wool and natural latex (or you can opt for the vegan mattress, which is the same sans wool) -- which is the safest combination recommended by the Environmental Working Group. This Avocado Green mattress is also free of polyester, polyurethane foam and fire retardants. Equally importantly, it's comfortable and supportive too.
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8.5 /10
SCORE
Photo Gallery
Firmness
Firmness information not available
Warranty
25-year limited warranty
When looking for the best full mattress, here are a few things to keep in mind.
Firmness
The firmness of a mattress is dependent on your body type. If you are petite or an average person, your body will exert less pressure on a mattress, making it feel firmer. If you are a heavier sleeper, a mattress will feel softer. An average sleeper will find a medium firmness to be comfortable.
Support
Especially if you deal with back pain, you want a supportive mattress. A memory foam mattress is generally less supportive than a hybrid mattress that has both foam and coils. Petite and most average-size sleepers will still find memory foam mattresses supportive. If you are a heavier sleeper, opt for a hybrid or an innerspring mattress.
Edge support
The edges around your mattress should also be supportive. That way, you won’t roll off your bed in the middle of the night. You can test edge support by sitting on the edge. If you feel like you're going to slip off, you might want a bed with better edge support.
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All of the beds above have been tested by our CNET Sleep editors, but we've also reviewed over 200 other beds. With that being the case, it can be difficult to narrow down the top favorites. The beds below are other mattresses we've tested that are also worth considering in your search for a new mattress.
Puffy Lux mattress: Side sleepers would also really enjoy the thick and luxurious Puffy Lux mattress. It's just as comfortable as it looks and its cloud logo is a good indication of what you're getting yourself into. It's soft and pressure-relieving as it gently wraps around the curves of your body. The main comfort foam is memory foam, but it's more light and airy than it is dense. I'd rate this mattress around a 4 out of 10 on the firmness scale or a medium-soft, so it's mostly for people who favor their side.
Tuft & Needle mattress: The Tuft and Needle bed is a simple, two-layer foam mattress without any special bells and whistles. I think it's a great mattress for kids, teenagers, your kid going off to college or a money-saving individual. It's pretty wallet-friendly, and it's arguably just as popular as the Casper mattress. It has a similar neutral-foam feel that most people find comfortable.
Allswell mattress: Looking for the best value? The Allswell mattress is the bed-in-a-box model from Walmart, and in true Walmart fashion, it's extremely wallet-friendly. It'll cost less than most regular foam mattresses, which is rare since hybrid beds are known to be more expensive. It's a little on the firmer side, around a 6 out of 10 on the firmness scale or a medium-firm.
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Our CNET Sleep editors have spent countless hours testing each mattress on our many best lists. When we test mattresses, we have an established process that assesses key factors like firmness, feel, construction, performance, price, cooling properties and warranty information. We test how strong the edge of the bed is by sitting and lying on the edge. We test motion transfer by rolling across the mattress with a glass of water by the edge. We do this for all beds we test.
CNET editors pick the products and services we write about based on editorial merit. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission.
Find out more on how we test mattresses.
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A full-size mattress measures out to 54 inches wide and 74 inches long, which is 4.5 feet wide and 6.25 feet long.
A premium full-size mattress will range around $700 to $1,400, but there are plenty of options under $1,000 like Casper or Tuft and Needle. Full-size beds are more affordable than queen or king-size mattresses, but are still suitable for couples who want to share a bed.
Yes, a full-size mattress is big enough for two average sleepers. The bed might be a little small if one person is taller or a little heavier. Also, if you need space for pets or extra stretching room, a queen-size mattress might be better.
A full mattress is worth considering if you have a smaller space or you're a single person who likes to spread out (since a twin mattress doesn't provide much room). If you're a co-sleeper, you should be able to fit snugly, but a queen mattress would be more suitable.