It's the last weekend to clean your mattress before Christmas — why you should and the 3 vital steps to get rid of winter germs, smells and stains

Left, a close up of a pair of hands wearing yellow gloves using a pray bottle to apply cleaning solution to a mattress and a scrubbing brush. Middle, mattress tester Lauren Jeffries starts stripping the bed. Right, a close up of a Jimmy mattress vacuum being used to vacuum the surface of a dirty mattress.

(Image credit: Future)

Want to enter 2026 with a fresh start? Clean your mattress this weekend. Christmas is right around the corner and it's time to tick off your to-do list, including the household jobs you've put off for ages.

Don't worry, it doesn't have to be a big task. Just follow the three vital steps below using things you already have in your cabinets and your mattress will be ready for even the fussiest guests.

Why you need to clean your mattress before Christmas

Winter is a pretty gross time for your mattress. Cold, wet weather often leads to damp while constantly fiddling with the thermostat means you likely spend some of the night sweating. Your mattress soaks it up like a sponge.

Not to mention germs. Bacteria and viruses can survive on fabrics, meaning your sick bed might literally be making you sick.

Tom's Guide Sleep Features Editor lying on her back like a starfish on the Birch Elite mattress that's discounted in the Black Friday mattress sales — (Image credit: Future)

With guests coming, you might be offering up your master bed to make mom and dad happy, or asking someone to sleep on your long-forgotten spare mattress.

And let's be honest, the only cleaning you want to do during those lazy days between Christmas and New Year is picking up the candy wrappers.

The vital steps for cleaning your mattress

Start: Strip the bed

The first step is to completely strip the mattress and wash all the bedding, including the mattress protector (and the pillows, if they're machine safe.)

With plenty of germs flying around this time of year — including the sleep-ruining super flu — we recommend upping your bedding cleaning schedule, to prevent lurking viruses and bacteria from spreading sickness.

In the meantime, your stripped mattress can air, allowing moisture to escape. But then it's time to get cleaning...

1. Vacuum all over

Once your bed has had a chance to breathe, it's time to vacuum your mattress. Use the upholstery attachment to get into the seams and corners, as well as the underside of the mattress.

We recommend vacuuming your mattress roughly once a month, to prevent a build-up of dust, dust mites and allergens. If you didn't manage to achieve that in 2025, it's an easy resolution for next year.

2. Treat stains

Now you're ready to get into the deep cleaning. Give your bed a once over to check for stains — keep a particularly close eye out for dangerous mold stains on your mattress, which might be the reason you can't shake that cold.

Our guide to deep cleaning your mattress has a total breakdown of how to cope with different stains but for an easy mold-killing solution you already have in your cupboard, mix one part white vinegar with water, plus a dash of mild detergent.

A woman blotting a mattress with a paper towel — (Image credit: Future / Tom's Guide)

Lightly spritz over the stain — don't soak the mattress! A good soaking takes too long to dry and can actually exacerbate mold.

Wait for around 20 minutes to let the solution get to work (plenty of time to wrap a gift or two) and then blot the stain.

3. Deodorize

In between making gingerbread men and yule logs, grab the baking soda for another task: removing bad smells from your bed.

Simply sprinkle a layer of baking soda over the surface of the mattress, using a flour sifter to get a nice even layer. And then sit back and wait.

You want to leave the baking soda for at least four hours to get to work. In the interim, tackle the rest of your to-do list.

When the time is up, grab your vacuum cleaner again and thoroughly vacuum the entire mattress to remove all baking soda.

Bonus: Finish with a quick scented spritz

Peppermint essential oil in labeled bottle with fresh peppermint on the side — (Image credit: Shutterstock)

A quick spritz of clove oil or peppermint essential oil will finish your mattress cleaning routine with a Christmas flourish.

And it can even help keep bed bugs and other pests away. Both oils have a strong scent to repel creepy crawlies. Clove oil also contains eugenol, an insecticide.

(However, be aware these oils can be dangerous to animals, so we don't recommend using them if you share a bed with your pet.)

Now it's time to grab the fresh bedding, dress the mattress, snuggle up and waiting for Santa to come.

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Ruth is an experienced Senior Staff writer at Tom’s Guide, covering all things sleep and mattresses. She writes to help people sleep better, from how-tos to the latest deals to mattress reviews, and has interviewed an array of experts who share her passion. She is also our specialist on memory foam — she’s flown around the world to see memory foam being made — and leads our hotel mattress content. She has a deep interest in the link between sleep and health, and has tried enough mattresses, from Helix to Nectar to Simba, to know the right bed really can make a difference to your wellbeing. Before joining the team at Tom’s Guide, Ruth worked as a sleep and mattress writer for our sister website, TechRadar.

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