Our mattress test results are in: This $360 bed beats a $999 rival at relieving pain for side sleepers
Type: All-foam
Firmness: Medium-firm
Height: 13"
Sizes: 7
Sleep trial: 365 nights
Warranty: Lifetime
Price (on sale): from $549 at Nectar
Type: All-foam
Firmness: Medium-firm
Height: 12"
Sizes: 5 (twin and Cal king sold out)
Sleep trial: 100 nights
Warranty: 10 years
Price (on sale): from $315 at SweetNight
If you're a side sleeper hunting for a mattress this Labor Day, you'll need something that offers tonnes of soothing relief in the shoulders and hips. However, that doesn't mean you need to splurge on a luxury mattress — and our lab tests actually prove it.
One of the best mattresses on the market offers incredible comfort for side sleeping and is always under $1,000 for a queen. The Nectar Premier, now $999 for a queen at Nectar, a mid-range memory foam mattress from a popular bed-in-a-box brand. Taking on the Nectar is the budget-friendly SweetNight CoolNest Mattress, just $360 for a queen at SweetNight thanks to an extra 10% discount for Labor Day .
Both offer plenty of pressure relief for side sleepers, but which one should you buy in the Labor Day mattress sales? I've been on the testing panel for both the Nectar Premier and the SweetNight CoolNest, so I'm going to use my first-hand experience to compare both all-foam beds in terms of price, pressure relief, and sleep comfort. Here's what I found...
Nectar Premier vs SweetNight CoolNest: Labor Day sales compared
- A queen CoolNest costs $360, while a queen Premier is $999
- Both brands usually stick to regular sale prices, even during Labor Day events
- Nectar has longer benefits, offering a forever warranty and 1-year trial
There's quite a noticeable price difference between the Nectar Premier and the SweetNight CoolNest, with both falling into different price tiers. The Nectar Premier Memory Foam Mattress is one of the best mattresses under $1,000 for a queen (you'll never see it for over $999 in this size) and lands in the mid-range category.
Meanwhile, the SweetNight CoolNest 12" Memory Foam Mattress is pretty much always $399.99 in a queen, making it one of the best cheap mattresses on the market. However, for Labor Day, there's now an extra 10% off added at checkout, which takes a queen to $360. This budget price tag is particularly impressive when you remember it's a dedicated cooling model, which tend to cost over a $1,000 more for a queen.
However, Nectar boasts the more generous benefits, offering a 365-night sleep trial, a lifetime warranty, and free shipping and returns. SweetNight, on the other hand, throw in a 100-night sleep trial, 10-year warranty, and free shipping and returns.
These are perfectly adequate extras (100 nights is enough time to know that a mattress is right for you and even the best memory foam mattresses don't tend to last over 10 years) but completely average in the online mattress world.
As for regular mattress sales, both brands keep their prices discounted but static. While we have seen flash sales at both, they're rare and unpredictable, so it's not necessary to hold out for a major sale.
Nectar Premier vs SweetNight CoolNest: Pressure relief
- The CoolNest offers more cushioning relief in side sleeper's hips
- The CoolNest also has a quicker response time for ease of movement
- Both offer ample pressure relief in the shoulder region for side sleepers
Nectar Premier vs SweetNight CoolNest: pressure relief test results
The deeper the indentation and faster the response time, the better the ability of a mattress to relieve pressure
| Product | Value |
|---|---|
| SweetNight CoolNest | 4.375 |
| Nectar Premier | 4 |
Pressure relief is a term to describe a mattress's ability to soothe major pressure points, with the main side sleeper touch points being the shoulders, hips, and knees.
To measure each mattress's pressure relief for side sleepers, we placed a 25kg weight on the shoulder and hip regions of both mattress. We then measured how deep the indentation of the weight was, and how quickly the mattress bounced back when the weight was removed. The deeper the indentation and faster the response time, the better the ability of a mattress to relieve pressure.
The Nectar had a shoulder indentation measuring 4.25" and the SweetNight's measured at 4". Both illustrated excellent pressure relief at the shoulders, but the SweetNight exhibited a hip indentation 0.375" deeper with a depth of 4.375".
Both offered plenty of sinkage for side sleeping, but the SweetNight really stood out when testing response times. The Nectar Premier took 3 seconds longer to regain its shape in the hip region and 1.5 seconds longer in the shoulder region.
As per our mattress methodology, we also conducted subjective pressure relief tests. I was the lead tester for the SweetNight CoolNest Mattress Review, and I always feel the most comfortable when side and back sleeping (as did my fellow mattress testers). As part of the testing for the Nectar Premier Memory Foam Mattress review, I also praised the Premier's back and side sleeper comfort.
Overall, these are two of the best mattresses for side sleepers, and our lab tests show that the budget CoolNest can pack slightly more pressure relief than the mid-range Nectar Premier.
Nectar Premier vs SweetNight CoolNest: Sleep comfort
- The CoolNest, a cooling model, offers better temperature regulation
- The Premier is better at absorbing a restless partner's movements
- The CoolNest has stronger edges for sitting, sleeping, and getting out of bed
We test sleep comfort in three key areas: motion isolation, edge support, and temperature regulation.
For the latter, the CoolNest is a specialist cooling mattress, containing heat-dissipating materials that are found in some of the best cooling mattresses on the market. Our tests showed that while the budget bed absorbed a high level of body heat when lying on it, it also displayed a fast rapid cooling rate. Our tests recorded a cooling rate of 2.1°F/min in our thermal imaging tests, compared to the Premier's 0.9°F/min.
However, the Nectar Premier did absorb less body heat, with a maximum temperature increase (MTI) of 8.1F compared to the CoolNest's MTI of 15.2°F. The Nectar Premier also returned to its original temperature 15 minutes after I climbed off it.
However, after combining our objective lab data with our subjective thoughts, we awarded the CoolNest a 4 out of 5 for temperature regulation. Meanwhile, we awarded the Premier a 3.5 out of 5 in this area.
To me (and others on the testing panel) the CoolNest felt immediately cool to the touch. I slept on the CoolNest throughout a series of heatwaves (with no AC) and I never once felt overheated.
Still, the Nectar Premier performed better in our motion isolation tests (which measure how well a mattress dampens a restless partner's movements), scoring a 4 out of 5 compared to the CoolNest's 3.5. When we measured the initial impact (IIA) of a 5KG slam ball being dropped on each bed using an accelerometer, the Nectar Premier came out on top. The Premier's IIA was 7.961m/s2 compared to an IIA of 17.162 m/s2 for the SweetNight.
The decay rate (how long it took each mattress to reduce the IIA) was faster in the CoolNest, however, taking 1.442 seconds. The Premier took 2.546 seconds. In our subjective tests, we found that both mattresses would be great choice for light sleepers who share a bed.
When measuring how supportive the edges were, we, we placed a 25kg weight 3" away from the edge of each mattress and measured how far it sank (the deeper it sinks, the less stable the edges). Both sank the same amount on the foot of the bed, with the SweetNIght's indentation measuring just 0.375" deeper at the sides.
We also measure the amount of usable sleep space each mattress surface has by seeing how close to the edge we could get before rolling out of bed.
We found that 99.04% of the SweetNight could be used as a sleep space, while 97.5% of the Nectar Premier was usable sleep space. Combing the results of weight tests and roll-off tests, the Nectar Premier scored 4 out of 5 for edge support while the SweetNight CoolNest scored 4.5 out of 5.
The decay rate (how long it took each mattress to reduce the IIA) was faster in the CoolNest, however, taking 1.442 seconds. The Premier took 2.546 seconds. In our subjective tests, we found that both mattresses would be great choice for light sleepers who share a bed.
When measuring how supportive the edges were, we, we placed a 25kg weight 3" away from the edge of each mattress and measured how far it sank (the deeper it sinks, the less stable the edges). Both sank the same amount on the foot of the bed, with the SweetNIght's indentation measuring just 0.375" deeper at the sides.
We also measure the amount of usable sleep space each mattress surface has by seeing how close to the edge we could get before rolling out of bed.
We found that 99.04% of the SweetNight could be used as a sleep space, while 97.5% of the Nectar Premier was usable sleep space. Combing the results of weight tests and roll-off tests, the Nectar Premier scored 4 out of 5 for edge support while the SweetNight CoolNest scored 4.5 out of 5.
Nectar Premier vs SweetNight CoolNest: Which should you buy?
Buy the Nectar Premier if...
✅ You share a bed: The Nectar Premier is great at absorbing a restless co-sleeper's movements, making it a great choice for light sleepers.
✅ You want a twin, twin XL, or Cal King: SweetNight only currently stocks a full, queen, and king size in the CoolNest.
✅ You want a longer sleep trial and warranty: Nectar offers industry-leading benefits with all their mattresses, including a forever warranty and a sleep trial that lasts an entire year.
Buy the Sweetnight CoolNest if...
✅ You're a side sleeper: The SweetNight CoolNest packs plenty of cushioning comfort for key side sleeper pressure points: shoulders, hips, and knees.
✅ You want cooler comfort: The CoolNest is a specialist cooling model that quickly dissipates heat and feels cool to the touch.
✅ You want to save some money: The CoolNest is $500 cheaper than the Premier in a queen size.
