The best hybrid mattresses 2024: Our expert picks for comfort and support

The best hybrid mattresses combine the lush comfort of memory foam with the support of pocket springs. For those interested, most popular bed-in-a-box brands such as Emma, Simba and Eve offer at least one hybrid mattress, so there’s no shortage of choice on the market.

While lengthy bed-in-a-box trial periods let you test out a mattress over many months, it still helps to do your research first. To help with this, we’ve compiled a round-up based on testing dozens of mattresses and comparing them on factors such as softness, support and temperature control.

After our extensive testing, we’ve narrowed the field down to our favourite six hybrid mattresses. On this page we’ll reveal our top picks, including their pros and cons, and offer a short buying guide. Also check out our in-depth guide to mattress types for more on how hybrid mattresses compare with their foam and sprung counterparts.

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Best hybrid mattress: At a glance

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How we test mattresses

It may sound obvious, but it’s essential: we test our mattresses by sleeping on them. That’s part of it, anyway. We also put each mattress through tests designed to compare them fairly and precisely, using weights, spirit levels and thermocouple thermometers. Our main focus here is on firmness and temperature control, although we do also measure edge support and motion isolation.

The base your mattress lies on will play its part in how a mattress feels, with a slatted base adding a little more bounce than a solid divan base. We can’t always test multiple bed bases when reviewing a mattress, but we always take this into account when judging.

A mattress is a big investment, so value for money is an important factor. We also take into account delivery experience, warranty details and free trials, which are notably generous in the bed-in-a-box market. After all, you only really know a mattress is perfect for you after you’ve slept on it for weeks or even months.

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The best hybrid mattresses you can buy in 2024

1. Simba Hybrid Pro: Best hybrid mattress overall

Price when reviewed: From £929 (single) | Check price at Simba

• Great for… the best balance of comfort and support we’ve tested
• Not so great for… a budget choice for the spare room

The Simba Hybrid Pro isn’t top of Simba’s hybrid range – that honour goes to the new Hybrid Ultra, which adds more springs and more foam layers and costs a cool £2,929 for a double. But the Ultra would really have to go some way to beat the Hybrid Pro, which is the most comfortable mattress we have ever slept on.

The Hybrid Pro contains two layers of pocket micro springs (one more than the regular Simba Hybrid), plus multiple foam layers and a delicious top layer of British wool. As well as its natural cooling properties, this wool layer is incredibly comfortable and made us feel cushioned and cradled while the lower layers delivered superb support, whatever position we slept in. Overall, the Hybrid Pro is a classic that’s worth its price tag.

2. Emma NextGen Premium: Best-value hybrid mattress

Price when reviewed: From £479 (single) | Check price at Emma

• Great for… couples needing a more peaceful sleep
• Not so great for… anyone who prefers a soft mattress

The Emma NextGen Premium is built around a combination of extra large pocket springs and assorted layers of foam, which together delivered a good balance of comfort, bounce and support. The big springs allowed the air to circulate, even during the balmy nights of summer, and helped the NextGen Premium achieve the best motion isolation in any hybrid we tested. Even if our partners tossed and turned, we were able to sleep in relative peace.

All this quality is especially impressive when you consider how much less the Emma NextGen Premium costs compared with most other hybrids in our rundown. You can snap up a single size for under £500 – or even less when Emma runs one of its discount sales.

3. Otty Original Hybrid: Best firm hybrid mattress

Price when reviewed: From £530 (single) | Check price at Otty

• Great for… heavy people and back sleepers
• Not so great for… side sleepers who need softness for their body’s curves

Otty has a grand total of four hybrid mattresses to its name, from the affordably priced Aura to the Pure Hybrid with its bamboo and charcoal-infused memory foam. Our favourite of the lot is the Original Hybrid.

The Original Hybrid contains 160mm pocket springs (2,000 of them, to be exact), rather than the micro springs in the Simba and Emma mattresses mentioned above. These longer springs are sandwiched between a foam base and two upper memory foam comfort layers, and make the mattress feel slightly firmer when compared to, say, the Simba Hybrid Pro.

In testing, we found the Otty Original Hybrid to be a very comfortable mattress. Its firm support won’t be for everyone, but it’s a great choice if you’re on the heavier side or like to sleep on your back.

Check price at Otty

4. Origin Hybrid mattress: Best affordable hybrid mattress

Price when reviewed: From £465 (single) | Check price at Origin

• Great for… heavier sleepers who need consistent ergonomic support
• Not so great for… lighter sleepers who need more softness to sink into

Origin’s Hybrid mattress really impressed us with its edge support, which means it gives you the optimum balance of comfort and ergonomic support right across the sleeping surface. If you share your double bed, this consistent support maximises the amount of comfort you can both enjoy, rather than having it taper off as you move towards the edge of the mattress.

Like many newer, premium hybrid mattresses, the Origin Hybrid features a grid layer designed to optimise back support, plus a temperature-control layer that helped keep our tester cool while she slept. She did find the mattress to be rather firm, but welcomed the way the specially-designed coil springs pushed back the further she sank into the bed. If you’re a larger person or need pressure relief, this adaptive push-back could make this your ideal match.

5. Nectar Essential Hybrid mattress: Best for a long trial period

Price when reviewed: From £475 (single) | Check price at Nectar

• Great for… side sleepers and others who need some softness to sink into
• Not so great for… support from edge to edge

We found the Nectar Essential Hybrid to lean on the softer side, which will suit side sleepers and lighter people who may find many hybrids too firm for comfort. The supportive pressure-relieving memory foam on top of the medium-firm sprung base creates a sumptuous feel, and the mattress adapts well to different sleeping positions. Its motion isolation is also very good, making it a great choice for couples.

Nectar’s value for money and customer service also scored points with us. You can choose a specific day for delivery, and Nectar will dispose of your old mattress for a small fee. You then get an entire year to decide whether to keep the mattress. Nectar’s environmental efforts are another added bonus, with all Nectar mattresses made in the UK using a carbon neutral process.

How to choose the best hybrid mattress for you

What is a hybrid mattress?

All hybrid mattresses are made from a combination of foam (or other synthetic materials such as latex) and springs. The sprung layer in a hybrid mattress can serve either as a comfort layer, which is usually the case with micro springs, or as part of its foundation, in the case of full-size pocket springs.

Why should I buy a hybrid mattress?

Hybrid mattresses offer the advantages of both all-foam and conventional sprung mattresses, without many of their disadvantages.

Some of our testers find foam mattresses too warm or soft. Adding a layer of springs improves airflow and creates a more subtle feeling than you get with foam alone. Sprung mattresses, on the other hand, can get lumpy or saggy over time, and we’ve found that adding a few layers of foam enhances their durability and makes their surface consistently supportive.

The foam content of hybrids also enables them to be vacuum-packed (essentially shrink-wrapped) and delivered far more easily than conventional sprung mattresses.

How expensive are hybrid mattresses?

Hybrid mattresses tend to be more expensive than traditional pocket sprung mattresses, but they don’t always cost more than memory foam. In fact, we’ve found that some hybrid mattresses are now cheaper than their foam counterparts.

Emma’s cheapest hybrid, the Emma NextGen Premium, costs £799 for a king size, quite a chunk more than the all-foam Emma Original (£559). But Eve’s Wunderflip Hybrid, previously called the Eve Original Hybrid, costs £699 in a king size – less than the all-foam Eve Original (£749). At Nectar, price tags are the same for foam and hybrid, with the Nectar Essential Hybrid and the Nectar Memory Foam mattress both costing £650 for a king size.

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