Summary: My family and I decided to upgrade to the Leesa + West Elm Natural Hybrid Mattress now that we’re expecting another child. It’s made in the USA from sustainably sourced Joma Wool and organic cotton — so not only does it match our values, but it’s also so soft, and has essential cooling properties for this hot sleeper. In short, it feels like the ideal formula for restful sleep — nontoxic, soft, and expertly crafted.

Pros:

  • This is hands down the most plush, supportive, and overall comfortable mattress I’ve ever slept on.
  • Since starting to sleep on the Leesa + West Elm Natural Hybrid Mattress, I’ve woken up more rejuvenated because my overall sleep has been deeper and more restful. It’s even helped ease my aches and pains.
  • The cooling and moisture-wicking effects of cotton, wool, and natural latex all help to regulate my temperature. As a hot sleeper, this is everything.

Cons:

  • This mattress is considered medium-firm due to the supportive spring interior, but it feels more plush overall. If you’re looking for an extra firm mattress, this could be too soft.
  • It’s taller than our other mattress, which has taken some getting used to. Especially if you have a higher bed frame, you might notice that it adds quite a bit of height to your bed.

Confession: I’m 33 years old and I’ve never purchased my own mattress. For most of my 20s, I slept on the ones provided in my rental apartments. When I met my now-husband, he had just purchased his first adult bed, a queen-size mattress for his bachelor pad. That mattress followed us through many moves and into our current homestead, 10+ years later. Although it was organic, it was on the firmer side and, at this point, quite old. It wasn’t my ideal comfort-wise. A few months ago, we started dreaming about upgrading and finally getting a king with our second baby on the way.

“Confession: I’m 33 years old and I’ve never purchased my own mattress.”

This dream of ours included finding a mattress that pushed high sustainability standards, encompassing everything from the manufacturing process to the materials used. Over the years, we’ve replaced our bedding and pillows with more earth-focused, nontoxic materials. So, we wanted our new mattress to match our values and the strides we’d taken for our health (and comfort!), too.


Finding Leesa, our dream mattress purveyor

Then, we discovered Leesa — a brand dedicated to earth-friendly, clean, sustainable sleep and social impact. Leesa launched in 2015, with the simple notion to focus on eco-friendly materials for better sleep. However, they’ve expanded beyond their earth-conscious manufacturing practices, investing a lot in giving back. To date, they’ve donated over 40,000 mattresses to non-profits including The Bowery Mission, Thrive Arizona, and The Green Chair Project. Leesa’s effort eliminates waste and provides a better quality of life to those in need. I didn’t realize that would be on my list of dream mattress qualities, but it is now!

“We discovered Leesa — a brand dedicated to earth-friendly, clean, sustainable sleep and social impact.”

But, about the mattresses: What really tipped the scales for me was the Leesa + West Elm Natural Hybrid Mattress. For the launch of their Natural Hybrid, they partnered with West Elm — a natural choice since the two brands share a commitment to responsible manufacturing and creating safe, nontoxic home goods. By pooling their ideas and resources, they were able to come up with something truly special.

Firstly, I was impressed by the thoughtful attention to the materials used. The brand is GREENGUARD Gold Certified, which ensures that it meets the highest standards for a nontoxic home (no dreaded PFAS or VOCs). The foams used are hand-crafted and CertiPUR-US® certified as well, ensuring no harmful chemicals are used there, either. The Talalay latex used is hypoallergenic for those sensitive to allergens. The wool topper is made from sustainably sourced Joma Wool from New Zealand. Their cotton meets the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). 

If that’s one too many certifications for your brain to process at the moment, just know that mattresses don’t get much cleaner than that — both for the health of the planet and our snoozing bodies.

Not only are Leesa’s materials made to keep us healthy and safe, they’re also thoughtfully constructed to be comfortable. The Talay latex is super supportive, especially for your neck, back, and spine. And inside of the mattress, there’s a system of individually wrapped springs made from 98% reclaimed steel. (I still find it wild that there are springs inside of mattresses. Anybody else?!) In short, Leesa’s mattress collaboration with West Elm ticked all the boxes and then some. I was dying to try it.


Our experience with the Leesa + West Elm Natural Hybrid Mattress

While we may have been dreaming about a new mattress for some time, once we found this one the process happened very quickly! (More on that below.) I made notes about my experience from shipping to set up and sleeps, so read on to know everything to expect when ordering a new Leesa mattress.

Shipping and old mattress removal

We were not prepared for how quickly our mattress arrived! It shipped via FedEx just two days after placing the order, it was waiting for us on our doorstep. The mattress arrived so fast that we actually had to scramble to get our old mattress out to make way for this new shining star.

“It shipped via FedEx just two days after placing the order.”

This process can be made easier due to Leesa’s partnership with a third-party company called LoadUp that removes old mattresses, either donating or disposing of them sustainably. Unfortunately, since we didn’t anticipate the new mattress coming so soon, this service lagged behind our delivery. Our old mattress sat in our living room for a little over a week before LoadUp came to remove it. A word to the wise: Plan to coordinate your mattress pick-up with your anticipated shipment date in mind.

Setup

Our new mattress included detailed handling instructions starting in our shipping email — which was incredibly helpful in preparing us for its arrival. They noted how the mattress would arrive and a full breakdown of the setup process. Which was minimal: “Just take it out of the box and put it on your bed frame. Then, remove the plastic wrap and let it expand.” That I could handle.

Now, Leesa is a pioneer in the bed-in-the-box concept. But we didn’t know exactly what this meant until our giant king mattress arrived compressed in a regular, small-ish box. It looked like any other purchase sitting on the doorstep. Knowing there was a full-sized king mattress in there was bewildering to say the least. The heaviness was the only thing giving it away.

Since I’m 16 weeks pregnant, the FedEx delivery person had to help my husband carry the box into the house. And while the box did arrive a little beat up with some dents on the side, the mattress was in prime condition.

Once inside and on our bed frame, we opened the box. The mattress was rolled up in the tiniest and tightest roll. We began removing the plastic wrap and, like a butterfly coming out of a cocoon, we watched it slowly expand. We were happy to see there was surprisingly very little plastic and packaging material to throw away after.

Some additional instructions on the box lid and inside the included booklet for setup mentioned it may take 24 hours for the mattress to reach its full expansion. But we only waited until it was time for us to head to bed, and we found the mattress to be full and comfortable enough to try it for our first night.

First sleeps

When we slept on our new mattress for the first time that night, we felt as if we were floating on a cloud in heaven. It was truly one of the best sleeps I’ve had in what felt like years (which is probably accurate considering I have a 2.5-year-old). Unlike other mattresses, there was no weird chemical smell — which helped with my sleep and peace of mind, too. And we didn’t feel like there was much break-in time at all. The mattress felt completely ready to support our bodies for rest the day we received it! 

“When we slept on our new mattress for the first time that night, we felt as if we were floating on a cloud in heaven.”

Now, after sleeping on it for a couple of weeks, our mattress feels even more comfortable and slightly contoured to our bodies. My husband and I have both been sleeping more soundly, and any of those minor neck or shoulder pains we’ve had have gone away (!). We credit this to the uniquely designed, individually encased springs. They adjust to the body during the night, so you’re supported in any position you find yourself in. I’ve found it makes a huge difference in how good I’m feeling in my body during the day.

Speaking of, our blankets also seem to stay put with this mattress. When we wake up, it’s as though neither of us moved at all during the night. Maybe this is due to the construction of the mattress, holding our bodies while we sleep so that tossing doesn’t disturb the other person, or maybe we’re sleeping undisturbed because of the overall comfort of the mattress. Either way, no one has had any trouble with late-night tossing and turning since our Leesa + West Elm mattress arrived.

What I love especially is the cooling property of the wool and cotton topper — which stops us from needing to take off blankets in the middle of the night. This has been a huge plus for me since I sleep hot. I almost always get uncomfortable in the middle of the night on a standard mattress and need to remove blankets. Once the winter months come here in Colorado, I’m excited to see how the mattress fares. Wool is known for being flexible and offering both cooling and warmth. But for now, during the warmer months of spring and summer, the cooling effect is ideal.


Would I recommend the Leesa + West Elm Natural Hybrid Mattress?

If you can’t tell yet, I love this new mattress. So, yes. Not least because it comes with a robust 10-year full replacement limited warranty. This means that for 10 years after purchase, if there’s a covered defect, it will be replaced or fixed. On top of a 100-night trial period! And after that, if you’re not happy with it, they offer a full refund. 

This is huge, putting customers first and allowing them time to decide on such a big commitment. It turns out buying a mattress is like getting into a long-term relationship — you want to make sure you’re really comfortable with each other before making it official.

Leesa + West Elm’s Natural Hybrid Mattress is on the higher end of the price scale, coming in at a total of $2,099 for a queen. (Though they have frequent sales that bring the cost down by almost $600!) Yet, the comfort, quality, and materials used are unbeatable when shopping for a luxury and eco-friendly mattress. This is a product for those looking to invest in a mattress with high standards in both comfort and materials. In my opinion, the cost is absolutely worth it — especially when you break down the cost-per-sleep over the next decade or more! However, Leesa also has an array of sustainable mattress choices outside of the collaboration that cost as low as $879.

This mattress suits those who want a plush yet supportive mattress made from clean, nontoxic, and earth-friendly materials. If you’re looking for an extra firm mattress — some of us like to sleep on a wooden plank, no judgment! — this won’t be a good fit. But, if you want to balance comfort and support while giving your sleeping partner a break from tossing and turning, then this is the mattress for you. My final verdict is that the Leesa + West Elm mattress is phenomenal and I know it will support my family for many years to come.


THIS STORY IS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR FRIENDS AT LEESA


Courtney Jay is a Contributing Editor at The Good Trade. She is also a yoga instructor, health enthusiast, and sustainable fashion advocate. You can find more of her writing and take one of her online yoga classes on her website, Coincide.