The mattress market is crowded with hybrid, memory foam, and latex options. But if you're after a cozy, plush feel, a pillow-top mattress might be the perfect fit.
Read more: Best Mattress of 2025
I recently switched to the Helix Midnight Luxe. While dense memory foam isn't my favorite, I love the airy, cushioning pillow-tops like the Midnight Luxe provide. In this guide, I'll break down how each mattress feels and if it's worth the investment. Backed by my experience and CNET's team of sleep experts -- who've logged hundreds of testing hours -- here are the best pillow-top mattresses of 2025.
The WinkBed earns our top spot as the best pillow-top mattress because not only is the bed extremely comfortable, but its pillow top is fluffy, tufted and very accommodating. Since this mattress has three different firmness levels and an option for heavier bodies, it can suit all sleeping positions and body types. I tested the Luxury Firm version, and we rate this around a medium on the firmness scale.
Why we chose the Saatva Classic: The Saatva Classic is the best pillow-top mattress for back pain because it offers lots of support without compromising too much on pressure relief. Our team finds this mattress very similar to a fancy hotel bed -- it looks and feels luxurious. The pillow top is fluffy but more substantial, supportive and firmer than other beds on this list (thanks to its pressure-relieving memory foam).
"Premium beds are common online nowadays, but none are quite like the Saatva Classic. With a dual-coil construction, three firmness choices, a lumbar support feature and a European pillow top, it's easy to see why it's so popular. Plus, it comes with complimentary white glove delivery -- who doesn't love that?" says J.D. Christison, senior video producer.
How it sleeps: It's available in two heights and three firmness levels, so you can choose the best for your body. The softest pillow-top option is around a medium or five on our firmness scale, and it only gets firmer from there. I tested the Luxury Firm model, and I think it's too firm for side sleeping, but those who are back or stomach sleepers with back pain should find it more comfortable. Heavy sleepers with back pain should consider the Firm option for more support. Two sleep experts on the team tested this mattress for 30 nights and found that it heated up on them a bit.
Runner-up: The DreamCloud Premier Hybrid is another mattress with similar support to the Saatva Classic. It is firmer than a medium, making it great for stomach and back sleepers with back pain. Its pillow top is made with dense memory foam, and you sink into the mattress more than the Saatva.
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Why we chose the Allswell Supreme: Pillow-top mattresses aren't always the most affordable beds on the market. However, the Allswell Supreme mattress from Walmart offers the same cushiony supportive feel at a more accessible cost. It's only a hair firmer than a medium on the firmness scale. Even so, it is pressure-relieving enough for side sleepers and supportive enough for back and stomach sleepers.
"If you're buying on a budget, Allswell Supreme is the pillow-top bed for you. It's only $487 for a queen size and features more of a memory foam feel compared to other beds in its class. It's also around medium firmness, give or take, and you can even spend up slightly to get it with a cooling cover," says J.D. Christison, senior video producer.
How it sleeps: It has five different layers, including individually wrapped coils, the brand's Energex foam, graphite and copper-infused memory foam and a fluffy Euro-top. This bed has a memory foam feel, more so than any of the other beds on this list. It's not as prominent as a TempurPedic bed, but you do feel the mattress topper layers hug your body as you become nestled into the mattress. It's also more bouncy than typical memory foam, especially because of the individually wrapped coil layer in the foundation.
Runner-up: The Bear Star Hybrid is an additional budget pillow-top mattress. It is made with a layer of gel foam, comfort foam and individually-wrapped coils. Its pillow top is cozy and feels around a medium. When on sale, you can find this bed for around $1,299. However, even at this price, it is more than double the Allswell Supreme mattress.
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Our CNET mattress experts and I have tested around 300 mattresses and counting. When testing, here's what we consider and assess for each mattress. Our team represents all types of people with different heights, genders, and body types. Here's how we evaluate each bed that arrives in our Reno mattress warehouse and testing facility.
The perceived firmness of any bed is based on our entire team's collective experience. We lie on mattresses on our sides, stomachs and backs. We also have team members who sleep on beds for months.
We also use our proprietary Mattress Smasher 9000 to compute objective firmness levels. While we always test a bed before we use the MS9K, it's essential to have objective numbers to compare.
Motion isolation is how well a mattress dampens movement across the surface of the bed. It's essential for people sleeping with a partner, kids or pets. Traditionally, memory foam does the best job at motion isolation.
We have a few tests we put a bed through to assess motion isolation. First, I would lie on the bed and close my eyes. Then, a team member would move around next to me, with increasing levels of movement. We would do this in every sleeping position. The second test we use is setting a glass of water on the edge of the mattress and rolling toward it.
Edge support is the strength of the bed's perimeter. If you tend to sleep on the edge of the mattress or have mobility issues, edge support is a big deal.
To test edge support, our team sits and lies on the edge of the bed and we note how much the bed gives. If I feel like we might fall off, the bed receives a poor edge support score. Traditionally, many memory foam mattresses rate lower in edge support, though it can happen across all bed types.
Many brands claim that their mattresses are cooling when they really aren't. Here's where our established industry knowledge comes in to help you decide what's real and what's just marketing. Including "cooling" technology, like special foams or covers, doesn't mean that you'll actually feel it.
Our testing rooms are all temperature-controlled, and we test beds without sheets or bedding to get as close to the real deal as possible. When we lie on each bed, we make sure we note if the bed is cooling and if we feel any of our body heat trapped while testing.
Your sleeping position will largely determine how firm a mattress you need. Stomach and back sleepers need firmer pillow-top mattresses that offer enough support to keep their spine aligned. Side sleepers will like a softer mattress because it offers pressure relief to the shoulders, hips and knees. Combination sleepers will prefer a medium or middle-of-the-road mattress.
Your body type also plays a role in this. The lighter you are, the harder a mattress will seem. The heavier you are, the softer it will feel.
Another factor to consider is the bed's construction, as it will determine its support and feel. Foam mattresses will generally always be less supportive than hybrid mattresses with layers of individually wrapped coils.
The materials used within the pillow top will also determine the immediate feel when you lie down. If a pillow-top mattress utilizes memory foam in its top layer, the bed will feel dense and you will slowly sink into it. Beds that use neutral foam, like the Nolah Evolution Hybrid mattress, will feel airy.
Mattresses are a big purchase. It's important to know your budget when shopping for your next mattress. There are several pillow-top bed choices at every budget level. The good news is that most brands do huge discounts around the holidays, so you can get a couple hundred off the price tag of your next bed if you time your purchase right.
My mattress experts and I are always testing newly released and updated mattresses. Here's a quick peek into what we are reviewing and testing in our mattress warehouse next.