The Best Crib Mattress For Your Baby

Figuring out how to choose the best crib mattress can be quite the challenge. There are many different things you should be thinking about, such as whether or not you want to go for organic, innerspring, foam, memory foam or if you want a dual sided mattress. After countless hours of research and hands-on testing of over 13 highly-recommended crib mattresses, I’ve compiled this list of my top recommendations to save you some shopping time. Take a look at the different kinds of mattresses that ranked highly in my crib mattress reviews.

The Best Crib Mattress For Your Baby

How To Choose A Crib Mattress

I can’t tell you exactly how many crib mattresses are on the market today, but I can tell you that they aren’t all the same. They each have their own unique features and performed differently with the tests I did on them. There are a few different qualifications that I believe make for a good sleeping surface for your baby. Here’s what to look for in a crib mattress that I think are important.

– Support and Firmness

When it comes to a baby’s development, you definitely want a crib mattress with ideal support. One of the main reasons for this is to reduce the risk of SIDS. If you aren’t aware, SIDS is known as “Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.” A majority of the cases are due to suffocation, whether it be from overheating, getting stuck face down or other unknown reasons.

If the mattress doesn’t have the proper support, there’s the risk that a baby could roll over onto their stomachs and not be able to get back over, because the mattress has indented under them. For all of the mattresses I tested, I made sure it had the right amount of support and firmness for a baby to sleep on.

– Comfort

Comfort is more for the toddler range in this particular category. Sure, comfort may be an issue for some babies, but most just fall asleep anywhere if they’re tired enough. I’m sure a lot of you have witnessed your baby falling asleep on a blanket on the floor, for example.

When your baby is old enough to start fighting sleep because their mattress is uncomfortable, this is where the comfort category comes in. When I was testing my mattresses, I had my toddler son sleeping on them. If it was too firm for him, I could tell. I also kept in mind that firmness was ideal for babies. This is where dual-sided mattresses are best, or ones that are meant for both to use on one side. When your child is ready to transition onto the more comfortable toddler side, all you have to do is flip it over. If it’s the kind that automatically adjusts to the child as they get heavier, it will get more comfortable over time.

– Breathability

If your child is sleeping under a blanket in their crib and it gets too hot in the room, what’s going to happen? They’ll probably start to overheat and sweat. Believe it or not, this is another cause of SIDS. This is why breathability in a crib mattress is extremely important to consider.

A lot of companies will claim that their beds have temperature regulation features, but how many of them are actually true? This is where my tests came in handy. I took a heating sock with a temperature gun and timed how long it took to get down to regular body temperature from a designated temperature of 130 degrees on the mattress. Most mattresses took around 20-25 seconds.

Most of the beds that had claims of breathability passed the test. There were only a few that failed. I also found that most of the mattresses that were made of cloth, retained more heat than ones made from vinyl. I can’t say for certain as to why this is, but that’s just how it turned out. Also, the memory foam ones that I tested performed better than the rest, which is kind of unique. Usually, memory foam retains heat, but not in this case.

– Ease Of Cleaning

We all know it’s going to happen, that blowout that makes a complete mess everywhere. And what’s worse than the blowout? Staining and ruining that brand new mattress. It’s happened before, and it will happen again, in my house at least. My son also enjoys finger painting with his poop; that’s always fun to clean up!

Anyway, I found that the cloth types that didn’t have a removable cover were the hardest ones to clean up, and the ones with vinyl covers were the easiest. In the middle are the ones with the removable covers. It may seem like a good concept, but sometimes removing and replacing the cover is more trouble than what it’s worth.

The vinyl-like ones were the easiest to maintain, because the liquid didn’t go through the material and cleaning took minimal effort from a sponge and some soap. This was especially true for those finger painting days!

I could go on and on about what kind of qualifications are best for a crib mattress, but these ones are what I think is more important than all of the others.

Foam Or Spring Mattresses?

Yes, there are more than one type of mattress material. Not all of them are going to be made with that weird cotton material that seems to crumble after a few years of use. Today, your two main options that are affordable are foam and innerspring. But is one better than the other? Did they perform differently on tests? Let’s check it out.

Foam

Why is foam so popular? Well, they’re generally affordable. There’s usually nothing fancy about them, unless they’re organic. They’re usually made from polyurethane, which is the standard foam that’s used, unless it’s organic, CertiPUR US certified or Greenguard certified.

– Firmness

Foam mattresses aren’t generally too firm. They tend to be kind of squishy, and we want them to be resilient when you press your hand into them. If you’re considering a foam mattress, you want to make sure that they’re no more than 6 inches thick, according to the crib mattress safety guidelines. You’ll also want to make sure that the surface isn’t too soft, because it can conform to the baby’s shape leading to sinking, and therefor an increased risk for SIDS.

– Edge Support

These types of beds also tend to lack in the edge support department. If the mattress is too small for the crib – which is usually figured out by performing the two finger test – the lack in edge support can cause an issue. If the mattress is too small to begin with and the baby rolls to the edge, the edge can fold, trapping the baby between the crib and mattress, which may pose a suffocation risk.

– Overall Support

As I mentioned above, I tested all of my mattresses for support. Most of them passed, but I noticed that the ones that were made from plain polyurethane foam performed quite poorly. Not so poorly that I wouldn’t recommend it, but not enough to make the cut as being one of the best.

If I could put my bowling ball on the mattress and it sank in more than it should, or if I laid my son on it and noticed him sinking in, I deemed it as unsupportive or lacking in the support area. This can disrupt your baby’s developmental milestones, such as rolling and kneeling.

– Durability

Over the years, foam is going to take quite a beating. There’s a good possibility that it’s going to wear out, leave indents or fall apart. It’s important that you consider the durability by looking for mattresses that are high in density. This will keep the foam intact longer, and it’ll keep from indenting over the years.

Innerspring

Innerspring mattresses aren’t as popular as foam ones because they tend to be heavier and more expensive. The reason that they’re heavier is because of the coil springs on the inside. The more springs there are, generally the firmer the mattress is going to be. You’ll also find border wire to keep the edges from falling apart. Let’s take a look at what you should look for with these type of mattresses.

– Firmness

The firmness of innerspring beds all depends on how many coils are inside of it, and the thickness of the gauge steel. For example, a mattress that has 150 coils with the same gauge steel as one with 250 coils, may be a little less firm. If the 250 coils are made with a thinner steel, or a higher gauge, there may be no difference in firmness. The firmness can also be changed by the other materials that are inside of the mattress with the coils.

– Edge Support

Edge support for most innerspring mattresses are quite spectacular. Out of all the innerspring mattresses I’ve tested, they all had outstanding edge support. A lot of this had to do with the fact that the edges are wrapped in coil, so the edges won’t give out while the other parts remain sturdy. This is a great feature of innerspring as it adds to its quality and durability.

– Overall Support

With innerspring mattresses, I observed that they were quite supportive equally throughout the entire surface. Sometimes with foam ones, you won’t get an equal weight distribution like you would with innerspring. They’re also more resilient than foam mattresses. My son seemed to bounce around less on the innerspring than he did on the foam ones, and he was also making less of an indentation.

– Durability

Mattresses are going to take a beating after prolonged use. It’s going to be subjected to spills, accidents, finger painting with poop, and so much more. This is the only flaw that I’ve found with these mattresses; they can’t be easily cleaned unless they’re vinyl, and this could void any warranty you may have on it.

Other than the cleaning issue, overall innerspring is more durable than foam types. The foam has no support other than the other foam that may be surrounding it. On the inside of these mattresses are springs that keep the mattress firm, supportive and durable. There’s a very low chance that these springs are going to get worn out.

Conclusion

I can’t tell you enough how great all of these mattresses are, but as always, we have to narrow it down to make your choice easier. My top two recommendations are both exceptional choices, but I’m going to recommend the Newton Wovenaire Crib mattress. Out of all of the mattresses I tested, this one had the best features. It was the safest, the most unique and most breathable. I’d have to say that this is the safest mattress on my list, and possibly currently available on the market.

Recent Updates

September 27, 2021: My First Pack N Play Mattress has been removed due to increased popularity in other products, replaced by the highly-rated Sealy Baby Flex Cool Crib Mattress. Additional Resources and more FAQs have also been included.

Additional Resources

• Does a Crib Mattress Fit a Toddler’s Bed?
• How Long are Crib Mattresses Good For?
• Foam vs Coil Crib Mattress
• How To Clean A Crib Mattress
• Best Organic Crib Sheets