What Can I Do If My Mattress Is Too Firm?

Your mattress’s firmness plays a critical role in sleep quality. Too firm a mattress won’t compress under your body, making side sleeping impossible, while too soft a mattress will sink, making front sleeping impossible.

Most people suffer from a mattress that is too firm, which makes side and back sleeping difficult (who wants to sleep on a slab of concrete?).

A mattress that is too firm can give you aches and make it hard to sleep, so it is worth your time looking for solutions.

The good news is that if your mattress is too firm, there are a few things you can do. This article runs through your options with advice.

Let’s jump in!

What Can I Do If My Mattress Is Too Firm? - Break it in

Firstly, all mattresses have a breaking-in period where the materials soften.

If your mattress is under one month old, it hasn’t broken in yet. It takes 45 to 60 days for a mattress to break in with regular use.

This is a big shock when you buy a mattress in-store and the mattress delivered is significantly firmer than the one you tested. However, rest assured your mattress will soften by up to 10% versus when it is brand-new.

Should you notice no improvement after more than a month of use, consider returning the mattress or try one of the steps below.

What Can I Do If My Mattress Is Too Firm?- Buy a soft mattress topper.

The best way to make your mattress softer is to install a soft mattress topper, ideally made from memory foam.

A soft mattress topper will give you 2-3cm of soft memory foam to squash into, making your mattress feel softer without sacrificing support.

We recommend buying a memory gel mattress topper – memory gel has silicone beads that dissipate heat to regulate your temperature. 

What Can I Do If My Mattress Is Too Firm?- Add heat 

If the problem with your mattress is that the memory foam top layer is too firm, you can soften it with a heated mattress topper. The extra heat will encourage the foam to soften and contour your body. 

Heat also softens latex foam, memory gel, and reflex foam but doesn’t work on natural fibres like wool and cotton.

The obvious drawback to this method is that it’s unsuitable for warmer months, so it’s best reserved for winter alongside your hot water bottle.

What Can I Do If My Mattress Is Too Firm?- Replace your mattress with a softer one

Let’s be honest – if your mattress is rock hard, it will never work long-term. A soft mattress topper will buy you time, but it won’t solve the issue for good.

Replacing your mattress will set you back several hundred pounds, but you can’t put a price on a good night’s sleep.

Check out our award-winning mattress range for starters, or jump to our mattress page and filter mattresses by price, technology, firmness, and more.

We have an article covering everything you need to know about mattress disposal and recycling if you are concerned about waste. The best way to get rid is to give your mattress to charity or sell it on Gumtree.

However, if you are within a free trial period, you should be able to send your mattress back to the retailer/manufacturer for a full or partial refund.

Summing up

If your mattress is too firm, it is best to replace it with a softer mattress, or you can add a soft mattress topper to make the first few centimetres of travel softer.

Mattress comfort is a balancing act – you want a mattress that isn’t rock hard or too soft, and for most people, this means choosing a medium or medium-firm mattress.

However, the comfort layer’s materials also affect a mattresses firmness. For example, a memory foam medium-firm mattress will feel softer than a latex foam medium-firm mattress because it is squishier. 

Related pages

If you like this article, read our mattress buyer’s guide and our piece on the advantages and disadvantages of memory foam mattresses.

Good luck!