You’ve probably heard of Hypnos, but which is the best Hypnos mattress? And why do some Hypnos mattresses cost twice as much as others?
A respected brand
Hypnos is a posh mattress brand with a Royal Warrant, which is based in Buckinghamshire.
Does that mean that the King sleeps in a Hypnos bed? Perhaps, or perhaps not. It actually means that the Royal household uses Hypnos mattresses, which is also impressive.
The Manufacturing Guild Mark is another notable award given to Hypnos. This is an industry award where companies are assessed against a criteria for quality.
All the Hypnos mattresses we’ve featured are traditionally made with pocket springs. They mostly use naturally breathable materials such as wool, as opposed to alternative mattress materials such as memory foam.
Naturally made mattresses
There’s a strong argument that using natural materials in a mattress is more environmentally friendly. Of course, there are many ways to measure such things. One study worth a mention is that carried out by Glew, Stringer et al in 2012 which compared pocket sprung mattresses made with natural fibres with pocket sprung mattresses with layers of foam. These are often called ‘hybrid’ mattresses.
Their conclusion was that the mattresses with natural fibres ’emit marginally less greenhouse gasses than foam (petrochemical) pocket spring mattresses.’ More significant though was the impact after you’ve finished with the mattress:
‘When end of life scenarios are considered, the results suggest much larger greenhouse gas emission reductions for natural fibre than foam mattresses. Refurbishing natural fibre mattresses and reusing the springs, coupled with recycling the waste components, can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90% compared to sending the mattresses to landfill’.
Glew, Stringer et al, 2012
Environmental credentials
Hypnos also deserve praise for their environmental efforts which have earned them a ‘Planet Mark’. The company has been ‘carbon-neutral for over a decade’ according to their website. Hypnos has ‘offset over 9,550 tonnes of carbon along the way’. They also say that they were ‘the first bed manufacturer in the world to…become carbon neutral’.
Hypnos avoids using synthetic materials in its mattresses and say that ‘our products are made with 100% natural and sustainable fibres’. They say that makes them ‘fully recyclable’. They also don’t use any ‘synthetic, chemical-based foams or memory foams’ in their mattresses. You can watch a video about Hypnos and sustainability here.
Before our top five, here’s a summary of the good and bad points about Hypnos. Prices and review scores are correct at the time of writing.
Pros and cons of Hypnos mattresses
Pros:
- Much longer established than most mattress brands in the UK
- Reputation for quality
- Royal Warrant, meaning they supply royalty
- Serious about sustainability and recycling (first carbon neutral mattress brand in the UK)
- Natural materials throughout
- Good length warranty for pocket sprung models
Cons:
- Some models are expensive
- Some of the cheaper models are single sided only
- Trial periods offer exchanges rather than refunds
- Some find that they get better support from foam than natural materials
- Cheaper models tend to be single sided
1. Hypnos Hemsworth Luxury Pocket Spring Mattress – medium/firm tension – £589
The Hypnos Hemsworth offers a lot for the money. The main downside is that there aren’t many reviews to go on but a combination of the Hypnos reputation and a good specification is enough to convince me.
We’ve highlighted the ‘luxury’ version of the Hypnos Hemsworth but there are three variations to choose from:
- Hypnos Hemsworth Deluxe. This is medium tension and is usually the cheapest model. It has a slightly lower spring count than the other two and less natural materials.
- Hypnos Hemsworth Luxury. This version is medium/firm and is the one that we will focus on in our recommendation.
- Finally, there’s the Hypnos Hemsworth Support. With this model you get a very similar specification to the luxury model but it is slightly firmer.
Firmer mattresses are more suited for heavier than average people and for people who sleep on their backs. If you’re a 7 stone jockey who sleeps on their side, you will probably be better with a softer Hypnos mattress (see #4 on this list). That’s because you won’t sink into a firm mattress very much and won’t end up in a good sleeping position.
Specification and design
As you’d expect, the Hypnos Hemsworth Luxury comes with pocket springs, which are the posher type of spring in a mattress. Some cheap mattresses use open coil springs, which are wobblier and less supportive. A brand like Hypnos uses quality materials.
In this case, you get 1200 pocket springs on the king size version. Most mattress experts will tell that 1000-2000 is the ideal range to look for. You only really need a high number within that range if you’re very heavy. Anyway, 1200 pocket springs will provide plenty of support. The Hypnos Hemsworth Deluxe comes with 1000 springs, hence the slightly lower price than the ‘Luxury’ model.
The other reason we prefer the ‘Luxury’ model to the cheaper ‘Deluxe’ model is the materials used alongside the springs. The Hypnos Hemsworth Luxury uses natural cotton rather than synthetic materials which aren’t as breathable.
Evidence of a quality mattress
Other signs of quality are that it’s made in the UK (although, to be fair, some poor quality mattresses are made in the UK).
It also has ‘hand side stitching’. That’s a boring technical thing which means it won’t collapse when you sit on the edge of the bed to put your socks on.
The main downside with this mattress, is that it is single sided so you can’t flip it over. Some people reckon that a mattress lasts longer if you regularly turn it over. Some of the more expensive Hypnos mattresses are double sided.
The Hypnos Hemsworth comes with a 10 year guarantee. A few years ago that was an unusually long guarantee, but nowadays there are lots of cheaper ‘bed in a box’ mattresses which offer 10 years. Some even offer a guarantee that lasts ‘forever’ in the case of the Nectar Sleep and DreamCloud mattresses (subject to Ts & Cs of course…).
An unexpected trial period
A few years ago you would not have got a home trial period with a pocket spring mattress around this price. However, the market has been turned on its head by the emergence of new brands offering risk-free trials. Some of these extend for a whole year which allows you to try your mattress out in summer and winter before deciding if you want to keep it (e.g. Nectar Sleep and Simba Sleep).
This Hypnos mattress doesn’t offer anything quite that generous but you do get a very valuable 60 day comfort trial if you buy it from Mattress Online. You can’t send it back for a refund but there is an option to swap it. Have a read of the Terms and Conditions before you buy it, as there are some restrictions. Mattress Online was named Best Online Bed Retailer at the National Bed Federation Awards in 2022 (that’s the main industry awards).
2. Hypnos Luxury Wool No. 2 Pocket Sprung Mattress – medium tension – £1649
This Hypnos Luxury Wool mattress has a higher price tag and fewer springs than the Hypnos Hemsworth Luxury, but it’s better if you want a medium tension mattress. It’s got a top layer, which is often known as a pillowtop for extra comfort.
It has 1000 pocket springs, which is still a perfectly adequate number for the majority of people. If you’re a sumo wrestler you might be better with a higher number for a bit of extra support.
Besides the springs, it uses layers of wool and some synthetic materials for added comfort (a ‘recycled fibre comfort pad’). It doesn’t have layers of scientific sounding stuff so it will appeal to someone who wants a straightforward, high quality mattress.
It’s a deep mattress at 31cm. However, I wouldn’t obsess about that too much. Anything above 25cm is a sign of a decent mattress in the mattress market and there are also some decent ones which are 20-25cm deep.
It comes with the same 10 year guarantee as the Hypnos Orthos Elite and it scores well with customers.
As with most Hypnos mattresses, it has what’s known as a ‘hand tufted’ finished. That’s a good sign of quality and just means that it is held together with the button-type things you see on the top of the mattress.
The Wool No. 2 is a medium tension mattress which is usually best for average weight people.
Again, the main downside with this mattress (in my opinion) is that you can’t turn it over. You can obviously rotate it round, which has some benefit for extending its life.
3. Hypnos Luxury Wool No. 1 Pocket Sprung Mattress – medium/firm tension – £1249
The Hypnos Luxury Wool No 1 pocket sprung mattress is similar to the Hypnos Luxury Wool No. 2 (above). It’s got the same spring count, similar construction methods and it gets similarly glowing reviews.
The main differences are the firmness of the mattress, the amount of wool used and the lack of a pillowtop layer. The Hypnos Luxury Wool No.1 is firmer than the Hypnos Luxury Wool No. 2.
The general idea is to find a mattress where you sink in just the right amount. If you sleep on your front/back or if you’re heavier than average you should be looking for a firmer mattress than someone who is lighter than average or who sleeps on their side.
According to the Hypnos website, their firm mattresses are better for people who ‘naturally sleep on their back’.
Natural mattress materials which are responsibly sourced
This is another Hypnos mattress which uses wool. The No. 2 model has an extra layer of wool compared to the No. 1 model.
To its credit, Hypnos uses ‘completely traceable 100% British Wool’ (Hypnos annual report on Sustainability and Environment). This means that they work with ‘Red Tractor’ farms. The idea is that they have ‘high levels of commitment to both animal welfare and also to the health of their soil and land, with the farmers themselves getting paid a fair price.’
Meanwhile, cotton for Hypnos mattresses like this one is sourced via a similar accreditation scheme called the Better Cotton Initiative. The scheme ensures it is ‘ethically sourced’ as it provides ‘more traceable and responsibly farmed materials, whilst helping to support cotton farmers, their communities and the environment’. (That’s according to the Hypnos Annual Report on Sustainability and Environment).
Another environmental thumbs-up for Hypnos is that they developed eco-friendly packaging for their beds and mattresses which is made from sugar cane and recycled plastic. That’s good news as a lot of mattresses arrive in huge plastic bags which are then dumped.
4. Hypnos Banbury Cotton Comfort Mattress – £999 – soft/medium tension
This Hypnos Banbury Cotton Comfort Mattress is one of the softer mattresses made by Hypnos. It’s rated as soft/medium. If you’re looking for an even softer model then I would look at the pricier Hypnos Pillow Top Luxe Mattress instead (‘ideally suited to side sleepers of a lighter stature’ according to MattressMan).
It’s got 1200 pocket springs, which is on a par with the Hypnos Hemsworth Luxury (see #1).
You may be wondering what extra it offers compared to the Hemsworth Luxury for a significantly higher price. The differences are quite modest but the most notable thing is the quantity of natural materials.
The Banbury uses two generous layers of wool, which is an outstanding natural material for temperature regulation (have you ever seen a sheep sweating?). If you tend to get very warm in bed then I would consider this a good investment. See our guide to wool mattresses for more details on why wool is such a clever material.
Again, you can’t turn this mattress over because the comfort layers are only on one side. You’ll need to rotate it round instead to prolong its life.
This Hypnos mattress comes with a 60 night comfort trial period if you buy it from Mattress Online. That gives you the option to swap it if it’s not right for you (with some caveats). The warranty is 10 years which I consider to be very good for a pocket sprung mattress.
5. Hypnos Bespoke Grandeur Mattress – medium or firm tension – £2899
This Hypnos Grandeur mattress is twice the price of some of the others on this list. So, what extras are you getting for your money?
It comes in medium or firm tensions and has a higher spring count than the others with 1800 pocket springs on the king size version. Somewhere between 1000-2000 springs is the normal range for a good mattress. If you’re heavier than average then you will get better support from a mattress with a number towards the top of that range.
Is this the best Hypnos mattress for your money?
This mattress can be turned over, which is a good thing in my opinion. If you are able to flip your mattress regularly then it should extend its life a bit and reduce the risk of dips and indents over time.
However, keep in mind that a high quality mattress like this is massive (30cm deep to be precise). Turning it over is not an easy task.
Another thing which bumps the price up are the layers of mostly natural materials alongside the springs. There are two thin layers of latex, which is a relatively expensive material which is slowly gathered from rubber trees.
Finally, it comes with a 20 year structural guarantee. Most Hypnos mattresses have a 10 year guarantee.
All in all then, there are several upgrades. I’ll leave you to decide if it’s worth the much bigger price tag.
In depth – do Hypnos mattresses with higher spring counts cost more?
We love exploring stats and data around mattresses. If this isn’t for you, feel free to scroll on by or watch a video of some cats.
Our theory is that high quality mattress brands charge more for their mattresses with more springs and it is a key factor which determines price. This might sound like a very obvious theory but it doesn’t seem to apply when you compare every brand. It certainly doesn’t compare when you compare brands side by side.
As a simple way of testing this out, we looked at the number of pocket springs on five Hypnos mattresses alongside the price for a double mattress.
Does the best Hypnos mattress have the most springs?
The graph shows that there is indeed some correlation between Hypnos prices and the number of pocket springs. However, it isn’t quite as clear as you might think. The highest price mattress has the highest number of springs but there’s a small clump of similarly priced mattresses which have quite a range of springs. A similar comparison of Vispring mattresses showed a much clearer diagonal line along the X-Y axis.
The application for this is that you can get a very rough idea of whether a mattress is well priced by the spring count. If you’re in a showroom and find that the most expensive Hypnos is the one with the lowest spring count I would ask why.