updated August 2022

Puffy vs Tuft & Needle Mattress Comparison

Puffy vs Tuft & Needle Mattress Comparison

We’ve compared the Puffy and Tuft & Needle mattresses, including their price, performance, feel, and materials, so you can understand the differences between these two beds.

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Tuft & Needle and Puffy are two of the leading bed-in-a-box mattress brands. In this review, we’re going to compare the mattresses that got these companies started. The flagship Puffy and Tuft & Needle are fan favorites, but there are important distinctions between the two.

Read on to learn if either of these mattresses is the one you’ve been searching for.


Puffy vs Tuft & Needle: A Quick Comparison

Customer Rating
MA Score
Summary
Firmness
Type
Trial Period
Warranty
Puffy resp e1585244784424

Puffy Mattress

Customer Rating
MA Score

9/10

Summary

Memory foam mattress that is great for side sleepers

Firmness

Medium-firm: 7/10

Type

Memory Foam

Trial Period

101 nights

Warranty

Limited lifetime warranty

tuft and needle

Tuft & Needle

Customer Rating
MA Score

8.7/10

Summary

Budget-friendly mattress for the average sleeper

Firmness

Medium-firm: 6/10

Type

Foam blend

Trial Period

100 days

Warranty

10-year limited warranty

Puffy resp e1585244784424
tuft and needle

Puffy Mattress

Tuft & Needle

Customer Rating

MA Score

9/10

8.7/10

Summary

Memory foam mattress that is great for side sleepers

Budget-friendly mattress for the average sleeper

Firmness

Medium-firm: 7/10

Medium-firm: 6/10

Type

Memory Foam

Foam blend

Trial Period

101 nights

100 days

Warranty

Limited lifetime warranty

10-year limited warranty

The original Puffy mattress is a more expensive, luxurious memory foam mattress—but with this extra cost comes added benefits. The Puffy has thicker comfort layers, dissipating pressure and providing the right amount of cushion for areas like the hips and shoulders. This pressure-relieving give is balanced by contouring foam that does an exceptional job of supporting the spine. The resultant feel works well for side, back, and stomach sleepers.

The original Tuft & Needle mattress is one of the best values on the market. Its upper layer of proprietary foam combines the plush benefits of memory foam with the bouncy responsiveness of latex, all at a lower cost. And with a medium to medium-firm feel, it too works well for every sleep position.  

Key Similarities

  • The Tuft & Needle and Puffy original mattresses work for every sleeping position.
  • Both offer a balanced feel that’s neither too soft nor too firm.
  • Both mattress companies offer a risk-free sleep trial with free returns. 

Key Differences

  • The Tuft & Needle is less expensive than the Puffy mattress, costing about half the price of a queen-sized Puffy. 
  • Puffy’s sleep surface is a plush memory foam while that of the Tuft & Needle is a responsive polyfoam
  • The Puffy has a thicker comfort layer (4” vs 3”) that makes it better for side sleepers
  • The Puffy mattress cover is stain-resistant and washable, making it easier to keep clean.
puffy mattress bedroom e1544387575202

Puffy Mattress Review Highlights

  • The Puffy Matresss works for most sleepers thanks to its plush memory foam feel and medium-firmness.
  • With a near-perfect score for spine alignment, you don’t have to worry about waking up with new aches and pains.
  • Its lifelong warranty is one of the best warranties we’ve come across.
  • Check out Puffy’s other luxury beds: the Puffy Lux Hybrid and the Puffy Royal Hybrid.
tuft and needle

Tuft & Needle Mattress Review Highlights

  • One of the best values thanks to a budget-friendly price tag and exceptional quality. 
  • Balanced feel is a good fit for the “average” sleeper, offering both pressure relief and spinal support. 
  • Exceptional customer service is a cornerstone of the Tuft & Needle brand. 
  • Loved by customers, with 95% keeping their Tuft & Needle mattress (even with free returns!).
  • Tuft & Needle doesn’t stop at their OG model; they’ve also got the cooling Tuft & Needle Mint and the Tuft & Needle Hybrid.

Compare Mattress Dimensions/Sizes

The Puffy and Tuft & Needle mattresses come in the same sizes and have near-identical dimensions, with the Tuft & Needle twin and twin XL sizes slightly larger.

Puffy Tuft & Needle
Thickness 10” 9.5”
Twin 38” x 75” 39” x 75”
Twin XL 38” x 80” 39” x 80”
Full 54” x 75” 54” x 75”
Queen 60” x 80” 60” x 80”
King 76” x 80” 76” x 80”
Cal King 72” x 84” 72” x 84”

Learn more about mattress sizes.


Puffy vs Tuft & Needle Price Points

Cost is a major factor when mattress shopping. While the Puffy bed costs more than the average all-foam mattress, the Tuft & Needle mattress boasts a budget-friendly price point

Puffy Tuft & Needle
Twin $1,449 $745
Twin XL $1,499 $795
Full $1,649 $895
Queen $1,799 $995
King $1,999 $1,395
Cal King $1,999 $1,395

Take a Peek Inside Each Bed

Understanding what makes up a mattress—and how it impacts its feel—is essential to choosing the right mattress for your needs. Let’s review the materials and technology in these two beds and see how they affect the sleeping experience. 

Inside the Puffy Mattress

The Puffy mattress is a 3-layer memory foam bed with a medium-firm firmness level. Its feel is one of cushy pressure relief and incredible support. Here’s what makes up each layer and how it influences your bedtime experience.

inside puffy
  1. Stain-Resistant Cover: The Puffy mattress is wrapped in a stain-resistant cover that protects against spills or accidents and is removable so you can easily wash and maintain a clean mattress.
  2. Cooling Cloud™ Foam (2″): The top layer of the Puffy original mattress is the proprietary Cooling Cloud™ gel foam which is cool to the touch. The gel ensures that body heat doesn’t become trapped along the mattress surface, enhancing temperature regulation. Its ultra-soft feel melts pain from pressure points, making it an excellent bed for side sleepers
  3. Climate Comfort™ Memory Foam (2″): The Puffy’s middle foam layer is crafted from Puffy’s exclusive Climate Comfort™ memory foam. With weight evenly distributed, the Puffy alleviates aches and pains in all sleeping positions and provides an outstanding contouring feel.
  4. Base layer (6″): A base layer with support foam brings a responsive feel to the Puffy. The Insta-Firm technology was designed to limit sagging, promote motion isolation, and make it easy to switch positions. 

Inside the Tuft & Needle Mattress

The Tuft & Needle mattress is a 2-layer foam bed with a medium-firm feel. When you lie on the Tuft & Needle mattress, the feel falls between sleeping “on” and sleeping “in” a mattress. Let’s take a look at Tuft & Needle’s foam layers so you know what to expect.

tuft needle mattress inside
  1. Mattress Cover: The Tuft & Needle cover is designed to promote air circulation, helping to keep the mattress relatively cool. It’s also attractive and soft to the touch.
  2. Comfort Layer (3”): This layer consists of the Tuft & Needle Adaptive foam which has been engineered based on customer feedback. As a polyfoam, it brings the benefits of memory foam and latex and offers exceptional pressure relief.
  3. Support Layer (7″): This support foam is wonderfully durable and stable, preventing sagging and adding stability along the mattress perimeter. 

Compare Our Scores

Take a look at the side-by-side comparison to see how these mattresses performed at our in-house testing lab. 

Puffy Tuft & Needle
Shipping 9 10
Trial Period 8 9
Return Policy 10 10
Warranty 10 9
Set-Up Test 8.5 7
Motion Transfer Test 7.5 7.5
Edge Support Test 8.5 8.5
Pressure Relief Test 7.5 8.5
Spinal Alignment Test 9.5 8.5
Responsiveness Test 6.5 8
Cooling Evaluation 8 7
Durability Evaluation 7.5 8
Customer Service Score 9 10
Social Impact Score 7 8
TOTAL SCORE 8.3/10 8.5/10

Spine Alignment

While both mattresses did great in this evaluation category, the Puffy scored one point higher than the Tuft & Needle mattress. Those with back pain or looking for a mattress that keeps their back in a neutral position would do better with the Puffy mattress.

Responsiveness

Responsiveness is how well a mattress lets you change positions. Unfortunately, the Puffy’s thick memory foam layers made it difficult to move around. The Tuft & Needle original mattress scored an impressive 8/10 in this area, making it a better choice for combination sleepers.

Edge Support

Both mattresses scored identical 8.5/10 for edge support. If you like to use your bed as a chair in the morning or have trouble getting into bed, you may want to search for a mattress with better edge support, like the Casper, which scored a 9.5/10.


Final Decision: Which Is the Best Mattress for You?

Looking at the Puffy vs Tuft & Needle comparison, the Tuft & Needle scored better with a total score of 8.5/10 compared to an 8.3/10 for the Puffy mattress. However, this composite score does not mean that the Puffy is the better mattress for everyone. 

The Tuft & Needle mattress is an incredible value. Its plush give and responsive support doesn’t feel like a budget mattress. And with an 8.5/10 for pressure relief and spine alignment, you’d be hard-pressed to find a mattress as good at relieving aches and pains at a simpler price point

That said, the Puffy mattress does have some attributes that earn it luxury mattress status. Its two comfort layers work exceptionally well for side sleepers. With a stain-resistant, removable cover and a lifetime warranty, Puffy doesn’t take any shortcuts to keep its customers happy.

Other Puffy and Tuft & Needle Mattress Comparisons:

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