Shopping for a good mattress at a budget-friendly price point? Zinus and Casper are two mattress brands that you’re likely to come across. Both are bed-in-a-box companies known for their high-quality memory foam and hybrid mattresses.
In this article, we’re going to compare Casper’s flagship mattress with the Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam bed. We’ll compare how they performed during our in-house testing, their similarities and differences, and more to help you choose the right new mattress for your needs.
Zinus and Casper Quick Comparison
Customer Rating
MA Score
Summary
Firmness
Type
Trial Period
Warranty
Customer Rating
MA Score
7.5/10
Summary
Budget-friendly memory foam mattress
Firmness
Medium-Soft to Medium-Firm
Type
Memory foam
Trial Period
100 days
Warranty
10-year limited warranty
Customer Rating
MA Score
9.1/10
Summary
Universal firmness mattress for the average sleeper
Firmness
Medium-firm: 6/10
Type
Memory foam
Trial Period
100 days
Warranty
10-year limited warranty
Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam
Casper
Customer Rating
MA Score
7.5/10
9.1/10
Summary
Budget-friendly memory foam mattress
Universal firmness mattress for the average sleeper
Firmness
Medium-Soft to Medium-Firm
Medium-firm: 6/10
Type
Memory foam
Memory foam
Trial Period
100 days
100 days
Warranty
10-year limited warranty
10-year limited warranty
Key Similarities
- Pressure Relief: Both beds do an excellent job cushioning pressure points as shown by their performance in the Mattress Advisor lab.
- Warranty and Trial Period: Both come with a 10-year warranty and 100-night sleep trial.
- Temperature: Both mattresses earned a 7/10 in our cooling evaluation, so they’re cool for all-foam beds but hotter than most hybrid and innerspring mattresses.
Key Differences
- Responsiveness: The Casper mattress adapts to movement much faster than the Zinus mattress. This means it’s easier to get comfortable in a new position on the Casper—something that benefits people who toss and turn.
- Pricing: The Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam bed is one of the most affordable online mattresses, costing around ⅓ the price of the original Casper mattress.
- Edge Support: Casper has some of the sturdiest edges that we’ve experienced on an all-foam mattress, while Zinus has some of the least sturdy. If you sleep along the edge of the bed, you may want to go with the Casper.
- Motion Isolation: While both beds do a great job at minimizing motion transfer, the Zinus does a noticeably better job at dampening motion. If you share your bed with someone who moves around a lot at night, Zinus may be the better choice.
Best of the Zinus Mattress
- Distinct Memory Foam Feel: This mattress has a deep body contouring memory foam feel, an excellent attribute for a bed that costs much less than luxury brands like Tempur-Pedic.
- Excellent Pressure Relief: With generous comfort foam layers, the Zinus Cooling Gel mattress excels at dissipating pressure from areas like the shoulders, hips, and lower back.
- Isolates Movement: Zinus’s foam does an impressive job limiting motion transfer, even when compared to other all-foam beds.
- Multiple Thicknesses: With 8”, 10”, 12”, and 14” thick options, you can choose your preferred level of cushion and support. The thicker the mattress, the softer it is and the more supportive its high-density foam base.
- Other Options: For other affordable Zinus mattresses, take a look at the Zinus Green Tea mattress or the Zinus Hybrid mattress.
Best of the Casper Mattress
- Zoned Support: Casper’s second layer is made from zoned memory foam. Softer foam at the shoulders and feet paired with more supportive foam at the body’s trunk balances pressure relief with support.
- Impressive Alignment: The Casper earned a nearly perfect score in our spine alignment test—a property that may help ease back pain.
- Solid Edges: Casper has some of the sturdiest edges of any foam mattress that we’ve tested, so you won’t feel like you’re going to roll off of the edge.
- Works for All Sleeping Positions: Soft foam at the shoulders works well for side sleepers while solid support along the body’s truck is great for back and stomach sleepers.
- Other Choices: You may want to consider other Casper models, including the Element, Hybrid, Wave Hybrid, or Nova Hybrid. Not sure which to choose? Compare Casper mattress models and prices to find the right fit.
Zinus Offers Multiple Thickness Options
Casper comes in one thickness—11”—which is a good mattress height for the average adult. Zinus’s four models boast different thicknesses, with added thickness creating additional cushion. Most adults sleep best on a mattress that’s 10” or thicker.
| Zinus | Casper | |
| Thickness | 8”, 10”, 12”, or 14” | 11” |
| Twin | 39” x 75” | 38” x 75” |
| Twin XL | Not Available | 38” x 80” |
| Full | 54” x 75” | 53” x 75” |
| Queen | 60” x 80” | 60” x 80” |
| King | 76” x 80” | 76” x 80” |
| California King | 72” x 84” | 72” x 84” |
Learn more about mattress sizes.
Casper is Quite a Bit More Expensive
Both Casper and Zinus offer affordable memory foam mattresses. However, Zinus’s price tag is much less, costing around ⅓ to ½ the cost of the Casper for a queen-size mattress.
| Zinus | Casper | |
| Twin | $198-$254 | $626 |
| Twin XL | Not Available | $795 |
| Full | $254-$430 | $995 |
| Queen | $289-$484 | $1,095 |
| King | $350-$577 | $1,495 |
| California King | $511-$581 | $1,495 |
Compare the Build and Feel
Both the Zinus and Casper mattresses are made from layers of CertiPUR-US certified memory foam and polyfoam. Thanks to variation in their unique foam layers, these beds boast different firmnesses and sleeping experiences.
The Casper is a 3-layer mattress with a medium-firm feel. Its polyfoam top layer delivers immediate cushion while its transition layer of zoned memory foam provides give and support exactly where you need it. Combined, these layers create a balanced foam feel, so you won’t feel stuck like you may on the Zinus mattress.
The Zinus Cooling Gel Memory Foam mattress comes in four thicknesses: 8”, 10”, 12”, and 14”. The 8” is a medium firmness, the 10” and 12” a medium-soft, and the 14” a plush bed. While Casper has a polyfoam top layer and memory foam second layer, Zinus’s mattress has the opposite. This, combined with the lack of zoning, makes the Zinus mattress have a more distinct memory foam hugging feel.
Inside the Zinus Mattress
- Swirl Foam Top Layer (2”-4”): Cooling gel memory foam closely contours to the body, providing excellent cushion at pressure points. The gel infusion helps keep the mattress cool.
- Comfort Foam Transition Layer (1.5”-2”): A proprietary polyurethane foam helps minimize excess sinkage.
- High-Density Foam Base Layer(s) (4.5”-8.5”): One or two layers of high-density support foam make this one of the sturdier budget-friendly beds.
Inside the Casper Mattress
- Airscape Comfort Layer (1.5”): Ventilated polyfoam lightly cushions the body and facilitates generous airflow for a cool feel.
- Zoned Transition Layer (2”): By utilizing memory foams of various densities across three body zones, the Casper pairs outstanding body alignment with plush pressure relief.
- Durable Base Support Layer (7”): High-density foam limits sinkage and enhances longevity.
Compare Mattress Lab Performance
We tested both of these mattresses at the Mattress Advisor lab. Take a look at our side-by-side comparison to see how they performed.
Learn more about our Review Process for more information on how we test mattresses.
| Zinus | Casper | |
| Shipping | 8 | 10 |
| Trial Period | 9 | 9 |
| Return Policy | 7.5 | 10 |
| Warranty | 9 | 9 |
| Set-Up Test | 8 | 8 |
| Motion Transfer Test | 8.75 | 8 |
| Edge Support Test | 3 | 9.5 |
| Pressure Relief Test | 8.75 | 8.5 |
| Spinal Alignment Test | 8 | 9.5 |
| Responsiveness Test | 7 | 10 |
| Cooling Evaluation | 7 | 7 |
| Durability Evaluation | 7 | 8 |
| Customer Service Score | 8 | 9 |
| Social Impact Score | 2 | 9 |
| TOTAL SCORE | 7.5/10 | 9.1/10 |
Edge Support
Sturdy edges are an essential feature of a mattress for many couples. When you share the bed, you tend to spread out in order to stake out your own space and sleep more peacefully. But not all mattresses have edges worthy of a snuggle.
In our edge support tests, the Casper mattress earned one of the highest marks for any all-foam mattress—and Zinus earned one of the lowest. If you share your mattress and happen to cozy up to the edges, we recommend going with Casper over Zinus.
Motion Transfer
Motion transfer is the other of our tests that tends to be the most important for couples and those who share their mattress with kids or pets. When your bed partner gets in or out of bed or moves around when you’re sleeping, motion transfer can wake you up, leading to poor sleep quality.
Zinus did an exceptional job absorbing motion and limiting motion transfer, while Casper did slightly less well. While both earned scores high enough that we would suggest them for couples, extra-light sleepers may find that they sleep more soundly on the Zinus.
Spinal Alignment
Body alignment is one of the most influential factors that determines how your body feels come morning. This is true for side, stomach, and back sleepers. When we examined the spinal support offered by these two mattresses, they both earned higher scores than the average bed. However, Casper’s 9.5/10 makes it an excellent choice for people with back pain or body aches.
Which Mattress is Better for You?
If you’re on a tight budget, the Zinus Gel Memory Foam bed is one of the best mattresses that you’ll find for under $500. But if you have a bit more to spend, we recommend the Casper thanks to it outperforming the Zinus in most of our in-house tests.
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