Avocado Green Mattress review – a luxury innerspring for eco-conscious shoppers

Before I started testing the Avocado Green Mattress, I'd been sleeping on the same bed for nearly 11 years. Soft and starting to sag, I knew I needed a new, firm mattress for more support. With its top-notch eco-credentials and thousands of five-star reviews, the Avocado Green Mattress looked right up my alley. Still, I couldn't help but wonder whether it was actually comfortable.

The Avocado Green Mattress is the company’s flagship model, and it's also available in a Vegan option (sans wool). It’s constructed of three main layers – two outer layers of GOLS-certified organic Dunlop latex, plus a support layer of pocketed coils in the middle that creates a breathable core and allows for plenty of air circulation. The coils also give the mattress a firm feel, making it an ideal choice for heavier sleepers and those looking for more neck and back support. For added comfort, or if you prefer a softer mattress, you can upgrade to the sewn-on pillow top option for an extra cost.

As an H&G sleep expert, I'm part of the search to find the world's best mattress, and I think I've found it for eco-conscious sleepers. I tested the Avocado Green Mattress for comfort, support, cooling, motion isolation, edge support, and weight bearing capacity and found that it excels across the board. Retailing for less than $2,000 for a Queen, it's not even that expensive for a latex mattress.

Avocado Green Mattress review

For the sake of full transparency, we paid extra for the “white glove” in-home delivery, available starting at $249, so setting up my mattress was especially easy (i.e. two very lovely men from Avocado carried my mattress up my 4-story walk-up, unboxed and set it up, then removed my old mattress). With that said, the process was fairly straightforward from beginning to end. If you opt for in-home delivery - which I recommend if you can swing it - an Avocado rep will give you a call to ask for a four-hour delivery window that works with your schedule. If you choose to forgo the in-home delivery, just make sure you have some help moving the box to its final destination because it’s pretty heavy (and don’t forget to lift with your legs, not your back).

Like all bed-in-a-box mattresses, there’s a decompressing period after it is unboxed, but I found that the Avocado Green mattress decompressed pretty instantly. It didn’t emit any gross mattress off-gassing smells, but I still waited a few hours to lay down on it, per the usual protocol.

Avocado Green Mattress Specifications

Who would the Avocado Organic Mattress suit?

• Hot sleepers: I'd put the Avocado Green Mattress up there with the best cooling mattresses on the market. Strategic perforations in the Talalay latex boost breathability, while the compression and depression of the spring coils enhances airflow.
• Eco-conscious shoppers: Picture this: A herd of robust Gaddi sheep in a meadow grazing on organic pastures in the foothills of the Indian Himalayas. The pastures are tested bi-annually to ensure there are no pesticides used. There’s a clear mountain stream that runs downhill and peaks that run over 20,000 feet high. This herd is a part of Avocado Organic Wool in the Himachal Pradesh region of northern India, where 200,000 of their sheep wander throughout the 40,000 hectares they manage. I know this sounds like a scene straight out of Portlandia, but Avocado takes its ethically-sourced materials very seriously.
• Anyone who suffers from chronic pain: the combination of wool and latex offers natural cushioning and creates an ergonomically zoned support system from more than 1,400 individually wrapped steel coils. I really appreciated the enhanced back support and extended durability.

What's it like to sleep on the Avocado Green Mattress?

• Comfort: my first impression of the Avocado Green Mattress was that it felt soft to the touch, but firm when I laid down on it. I personally prefer a firmer mattress because I like the additional neck and back support you get. I opted for the Standard mattress, which supports all sleep positions, though the firmer surface might suit stomach and back sleepers best. For an extra $700, you could upgrade to the Pillow-Top, but I don't think you'll need it: I felt perfectly comfortable on the Standard mattress.
• Support: I found that the Avocado Green Mattress compresses around the general shape of the body, rather than sharply molding to my curves and contours. The wool quilting and Talalay latex comfort layer offer cushioning around the areas where you make the most contact with the mattress. This is an innerspring mattress, founded on more than 1,000 steel coils, ergonomically arranged for pressure relief and spinal support. I found that this level of support was more than adequate, though some side sleepers might appreciate more body-hugging around the hips and shoulders.
• Breathability: as a hot sleeper testing a bed through the heat of a New York summer, I needed the Avocado Green Mattress to keep me cool. That's just what it did. A latex bed is far more breathable than, say, a memory foam mattress and the coils help to boost breathability as they compress and depress beneath your body weight. If, like me, you suffer from night sweats and hot flashes, then you'll appreciate the moisture-wicking properties of the organic cotton and wool mattress cover.

• Motion isolation: this really impressed me. Latex is naturally springy and responsive, which is great for support but makes for motion transfer. I was hesitant to share the Avocado Green Mattress with my boyfriend, who moves around a lot in his sleep, as well as our cat, who loves to jump on the bed in the middle of the night. Now, I can say with confidence that the Avocado Green Mattress offers surprisingly good motion isolation. I was never disturbed in the night, no matter how much they tossed and turned on the other side of the bed.
• Edge support: the Avocado Green Mattress features a row of reinforced steel coils running right around the edge of the bed, which makes for great edge support and even weight distribution. I could sit or sleep right on the side of the bed and never feel that I was about to fall off.
• Sleep trial: the Avocado Green Mattress comes with a 365-night mattress sleep trial, which is gold-standard in this industry. You get a whole year to test your bed through all four seasons before you need to commit to the purchase.
• Warranty: the Avocado Green Mattress comes with a 25-year mattress warranty. That doesn't sound quite as impressive as a lifetime warranty, but think about it: even the best latex mattress won't last you much more than two decades. I think the Avocado coverage is ample, though I always recommend you wrap your bed in the best mattress protector to guard against spills and stains.

How does the Avocado Green Mattress rate online?

The Avocado Green Mattress boasts a 4.6 average star rating from almost 19,000 verified customer reviews on the Avocado site. Happy customers praise the comfort and fresh smell of this natural mattress and many call out the excellent customer service. One verified buyer says it best: 'Avocado aligns beautifully with my personal values of sustainability and eco-friendliness, making me feel a lot better about the higher cost'.

There are a smattering of more mixed reviews, most of which complain about the cost and construction quirks of the Avocado City Bed Frame. I can't speak to that, since I tested the Avocado Green Mattress on my own bed, which has slats for a bit of extra support.

Should I buy the Avocado Green Mattress?

Short answer: Yes. While many bed-in-a-box companies white-label products from the same factories and ‘greenwash’ their eco-friendly claims, Avocado owns their entire supply chain, so you can feel good about using a product that meets the most stringent standards for environmental and social responsibility. You’ll also feel good because the Avocado Green is an incredibly comfortable mattress.

As for the cost of the bed, it all depends what comfort level you get. The Avocado Green Mattress in Firm goes for less than $2,000 for a Queen, but when you add on a Pillow-Top or Box-Top, the price goes up to more than $3,000. Like I said, I don't think you need the extra layers, and the Avocado Green Mattress in Firm suits me just fine.

How we test mattresses

We put a lot of thought into how we test mattresses. Our expert testers sleep on beds for months, if not years, to get the best sense of their performance over time. We assess each bed against the same criteria: comfort; support; cooling properties; motion isolation; edge support and weight bearing capacity.

Some of our tests are subjective. The only way to get a read on a bed's cooling properties is to sleep on it and see how you feel in the night. Other tests are more scientific: we use a combination of weights and water glasses to measure motion isolation and edge support. We also consider all the practicalities of owning a bed, from delivery details to sleep trials and warranties.

Where possible, we compare our findings against verified customer reviews to show a range of experiences with the same bed. Then we bring it all back to the price to help you determine value for money.