Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress review − top-quality thermoregulation for under $500

When I was assigned to test the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress, I was skeptical. As a hot sleeper, I struggle to sleep on memory foam: all that thick material leaves little to no room for air to flow through the bed. Zinus aims to solve this issue by infusing its foam with thermoregulating gel, which should stop you and your bed from getting too toasty in the night.

The Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress is highly affordable, retailing for under $500 for a queen. I wanted to see whether such a budget-friendly bed could live up to its cooling claims. That's why I tested the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress for a few months last year, scoring for comfort; support; breathability; motion isolation; edge support; and weight bearing capacity.

At the end of the testing period, I was pretty impressed with this bed's performance, given its price. The Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress delivered all the comfort and support that memory foam is known for and kept me at the perfect temperature in the night. Still, I wouldn't say it's the best mattress on the market, and there are a few quirks you should know about before you buy.

Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress review

I share a bed with my husband. Where I sleep on my side and run warm, even in the winter, my partner tends to alternate between his back and stomach and sleeps cool. Since we have such different sleep preferences, we were able to assess the bed's performance from a range of perspectives.

Zinus Cooling Gel Mattress Specifications

Who would the Zinus Cooling Gel Mattress suit?

• Side and back sleepers: as a side sleeper, I appreciate a memory foam mattress with plenty of give to cradle my pressure points, such as my shoulders and hips, while still supporting my back and neck. In the interests of fair, thorough testing, I tried lying on the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress on my stomach, but found that my body sank too far to keep my neck in proper alignment.
• Hot sleepers: traditional memory foam tends to retain heat during the night, which can quickly become uncomfortable for those who sleep hot. The Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress is actually made from gel memory foam, which is designed for thermoregulation.
• Buyers on a budget: the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress is one of the best affordable mattresses on the market, and it's often discounted in the mattress sales. Right now, you could pick up a Queen bed for just $499, which is almost unheard of outside of sales season. If you're looking for a cooling mattress that won't break the bank, you've come to the right place.

What is the Zinus Cooling Gel Mattress like to sleep on?

• Comfort and support: for the first 10 days of testing, the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress felt unbelievably hard, like laying down on a wooden bench. There was no give to the surface and the foam barely conformed to our bodies at all. Thankfully, the mattress soon softened up − my theory is that the foam had gotten too cold during shipping and storage. If you want to learn how to break in a mattress more quickly, I suggest you consult our expert guide. I'd still describe it as a medium-firm mattress: it takes a minute or two to conform to your body and you'll sink into the surface two or three inches while sleeping. I found that the mattress did a great job of supporting my body while sleeping on my side, and my husband agrees it offers the right amount of 'give' while still feeling supportive.
• Breathability: because the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress is made with gel memory foam, it should prevent your bed and your body from getting too hot in the night. As someone who sleeps hot, I almost always find myself sweating when I sleep on memory foam, but I didn't have any problems on the Zinus Mattress. In fact, I found that I slept cooler during the night than I did with our previous test bed, the DreamCloud Luxury Hybrid Mattress. The Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress didn't seem to retain any heat, even on warmer nights, which is why it's the best cooling mattress for buyers on a budget.

• Motion isolation: memory foam is known for its excellent motion isolation, and the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress didn't disappoint. During the night, I was never disturbed by my husband moving around. There were even a few nights when he came to bed once I was already asleep and he was able to climb in without jostling me awake. To measure the motion transfer of the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress, I filled a glass with water and set it in the center of the bed. I was able to walk around and even jump on the mattress without tipping the water glass.
• Edge support: my husband and I share our bed with our golden retriever, who is a bit of a mattress hog. On more than one occasion, I woke up in the middle of the night to find that she had pushed me onto the very edge of the bed, but I never felt like I was going to fall off. The edge support is very good for a memory foam mattress, though not quite as supportive as something like the Tempur-Pedic ProAdapt Mattress.
• Weight test: to get a better idea of how much the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress gives under pressure, I stacked two 10-pound weights in the middle of the bed. They sank about two inches into the surface and, once removed, the foam returned to its original shape in less than 20 seconds. Zinus doesn't actually list the firmness of this mattress, but if I had to assess it myself, I'd say it's around a 6 or a 6.5 out of 10.

• Practical points: the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress is available in four thicknesses: 8", 10", 12", 14". The brand doesn't really explain the difference between the thinner and thicker models but, generally speaking, thicker mattresses offer more cushioning, last longer, and are better suited for taller, broader sleepers. It's worth noting that Zinus uses fiberglass as a fire retardant. This material is often used as wall insulation but it can be harmful if your skin is directly exposed to it. Our Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress came with a care tag stating that the removal of the cover may expose you to glass fibers.
• Sleep trial: the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress comes with a 100-night mattress sleep trial. That's about average for a box mattress brand and should give you just enough time to test your mattress through several seasons before you commit to your purchase.
• Mattress warranty: the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress comes with a 10-year mattress warranty and a whole lot of fine print. You need to provide proof of purchase as the original buyer and you must not remove the outer cover or tags from the mattress. If you use a heating pad or electric blanket or an 'improper' bed frame or base, then you risk voiding your warranty. For your warranty to be valid, you need to cover your bed with the best mattress protector.

How does the Zinus Cooling Gel Mattress rate online?

The Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress has more than 850 reviews on the Zinus site with an average rating of 4.1. Happy customers praise the soft support of the mattress, though a few customers complain that their mattress never fully expanded after unboxing. I can only speak to my experience with the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress, which took 48 hours to expand, and another 10 days to break in before I felt fully comfortable.

Should I buy the Zinus Cooling Gel Mattress?

I think the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress is a good option for hot sleepers and buyers on a budget. While it took a few days to expand and almost a week to soften up, I did think it was quite comfortable to sleep on, providing a good balance of comfort and support for a variety of sleep positions.

Still, I can't ignore the fact that the Zinus Cooling Green Tea Mattress felt incredibly uncomfortable for the first week. I'm also wary that the brand still uses fiberglass inside its mattresses and there are quite a few reviewers who claim that the mattress loses its shape after a year or so. If you're looking for the best organic mattress that's free from harmful substances and built to last, then you're looking in the wrong place.

How we test mattresses

We put a lot of thought into how we test mattresses. Our expert testers sleep on beds for months at a time, ideally through several seasons to better monitor their performance, with a special focus on breathability. 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 assess the comfort of a mattress is to sleep on it and see how you feel. Others are more scientific: we use a system of weights and water glasses to measure motion isolation, edge support, and weight bearing capacity. Each test has a unique purpose: when we fill a glass with water, set it in the middle of the mattress, and jump around to measure motion isolation, we're testing the suitability of that particular bed for light sleepers and anyone who shares a bed with a pet or a partner.

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