We all know what it’s like to have a bad night sleep – a restless slumber that leaves you groggy and off the pace well into the next day. When you consider how important a good night’s sleep can be it is surprising how many people are happy to put up with an uncomfortable or unsuitable mattress.

In this guide you will find a few simple tips that will help you to find the mattress that is right for your needs. Almost everyone will have different requirements in their mattress, so it’s important to identify them and purchase accordingly – the best way to ensure a peaceful night sleep that leaves you feeling rested and invigorated at the beginning of each new day.

One common mistake that is made in the selection of a mattress is that softer and spongier equals comfier – this may be the case with your new leather sofas, but there is a slightly more advance science to the comfort of a good mattress. The reason for this is that an overly soft mattress may not offer the necessary amount of support to your body which could result in back or neck pain over time.

By the same token, a mattress that is too firm can also be detrimental to your body and therefore your chance of a peaceful nights sleep. Try to look for a mattress that is fairly firm whilst still offering a degree of support, not too hard and not too soft. The only real way to see which mattress is right for you is by visiting a mattress dealer and trying them out for yourself.

Although you may feel that lying down in the centre of multiple mattresses in a busy mattress store could be slightly embarrassing, in the search for the perfect mattress you must be prepared to try properly before you buy. This means lying down, in your usual sleeping position (ideally with your partner if you are to be sharing the mattress) so that you can assess how comfortable the mattress is for you. This cannot be achieved by simply sitting and bouncing on the side of the bed, a technique that you see many uneducated mattress shoppers adopting.

When in the sleeping position, you need to evaluate if the comfort and support of the mattress is right for you. Eventually you will find a mattress that is not too soft – when your body will sag down below your head, meaning you will be sleeping with a bent spine and neck – or too hard, which will have the same effect. If the mattress does not keep your spine straight when you are in your usual sleeping position, then it is not the right mattress for you.