If you suffer from hip pain, then there’s plenty of advice online for choosing the best mattress to help. The trouble is there’s a lot of sales jargon to get through, before you find some useful advice. So how do you know who to believe when you have multiple mattress companies saying that they have the perfect mattress…?
The answer is that you don’t. And I’m not a health practitioner, but I have tried to write this review as objectively and neutrally as possible.
How can a mattress allieviate hip pain?
A common thought is that buying the most “comfortable” mattress for someone who suffers from hip pain generally is a good idea. But this isn’t always true.
In fact, it would certainly benefit someone who suffers from hip pain, if their mattress conforms to the shape of their body and supports it, so that excessive pressure points on joints are avoided. You won’t get that from a very soft mattress.
A mattress needs to correctly align your spine so that it keeps the natural ‘S curve’ when you lie on your back. And when you lie on your side, your back should be more or less straight.
The above advice is good for anyone,not just people who suffer from hip pain or other joint pains. So as such there isn’t really a perfect mattress tailored to alleviate the complications of hip pain. However there are plenty of mattresses out there that can conform to the shape of your body and support the pressure points on your joints.
Are orthopaedic mattresses good for hip pain?
A common recommendation from the mattress industry is to buy either a firm or orthopeadic mattress if you suffer from hip pain.
However there are several factors that may affect whether this is the best advice for you, including:
- Your weight
- The size and build of your body
- Your age
- The way you sleep
- Your health overall
Other common pieces of advice for people with hip pain are to buy a firm mattress and then sometimes to couple it with a memory foam mattress topper. This has been proven to work for some people who suffer from hip pain, but not everyone.
It’s important to remember that while many mattresses are marketed as orthopedic , it does not mean that they have been professionally assessed or recommended for suitability. Typically, mattresses marked as orthopedic are really just the firmer models available in the range.
How to find the right mattress for Hip Pain
If you’re trying to find the right mattress to alleviate the pain on your hips when you sleep, the consider a memory foam mattress first. There are plenty of award-winning memory foam mattresses available, such as the Nectar Sleep and Ergoflex 5G mattresses.
Memory foam is able to offer good all-round support that conforms to the natural contours of the body. However, some people find that it provides a bit of a sinking feeling – particularly if they are heavier people. Other people also report that it makes them hot during the night. The way round this is to look at memory foam mattresses that have a different kind of foam on the uppermost layer.
The Emma mattress is a memory foam mattress that sandwiches the memory foam layer between other layers, providing a more breathable layer of foam at the tip. The result is that the body doesn’t retain quite so much heat during the night.
There are also hybrid mattresses available, which combine the advantages of both memory foam and pocket springs. The result is the right balance between all-round support and breathability. Hybrid mattresses tend to be quite expensive, but as quite a few mattress manufacturers make them, they have become quite competitively priced. Hybrid mattresses also completely eliminate the sinking feeling often felt by people sleeping on a memory foam mattress.
Find your level of Firmness
Generally speaking, the heavier you are as a person, the firmer you will need your mattress to be. This is because heavier people need more support to keep their spine in the correct position. In the same way, lighter people need a softer mattress.
Another general rule when it comes to mattresses, is that people who sleep on their sides need a softer mattress than people who sleep on their back. This is to prevent excess pressure on the shoulders and hips. So a soft mattress will go a long way to help you if you do suffer from hip pain.
Trying out your Mattress
It’s always a good idea to try before you buy – especially when you’re buying something like a mattress that can easily cost hundreds of pounds. Fortunately, you don’t have to go to a showroom to try a mattress anymore. In fact, this is no longer a good way to buy a mattress because it probably means that you will pay more for it.
There are many ‘Bed in a box’ mattress companies out there that offer a free trial period with their products. These trial periods range from anywhere between 30 and 365 days and will allow you try the mattress in the comfort of your own home before deciding whether it is right for you.
The only disadvantage of trying a ‘Bed in a box’ is the fact that you cannot tell how firm or soft the mattress will be until it arrives, as each manufacturer has their own criteria for grading the firmness of their products. So you might get it wrong the first time. However the money that you will save by buying one of these from such a company will definitely make it worth it in the long run.
Best Mattresses for Hip Pain (Update)
Brooke and Wilde Lux Mattress
| Mattress type | Hybrid |
| Firmness | Soft |
| Depth | 280mm |
| Price | £749 |
The Brook and Wilde Lux mattress is a ‘bed in a box’. Unlike many similar mattresses, the Lux mattress comes in soft, medium or firm.
In addition to a layer of cooling memory foam, the mattress also uses two layers of pocket springs. The idea is behind this is that you get the support from the memory foam but the breathability from the pocket springs. It comes with a 100-night comfort trial so you can decide whether it’s the mattress for you.
Tempur Cloud mattress
| Mattress type | Memory foam |
| Firmness | Soft |
| Depth | 250mm |
| Price | £2149 |
When it comes to making mattresses, Tempur are probably one of the best manufacturers out there. Tempur were the first company to develop memory foam, and did so using research from none other than NASA. This mattress also comes with a 100-night free trial.
The Tempur Cloud is the softest of their mattresses. This ‘Elite’ variant of the cloud mattress is the middle of the three in terms of thickness. If you suffer from hip pain, then this is a wise choice for you.
Nectar Sleep mattress
| Mattress type | Memory foam |
| Firmness | Medium/firm |
| Depth | 250mm |
| Price | £549 |
Similar to the Emma mattress, the Nectar Sleep mattress is a ‘bed in a box’ that is made from a combination of different layers of foam, with a single layer of memory foam included.
Like most similar mattresses, the Nectar Sleep mattress comes with a 100-night trial. This is in addition to a lifetime guarantee.
Emma Original mattress
| Mattress type | Memory foam |
| Firmness | Medium |
| Depth | 250mm |
| Price | £499 |
Similar to the Nectar Sleep mattress above, the Emma mattress is a memory foam mattress that represents good value for money due to its low cost. It is medium firmness, and comes with a 200-night guarantee so you can make sure that it is the right mattress for you. In addition to this it comes with a 10-year guarantee so you can order one online with complete peace of mind.
Ergoflex 5G Mattress
| Mattress type | Memory foam |
| Firmness | Firm |
| Depth | 230mm |
| Price | £739 |
The Ergoflex 5G memory foam mattress is one of the few firm memory foam mattresses available. There are no springs in this mattress at all. Instead it consists of a 90mm layer of memory foam as the top layer. This is considerably more than most other memory foam mattresses.
The Ergoflex 5G mattress comes with a 30-night trial period. This is one of the shortest trial periods out there, but you will still get a much better idea of what its like to live with than if you decided to go to a store and try one out instead.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the best mattress type for hip pain?
There is no one answer to this as everyone has their own idea of comfort. Some people prefer the softness of memory foam, and others like the firmness of springs. Some people even like a combination of the two.
How do I get the right mattress for my bad hip?
A good place to start is with a memory foam mattress that is graded as soft. If you order a ‘bed in a box’ that offers a home trial period then you can take advantage of this and replace your new mattress if it’s not quite firm enough.
Should I sleep on my back if I have hip pain?
Ideally everyone should sleep on their back. However, some people simply don’t find it comfortable. You can try using a wedge pillow, or placing a pillow between your knees to relieve the pressure on your hips.
As always, When it comes to chronic pains such as hip pain or arthritis, there are plenty of organisations that offer sound advice. Versus Arthritis are probably one of the most renowned bodies for anything to do with arthritis and hip pain.
What's the best mattress type for hip pain?
There is no one answer to this as everyone has their own idea of comfort. Some people prefer the softness of memory foam, and others like the firmness of springs. Some people even like a combination of the two.
How do I get the right mattress for my bad hip?
A good place to start is with a memory foam mattress that is graded as soft. If you order a 'bed in a box' that offers a home trial period then you can take advantage of this and replace your new mattress if it's not quite firm enough.
Should I sleep on my back if I have hip pain?
Ideally everyone should sleep on their back. However, some people simply don't find it comfortable. You can try using a wedge pillow, or placing a pillow between your knees to relieve the pressure on your hips.
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How we reviewed this article:
Edit History:
Our experts continually monitor the mattress & sleep tech space, and we update our reviews & articles when new information becomes available.
- 2nd March 2023
Current Article - By Carrie Taylor - 9th February 2024
Checked & Reviewed - By Morag Park, Ph.D. - 28th February 2023
Copy Edited - By Carrie Taylor - 21st February 2024
Reviewed - By Anthony Maxwell
WhatMattress has strict sourcing guidelines and we try to rely on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations where possible.
I would recommend the Casper mattress. It’s been great for my hip pain.