Designed to dissipate heat, wick moisture, and block odors, the best cooling mattress toppers and pads could help you to sleep sweat-free and wake up feeling fresh. I bought my first cooling mattress topper four years ago, when I moved into my heat bubble of a college bedroom, and I've never looked back.
Some lucky people only sleep with a cooling mattress topper or pad in the summer. Hot sleepers, like me, use them all year round. With the best cooling mattress toppers and pads, you can take the edge off the night sweats and hot flashes to keep cool and comfortable.
As H&G's resident sleep writer, I work alongside a team of expert testers to find the world's best mattress toppers. I've combed through our back catalog of reviews to bring you the best cooling mattress toppers and pads, as recommended by hot sleepers. Our reigning champion is the Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper, which combines active cooling with optimal motion isolation and near-perfect pressure relief. Still, you might find that another one of our recommendations better meets your sleep needs.
Best cooling mattress toppers and pads 2024
You can trust Homes & Gardens. Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing the latest products, helping you choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Before we begin, it always helps to define our terms. A cooling mattress topper is a thick slab of foam, made from or infused with cooling materials, secured with corner straps. A cooling mattress pad looks more like a mattress protector, with a stretchy bed skirt in place of corner straps. It might be filled with thermoregulating fibers or wrapped in cooling cotton and cashmere.
At a glance
We'll dive into the details further down. For now, here are the best cooling mattress toppers and pads at a glance. However you sleep, whatever your budget, I've found something to suit you.
The best cooling mattress topper overall
Graphite is a highly conductive material, which works to carry excess thermal energy away from your body and out of your bed. This topper kept our tester cool through a hot and humid New England summer.
The best cooling memory foam mattress topper
Memory foam gets a bad rep for heat retention, but that info is outdated – these days, you can infuse memory foam mattress toppers with all manner of cooling gels. Our tester, Lauren, rates the Copper Topper for thermoregulation.
The best cooling latex mattress topper
Latex is the material of choice for hot sleepers and eco-conscious shoppers. Not only is this mattress topper filled with organic latex, which is highly breathable, but it's topped with organic wool and cotton, which make great moisture-wickers.
The best cooling mattress topper for side sleepers
Side sleepers need a topper that's soft enough to cushion their hips, knees, shoulders, and ankles yet supportive enough to keep their spine straight. The Birch Plush Organic Mattress Topper strikes a great balance between comfort and support.
The best cooling mattress pad for night sweats
If you suffer from night sweats, then you need to find a mattress pad that keeps you just the right side of cool and dry. Embedded within the Sijo TempTune Cooling Mattress Pad is a moisture-wicking membrane to do just that.
The best cooling mattress pad for hot flashes
Slumber Cloud is all about proactive, rather than reactive, thermoregulation. Their Performance Mattress Pad incorporates advanced thermoregulating technology to learn how you sleep and keep your temperature at equilibrium.
The best cooling mattress topper overall
Our expert tester, Kaitlin, side hustles as a short-term rental host. She picked up the Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper to breathe new life into her old guest bed two years ago. Since then, she's had dozens of guests come to stay, and they all rave about this topper. Kaitlin's mother, a notoriously fussy sleeper, woke up the next morning and reached for her phone to order her own Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper − it's just that good.
As a hot sleeper, Kaitlin tries to avoid memory foam, which she believed was too thick for air to flow through. She only agreed to test a memory foam mattress topper when she learned about the graphite infusion. Graphite is highly conductive material, which works to carry excess thermal energy away from the body and out of the bed. Kaitlin tested the Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper in the middle of July in a room without AC and she couldn't get over how well she slept.
There's more to life than thermoregulation. 'As a side sleeper, I know I need a topper that's soft enough to cradle my body without swallowing it,' says Kaitlin. 'Certainly, the Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper contoured around my curves to bear my weight. Still, it sank no more than an inch and sprang back into shape soon after my weight was removed.' Kaitlin finds it cradles her neck and shoulders for soft support when she sleeps on her side.
We can't talk about the Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper without mentioning the price. A Queen-sized topper costs $445, which is pretty expensive: closer to the price of the best affordable mattress than your average topper. Still, Kaitlin thinks it's worth the money, and I'm inclined to agree.
You can find more detail in our Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper review.
The best cooling memory foam mattress topper
Where the Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper is infused with (you guessed it) graphite, the ViscoSoft Active Cooling Copper Topper incorporates copper, another highly conductive element. The copper flecks through the comfort layer of memory foam act as thermal highways to carry excess body heat out of the bed.
'As a hot sleeper testing through a humid summer in the Pacific Northwest, I really wanted the ViscoSoft Active Cooling Copper Topper to live up to its cooling claims,' says expert tester Lauren Allain. Compared with traditional memory foam, Lauren found that the copper helped to dissipate heat and block odors. 'Now, I wouldn't say that the topper trapped heat, but I did wake up in a sweat for a few nights during testing,' she admits. Ultimately, there's only so much you can do to enhance the cooling of memory foam – it might never be as breathable as a latex mattress topper.
Still, there are plenty of positives to memory foam. For one thing, it makes an excellent motion isolator. If you share a bed with a pet or partner, you can rely on memory foam to minimize the motion transfer so you can sleep undisturbed. Lauren found that the ViscoSoft Active Cooling Copper Topper offered 'real pressure relief while sleeping on my side and sufficient support when I lay on my stomach.'
The ViscoSoft Active Cooling Copper Topper delivers on thermoregulation, pressure relief, and motion isolation, but it falls down in the edge support test. When Lauren tried to sit on the side of the bed, she had to brace herself against the carpet to keep from falling. If you like to sit on the side of the bed to nurse a baby or get dressed in the mornings, you'll need a topper with better edge support: I recommend the Saatva Graphite Mattress Topper.
You can find more detail in our ViscoSoft Active Cooling Copper Topper review.
The best cooling latex mattress topper
I'm a hot sleeper and an eco-conscious shopper. I'm keen to keep cool, but I'd rather not spend my money on synthetic fabrics and fills. If I could only buy one of these cooling mattress toppers and pads, I'd get the Avocado Organic Latex Mattress Topper for natural breathability.
This topper is filled with organic Dunlop latex, which is dense and durable, arranged in an open-cell structure to boost breathability. Then, it's topped with organic cotton and wool for natural thermoregulation and moisture-wicking. Our expert tester, Antonia Santoro, still raves about the Avocado Organic Latex Mattress Topper, two years after she started testing: 'this thing got me through a hot and humid New York summer. I never woke up with night sweats and I managed to sleep comfortably even when my HVAC system went haywire.'
The Avocado Organic Latex Mattress Topper recently relaunched. Now, it's available in two heights and two comfort levels to suit every sleep position. I recommend a deeper topper in Plush for side sleepers who need more give, while the two-inch topper in Medium should provide solid support for back and stomach sleepers.
There's only one thing stopping Antonia from giving this topper the full five stars: the absence of corner straps. There's no way to secure the Avocado Organic Latex Mattress Topper to the bed: you just have to trust that the cotton canvas underneath the topper can get a grip on the mattress. Before you buy, I suggest you learn how to keep a mattress topper from sliding.
You can find more detail in our Avocado Organic Latex Mattress Topper review.
The best cooling mattress topper for side sleepers
Filled with springy and responsive Talalay latex, the Birch Plush Organic Mattress Topper offers contouring comfort and near-perfect pressure relief. Peel back the mattress cover and you'll find organic wool, cotton, and cashmere in the comfort layers, working to wick moisture, keeping your bed and body clean and cool.
'This latex mattress topper feels more supportive than a traditional down or cotton pillow-top, and more responsive than your average memory foam mattress topper,' says expert tester, Kaitlin Madden. 'Latex offers softness without the sinking feeling you get from memory foam.' If you suffer from aches and pains alongside your night sweats, then this is the mattress topper for you.
One of the best and worst things about latex, depending on who you ask, is its natural elasticity. The same bounce that makes it easier to get into and out of bed also makes it much harder to sleep undisturbed. Kaitlin found that she could feel it when her husband rolled around on his side of the bed. If you're looking for a cooling mattress topper with optimal motion isolation, you'd be better off with a memory foam model.
According to Kaitlin, there's a lot to like about the Birch Plush Organic Mattress Topper, 'but there are a few practical points that keep it from occupying pole position in our buying guide. There are no corner straps, so there's nothing to keep the topper from sliding across your mattress, and the cotton cover is prone to bunching up beneath your body.'
You can find more detail in our Birch Plush Organic Mattress Topper review.
The best cooling mattress topper for night sweats
The Sijo TempTune Cooling Mattress Pad gets rave reviews online. 'I have been looking for different ways to keep cool at night,' says one particularly enthusiastic customer. 'It's especially bad in summer, obviously, but it's an all-year affair for this sweaty gal. I also have two pets who sleep in bed with me. They both like to be touching me in some way, and they are tiny furnaces. Ever since I put this TempTune Cooling Mattress Pad on the bed, we're all sleeping way more comfortably.'
This mattress pad is filled with a patented blend of thermoregulating fibers and wrapped in Supima cotton for strength and softness. Much like the best mattress protectors, the Sijo TempTune Cooling Mattress Pad won't dramatically alter the look or feel of your mattress, but it will help to keep your bed and your body cool and clean.
Most importantly, the Sijo TempTune Cooling Mattress Pad is moisture-wicking, working to absorb your sweat so that you don't wake up sticky. This should prevent any unsightly yellow stains on the outside of your mattress pad and keep mold or mildew from developing within.
A few practical points: the Sijo TempTune Cooling Mattress Pad only comes in sizes Full, Queen, King, and California King. That should suit most adults, but you couldn't stretch it over a kid's twin bed or a college dorm mattress, which tends to be a Twin XL. Also, you only get a seven-night sleep trial before you need to commit to your purchase. That's not enough time to get to grips with the pad or monitor its thermoregulation throughout the year.
The best cooling mattress pad for hot flashes
Our bodies don't react well to extremes of temperature. If you suffer from hot flashes, you don't need a cooling mattress topper so much as a thermoregulating mattress pad. The Slumber Cloud Performance Mattress Pad reads and reacts to your internal temperature overnight, cooling you down when you overheat and warming you up when you start to chill.
The Slumber Cloud Performance Mattress Pad comes in every size, from Twin to California King, with a Split King option to suit couples who share a bed but not a sleep style. Thanks to the ultra-stretchy elastic skirt, this mattress pad should be able to accommodate any mattress up to 20 inches deep.
The Slumber Cloud Performance Mattress Pad boasts a 4.0 average star rating from 738 verified reviews. 'We've had this mattress pad for just over a week and we're very happy with its quality as we are sleeping much cooler now,' begins one recent review. 'It's also much more comfortable than our previous memory foam topper.' That might have to do with the thinness of the Slumber Cloud Performance Mattress Pad, which is just a quarter of an inch thick, and works much more like a mattress protector than a mattress topper.
There are a smattering of more mixed reviews. 'I've been using the mattress pad for two or three weeks now,' writes one customer. 'There is a noticeable difference in temperature to the touch. I still get hot during the night, but I seem to cool down faster. This isn't a fix-all but I believe it's helped.' As for fit and feel, opinion is split: some say it's too soft, too firm, too tight, too loose, but most say it's just right.
How we test mattress toppers and pads
Our mattress testing team is made up of seasoned product testers across America. Together, we represent a wide range of ages, body types, and sleep styles. Flick through our back catalog of reviews and you should be able to find someone who sleeps like you. We test each mattress topper for a minimum of 30 days from the comfort of our own homes before we write our reviews. That way, we offer the best indication of long-term performance in the timeliest fashion.
We assess each mattress topper against the same criteria: pressure relief; thermoregulation; motion isolation; and edge support. To assess pressure relief, we lie down on the mattress topper and move between our backs, stomachs, and sides, paying close attention to how the topper feels in each position. To assess thermoregulation, we test toppers through heatwaves and cold snaps, making note of any times that we wake up in a sweat. This is, for obvious reasons, the most important test for a cooling mattress topper. If a cooling topper underperforms in other areas, but excels at thermoregulation, it might still make its way into our buying guide.
To assess motion isolation, we fill a cup with water and set it in the center of the topper. Then, we take a dumbbell and place it on the topper, moving it incrementally closer to the cup. The more the cup moves, and the more water spills, the worse the motion isolation, and the less suitable the topper for couples and light sleepers. To assess edge support, we sit on the side of the bed and measure how far we sink into the topper. The further we fall, the worse the edge support, and the harder it is to get into and out of the bed.
We like to compare our findings against verified reviews to pick out common customer pros and cons. We also consider all the practical parts of buying a topper, from the details of delivery to the length of the sleep trial, before bringing it back to the price of the topper to help you determine value for money. To learn more about how we test at Homes & Gardens, consult our expert explainer.
How to choose a cooling mattress topper or pad
As H&G's specialist sleep writer, I lead a team of expert testers in the search to find the world's best mattress topper. Together, we've tested some great cooling toppers, along with some total heat traps. I've devised a series of mattress topper buying rules to help you find the best way to keep cool.
As a hot sleeper and an eco-conscious shopper, I find that natural fibers are most breathable. Personally, I love the look and feel of organic latex. Memory foam gets a bad rep for heat retention, but the winning entry in this buying guide is a memory foam mattress topper. The trick is to look for cooling gel infusions or highly conductive materials, such as copper or graphite, flecked through the foam.
Remember, cooling isn't everything. The best mattress topper combines thermoregulation with pressure relief, motion isolation, and edge support to keep you cool and comfortable, all night long.
FAQs
Why is my mattress making me hot?
Probably because it's made from memory foam. High-density memory foam leaves little room for air to flow. You end up trapping heat and moisture inside the mattress, which becomes a breeding ground for bacteria, mold, and mildew.
Where can I buy a cooling mattress topper?
The best places to buy bedding for hot sleepers are specialist sleep stores, rather than major home retailers. We think Saatva makes the best cooling mattress topper, but you'll need to shop at Avocado for organic materials. Sijo does a great line in cooling bed accessories at a more affordable price point.
Final thoughts
If you've tried everything, and you still aren't sleeping comfortably, then it might be time to swap out your old bed for the best cooling mattress. I've ranked and reviewed six of the best from Tempur-Pedic, Saatva, Zinus, and more.
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