You’re looking for a memory-foam mattress that contours your body and provides enough relief to keep you cool. We found one that could deliver all three!
You may have heard about the Bear Original mattress and how it accommodates a wide range of sleepers. But if you’re not up to speed, it’s one of the best-performing all-foam mattresses making waves on the bed market. This mattress is also one of the best-valued, as it offers many convenient and comfortable features in one product.
In this review, we’ll take a detailed look at the Bear mattress by testing it for ourselves and seeing if our results align with what we’ve been advertised. This mattress is recommended for active people, but how does it perform in providing a restful night?
For those of you who prefer a more visual experience, here is a video review from Sleep Advisor’s YouTube channel. To get a comprehensive overview of DreamCloud’s Bear Mattress, you may still want to check out our article below.
Overview: The Bear Original Bear Mattress Afirm
Bear Original is an all-foam mattress that provides comfort and relief for active people. It has vital properties, such as the gel-infused memory foam on the top layer, which cushions the body’s key pressure points while keeping it relaxed. It not only makes the sleeper feel comfortable but also has Bear’s open-cell response properties that increase airflow throughout it. Celliant fabric, a state-of the-art Celliant cover for the mattress, is strong enough to keep the body from overheating.
The Bear Original is a bed in a box product that offers medium-firm comfort. Medium-firm mattresses, regardless of type and construction, are preferred by most sleepers, although what makes this one unique is its slightly bouncy feel. The Bear mattress is one the most popular products from the company named after it. It was created in 2014 with the sole purpose of making bed apparatus that can be used by athletes, first responders, frontline workers, and others who have a proactive way of living.
Who are the ideal users of the Bear Original?
- Those who are looking for an all-foam mattress at a valuable price
- Those who prefer sleeping on memory foam but don’t like the ever-sinking feeling associated with it
- People who sleep hot after a long day of intensive work or hard activity are more likely to be comfortable.
- For back sleepers, a firm and supportive mattress is preferred.
- Couples who share the same bed with one who tends to get restless at night and the other who doesn’t want to be disturbed
Who shouldn’t use Bear Original?
- For those who want a more bouncier bed, all-foam mattresses (including the Bear Original) are known for being not too springy.
- Those who may appreciate beds with stable edge support
- Side sleepers of light weight may find this mattress too firm for them.
- Average-weight stomach sleepers who may find this too soft for their liking
- Heavyweights who prefer to sleep flat, on their stomachs or backs, are called heavyweights
How Does the Bear Original Feel?
Will it give you the relief you’re craving from aches or pains? How deep will it sink your body to? Is it as cool and comfortable as its makers claim? These are the pressing questions we wanted to answer. We tested the Bear mattress for firmness, pressure relief, and cooling abilities.
Firmness
What we do here in ranking mattresses is usually through a scale from 1 to 10, with one being super soft, five medium, and ten extremely firm. Based on what we found while testing the Bear Original, we can confidently say that its comfort level is between medium and firm. 7, to be exact.
Bear has stated that its mattress is medium-firm. Considering the use of memory foam, which has gained notoriety for its sinking feel on the body, the overall construction still somehow manages to be sturdy and stable. Bear Original features a thick layer high-density foam as the foundation. This material is solid and not as flexible as spring coils.
This mattress has more benefits by having the material underneath the memory foam. Although the top layer is flexible enough to mold the body of the sleeper, it’s countered with a firmer foundation beneath, creating what appears like a perfect balance. We have had plenty of issues when testing on memory foam mattresses, but not on this one. The Bear made us feel like we were sleeping ‘on’ the surface rather than ‘into’ it.
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Pressure Relief
The Bear Original mixes the flexible softness of the memory foam and the solid strength of the high-density foam into one balanced mattress. It can provide sufficient pressure relief for most sleepers. No pressure buildup was observed in the heat map tests, regardless of what type of sleep position.
While we admire its remarkable pain relief capabilities, we should mention that they’re only limited to a group of people. The Bear mattress may be more suitable for average-weight people. For heavyweights and lightweights, the experience may vary – some may feel more firm whenever they sleep on the sides, while others may feel too much pressure that it leans more towards discomfort. Bear Mattress Afirm
Temperature
The Bear mattress is made up of open-cell foam, gel fusion and Celliant fabric. This combination helps to keep the body from overheating. All-foam mattresses may be known for not having the best insulation, but this one performed surprisingly well in maintaining the temperature, at least to a neutral level – not too hot yet not too cold.
While we can’t promise the Bear Original to have the same cooling properties as any innerspring or hybrid mattress, its three insulating features are enough to soothe a person, especially after a day filled with long, arduous tasks. They’re also enough to keep the couple from getting too heated – two bodies are prone to heat up faster on the mattress than one. The Bear mattress is a great option for couples looking for an all-foam cooling bed at a reasonable price.
Analyse of Sleep and Body Type
How will the Bear mattress provide much-needed comfort for light, average and heavy sleepers?
The Bear Original is tested in various sleeping positions
On the Back
The Bear Original is proving to be the best for back support. This mattress is suitable for light-weight people. It has a healthy mix of support and conformity to help them feel comfortable while lying flat. It will be appreciated by those of average weight, as they get the best-optimized support and comfort.
The Bear might not be a good choice for heavyweight sleepers. They shouldn’t expect the all-foam mattress to conform to their bodies like their lighter- or average-weight counterparts. It usually ends up in sinkage, which doesn’t sound nice especially if you move often. We also noticed on the heatmap that the pressure points were higher then the rest.
On the Stomach
While the Bear delivers remarkable benefits to most back sleepers, stomach sleeping is different. While some people may experience a positive collective experience when they sleep flat on their stomachs, others may feel the surface is too soft to offer pressure relief for their hips or keep their spine straight.
This position is comfortable for both average and light-weighted people. At first, they may find the Bear to have the appropriate support on the stomach. But in the long run, since the mattress is all-foam, softness and sinkage may be inevitable, and it’s up to them to adjust. Heavyweights should not sleep on the Bear with their stomachs flat on the ground. Like sleeping on the back, they often feel sinking and have higher pressure points. Bear Mattress Afirm
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Sides
Similar to laying flat on the stomach, how the Bear feels on the person while sleeping on either side will depend on personal circumstances. Lightweights might find the surface too hard for them, while others may feel the relief they require on their shoulders and hips. The majority of average sleepers would agree with this assessment.
Heavyweights won’t appreciate the Bear’s side-sleeping experience as much as they would like. A few of our testers found that while they felt the support and comfort from this mattress, the firmness and sinkage as well as the high-pressure point and high-pressure point far outweigh the pros.
Combination Sleeping Positions
Regardless of body weight, we found that the Bear Original should work okay with most individuals who usually sleep in a combination of positions. Based on our observations, it was adept enough to deliver comfort and relief to the testers even when they slept in altered postures. There is a chance that some people may experience slight difficulty in moving around because the mattress has a layer of memory foam at its top.
Mattress Performance
The testing doesn’t end there. Aside from the main tests, we also analyzed how well the Bear Original performed in terms of other factors, such as motion transfer, ease of movement, and more. This is a great place to start if you are unsure if the mattress can be used for your partner’s benefit.
Motion Transfer
The perfect mattress must have motion isolation to help you sleep and not be disturbed by movements. The Bear’s all foam layers absorb and dampen vibrations. This makes it a superior choice to innerspring mattresses.
Ease of Movement
The Bear’s foam is not as conforming as other mattresses, but it can still provide a floating sensation. The ease of movement for light and average sleepers is 50/50. In the case of the heavy ones, however, they’ll most likely have challenges in maneuvering on the surface.
Edge Support
Edge support is a measure of how strong the bed’s perimeter is in supporting multiple bodies. Strong edge support is good for couples and groups. We found the Bear to have adequate stability around the edges, although not as strong as the innerspring models.
Sex
Memory foam or all-foam mattresses have drawn flak for not being the best beds to use for sexual activity. However, the Bear was more responsive to rapid movements and didn’t conform as well as other foam mattresses. Therefore, we conclude that it performs well even during sex.
Unboxing and Off-Gassing
The Bear is a bed in a box mattress. This means that there will be some off-gassing and compression after you open the packaging. All-foam mattresses have gained a reputation for emitting strong, sometimes unpleasant odors caused by volatile organic compounds (VOC). Bear Mattress Afirm
The Bear is no different, but since the foam materials used are GreenGuard Gold and CertiPUR-US-certified, the off-gassing smells go away much faster compared to other all-foam beds.
Construction
Bear Original mattress measures 10 inches thick. It is made up of three layers of unique foam, each one being a different type.
Top comfort layer – The first of these three layers is a graphite-gel memory foam that’s known to provide pressure relief and contouring along the body’s silhouette. With a thickness of 2″, it is also packed with open-cell cooling abilities to regulate the sleeper’s temperature – something traditional memory foam often lacks.
Transitional middle layer – Below the memory foam comfort layer, there’s a 2″ thick transitional response foam. Made to be soft and firm at the same time, it helps to keep the body from sinking. You will feel more like you’re sleeping on top than the mattress.
Foundation layer – Holding the Bear altogether is a thick high-density support foam. With a height of 6″, it serves as a firm and stable foundation for the sleeper’s body to rest on.
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The three layers of the Bear Original are wrapped in a Celliant fabric mattress cover. Celliant fabric is an FDA-approved fiber material that helps speed up recovery time for individuals while they sleep. It also features design elements that improve blood circulation. It is soft to the touch and produces enough airflow to keep the body from overheating. The Bear mattress is marketed as a mattress for athletes, high-energy professionals and others who are active.
Pricing and Available Sizes
Available in all standard sizes, the Bear mattress is a specially-designed bed that you can get at a range of valuable prices. It’s not a very budget-friendly model by all means, nor a highly expensive one either. Below is a complete list of sizes available and the prices for each.
| MATTRESS SIZE | PRICE (PRIOR TO DISCOUNT) |
| Twin | $748 |
| Twin XL | $811 |
| Full | $873 |
| Queen | $998 |
| King | $1,248 |
| Cal King | $1,248 |
| Split King | $1,622 |
Final verdict on the Bear Original Mattress
We are confident that the Bear Original delivers comfort, relief and peace of mind after undergoing a series of tests. This mattress is a great choice for people who like to sleep on memory foam and want to be able to move quickly. It is designed with recovery in mind and has many features that will appeal to active people who are looking for a mattress they can provide what they need.
While we can admire how well it performs on most sleepers, we shouldn’t overlook the fact that it may not be fully suitable for heavyweight sleepers. After all, many mattresses will always have limits. The Bear Original mattress has a lot of great features and a very affordable price. This is why you should buy it! Bear Mattress Afirm
FAQ Bear Mattress Afirm
Where can I purchase the Bear Original?
You can buy the Original mattress online at Bear’s official online store at bearmattress.com, as well as find its limited sizes through their Amazon store. You can visit their showrooms in the following states/territories to see the Bear mattress in person:
- New Jersey (Bernardsville and Hoboken)
- New York (New York City metropolitan area)
- Florida (Miami)
- Washington, DC (metropolitan area)
Does Bear offer free shipping for all its mattresses? How does Bear ship to me?
Bear offers free shipping on all models, even the Bear Original. This applies to Canada and the US mainland. Residents in Alaska, Hawai’i, and Puerto Rico will still need to pay additional transportation costs. The Bear mattress comes compressed in a box within 2-7 business days from your first purchase.
Is there any way for me to return the Bear mattress?
The Bear Original mattress is covered by a 120-night risk-free trial period. Bear’s customer service hotline can be contacted if you are not completely satisfied with the mattress’s performance. The team will then pick up the mattress from your household free of charge.
Does the Bear come with a warranty?
The Bear is covered by a lifetime warranty. This applies only to mattresses purchased from authorized sellers. It covers workmanship and material defects, such as 1.5″-deep indentations and splits and cracks in the foam foundation, as well as some additional terms and conditions. Bear Mattress Afirm
