Nolah Mattress Review: Our Pick for the Best Mattress for Back Pain

Nowadays, foam mattresses are a dime a dozen, but they're not all made equal: In your search for one, you'll probably stumble across hundreds of options, with prices ranging from a few hundred to thousands of dollars. And if you're here, you're especially curious about Nolah.

Founded in 2016, the brand sought to upgrade the memory foam mattress, which hadn't changed much since its introduction to the industry in the 1990s. Their solution? AirFoam, a proprietary foam that's injected with air (at a microscopic level) for added pressure relief and breathability.

At the Good Housekeeping Institute Textiles Lab, we've tested hundreds of mattresses and surveyed over 10,000 users. In this review, I'll delve into the brand's first mattress, the Nolah Original, including how it performed in our evaluations, so you can gauge whether it's a good fit for you. We polled 40 Nolah mattress owners and worked with dozens of at-home consumer testers (including those with chronic pain) for firsthand feedback on everything from setup to sleep quality.

The Nolah Original Mattress in the home of a consumer tester.

The Nolah Original mattress — our pick for the best mattress for back pain — is a simple, well-engineered foam mattress that stands at 10 inches. While no one mattress can instantly fix chronic joint pain, this model consistently gets top scores in our evaluations from those with pre-existing conditions such as sciatica and scoliosis. It provides great pressure relief and comes in a crowd-pleasing medium level of firmness.

Nolah Original

Now 48% Off

$1,449 $749 at nolahmattress.com

Pros

• Top scores for comfort and support
• Pressure-relieving memory foam
• Users said it sleeps cooler than other foam models

Cons

• Testers noted it took a few days to adjust to the new mattress

Mattress type: Memory foam | Height: 10 in. | Firmness: Medium | Trial period: 120 days

While there's no one universal mattress for everyone, Nolah has earned high praise from these types of sleepers:

✔️ Anyone with chronic pain

No mattress material is medically superior to another, but Nolah's foam construction offers relief in key areas, like the shoulders and hips. In our tests, we found that users with chronic back and hip pain, plus those with conditions like scoliosis, gave Nolah mattresses higher scores than similar mattresses.

The medium firmness is also ideal. A medium level of firmness proved effective in improving chronic lower back pain, according to both Naimish Baxi, M.D., a physiatrist at the Hospital for Special Surgery, and a recent meta-analysis (a review of many medical studies).

What testers with chronic pain said: One tester shared: "I have sciatica (at 25 years old!), and this does alleviate some pain! Sleeping on my side on this mattress feels better than other mattresses." Another tester who spends all day on his feet noted, "The mattress is comfortable, and I don't experience pain while I sleep." Plus, a panelist found it "significantly helpful in relieving back pain for [her] husband who has scoliosis."

✔️ Side sleepers

Going back to the brand's roots, the Original was specifically designed for side sleepers. In fact, the brand says its mattresses are "expertly engineered to balance cushioning and support, aligning the spine while cradling a side sleeper's most sensitive joints."

What side sleepers said during testing: It comes as no surprise that true side sleepers gave it top scores for how soft yet supportive it felt. One noted, "I don't feel crushed from sleeping on my side all night long. My spine feels properly supported."

✔️ Couples

The Original comes in a medium level of firmness with excellent motion isolation, which is a great option for couples.

Those who are used to sleeping on firm beds may take longer to adjust to the medium firmness. We've found that side and back sleepers found this mattress more comfortable and supportive than stomach sleepers. Stomach sleepers or those who prefer firm beds may not find this mattress (or any of Nolah's foam beds) firm enough.

Short answer: Yes, especially for the Original. It's not cheap, but it's not outrageously pricey either for the materials, build and quality.

Long answer: While you can find more affordable foam mattresses out there, the Nolah Original consistently does well in our tests for its responsive yet pressure-relieving foam. It's one of the few foam mattresses with zoned support (meaning there's extra support in the lumbar region and much-needed give elsewhere) and it breathes better than traditional memory foam without using specialized cooling technology.

The cons? The 10-inch profile may be too short for some (though it'll work well on an adjustable base), the edge support is so-so (typical for memory foam) and there's only one firmness (medium), which is best for side and back sleepers.

Overall comfort & support

Users gave Nolah high scores for comfort and support but noted that it took time for them to completely adjust to the mattress, because the foam feels slightly more responsive than your traditional memory foam. Overall, they gave the bed higher scores after sleeping on it for a month compared to their initial impressions after the first few nights.

What testers said:

• "I like how quickly the air foam bounces back to retain its support even when changing positions unlike memory foam."
• "I am still shocked at how supportive it is for being [made of] such thin foam."
• "I liked how it fostered nights of sound sleeping and mornings waking up feeling good and well rested."

Pain relief

Pressure relief and spinal alignment are the core focuses of Nolah's proprietary foam. This is what separates the brand's offerings from other foam mattresses on the market. Our testers were pleased with how pressure-relieving the foam feels and shared that it doesn't completely collapse under the weight of the body.

What testers said:

• "My spine feels properly supported, and it doesn't feel like I'm sinking into the mattress."
• "I am not cured, but I am not waking up in pain. [On my old mattress,] my hips would be killing me when I slept, and I would be tossing and turning all night. This bed offers the pressure relief that I needed on every part of my body for sure!"
• "My husband and I woke every morning with our bodies free of muscle tightness or our typical achiness that we experienced every morning with our old mattress."
• "My previous mattresses exacerbated my back pain while this mattress alleviates it."

That being said, our testers noted that the pain relief wasn't always seamless or immediate. One tester said, "Although I was experiencing less back, shoulder and neck pain from this mattress, it still took a few days for me to get used to sleeping on it because I am used to sleeping on much firmer mattresses."

Edge support

While the Nolah Original excels in many areas, edge support is unfortunately not one of them, though this is typical of foam mattresses. Our testers noted the Nolah Original would "cave in" and "sink" if they sat on the edges, making it less ideal for users who need the extra support to get in and out of bed. If edge support is important to you (e.g., you often sleep or sit on the edge), opt for Nolah's new Original Hybrid. It has a similar thickness and feel, but our testers found they could comfortably sleep on the edge.

Motion isolation

Like other foam mattresses, Nolah's Original mattress has excellent motion isolation. Our testers, particularly those who sleep with partners or pets, gave the bed top marks in that category. "If one person were to get up, the other would not feel it on the mattress," said one tester. Another tester also shared that she couldn't feel her dog jump onto her bed.

Temperature

One of Nolah's key objectives is to provide the comfort of foam without the fear of overheating. From what we've seen, the mattress has done well amongst our testers and panelists. They reported that the bed "never gets too warm" and gave it top scores for keeping them at a comfortable temperature.

The Original has a medium firmness level, which is the most popular firmness level amongst our tester panelists (and a "happy medium" for couples).

Keep in mind: To maintain a neutral spinal alignment, side sleepers should look for a softer mattress, back sleepers are best suited to medium firmness and stomach sleepers fare best with a firmer bed. At the same time, those with larger bodies require more support and should opt for a firmer mattress, while those with lightweight frames are best suited to softer surfaces.

We've found that the Original works best for side and back sleepers, but those who strongly prefer firmer mattresses, especially stomach sleepers, may have a difficult time adjusting to the bed. That being said, some of our testers who previously slept on firmer beds ended up preferring the medium feel of this one. "I initially disliked it and thought it was way too soft, but then I really got used to it quite quickly," reported one.

For a firmer alternative, check out Nolah's best-selling mattress, the Evolution 15", is a hybrid model with several layers of foam on top of coils. It comes in multiple firmnesses, from Plush to Firm. If you're after a very firm mattress, it might not be the perfect fit, but if you want a slightly firm or medium-firm option, it could be just what you're after.

Nolah Original

A visual of the various layers of foam in Nolah’s Original Mattress.

The Nolah Original features three layers of foam in a knit Tencel lyocell cover to offer a balance of cushioning and support. Here are the layers from top to bottom:

• 2-inch Zoned AirFoam: This layer is engineered for comfort in key areas like the hips and shoulders, and it is designed not to overheat like traditional memory foam.
• 1-inch CoreComfort Support Foam: This acts as a transition layer between the firm foundational foam and the top layer of comfort foam.
• 7-inch Solid Sleep Foam Foundation: Firm and dense, this tall layer provides the bulk and support needed for the mattress.

One of our consumer testers, without knowing the material makeup, summed up the feel as follows: "The mattress feels like it is composed of two layers. The first is soft and fluffy and the layer underneath it is firm. The soft layer conforms to my body, while the bottom layer remains firm and supportive."

The 10-inch profile and foam construction also make it a great candidate for using on an adjustable bed.

The Original is available directly on the Nolah site, but the brand has been breaking into brick-and-mortar retail, with a select number of showrooms across the 50 states if you'd like to feel it in person before you buy it. If you opt to purchase the mattress online, it'll ship to your door within a few days. Similar to other bed-in-a-box brands, Nolah's mattresses come folded up and compressed in a box for DIY setup.

Our testers and panelists found assembly for the Original fairly self-explanatory, although some emphasized that you need to place the rolled-up mattress vertically or along the side of the bed rather than at the head or foot. If you'd rather not set up the bed on your own, Nolah partners with the hauling company LoadUp, who will come to your home and set up the bed for you and/or remove your old mattress for an extra fee. You can opt for this service during the ordering process.

Like other online mattress brands, Nolah offers a sleep trial of 120 days. In most cases, you'll need to keep it for at least 30 days before initiating a return. You can also opt out of the sleep trial before purchasing to save some money, depending on your mattress size. If you decide to return your Nolah mattress, you'll get a refund minus a $99 fee for pickup and return shipping.

According to Nolah, "The mattress life expectancy of an AirFoam mattress is roughly 10 years." Since the brand launched in 2016, we can't verify this claim, but panel members who've had the Original for four and five years shared that it's held up well over time and maintained its shape.

The Nolah Original may seem quite simple on paper, but the feedback from our testers speaks for itself. It consistently earns high scores for comfort and support, including high praise from real users with chronic pain.

I'd primarily recommend it for side and back sleepers (especially those with recurring back and hip pain) because of its medium firmness and pressure relief. Hot sleepers will also appreciate how the foam doesn't overheat like other foam mattresses we've tested, thanks to the injected air.

For those on the fence, try Nolah's Mattress Topper instead. It's made with the same foam as the Original and comes in two firmness levels (Plush and Luxury Firm). Plus, it's performed well in our tests and comes in both plush and firm options. One user said it "made my mattress new again, but better!"

The Original is our favorite Nolah mattress, but the brand offers a few more options:

• Evolution This is Nolah's most popular mattress. It's a hybrid model, which combines foam and coils, and stands at a whooping 15 inches, having many layers of foam. We've had a few testers try it with mixed results: Some loved the luxurious feel, while others had reservations. It comes in three firmness levels (Plush Soft, Luxury Firm and Firm), but the foam texture will feel softer than the solid nature of a traditional innerspring, so it's not the best pick for someone who truly wants a firm mattress. Testers still agreed that it contoured well to their bodies, but some wished it had better support around the edges.
• Evolution Comfort+ Nolah also offers a version of the popular Evolution for plus-size sleepers with a stronger coil base for added support. It's an inch shorter, comes in a single firmness level (medium) and is designed to support up to 1,000 pounds.
• Signature Compared to the Original, the Signature is 2 inches taller with a medium-soft feel (as opposed to medium). It performed well in our tests, especially amongst side sleepers and those with chronic hip pain.
• Original Hybrid One of Nolah's newest options, this model combines the foam in the original with coils to make a simple hybrid. It performed well in our tests thus far, but it's only been around for a year or two. Compared to the Original, this one stands out for its edge support, having some of the best among the brand's mattresses, and offers more ventilation, thanks to the coils.
• Natural Made with latex rather than their typical foam, this is one of our favorite latex mattresses. It's similar to the Original Hybrid in build (latex foam over coils at a medium firmness) and earned great feedback from testers with back pain. Compared to foam, latex has a springy nature that feels more responsive.

Why trust Good Housekeeping?

At the Good Housekeeping Institute Textiles Lab, we've been testing home products for 125 years. We've closely followed the online mattress industry's rapid expansion since 2014 and test dozens of mattresses each year to find the best of the best.

Textiles Product Reviews Analyst Grace Wu currently oversees mattress testing at Good Housekeeping. Wu regularly evaluates mattresses herself, coordinates consumer testing and writes about beds for every type of sleeper. Prior to joining GH, she earned a Master of Engineering in materials science & engineering and a Bachelor of Science in fiber science from Cornell University.

In recent years, to identify the mattresses we can confidently recommend, our team of expert scientists and engineers have:

✔️ Researched hundreds of new models, diving deep into the details around materials, design, customer service and online reviews.

✔️ Leveraged our backgrounds in fiber science, materials engineering and consumer science to assess everything from materials and structure to brand reputation.

✔️ Interviewed dozens of medical professionals and kept up with relevant sleep studies.

✔️ Surveyed more than 10,000 readers on our GH survey panel, analyzing over 170,000 answers to questions about the mattresses they own.

✔️ Sent mattresses to hundreds of our consumer testers to review at home, both short and long term.

✔️ Visited dozens of mattress factories and showrooms, interviewing everyone from CEOs to in-house product experts.

Grace Wu

Textiles, Paper & Apparel Lab Product Analyst

Grace Wu (she/her) is a product reviews analyst at the Good Housekeeping Institute's Textiles, Paper and Apparel Lab, where she evaluates fabric-based products using specialized equipment and consumer tester data. Prior to starting at Good Housekeeping in 2022, she earned a master of engineering in materials science and engineering and a bachelor of science in fiber science from Cornell University. While earning her degrees, Grace worked in research laboratories for smart textiles and nanotechnology and held internships at Open Style Lab and Rent the Runway.