Best Mattress for Acid Reflux

If heartburn is keeping you up at night, the right mattress setup can go a long way in helping keep symptoms of acid reflux (aka gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD) in check. GERD causes stomach acid to flow into the esophagus, causing irritation and pain. Symptoms usually get worse when lying down, making it difficult for people to fall asleep. Fortunately, we’re here to help you find a mattress and bed setup that supports proper positioning to help reduce acid reflux at night.

How Does Acid Reflux Affect Sleep?

Acid reflux occurs when stomach acid flows back into the esophagus, often causing heartburn, discomfort, and irritation. Normally, the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) — a muscular valve at the top of the stomach — acts as a barrier to keep acid from traveling upward. But when the LES weakens or relaxes at the wrong time, it allows acid to escape.

Many people experience acid reflux from time to time, but chronic acid reflux can have a dramatic impact on sleep quality, especially as it’s usually triggered or aggravated by lying down. It may also worsen symptoms related to sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, and chronic insomnia. 

How Does Sleeping Position Affect Acid Reflux?

Your sleeping position plays a significant role in the frequency and severity of acid reflux symptoms. Understanding this relationship can help you make simple but effective adjustments to improve sleep quality and minimize nighttime discomfort.

In general, sleep medicine physician Dustin Cotliar, M.D., recommends, “side sleeping (specifically on the left side), having the head of the bed elevated, and using special kinds of pillows,” as your best bets for helping prevent acid reflux symptoms from ruining your sleep.

Side Sleepers

“Side sleeping, particularly on the left side, takes advantage of our digestive anatomy to help minimize reflux,” Dr. Cotliar says. “This position places the junction between the stomach and esophagus above the level of stomach contents, creating a gravity-assisted barrier that can reduce the frequency and severity of reflux episodes during sleep.”

In contrast, lying on the right side places the stomach at an angle, allowing the stomach to leak acid into the esophagus.

Back Sleepers

Back sleeping is generally the worst position for people with acid reflux, as they tend to experience worse and more prolonged symptoms. Sleeping on your back allows acid to freely move up from the stomach and into the esophagus, where it can linger for extended periods of time, potentially damaging the esophageal lining.  

“For those who prefer back sleeping despite reflux issues, elevation becomes particularly important,” Dr. Cotliar says. “Raising the upper body by 6 to 8 inches — whether through an adjustable bed or wedge pillows — uses gravity to help reduce the backflow of stomach contents toward the esophagus during sleep.”

Stomach Sleepers

Like back sleeping, stomach sleeping creates prime conditions for acid reflux, permitting acid to flow up the esophagus, without the aid of gravity to force it back down.

Other Tips for Reducing Acid Reflux Symptoms at Night

Beyond mattress selection, several lifestyle modifications can help manage acid reflux symptoms. “Consider eating smaller, more frequent meals and avoiding food at least 2 to 3 hours before bedtime,” Dr. Cotliar says. 

“Limiting trigger foods like spicy dishes, fatty meals, citrus, chocolate, and caffeinated or alcoholic beverages can reduce symptom frequency. Maintaining a healthy weight, elevating your head during sleep, wearing loose-fitting clothing, and quitting smoking can also improve reflux symptoms. For persistent issues, speak with your healthcare provider about appropriate medication options.”

How to Choose the Best Mattress for Acid Reflux

Though sleeping position, upper-body elevation, and supportive pillows are the best way to deal with nighttime GERD, choosing the right mattress can also help. Below are some of the most important features to consider when you’re shopping for a mattress to help with acid reflux, including firmness level, contouring, and pressure relief.

Compatibility With Adjustable Beds

Many GERD patients decide to purchase an adjustable bed so they’re able to raise the head of their bed, which may also help with related issues, like snoring and sleep apnea. Especially if you naturally sleep on your back, raising the head of your bed could minimize your symptoms. 

“This is a tried-and-true medical recommendation for GERD sufferers,” Dr. Cotliar says. “By creating an angled position where the esophagus is positioned above the stomach, gravity assists in keeping stomach contents where they belong. For back sleepers especially, this position can help reduce the frequency and severity of reflux episodes.”

Many mattresses are compatible with adjustable beds as long as their components can be bent without damaging them. Be sure to check a brand’s website to confirm compatibility.

Firmness Level

Although preferences vary considerably between individuals, certain body types tend to benefit more from certain firmness levels. Firmer mattresses generally offer more support, while softer models provide greater contouring.

Pressure Relief and Contouring

Pressure points along your shoulders, hips, and spine can crop up while you’re sleeping, especially if you’re a side sleeper. Mattresses for side sleepers offer more cushioning and better pressure relief, so if you’d like to try sleeping on your side to minimize acid reflux, choose a soft to medium mattress to cushion your joints. Just make sure you don’t go too soft or it won’t support proper spinal alignment. 

Additionally, the right amount of contouring can cradle pressure points while preventing the sleeper from sinking into the mattress’ support layer. Generally, all-foam mattresses offer more contouring than hybrid or innerspring models.

Price

The most expensive mattress isn’t always the best, and it’s possible to find a quality affordable mattress. The free shipping offered by several online retailers who ship their mattress in a box will help keep overall costs down as well. Regardless of price, prioritize mattresses from reputable brands with quality materials.

Quality Materials

Nobody wants to replace their mattress only a year or two after buying it. Mattresses made with quality materials are more durable, perform better, and are less likely to need replacement before their warranty is up.

Edge Support

Mattresses with a reinforced perimeter offer greater edge support and a larger usable sleep area. Strong edge support also prevents sleepers from rolling off the edge of the bed. Hybrid and innerspring mattresses tend to have the best edge support. 

Ease of Movement

This factor is especially important for couples. Mattresses with more bounce typically allow for greater ease of movement, while sleepers tend to sink into contouring foam surfaces. In contrast, coil-based models provide more bounce.

Temperature Regulation

Individuals who tend to sleep hot often prioritize temperature regulation, seeking out mattresses like hybrid models, which provide greater breathability than all-foam versions. Many mattresses also use special fabrics and fillers, such as copper or gel, to create a cooler sleep surface.

Mattress Warranty and Other Policies

Before you make your final purchase, be sure to review the mattress’ warranty, sleep trial information, and return policy. Many companies offer a sleep trial that begins after a certain initial break-in period, and most offer some kind of warranty. However, warranties are often contingent on the type of foundation the mattress is used with. If you plan to use your new mattress with an adjustable bed, be sure that this type of use is covered in the warranty.

What Type of Mattress Is Best for Preventing Acid Reflux?

Most mattresses currently on the market fall into one of the following categories. Though no two models or brands are alike, there are some general similarities among these types of mattresses.

Hybrid

Definition: Hybrid mattresses combine the best features of innerspring and all-foam mattresses while largely avoiding the drawbacks of each type. They consist of a pocketed, coil-based support core, topped by a multilayered comfort system. The comfort system may feature latex, memory foam, or a combination of the two.

Highlight: Ideal for side sleepers, hybrids typically offer more contouring and pressure-point relief than innerspring models, while providing more support than the average all-foam mattress. They also tend to sleep cool, thanks to a pocketed coil system that absorbs and disperses body heat.

Foam

Definition: These mattresses feature multiple layers and types of foam, such as memory foam and polyfoam. Instead of pocketed coils, they rely on a high-density polyfoam core for support.

Highlight: Memory foam offers deep contouring and soothing pressure relief, making all-foam models great for side sleepers. While these mattresses tend to offer less support than hybrid or innerspring models, their flexibility makes them ideal for use with adjustable bed frames, which may be helpful for those with acid reflux.

Innerspring

Definition: The most traditional type of mattress on the market, innerspring mattresses feature a coil-based core and a fabric cover, with little or no comfort or transitional system. They are often more difficult to ship than other types.

Highlight: Innersprings tend to be among the least expensive options, and they also sleep relatively cool because of their coil base.

Latex

Definition: These models are made entirely from natural or synthetic latex rubber, or a mixture of the two. Natural latex is derived from rubber tree sap and processed using either the Talalay or Dunlap methods. Talalay latex typically creates a lighter and softer mattress, while Dunlap latex tends to be firmer and more durable.

Highlight: Latex’s moderate contouring cushions side sleepers’ pressure points without too much give or sink. If you want to switch to sleeping on your side for your acid reflux but don’t like the hug of memory foam, latex will likely be a good fit.

Airbed

Definition: Instead of coils, latex, or foam, an airbed’s support core consists of multiple air-filled chambers, which may be filled or deflated with a built-in pump. The pump is often controlled by a smartphone app or remote control. These fully adjustable mattresses may also contain materials like foam or latex in their comfort layers.

Highlight: Airbeds allow users to customize their sleep experience, targeting pressure relief to key areas for people with acid reflux like the upper body. Split models allow sleepers to adjust the mattress to suit ever-changing preferences and pain levels without disturbing their partner.

How We Test: Your Comfort Is Our Science

Our industry-leading product testing team cares deeply about improving your sleep. Having a holistic understanding of a mattress’s role as part of a sleep system is paramount to our testing process. Since a bed’s comfort and feel depend largely on body weight and sleeping position, our testing team represents a wide range of body types, sleep positions, and comfort preferences.

In our Seattle-based Test Lab, we use an objective, hands-on process to evaluate mattresses across performance categories. The following are the key guidelines that inform our performance ratings. Our ultimate goal is to ensure you have all the information you need to make the best purchase decision for you.

How We Determine Our Overall Scores

To determine a mattress’s overall score, we assign weighted percentages to performance categories based on how important they are to the individual sleep experience. For instance, areas like pressure relief and temperature control tend to matter more to people than something like off-gassing, and because more people sleep on their side and back than on their stomach, we weigh those positions more heavily.

Dive Deeper – In-Depth Mattress Guides

For more help deciding which mattress is right for you, take a look at our detailed shopping guides broken down by mattresses for particular uses.