Tuft and Needle Nod Mattress Review | Reasons to Buy/NOT Buy

Tuft & Needle, the ultimate budget bed-in-a-box brand, is best known for its wallet-friendly mattress options. It’s one of several online brands that have broken through to the mainstream mattress retail space — you may have even seen its products at Target or Crate and Barrel. 

The Tuft & Needle Nod, exclusive to Amazon, is the epitome of affordable mattresses and will fit just about any budget. It’s simple and doesn’t come with any fancy bells and whistles, but that’s all a part of its charm. If you want a comfortable, budget-friendly mattress that won’t cost an arm and a leg, read our Tuft & Needle Nod mattress review to find out more. 

First impressions

The original Tuft & Needle Nod is what you’d expect a basic mattress to look like. It does come with a cover, a feature that some low-budget mattresses go without. It’s on the thinner side and made only with foam, so it doesn’t have steel coils in the base to add extra support like the Tuft & Needle Nod Hybrid. 

I’d say this mattress is ideal for a dorm room, a kid’s room or as a temporary option when you’re in a bind and need a cheap mattress. It’s comfortable and feels quality, but I don’t see it lasting as long as the Tuft & Needle bed. I could see a lot of people liking its feel, though — it’s soft but it doesn’t suck you into the bed like memory foam does. It’s a lot more neutral and responsive to pressure, a plus for people who switch positions during the night. 

Amazon customer sentiment

The Tuft & Needle Nod boasts an impressive 4.5 out of 5 on Amazon. Reviewers like that it’s an affordable mattress with great motion isolation and no off-gassing, that unboxing is easy and it’s comfortable. Some say this mattress may require a mattress topper to adjust to the preferred firmness level, however, and that it may not provide proper support for heavy people.

Firmness

Tuft & Needle did a good job giving this mattress a balanced feel that appeals to a wide range of sleeping positions. It has a medium firmness level (or a 5 out of 10, with 10 being the firmest). It’s soft enough for side sleepers but firm enough for most back and stomach sleepers who need proper spinal support. It cradles your hips and shoulders and simultaneously keeps your lower back from sagging into the bed. 

Comfort  

A lot of online mattresses that come in a box are around 10 inches thick or more, but the Tuft & Needle Nod comes in two height options: either 6 or 8 inches tall. It’s also only two layers: a bottom layer for support and density with comfort foam in the top layer.

Here’s a breakdown of the 8-inch Tuft & Needle Nod mattress’s layers:

• First is a 5.5-inch layer of dense poly foam, and it’s meant to provide most of the bed’s support. 
• The second is a 2.5-inch slab of soft poly foam, and it’s the bed’s only comfort layer, but it does the job well.

It’s a simple, straightforward design — like pretty much everything else about this mattress. 

Feel

Some people dislike the restricting feel and resistance of memory foam, especially when trying to move positions. Luckily for those people, the Tuft & Needle Nod mattress doesn’t feel like memory foam at all. Poly foam is a more responsive, lighter foam with better aeration and less density. It gives the comfort of memory foam without the “stuck” feeling, and it’s a generally comfortable foam that most people end up liking. It’s like cloud foam found in slide sandals; it molds to your body and provides pressure relief with ample support. 

Motion isolation

Considering the fact this bed is all foam, I wasn’t surprised to see that it was great at stopping movement across the mattress. It absorbs motion from your partner (or pet), so you won’t bounce and jiggle every time they change positions or get up in the middle of the night.

Edge support

This is where the Tuft & Needle Nod mattress takes a back seat. It’s thin and not great for support, so the edges aren’t as sturdy as the Tuft & Needle Nod Hybrid or the regular Tuft & Needle mattress. If you share a mattress with a partner and you usually have to sleep near the very edge, you won’t feel like you’re falling off. Still, you probably aren’t going to feel comfortably supported unless you’re more petite. 

Temperature

I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that the Tuft & Needle Nod mattress isn’t going to actively cool you down. The good news is it’s not going to heat you up, either. I think it’s good at keeping most people’s temperature neutral because it doesn’t retain heat like a traditional memory-foam mattress. If sleeping hot is a problem for you, make sure to check out our best cooling mattress to get a more comfortable night’s sleep. 

Who is this bed best for?

When deciding whether or not a mattress is right for you, take your sleeping position and weight into consideration. Believe it or not, it matters.

Position

Side sleepers typically like medium to soft mattresses that provide pressure relief to the hips and joints, while back and stomach sleepers often sleep best on medium to firm beds that provide ample back support. Tuft & Needle Nod has a medium firmness level that appeals to each of these sleeping positions. 

Remember, though, the lighter you are, the firmer a mattress is going to feel, and vice versa. For example, if you’re a petite side sleeper, you will probably want a softer mattress because this will feel more like a medium-firm. 

Body type

I recommend Tuft & Needle Nod to people under 230 pounds. It’s only two layers and 8 inches thick, so it won’t be very supportive or durable for a heavier individual. It also won’t last as long as a mattress should, which is an important consideration when you’re spending hundreds of dollars on something. 

People over 230 pounds should consider the Tuft & Needle Nod Hybrid bed. It’s still a budget mattress but is made with steel coils in the foundation to provide a bit more support. 

Price

Here’s the main reason why you’d want to buy a Tuft & Needle Nod mattress: the attractive price tag. It’s one of the most reputable low-cost mattresses on the market, so you can trust you’re getting a quality mattress for cheap. It has over 3,000 reviews on Amazon and almost a five-star rating, so the proof is in the pudding. A queen size 8-inch Tuft & Needle Nod is about $499, almost $400 cheaper than the Original Tuft & Needle model.

Shipping, trial and warranty

Even though you’re buying from Amazon, you’ll get the perks that Tuft & Needle offers its mattress-buying customers. You’ll receive:

• Free shipping and returns
• A 100-night risk-free trial
• A 10-year warranty

Be forewarned, the mattress will have a new-car like smell when you first open it from the box. It happens with every bed-in-a-box mattress unless it’s made with organic materials, and the smell goes away after a few days. You can sleep on it right away, but your Nod mattress will take around 48 hours for the bed to fully inflate. 

Final verdict

Not everyone wants a big, fancy mattress with high-tech abilities or new cooling technology. Some just want a simple, affordable bed that’ll help you sleep well at night, and that’s exactly what the Tuft & Needle Nod offers. It’s a safe pick for anyone on a tight budget. It’s also a great starter mattress for your kid who outgrew their toddler bed because of its value and simple construction. 

You might like this mattress if:

• You want to spend under $600 on a new mattress
• You sleep on your back, stomach, side or a combination of both
• You dislike the feel of memory foam
• You weigh under 230 pounds
• You love buying from Amazon

You might not like this mattress if:

• You want a very firm or very soft mattress
• You weigh over 230 pounds (go for the hybrid version)
• You want a thicker foam bed
• You want a mattress with coils