Editorial policy

Independence

Editorial decisions are made by the editorial team alone. No advertiser, affiliate partner or manufacturer has any input into what we test, what we publish, how we score, or the order in which products appear. This is not a courtesy we extend; it is the only reason a score is worth reading.

Evidence standards

Every performance claim on this site falls into one of three categories, and each is labelled differently:

• Measured. A figure we recorded ourselves with the instruments described in our testing protocol. These are marked “tested”.
• Manufacturer-stated. Specifications we have taken from the retailer, such as warranty terms or coil counts we could not verify without destroying the mattress.
• Judgement. Our opinion, stated as opinion, with the reasoning attached so you can disagree with it.

Health claims

Any statement about sleep, pain or health is reviewed before publication by Marcus Oyelaran, who holds an MSc in Human Physiology and spent nine years as a registered polysomnographic technologist. Claims that cannot be supported by peer-reviewed evidence are removed, not softened.

We do not claim that any mattress treats, cures or prevents a medical condition. A mattress is one variable among many, and the honest position on most of these questions is that the evidence is thinner than the marketing suggests.

Sourcing

Where we cite research, we cite the study rather than a summary of it, and we say when a finding comes from a small sample or an industry-funded trial. Where we cite a price or a policy, we date it.

Updates

Prices are re-checked monthly. Every review, guide and comparison is fully re-checked at least annually, which includes re-measuring the mattress in our storage. The “updated” date at the top of a page reflects the last substantive change, not a cosmetic edit — we do not bump dates to look fresh.

Corrections

Factual errors are corrected as soon as they are confirmed, and the correction is logged at the foot of the page with the date and what changed. Score changes are treated the same way. We do not quietly edit and we do not delete published criticism.

To report an error, email hello@placemattress.com with the page URL and the specific claim you believe is wrong. We answer every one, including the ones we disagree with.

Right of reply

Manufacturers may respond to any review. Substantive responses that add information are published alongside the review as a clearly labelled note. Responses do not change scores unless they come with evidence that changes a measurement.

Use of AI

No article on this site is generated by a language model. We use spelling and grammar tools, and we occasionally use a model to check whether a draft has left an obvious question unanswered. Every measurement, judgement and sentence of analysis is human work by the named author, who is accountable for it.

Related

Our testing protocol · Affiliate disclosure · Our testers and writers