The 8 best mattress toppers, tried and tested for an extra layer of luxury

Additionally, all of GQ’s interiors guides are written by our in-house team of contributing testers and experts, and are edited by Daphne Bugler, British GQ’s Senior Commerce Writer, who has been working at GQ for the past four years and has written extensively about interiors since 2020. The team regularly talks to experts in a variety of interiors categories to better understand the products we write about and what we should be looking for so you can rest assured (excuse the pun) that our mattress topper picks have been carefully considered.

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These are our top picks of the best mattress toppers around, all tried and tested by GQ's editors, writers or testers to make sure they really are wonderful to sleep on and great at bringing back some comfort to a tiring mattress.

• Pros: Temperature regulating cooling layer | Incorporates four layers in total for maximum comfort and support
• Cons: Adds quite a bit of height to your mattress | Expensive
• Sizes available: Single, Small Double, Double, King, Super King
• Made from: Four layers; a breathable sleep surface, a cooling open-cell Simba-Pure layer, a spring Aerocoil layer, a zoned Simba-Pure foam support base

Smoothing, soft and full of plush foam, this topper gives your mattress (as well as your mood) an instant boost, balancing out any imperfections with its specially designed springs. Constructed from multiple layers comprising Simba's expert technology, including a cooling layer to regulate your temperature as you doze off, this topper is also TCPP-free, meaning it's not only better for your back, but also the planet.

Secured with fuss-free elasticated straps at each corner, we'd suggest you set another few alarms in the morning, as this mattress topper makes your bed a hard place to leave behind at the beginning of each day. It does add quite a bit of height so you may need to buy some larger sheets, and it's not the cheapest but it is comfortable and not too warm. £219 from simbasleep.com

• Pros: Make any mattress feel luxurious | Good sleep trial length | Bamboo infused
• Cons: Can be quite warm | Not the cheapest
• Sizes available: Single, Small Double, Double, King, Super King, EU Single, EU Double, EU King, EU Emperor
• Made from: Gel-infused memory foam

If you want your mattress to feel soft and cloud-like, Panda's mattress topper is the one, so much so that it even turned an extremely dire mattress we were temporarily sleeping on into one of the most comfortable we've ever tried. At just 5cm thick, it is made from cushioning memory foam that provides support for your back, neck and hips, supporting body alignment and helping to relieve neck and back pain.

This is combined with open-cell cooling technology that reacts to your body temperature to release heat and encourage airflow, preventing you from overheating throughout the night. Corner straps keep it securely in place, while the removable, washable cover is made from bamboo, a hypoallergenic and sustainable material that actively prevents dust mites and bed bugs. For extra comfort that has a luxurious feel, it's the perfect top layer. From £100, at pandalondon.com

• Pros: Affordable | Feels like real down without actually being real down | Very comfortable
• Cons: Not as thick or cushioned as some of the memory foam options
• Sizes available: Single, Double, King, Super King
• Made from: Synthetic filling, polyester and a cotton cover

Down toppers may have a luxurious feel, but they aren't great for those who suffer from allergies or sensitive skin, and that's where down alternatives really come into their own. Dusk is one of our favourite retailers for offering luxury-feeling products for affordable prices and its 'Feels like Down' mattress topper definitely didn't let us down (we'll continue the puns, don't worry).

Made from synthetic materials that have been designed to emulate the quilted, pillow-top feel of real down and duck feather constructions, this is a wonderfully soft and comfortable mattress topper that instantly transformed our bed. It's not as cushioned as memory foam options, but it's affordable, adds a soft extra layer that'll freshen up your bed's feel and is just impeccably sleep-inducing. £87 £33 at dusk.com

• Pros: Very comfortable | Adjustable firmness | Made a huge difference to an old mattress
• Cons: Can be quite warm | Nothing to secure to mattress | Quite expensive
• Sizes available: Single, Small Double, Double, King, Super King
• Made from: Point Elastic Airgocell foam, HRX foam

Emma has two different mattress topper options, with the Flip Topper being the slightly cheaper option. Don't mistake cheap for bad though, as this mattress topper has been a god send for our back and hips, relieving the pressure points our old mattress was no longer capable of doing, and frankly probably even causing. We found this mattress topper did an excellent job of contouring to different sleeping positions (side sleepers and back sleepers in the house here), whilst minimising motion transfer. The Emma Flip Topper has a two-layer construction with supportive HRX ZeroGravity foam and ultra-breathable and adaptive Airgocell foam, secured in a soft and removable cover.

You will need to air it out when you unwrap it – we gave ours a couple of days – and there is nothing to hold it in place on your mattress so you may need some extra deep sheets to stop your sheet simply securing itself around the Flip Topper and not your mattress. You may also find it runs a little warm, and the king size was slightly larger than our king size mattress, but on the whole, this is a very comfortable mattress topper that really has breathed some extra life into our old mattress. Best thing is, it's adjustable with one side firm and the other soft so you can change things up regularly depending on what mood you're in or whether you need some extra support. From £189. At emma-sleep.co.uk

• Pros: Slightly more affordable than the Simba Hybrid topper | Includes both springs and foam
• Cons: Still on the pricey side for a mattress topper despite being Simba’s more budget-friendly version
• Sizes available: Single, Small Double, Double, King, Super King
• Made from: The combination of a cooling Simbatex Foam layer, up to 1,500 Aerocoil springs, high-density Certipur foam base

Simba’s Hybrid mattress topper is easily one of our favourites, but it does come at a bit of a price. Thankfully, Simba has finally given us a more affordable alternative that still packs a punch. Albeit not much more affordable.

Pairing both springs and foam materials together, Simba toppers are far more substantial than some of their lightweight, fabric-based alternatives. Rather than just feeling like a duvet or thin pillow that’s placed on the mattress to eradicate jagged lumps and bumps, the Simba toppers actually create their own additional support structure: just think of it as a mini mattress all of its own. The main difference between the Essential and the classic Hybrid? The number of springs, with this one featuring up to 1,500. It's fantastic in our experience and worth the high price tag, plus it comes with a 200-night trial period and a 10-year warranty so there's little not to love. From £199 at simbasleep.com

• Pros: Super comfortable | Slimline construction | Temperature control technology
• Cons: Emits a strong smell for the first few nights – you’ll need to air it out
• Sizes available: Single, Small Double, Double, King, Super King
• Made from: Graphite coated foam layer, HRX comfort foam

Not content kitting out this topper with a plush pressure-relieving memory foam, the designers at Emma lined it with graphite to wick away moisture and heat. The result? An exceedingly comfy mattress topper for types that toss and turn, with impressive temperature regulation that keeps your bed good-side-of-the-pillow-cool. "Since recovering from Covid, I've had a terrible time with night sweats," says the GQ staffer in their Emma’s mattress topper review. “The Diamond Degree topper was as comfy as I imagined, but the cool, dry night's sleep it gave was a pleasant surprise.”

With the myriad benefits this topper provides, you might expect a bulkier model. Amazingly, Emma has managed to keep things sleek: the graphite-coated layer, adaptable HRX memory foam and quilted cover come in at just 9cm. Enough for a touch of hotel-bed height, but not so bulky that it overpowers your bedframe. There is a chemical smell to the mattress in the first few nights of use (thanks to standard off-gassing in most memory foam mattresses) but it's a small price to pay for a fantastic night's sleep. Plus, with how easy this topper makes it to doze off, you'll barely notice. From £329 £197 at emma-sleep.co.uk

• Pros: Affordable | Good range of sizes | Easy to clean
• Cons: May come up a little small in size
• Sizes available: Single, Small Double, Double, King, Super King
• Made from: 80% polyester, 20% cotton

Silentnight's topper isn't the most complex one on this list but don't turn your nose up at it just yet. There might not be any clever gel layer, foam, or any other tricks within this mattress topper, but this will breathe new life into a tired mattress and keep you going until you can replace the mattress fully. It's extremely affordable, comes in a variety of sizes and it offers a generous fill for plenty of comfort and support.

For the price, it worked wonders on top of our knackered mattress that we weren't quite yet ready to replace and perhaps best of all, you can pop it in the washing machine when it needs a spot clean, which is always a bonus in our book. Secured with easy-to-fit straps, you might find it's a bit of a tight squeeze on the size front but it's hypoallergenic as well as comfortable so for this price, there's very little to complain about. From £24 at amazon.co.uk

• Pros: Good for people who tend to overheat | Comfortable | Good price
• Cons: Not as thick as some memory foam options
• Sizes available: Single, Double, King, Super King
• Made from: Memory foam

If you've tried a memory foam mattress or topper before and found it too warm, don't let it put you off for good. Tackling that exact issue, Dunelm's Gel Fusion mattress topper is infused with gel particles that disperse body heat in order to keep things cool, enhanced further by ventilation holes that make for a more breathable environment. Hot sleepers, this is for you.

Having tested it out, we found it was comfortable, offered decent support and it improved our bed overall. You won't find the same thickness here as some other memory foam options and you will need to air it out when you first unpack it, but otherwise this is a mattress topper that will serve you well. It also has a removable machine-washable cover for good measure. From £115 £92 at dunelm.com

FAQs

Still unsure about buying a mattress topper? We've got a couple of FAQs that may help you make your decision.

While you can use a mattress topper short term for things like camping, as well as extending the lifespan of your mattress, it isn't recommended to use a mattress topper as a mattress long term. As their name suggests, they are designed to be an additional extra to your mattress sitting on top of your mattress rather than a replacement for it. Thomas Høegh Reisenhus, sleep specialist & sleep counsellor for Tempur explains: "Sleep is an essential part of the body’s ability to rest, recover and recharge, so ensuring you get sufficient levels of it – in terms of quantity and quality – is essential to your physical and mental wellbeing in both the short and long term.

“When choosing what you sleep on, one of the most important things to consider is sleep ergonomics so, in other words, your posture and position during sleep. A good quality mattress will adapt and react to your body, supporting your spine’s natural alignment, distributing weight evenly and providing the ultimate pressure relief – all requirements which a mattress topper alone simply cannot deliver."

The short answer here is, yes. While it won't have the long-term benefits that come from investing in a new mattress, or the same level of support and comfort as one, mattress toppers make a huge difference if you're sleeping on a mattress you don't love but aren't prepared to replace just yet. They're a good, affordable short-term solution. Even if your mattress is doing its job relieving pressure points and adapting to your body for a lovely comfortable sleep, a mattress topper can further amplify its charms, adding more sumptuous luxury to your bed and taking your sleep to even greater heights.

Mattress pads and mattress toppers actually serve quite different purposes. Pads are usually thinner and much more affordable, normally working as a mattress protector to prevent any stains or spills from seeping through your fitted sheet to the mattress itself and causing damage. They're more about practicality than comfort, although some mattress pads do add a small layer of additional softness too. In comparison, a mattress topper is much thicker, and is all about creating a more relaxing, comfortable sleeping environment. Many are made from memory foam or springs (eg. Simba and Panda's toppers) allowing them adapt to your body, some have goose down or synthetic down fillings, and others even incorporate temperature-regulating gel to keep you cooler overnight.

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