The Informant: This Casper Mattress Gave Me the Absolute Best Night’s Sleep

Emma Wenninger

November 17, 2023 at 10:48 AM·4 min read

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I moved back to New York in early August 2023. I’d been a Brooklynite for years, and after a brief work-from-home stint in the Midwest, it was time to head into the office. That meant an empty apartment, and yet another mattress purchase.

As most former borough-dwellers do, I have a long-standing relationship with Facebook Marketplace. The longest apartment relationship I ever had was two years. Every purchase I ever made came with the inevitable follow-up thought: How much can I get for this in a year? Six months? When I need something else and don’t have the space?

I wanted to put that behind me. I have moved out of Brooklyn. I have a car now, and access to moving trucks. No longer must I buy cheap furniture — I’d never bought a mattress over $200 — in anticipation of selling it later so I can swap apartments.

Credit card in hand, back sore from two weeks of sleeping on a twin-size air mattress, I ventured onto the internet. Luckily, the lovely folks at Casper heard I was in need, and asked me if I’d like to test out one of the brand’s mattresses. As a long-time internet sleuth, I was overjoyed to join the ranks of influencers who now sleep on Casper mattresses the nation over. I selected the Nova Hybrid Mattress because I liked the two-tone colors, and because I need to sleep on a semi-firm bed. An incredibly important note here: I’m a side-sleeper, and if my spine twists at all while I sleep, I wake up with a massive kink in my back and pain in my legs. The spring and foam combo sounded like the perfect fit. I ordered. I waited.

It arrived as all Casper mattresses do: rolled up.

The box, I’ll admit, was heavy, and bigger than I thought it would be. My space is small, and it took a while to get it out of the box. At one point, I opted to just tear hunks of cardboard off, like I was descaling a really big fish. But I remained undeterred, and finally, after 20 minutes of struggling, I got it out of the box and open. It took a massive breath inward before expanding into, literally, the best mattress I’ve ever slept on in my life.

Casper recommends letting the mattress sit for about an hour before using it — to let it rise. (I was reminded of my pandemic-induced sourdough bread era.) Once it finished baking, I sprayed it with some Febreze — it didn’t smell, but I’m a child of the 2000s and those Febreze campaigns got me good — and passed out. I have slept on it every day since.

The Nova is 12 inches tall and made of three layers of deliciously soft polyurethane memory foam on top of a base of springs. The cover is made out of recycled plastic bottles. The foam has been tested for low off-gassing, which is something I now know about thanks to wellness influencers, and has become a new thing to worry about. I got a full-size version, and my only regret is not getting a queen. Casper claims that they tested it for coolness, and while I can’t verify, I can confirm I don’t overheat in the night.

I’ve now slept on the Nova Hybrid for four months. I knew my cheap mattresses weren’t the greatest, but I didn’t realize how badly I was slumming it. The Nova is firm but soft, easy to keep clean, and the memory foam means my spine stays exactly where it’s supposed to. Most importantly, the Nova is so well-made that my issue has been resolved — I know I will have this mattress for years. I wish I could buy 10 more. But unfortunately, I do live in a studio, and aside from stacking them one on top of the other, I don’t know where I’d put them.

(Casper, I am willing to try.)