The Purple mattress is probably one of the most famous mattresses in the world right now. The brand has been amassing an almost cult-like following and is surging in popularity thanks to a well funded, supersized TV advertising campaign. The cutting-edge propitiatory materials of the product combined with the innovative design patterns are a winning combination that many consumers seem to love.
Tempurpedic is one of the largest mattress manufacturers in the world. Their products have been on the market for several years now and over that time they’ve become a big beast of the mattress industry that’s a household name. They’re known for their dedication to customer service, durability, quality, and most of all – providing the best night’s sleep they possibly can.
Today we’re going to put the Purple mattress in a head to head battle with Tempurpedic’s mattresses to compare and contrast the similarities and differences between the two products. We’re going to take each mattress apart layer by layer and inspect them in incredible detail before providing you with a final recommendation of which one we think is best.
Similarities
- Hybrid – Both products are hybrid mattresses that are made up of different materials in individual layers
- Cool Sleeping Surface – Both brands will provide you with an exceptionally cool night’s sleep
- Reputation – Both brands are well known in the mattress industry for providing quality products that will stand the test of time
Differences
- Price – Tempurpedic’s products are much more expensive than the Purple mattress
- Material – The Purple mattress uses hyperelastic polymer and Tempurpedic’s products use TEMPUR memory foam
- Layers – All 3 of Tempurpedic’s mattresses use more layers than the Purple mattress
Construction Comparison
It’s often a good idea to start these mattress comparisons by breaking down the construction of both products to give us a clue as to what we are dealing with in the later sections.
Purple Construction
Let’s start off by taking a look at the Purple mattress because to be honest – it’s the most interesting. It’s a hybrid product that’s made up of 3 different layers of material combined into a single mattress. Combining materials in this way is pretty standard practice in the mattress world (Tempurpedic does it too). It allows a final product to be created that benefits from the various different strengths of the different materials inside.
Purple have basically custom made this mattress to be a “memory foam killer”. It’s been designed to outperform memory foam products in every single way while still retaining the supportive contouring properties consumers know and love.
They have achieved this almost exclusively through the top layer of the mattress, which is quite literally one of the most advanced mattress layers on the planet. The team at Purple have gone to huge amounts of time and effort to develop a patented proprietary material that they call “hyperelastic polymer”.
Hyperelastic polymer is a super durable material that has contouring properties that are very similar to that of memory foam. If we’re being brutally honest, on its own memory foam is probably a little more supportive than hyperelastic polymer – it contours a little more.
So why have purple gone to all the effort of creating a material that’s almost as good as memory foam (but not quite)?
It’s because hyperelastic polymer does not have any of the negative side effects that memory foam is all too well known for.
The most obvious (and important) example of this is with regards to thermal regulation and overheating. Part of the way that memory foam gets its contouring properties is also part of the reason it heats up too much for many people’s tastes. Hotspots form underneath the sleeper and heat does not distribute itself throughout the mattress evenly.
Hyperelastic polymer, on the other hand, is an excellent thermal regulator. When heat enters the material it spreads around the entire surface of the mattress reasonably efficiently. This means that while the overall amount of heat in the mattress is probably of a similar amount, it’s spread out more – resulting in a cooler sensation for the sleeper.
But even with these cooling benefits, Purple still only have a material that’s almost as supportive as memory foam (but much cooler).
The clever thing about the top layer in the Purple mattress (aside from the hyperelastic polymer) is the shape it is in. It has been machined into a grid-like pattern that purple call “the comfort grid”. This design pattern transforms the supportive contouring properties of the material into something that’s at least as good as memory foam – if not better.
The other benefit of the comfort grid is ventilation. Because the side sections of each section of the grid are raised it effectively creates ventilation channels throughout the entire layer. When the air inside the mattress heats up it can flow pretty much unobstructed out into the outside world, cooling the mattress even further.
However, this is where the innovation ends for the Purple mattress and the bottom layers are pretty unremarkable compared to the technology we’ve just talked about.
The second layer is 3.5 inches thick and is a transition layer of comfort foam. There’s nothing special about the foam used here, it’s high quality, but it’s pretty standard stuff. It’s a medium density and its main purpose is to soften the firmness gradient for the layer below.
The bottom layer is also 3.5 inches thick and is made from an equally boring high-density support foam. Again it’s high quality, but there’s nothing special about it whatsoever. Its sole purpose is to provide a sturdy base for the softer foams above to rest on (which admittedly, it does very well).
All of these layers are then very nicely wrapped up in a viscose and polyester knit covering. It’s durable, breathable, and high quality. But again, it’s pretty boring stuff.
Tempurpedic Construction
Tempurpedic offer 3 different mattresses that each have different firmness levels. All 3 mattresses are hybrid products that utilize several different layers in a similar fashion to the Purple. Depending upon the mattress you choose you’ll have between 4 and 5 individual layers (each made from different materials).
The layers you’ll get inside your mattress depend upon the firmness level you select. We’ll list all of the potential layers below, but just know that not every mattress will contain every layer.
Easy Refresh Top Cover
Every Tempurpedic mattress has the same high-quality cover. Its soft, durable, and it easily zips on and off (which is helpful as it’s machine washable too). It has been custom made to wick moisture away from the sleeper, keeping them comfortable and dry throughout the night.
Smart Climate System
The smart climate system is a cooling layer designed to keep the top of the mattress cool to the touch while the top cover wicks any moisture away.
Comfort Layer
The comfort layer is found in all 3 variations of Tempurpedic’s mattress. It’s made from TEMPUR which is a proprietary blend of memory foam. It’s widely considered to be one of the highest quality memory foams that money can buy, and it’s what made the brand a household name. In all honesty, TEMPUR is little more than a very high-quality memory foam – despite what Tempurpedic would like to have you believe.
This being said, it’s slightly cooler than normal memory foam, it’s more responsive, and it’s a little more comfortable too. It’s this layer that provides the support and contouring capabilities that Tempurpedic’s customers know and love.
Response Layer
This is another TEMPUR memory foam layer, but it’s slightly different. The material in this layer is called TEMPUR-Response and it’s a little bit firmer and a little bit more springy compared to the layer above. Its main purpose is to help distribute body weight across the sleeping surface more easily, but it also provides a decent amount of support too.
Dynamic Support Layer
One version of the Tempurpedic mattress has a “dynamic support layer”. Don’t be fooled by the name, this is nothing more than a layer of individually wrapped pocketed coils. They’re high quality, and provide contouring support by only compressing when they are directly underneath the sleeper.
Base Layer
The final layer in all 3 of Tempurpedic’s mattresses is a base layer. It’s not particularly interesting and is made from a standard high-density support foam that provides stability for the layers above.
Firmness Comparison
The Purple mattress rates about 6.5 out of 10 on the firmness scale which makes it a medium-firm mattress. It’s the most popular firmness level (and therefore also the most profitable), this is why Tempurpedic’s medium firmness product is also 6.5 out of 10 on the firmness scale.
Tempurpedic also has a soft mattress and a firm mattress available. The firm product rates about a 7.5 out of 10 on the firmness scale, and may be a little too firm unless you really like a firm mattress. The soft version of the mattress rates about 4.5 on the firmness scale which is about as soft as you’d want a mattress to be before it becomes too unsupportive.
Price Comparison
The Purple mattress is significantly cheaper than all 3 of Tempurpedic’s products at all sizes. It ranges from $699 for a twin XL up to $1,299 for a California king.
Tempurpedic’s prices vary slightly depending upon the firmness you select (as they contain different materials in different quantities). On average you’ll be paying around $2,100 for a twin sized mattress and up to a whopping $3,299 for a California king.
Which Bed Sleeps Cooler?
All of Tempurpedic’s products sleep exceptionally cool compared to many other memory foam products on the market. The enhanced cooling capabilities of the TEMPUR material combined with the cooling climate control layer create a very cool and comfortable sensation for the sleeper.
However, despite this, the Purple sleeps cooler than all 3 of Tempurpedic’s products. As we mentioned before, hyperelastic polymer was designed to be a memory foam killer – and this is where it pays off big time.
Even the improved cooling capabilities of TEMPUR cannot compete with the Purple’s thermal regulation capacity. The natural heat distribution properties of hyperelastic polymer combined with the clever ventilation system provided by the comfort grid is a winning combination.
The Purple mattress is one of the coolest mattresses in the world, so don’t hold it against Tempurpedic that their products lost in this section.
They’re still more than cool enough to be acceptable by anyone’s standards.
Which Bed Would Be Best For A Side Sleeper?
To be totally honest both the Purple and all of Tempurpedic’s mattresses are excellent for side sleepers. Side sleeping is the most common sleeping position and as such most premium mattresses are made to promote proper spinal alignment when sleeping on your side.
If we had to pick, we’d say that the Purple is slightly better than Tempurpedic’s offerings for side sleepers. The comfort grid has been designed to respond to pressure points reactively. This means your head and shoulders will sink in more and your hips (where all the pressure is) will get more support and sink in less. This results in a super straight spine and a comfortable night’s sleep.
To be honest, Tempurpedic’s products promote proper spinal alignment for side sleepers very well too, we just feel the Purple does it slightly better.
Should I buy a Purple or a Tempurpedic Bed?
To be blunt, we see very little reason why you would spend so much more money on a Tempurpedic product over the Purple mattress.
There’s no denying that Tempurpedic makes some of the best memory foam (or TEMPUR) mattresses on the planet. They are super premium products that will stand the test of time and provide you with one of the best night’s sleep you’ve ever had.
But then again, so will the Purple mattress.
It’s cooler than all of Tempurpedic’s products, it’s just as responsive and supportive, and it’s much, much cheaper.
As such, the Purple gets our wholehearted recommendation.
Conclusion
So there you have it, that’s what we think about Tempurpedic’s products and the Purple mattress.
We feel that you’re paying quite a lot of money for the Tempurpedic brand name these days, their products are high quality, but they’re also a little overpriced.
The Purple will provide you with a great night’s sleep that is as good as (or better than) a Tempurpedic product at a much better price point.
Sweet dreams.
