Be sure to read up on how we test mattresses. For a list like this, we wanted to keep several things in mind when choosing from the hundreds of beds we’ve tested. 

Feel

We wanted to find beds that pretty much everyone finds generally comfortable. Some sleepers love a classic, dense memory feel, and others don’t. Some folks love super responsive latex beds or even the unique feel of a Purple mattress, and others don’t. The beds we chose have more of a “safe” feel that we think anyone who sleeps on them will probably like, and a guest room mattress isn’t necessarily for a specific person who might want a specific feel.

Firmness

We wanted all the beds on this list to be around a medium on the firmness scale because they usually work well, or at least OK for all sleeping positions. Whether your guest is a back, stomach, side or combination sleeper, any of these beds shouldn’t cause them any aches and pains.

Pricing

Buying a mattress for yourself that you spend (hopefully) eight hours a day sleeping on can already be a sizable investment, so a mattress for guests to sleep on shouldn’t cost a lot. That’s why we tried to select beds that were more affordable than the average online mattress. 

Durability

We can’t lay on the mattress every day for years, so it’s hard to tell exactly how long each bed will last. Based on several factors, like construction, we get an idea of how long we think a bed will last. The average lifespan for a mattress is seven to 10 years. For this list, durability was less of a concern because a guest room bed probably won’t be slept on every night.