Emma Mattress Review NZ – Based On Real Experience

If you’ve been researching mattresses online, you’ve probably been blasted with Emma ads. They have some good deals, but you’re feeling skeptical about whether it’s worth your money and if the mattress is actually going to feel comfortable.

I’ve got my 5-year-old sleeping on the Emma Original mattress, a friend using the Emma Comfort mattress, and the Emma Diamond in my house. Put together my personal experience of all Emma mattresses with my 5 years of reviewing mattresses, and I’ll leave you feeling way more confident about whether Emma is the right mattress for you.

About Emma – Behind The Brand

Emma is a mattress-in-a-box brand founded in Germany. They’ve enjoyed huge success in countries like the UK and Australia, where they have a massive base of happy customers.

Emma’s ethos is to make beds engineered for good sleep and to offer their customers the most competitive deals on the bedding market. Their sharp discounts and bold ads certainly put them front and centre of your search!

Emma has grown to an internationally recognised bedding brand, selling their mattresses in 20 countries as I write this! Their mattresses have won awards from consumer advocacy groups such as Choice in Australia. They also make bed frames, toppers, protectors, and pillows.

Emma Mattresses At A Glance

There are 3 Emma mattresses for you to consider:

1. Emma Original (all foam, firm feel, lowest price)
2. Emma Comfort (all foam, medium firm feel, slightly more expensive than Original)
3. Emma Diamond (hybrid, plusher feel, most luxurious)

1. Emma Original Mattress

As the name suggests, this is the first mattress in the Emma line. I’ve had this one in my house for more than 3 years now, and it’s holding up extremely well: no sagging or any other signs of wear (and it’s used every night).

• Cover: Stretchy knit with a soft top and a grippy base to stop your mattress sliding. Key features of the cover are the handles (not as common as you’d think) and the zip around the top. The zip is a clever design feature: it allows you to just remove the top white portion of the cover for cleaning, you don’t have to try and manhandle the whole thing around the mattress. Game changer.
• Foam 1: The light blue foam you can see is the comfort layer. Yes, it’s reasonably thin, which contributes to the firm feel of the mattress. This layer is designed to feel supportive and to stop you from feeling any movement if you share your bed with anyone.
• Foam 2: The white foam is the thickest layer. It’s kind of like a support and transition layer in one. It has zoned channels cut into it to help provide targeted support for different parts of your body.
• Foam 3: The darker blue foam is a high-density foam that allows the two layers above to do their jobs. It’s the support of the mattress and you won’t feel it.

Sleeping On The Emma Original

Before I gave this to my child (who loves it) I slept on this mattress for about 2 weeks. I’m a side and back sleeper who likes a medium to soft mattress.

This mattress is too firm for my personal taste, and you’ll see from other reviews that many others feel the same. I found that there wasn’t enough pressure relief for my shoulder when I lay on my side, but it was okay when I lay on my back.

I slept pretty well on this mattress, even though it was quite firm for my personal preference. I recommend it to people who are on a budget and looking for a firm mattress that will last.

2. Emma Comfort Mattress

This is the mattress Emma came up with in response to consumer complaints that the Emma Original is too firm. Credit to Emma here, for listening to their customers and making something with a wider appeal.

• Cover: I believe this is the same cover as you’ll find on the Emma Original, and I described it above.
• Foam Layer 1: 5cm of “airgocell” foam. This is an open pore foam, which basically means it’s got quite a lot of air in it (50% to be exact), which helps it to be breathable and bouncy.
• Foam Layer 2: The base layer is 20cm of HRX high-density foam, which is also open pore to help with breathability. The really special feature of this support layer is the zones cut into it. These help specifically target and support your body so your spine stays in line and you get the most comfortable sleep possible.

Sleeping On The Emma Comfort

I can say the Emma Comfort mattress is much more comfortable (to me) than the Original mattress, with its medium-firm feel instead of being overly firm. I think it’s awesome Emma has listened to customer feedback and improved their mattress.

I now think it’s a great mattress for MOST people and a great choice for people who can’t decide between soft and firm: you may just find that the Emma Comfort mattress is just right for you.

I’ve passed this mattress along to a friend, who has been using it for more than a year now and is absolutely loving it so it’s not just me who likes it.

3. Emma Diamond Mattress

Yes, this is the most expensive of the Emma range, but it’s still a low priced mattress compared to other brands. If you want springs instead of foam and a deeper, luxurious comfort layer, this is the pick of the bunch.

• Cover: Similar design to the covers on the other two models, but the diamond top part actually feels cooler to the touch. It’s also thicker so it feels like it’s better quality.
• Foam 1: Diamond graphite foam. That’s for cooling purposes, drawing away body heat. It also has a lovely soft and almost squishy feel.
• Foam 2: Adaptive comfort foam. This is a transition between the diamond foam above and the coils below. It’s meant to help with pressure relief.
• Coils: Pocket springs, which are individually encased coils. These are not noisy like a traditional spring unit and move independently of each other to prevent motion transfer. A coil base is also more breathable than a foam one, as air can circulate.
• Foam 3: High-density foam which is there to support the coils and extend their life. This is a nice touch, not all brands have this under their coils.

Sleeping On The Emma Diamond

This is by far and away my favourite of the Emma mattress range. It’s the softest of the lot but still has a medium supportive feel. The comfort foams feel deep, and I honestly feel like it’s similar to when you lie on a Tempur at Harvey Norman.

I don’t sleep hot so I didn’t really notice to comment, but this mattress will also be the best one if you worry about getting hot at night, as air will circulate around the coils.

Who Should Consider Emma?

You’ve read the mattress descriptions and you can see the mattresses are all quite different. This means that if you’re looking for a really great mattress deal with a 120 night in home sleep trial, Emma’s going to have something that works for you.

Here are my recommendations for different scenarios:

Sleep Position

• Side: Emma Diamond for the deepest pressure relief on your shoulder.
• Back or combination: Emma Comfort for that “Goldilocks” medium feel and spine support.
• Stomach: Emma Original for the firmest support for your pelvis (you don’t want it dipping through the night)

Sleep Concerns:

• Hot sleeper: Emma Diamond has the best air circulation
• Motion transfer: any of them, the foams all do a good job
• Back pain: consult with a health professional first as I am not one (anymore), but I believe the Emma Comfort gives the best balance of support

Don’t Just Take My Word For It: Reviews From Real People

I scoured the customer reviews of this mattress and in general, people agree that Emma feels medium to firm, is good value for money, does not sag, and does not retain heat.

At the time of writing this, Emma states that there are more than 10,000 kiwis happily sleeping on their beds. I know at least 3 or 4 just in my little circle, so this is believable to me!

Here are some comments from customer reviews:

” I like the feel of it, and it’s very supportive. I also like that I can easily remove the cover and wash it.”

“This mattress doesn’t sag and you can’t feel the person moving next to you”.

“I’m using this mattress on my adjustable bed and it’s very comfortable.”

“The Emma mattress is comfortable to sleep on. The delivery was quick and easy and it was easy to set up.”

Emma Vs The Competition

How does Emma stack up against other mattress-in-a-box brands you might be considering? Here’s my opinion of it based on the other mattresses I’ve tried.

Compare To Ecosa

Ecosa also makes a very firm mattress, so their original is the closest competitor to the Emma Original. Emma wins for me because it’s better value.

Ecosa also makes a hybrid, called the Pure mattress. This doesn’t have memory foam on the top like the Emma Diamond does though. The Pure has latex instead. Latex is an amazing mattress material but it comes at a high price. Emma wins again for budgetary reasons but if you want natural materials like latex you should look at the Ecosa Pure, or read about Peace Lily (who have superior latex mattresses to Ecosa).

Compare To Napp

The Napp mattress is an all-foam, made in New Zealand mattress. It has a medium feel and a cool touch cover. Napp is most similar to the Emma Comfort mattress.

Napp is slightly pricier than Emma, but they win for me because they’re made in New Zealand and it’s nice to support local. My parents have a Napp mattress and they love it.

Compare To Winkl

Winkl is another all foam mattress, and it’s a NZ owned brand. I have personally tried the Winkl Lux, which in my opinion is the softest of the mattress in a box options. It is closest to the Emma Comfort mattress.

The Winkl Lux is the winner for me, because it’s softer than anyone else’s mattress. I have used this mattress on my own bed for more than 2 years (apart from when I’m testing other mattresses)

Emma Mattress Review NZ – Conclusion

Overall, Emma offers great quality mattresses at a very pocket friendly budget.

With the different firmness levels and the different designs, I truly think there is an Emma mattress that will suit everyone.

Yes, it’s true that I sleep on a different mattress myself, but I know plenty of people who love their Emma mattresses and you’ll pick one up for a great deal.

What’s Special About Emma? The sales deals, the variety they offer, and the cleverly designed cover

Which Mattress Is Best From Emma? My pick is the Diamond Hybrid for the ultra-luxe comfort layer and breathable coils

Do Emma Mattresses Last? I’ve been testing them for more than 3 years now, and yes, so far so good.