Why We Ditched Our Endy Mattress And Went With Novosbed
This is the story of why we ditched our Endy mattress and chose Novosbed for our remodelled bedroom.
Four years ago, my wife and I wanted to replace our 12-year-old Sealy Posturepedic mattress. We heard about the bed-in-a-box trend – dozens of brands were selling foam mattresses online and shipping them directly to consumers – and so we decided to investigate. We pored over countless reviews and comparisons before testing out three different queen mattresses: one from Endy, Casper, and Bear. Ultimately, we chose the Endy mattress and slept comfortably on it for the next three-and-a-half years.
We remodelled our bedroom late last year (because who hasn’t renovated something during these times) and decided to upgrade to a king bed. That meant we needed a new mattress and, naturally, Endy was our first choice.
We paid $950 for an Endy king mattress and received it within a few days. After unboxing the mattress and letting it form to size, we laid down and something didn’t feel right. We had a horrible sleep that night! The mattress was not as firm and did not feel like the same material that was used in our old Endy queen mattress.
Of note, Endy was purchased by Sleep Country in November 2018. I reached out to Endy’s customer care team, and they confirmed that something had indeed changed:
“Yes, we did change the materials from a few years ago to now, we use air capsules whereas before we were using a cooling gel.”
In addition, the quality did not seem the same. It wasn’t as firm, or as thick as our previous mattress. The Endy ‘specs’ said the mattress was 10” thick but ours didn’t even reach 8” thickness after 48 hours. Also, the corners of the king mattress didn’t lie flat, they curled up.
Novosbed Review
Disappointed with our new king mattress we returned the Endy and started the shopping process all over again. We heard great things about Novosbed, which is another Canadian-owned and operated company selling mattresses online.
In fact, Novosbed launched the world’s first risk-free sleep trial back in 2009. They expanded their line-up of mattresses over the years to include brands like Douglas, Logan & Cove, Recore, and Brunswick to name a few. Now rebranded as GoodMorning.com, they’re one of Canada’s largest independent online-only mattress retailers.
What we liked immediately about Novosbed is that they offered three choices of firmness instead of a one-size-fits-all choice like Endy and most other foam mattress retailers offer.
To select the appropriate firmness option Novosbed has a handy questionnaire and recommendation tool online. It includes the following questions:
- Do you sleep by yourself or with a partner?
- Height and weight of you and your partner
- Are you a side, back, or stomach sleeper?
My wife and I prefer a firmer mattress and so we chose The Novosbed – Firm.
Novosbed Pricing:
Novosbed describes itself as an affordable luxury mattress. It’s made of premium, high-density memory foam and is made in North America. Their mattresses come in the following sizes and price points:
Size | Price |
Twin | $999 |
Twin XL | $1,099 |
Full / Double | $1,199 |
Queen | $1,399 |
King | $1,599 |
California King | $1,599 |
Shipping is free and usually takes 1-7 business days within Canada. Each Novosbed comes with a machine-washable cover. Shoppers can choose from three ‘firmness’ options (soft, medium, or firm) and the mattresses are 11” thick.
Sleep Trial
Novosbed has a generous 120-night sleep trial, one of the longest in the industry. If you don’t like your Novosbed mattress you can return it within the 120-night sleep trial and Novosbed will issue a full refund and make arrangements for the mattress to be picked up (typically gets donated to a local charity).
Novosbed also lets you fine-tune the firmness. After 30 nights, if you’re not in love with your mattress, Novosbed will send you a free Comfort+ kit to make your mattress firmer or softer.
Our experience with Novosbed
We ordered our Novosbed King mattress through GoodMorning.com and received it within three business days. The mattress-in-a-box is heavy and took two of us to lug it up the stairs and into our bedroom.
We unboxed it, removed the plastic wrap, and rolled it out onto the bed frame. The mattress decompresses within about 30 minutes but takes around 24 hours to reach its full intended comfort.
It can take some time to adjust to a foam mattress if you’re used to sleeping on a spring mattress. For us, since we had slept on a foam mattress for four years, we knew after the first night that this mattress was “the one”.
We’d say the Novosbed firm mattress is slightly firmer than our old Endy queen mattress, but not as firm as the Bear mattress that we tested out years ago. The Novosbed mattress provided the firmness we were looking for with a comfortable ‘sink’ that hugs you while you sleep.
We’re thrilled with our Novosbed king mattress and are now enjoying our remodelled bedroom. If you’re looking to make a mattress change or upgrade your sleep experience, I’d highly recommend checking out Novosbed.
*GoodMorning.com provided product in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.*
Robb! First you provide financial guidance through my retirement. Now I have insight into my new build bedroom design. Sold my Toronto bungalow and awaiting completion of townhome in Bruce County Ontario. Will taken into consideration your comments. I was ready set go on ENDY.
Hi Joe, good to hear from you! Yes, we were disappointed with the changes to the Endy product. Glad you found the review helpful.
Enjoy retirement!
Just a question = you send you put the mattress directly into the bed frame. So no box spring?
I have never used a box spring over 40+ years and three mattresses. It’s not necessary if you have a good platform for the mattress to sit on. It’s something that mattress sellers want you to buy.
We don’t use box springs either. A puzzling product – why? However we put foam mattresses on wooden slat bases (get them from IKEA). We had a foam mattress on a solid plywood base in a seldom used damp basement bedroom and to my horror some mold developed on the bottom side of the mattress. Foam mattresses need to breath on all sides.
Hi Richard, they say an acceptable foundation includes: adjustable bases; solid wood platform beds; horizontally slatted foundations with slats no less than 2″ in width and gaps no more than 3″ apart; non-flexing box springs that are in good repair; and foundations specifically designed for memory foam/latex beds.
That’s too bad about Endy and their changes. I had them on my list for my next mattress replacement. They are now off my list. Thanks for the review.
Hi Jan, yes we were disappointed because we loved our original Endy queen mattress. I wonder if getting acquired by Sleep Country changed things?
Looked at all the beds in a box. Went with the Hamuq hybrid and have been getting a great sleep for the last 3 years.
Good to hear, Mike – thanks for your comment.
I’ve enjoyed my medium firmness Novosbed for six years, but sadly couldn’t take it with me on my move to Panama. The all year hammock season makes up for it.
Hi Terry, nice to hear that. A hammock sounds like a great substitute!
While I’m sure that you genuinely believe that your opinions are honest and inbiased, the fact that they gave you a “freebee” disqualifies your recommendation as far as I’m concerned. Not only that, even if Novosbed is a superior quality, (and judging by the price comparison, it should be!) and even if Endy has downgraded its product, your “paid-for” negative remarks about Endy have already turned two potential customers away. I’ve enjoyed many of your columns over the years, and I know you have to make a living (and are doing that, to judge by your accounts), but I think you made a mistake by accepting the free bed. I shall read everything you write from now on with some suspicion. I may even cancel my subscription.
I missed the part in the article where it was mentioned to be a “free bed” (?)
I see the opinion within this blog as being no different than any other product review one would find on the internet. Those potential customers are likely grateful for the heads-up.
Coke learned the hard way by changing it’s product. Who knows, maybe Endy ends up regretting their change. I enjoyed this article, and it appears others have too.
Hi Peter, that’s a totally fair comment. All I can say is the experience I shared is 100% true and I hope it will help others make a decision when it comes to purchasing their next mattress. I plan on sleeping on this mattress for the next 10+ years so I would not accept a lousy product just to get something for free.
I agree with Pete. The fact that you received a product taints your review. Thank you for declaring it ,though- at least I get to see it and judge for myself.
It seems to me that the financial aspect that you are recommending is to get free stuff by making recommendations. I like the idea but don’t feel qualified even after having spent many nights sleeping on a bed, driving a car etc. to be able to successfully start a blog on that basis of expertise.
How do you start a blog to get free stuff, do you have more recommendations in that area. It sounds like something that would reduce my yearly expenses and be good. Additionally it looks like it would be hard to include in a yearly budget. How do you budget the free stuff you get into your yearly budget?
Hi Rick, many bloggers and reviewers have leveraged their expertise in a certain area (computers, cars, finance, lifestyle, travel, etc.) to make a living. If you have something you’re passionate about I’m sure you can figure out how to monetize it through a blog, website, social media, or as a consultant.
Always enjoy your column. Been wanting to join your subscription list.
I feel that you have taught me a awful lot.
But Robb IMO what you just did on your financial form is wrong.
You could of did this on google reviews.
Just my opinion.
You still have a GREAT financial form
Hi Jim, thanks for your comment. Sorry the review missed the mark for you. Not to worry, I’ll be back with more free personal finance, investing, and retirement planning content for everyone soon.
I don’t find the article to be off topic at all. It’s a financial transaction we all make every decade or so, isn’t it? I like to know what options are out there and appreciate the review and Robb sharing his story. Not every article has to be about the stock market.
I appreciate the post Robb. I am in the market for a new mattress and this really helps. To me, it doesn’t matter if you were given the mattress in exchange for a review, you’ve built a reputation on being helpful and honest and thats enough for me!
Thanks again!
Hi Rob. I was surprised to see a recommendation for a mattress on your blog. You are entitled to write about anything you want of course, but I am not sure this is the direction you want to take with your column. To be honest, it made me feel a little uncomfortable. Your reputation is based on giving unbiased information which, in the financial world, is extremely difficult to find. I fear you may dilute the stellar reputation you have developed over the years by including biased information – on any product. Personally, I would be happy to pay a nominal amount to keep receiving your totally unbiased financial expertise only.
Hi Robb,
Timely article as we’re looking for a new mattress for our son. Had our sights on an ikea mattress but it never seems to be in stock so will likely try online. At the beginning of your article, you said that you tested 3 mattresses. I’m just curious how were you able to do that with online sellers?
Thanks!