BedInABox 2019 Mattresses Overview

Note: This is not a review. This is our plain-English explanation and overview of the BedInABox collection of mattresses for the 2019-2020 model year.

If you’d prefer to watch rather than read, watch our BedInABox Mattresses Overview video

BedInABox Company

Today, you may think of the term "bed in a box" as a generic term for any mattress that comes compressed and shipped to you in a cardboard box. The company -- BedInABox -- actually started it all in 2006, developing the process of compressing and rolling mattresses and shipping them direct to consumers via common carrier.

Today, the company makes and sells its own mattresses, and also makes the foams that go into those beds. Most other manufacturers these days source their foams from other suppliers, and sometimes entire mattresses are made by third parties for a given brand. BedInABox handles the whole process, effectively cutting out the middle man.

There are 6 models in the series. Four of those are all-foam mattresses the company has been selling in more or less the same configuration for more than a decade. Two hybrid mattresses have been more recently introduced.

BedInABox Memory Foam Mattresses

The four models in the company's series of memory foam beds have a lot in common. All use a slow-responding, 3-lb. density gel-infused memory foam, along with the same 2-lb. density support foam on the bottom.

The company's gel memory foam has that slow, melting into the bed response that memory foam is known for. The inclusion of gel is meant as a conductor of heat to channel heat away from the body.

When we pressed into the foam, our hand print remained for a few seconds before returning to shape -- a classic behavior of memory foam.

BedInABox Original

The entry level bed in the line, which you might see called either the Original or the PacBed (as it was first named). It comes in two heights: a 9" version and an 11" version. Both share a 3-inch comfort layer of gel memory foam, with a block of support foam below, a simple 2-layer construction.

There's a big contrast in feel between the two foams, but the softness of the top foam gives these beds a "Medium" softness on our scale, with average cushioning. You don't sink super deeply into these beds.

The cover has some light quilting, with dark side panels.

BedInABox Azul

Next up in the line is the Azul, another of the company's beds that have been on the market a long time. This 11" mattress has the same 3" layer of gel memory foam on top, but with a coating of phase-change material, which gives the top of the mattress a notable coolness to the touch.

The layer of support foam is also the same foam that's in the Original bed, but there's a third layer of transition gel foam in between the two called Pluralux, which is a quick responding latex-like foam.

While the overall softness of this bed is still what we'd call a Medium, it has deeper cushioning - you sink in more and there's more conformance, with the foam molding itself more closely to your body's curves.

The cover of the bed also has cooling properties, with a special yarn meant to help keep it cool. Between this and the phase-change coating on the memory foam, the bed did feel cool to the touch.

Below you'll see the bright blue layer of phase-change material on top of the memory foam.

BedInABox Tranquillium

The Tranquillium is BedInABox's tallest memory foam mattress, at 12". It's construction is similar to the Azul, but without the phase-change coating on the memory foam.

The cover is also different; instead of the cooling yarn, the cover is made of Tencel, which has its own cooling properties.

We thought the feel of this model was similar to the Azul, with a little more softness and tad bit more cushioning, but still a Medium overall.

BedInABox Hybrid Mattresses

Dual Hybrid

The Dual Hybrid is the company's first bed using pocketed coils; there are actually two layers of coils: A standard pocketed-coil support unit comprised of about 800 coils, plus a layer of 900 micro-coils in the comfort layer (queen size).

On top is a 3" layer of Pluralux gel foam, but this isn't memory foam -- it has none of that slow responding feeling. Rather, this foam springs back very quickly and does not give you that 'sinking' sensation.

Overall, we found this bed to be a Medium Firm, giving you more of a floating on top of the bed feeling. Cushioning depth is about average, so there's some nice softness on top of the underlying firm support.

Because this is a pocketed coil bed, it's quite springy with a lot of bounce -- something that's entirely missing from the company's all-foam mattresses.

This is also a tall mattress -- 13" in total, and the tallest mattress currently sold by BedInABox.

BedInABox CUre

The newest model in the lineup, and probably the most interesting just from a materials standpoint, is the CUre. The name incorporates the chemical symbol for copper -- CU -- because (according to the company) it contains 80 times more copper than any other bed on the market that includes this metal.

Why would you want a bed with copper in it? Copper, for several years, has been much-discussed for its antimicrobial and antibacterial properties, along with a number of other possible benefits.

The CUre mattress has copper infused into the 3" layer of memory foam on top, plus micro-coils made of copper and titanium. Under those, you'll find the company's Pluralux foam and standard pocketed coil unit.

The CUre mattress is the softest of all the BedInABox mattresses, and we would class it a Medium Soft on our scale.

It also has the most conformance -- meaning it hugs your body most closely, and has deeper than average cushioning depth. So if you like that memory foam melting sensation, the CUre bed has it.

It's worth noting that CertiPUR, the organization that certifies mattress foams to ensure they meet a minimal level of off-gassing, has now removed copper from its list of potentially hazardous chemicals. So the foams in the CUre mattress (and in fact all of the BedInABox foams) have been fully certified to this standard.