Full disclosure, I didn't need a mattress topper, my existing mattress is only a year old, but something within me sensed that I needed to try the Nolah Mattress topper out. I was sleeping alright, but still struggling with some neck pain. Little did I know that the Nolah topper was the magic trick to bring me back to neutral.
The Nolah Mattress Topper utilizes two inches of the company's proprietary Air Foam, found in its flagship mattress, the Nolah Original 10”. Its design is simple, but effective – foam wrapped in an organic cotton cover placed upon your existing mattress, secured in place with thick elastic bands on each corner.
The Nolah Mattress Topper promises extra comfort and support where you need it. It's fit to your needs, available in two firmness options, Plush with a cloudlike 3/10 firmness level and Luxury Firm with a moderate 5–7/10.
If you don't have the budget to upgrade to the best mattress now, a topper is a great compromise to bring renewed life to your bed or make a budget mattress feel more luxe. Though remember, a topper is not the cure-all for an aged mattress that is sagging or lost its internal support, it may be time to consider replacing your mattress.
In the meantime, read on for our full review to determine if the Nolah Mattress Topper is the best mattress topper for you.
Nolah mattress topper specifications
- Firmness level: Plush or Firm
- Sizes: Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King, Cal King
- Depth: 2"
- Fit: Secures with straps that fit mattresses 10"–15"
- RRP: $299–$499
- Warranty: 10 years
Who will the Nolah topper suit?
In brief, anyone looking for a little extra comfort for their bed, or to renew the feel of an aging mattress. Toppers are also ideal for college students dealing with overly-firm standard-issue mattresses or for adding extra cushion and support to a guest room or sofa bed situation.
To get into specifics about who exactly it is for:
The topper is available in soft plush and a luxury firm option to choose according to your needs. The topper will mostly suit side and back sleepers looking for extra cushion, but will not adequately support front sleepers.
The organic cotton cover is also a great addition for anyone looking to incorporate natural and hypoallergenic materials into their bedding. It's overall easy to put on and take care of for those looking for a convenient, hassle-free fix.
Delivery and set up
The Nolah Mattress Topper ships directly to your door via FedEx. The box can easily be carried into the house and set up by one person. The topper is rolled inside the box. Once it's placed on the bed, you can gently cut the protective plastic wrapping and it will immediately expand. Elastic straps on each corner hug your existing mattress and don't slip and slide.
There wasn't any indication on the box whether the topper was the Plush or the Firm, and I didn't see anything on the topper itself, to confirm that it was the Firm. I would have liked to see that for peace of mind because I found the firm plusher than I was expecting.
Any offgassing was minimal, and a remote memory of the past.
What is the Nolah mattress topper like to sleep on?
Immediately comfortable. Enough so, that'd I'd like to hit snooze approximately 11 more times to keep that snuggled and supportive cushion.
It provided the support and relief to pressure points I needed to keep my body aligned. I'm typically a back sleeper, but the extra cushion found me spending increased time on my side. My torso cratered in the mattress when I tried lying on my stomach, so I don't imagine myself finding prolonged comfort there.
I slept in a temperature-neutral state that didn't cause me to overheat. The topper also stays put. I almost would have forgotten it's on, except I remember it completely changed how my bed felt, for the better of course.
My existing mattress has excellent edge support, so I didn't feel it diminished by the topper, but, it is very easy to pinch the two-inches resilient foam almost together. Being foam, I also think it adds increased motion isolation, but the degree of which will be influenced by your existing mattress.
From a performance standpoint, I give it five stars for doing everything I needed a mattress topper to do, but the design is also very much involved with my experience, and I found some concerns with sizing. A thread on Reddit also noted a similar situation with his twin-size topper.
The Nolah Mattress Dimensions were shorter and too narrow, leaving a small gap showing the underlying mattress at the top left hand side. The tag shows the dimensions, while the online dimensions match a standard Full-size bed
The mattress topper doesn't seem to cover the surface area of the bed, leaving about a 1-inch gap on both the left side and the top of my bed. Now, pillows sit at the head of my bed, and I sleep on the right side of the bed, so didn't affect my day-to-day. I don't share the bed with anyone and am not in danger of slipping too close to the edge, but it definitely does narrow the bed a bit, since you're not going to try to sleep on an uneven surface.
I ponder why it's slightly smaller than the normal 54" by 75" of a standard full-size bed. Upon closer inspection, the mattress' material label notes the dimensions of the bed as 52.5" x 74.5". Of course, once sheets are on, you can't really notice.
Nolah mattress topper construction and care
I unzipped the quilted cotton cover to show the Air Foam, bottom cover and straps to keep the topper in place
The Nolah Mattress Topper is made with two inches of Nolah's proprietary AirFoam. It's said to be more durable, four times better for pressure relief and sleep cooler.
AirFoam is made of high-resilience polyurethane foam to help you sleep temperature neutral. It actually has qualities that mirror latex, with more bounce as opposed to sink. AirFoam contains billions of microscopic air pockets that act as individual shock absorbers to limit motion transfer and reduce pressure on your shoulders, back and hips.
The organic cotton cover is soft with a slightly plush quilted design. It's breathable and wicks away any moisture, but you'll still want to add your sheet or mattress protector directly on top of it. It also zips off for easy washing. The foam can be spot cleaned if anything does leak onto it.
Trial period and warranty
The Nolah Mattress Topper has a 30 day trial period, however, should you decide it's not for you, you are responsible for the costs to ship it back. To initiate the return, you'll reach out to customer service via email. This is not a dealbreaker, but can mean added admin.
The topper is covered by a 10-year limited warranty for the original purchaser. If the Nolah Topper is found to be defective, it will be replaced or repaired by Nolah.
Real Homes verdict: is the Nolah mattress topper worth it?
I'm quite happy with the mattress topper and how I felt after each morning. Noting the slightly reduced surface size did not affect my sleep, but it could for those who share a bed.
Additionally, keeping the price in mind, we do acknowledge that it's definitely on the high end for a foam topper. While you can find something comparable for less, it will likely be traditional memory foam, as opposed to the AirFoam, which is free of heat-trapping viscoelastic chemicals for a cooler sleep and provides additional pressure relief.
Comparatively, taking into account specially engineered memory foam alternatives, it is less than a Tempur-Pedic Tempur Topper Supreme (opens in new tab) (unless found on sale) and an inch thinner. However, you do have more customization with two firmness options from Nolah.
If you're looking for a capital FIRM topper, you might need to look elsewhere, as the Firm is very middle of the road, pillow-like. However, I find that most people seek out mattress toppers to add increased softness to a bed. If your mattress used to be firm and now has gone too soft, its likely lost its support and time to replace.
About this review – and our reviewer
Jaclyn's Sleep Stats
- Sleep position: I typically fall asleep and wake up on my back. I don't toss and turn during the night.
- Insomnia: I don't have any trouble falling asleep. I could sleep with the lights on.
- Sleep problems: I have trouble getting into REM and Deep Sleep and some breathing issues that affect my overall quality of sleep.
- Average sleep time: Between 8 and 9 hours
Jaclyn is the sleep eCommerce editor across the homes titles at Future, including Real Homes, where she spends her days evaluating the best mattresses to seeking out the best ways to make the bedroom your oasis. But because she could literally nap anywhere, anytime, and really needs a full eight hours of sleep to function, the opportunity to test out mattresses for our readers brings a new definition to the title of a dream job! In what other world would she get the chance to sleep on the job!
All our reviews, as in the case of the Nolah Mattress Topper, are based on the real-life experience of using these products at home. Jaclyn slept on this mattress topper for two months before compiling this review. The products are given to us free of charge and for this particular topper, we have been invited to keep it. This means that we can continue to use the product which gives us the opportunity to return to our reviews for updating, so you can keep up-to-date with how it's fared over a period of time. In this instance, the topper is now a resident in our home so we'll continue to test it and update this review should there be anything worth noting.