The Ultimate Casper Element 10” Polyurethane Foam Mattress Review

Visiting a brick-and-mortar store was once the only option people in need of a new mattress had, but all of that changed when mattress manufacturers began selling mattresses in boxes online. Today, the online mattress marketplace is crowded with dozens of mattress makers and sellers, and they all claim to offer the best products and the most attractive prices. This has made buying a new mattress easier than ever, and it has also made the selection process far more challenging for consumers.

You can’t lie down on an online mattress to see if you like it, and you can’t rely on manufacturers to tell you things about their products that could lead you to think twice. That’s why you need in-depth reviews that let you know about the bad as well as the good. This Casper Element review will do just that with detailed information about how this popular mattress is made and how it stacks up against competing models. After you have read it, you should have everything you need to make an informed and wise buying decision.

Want to skip the details? See a summary of the Casper Element mattress here.

Casper Element 10” Polyurethane Foam Mattress Review

Construction and Design

Most mattresses feel pretty good when they are new, but how comfortable will they be to sleep on after a few years of use? To answer that question, we have to delve below the cover to see how a mattress is made. In this section, we will take a close look at the Casper Element 950-000065-004 polyurethane foam mattress to find out if it has what it takes to stand the test of time.

Layers

The Casper Element has become a hit with consumers because it offers both support and comfort. Casper is able to offer its customers this winning combination because its Element mattress is made from two layers of polyurethane foam instead of one. One of these layers gives the mattress its support, and the other makes it comfortable to sleep on. Using two layers also allows this mattress to avoid the heat issues associated with a single layer of foam. Let’s take a look at these layers in more detail:

• The support layer: The Casper Element uses a layer of high-density foam 6.5″ thick to support the whole body and prevent sagging and sinking. This layer gives the mattress stability, but it does not make it bouncy. This support layer cradles curves, supports pressure points, and reduces motion transfer, which means the people who fall asleep on it tend to stay asleep.
• The comfort layer: Sitting on top of the support layer is a 3″ layer of what Casper calls AirScape foam. This is a breathable material that has thousands of tiny holes in it to keep even hot sleepers cool all night. The AirScape layer is just thick enough to provide a luxurious level of softness and comfort, but it is not thick enough to create the cloying sensation that many people experience when they sleep on a foam bed. The use of polyurethane foam instead of memory foam makes this mattress easier to move about on, which improves ergonomic alignment and prevents morning stiffness. Polyurethane foam also gives heat somewhere to go, which means less waking up in the middle of the night covered in sweat.

These two layers combine to provide the feeling of sleeping both on and in a mattress that most people prefer, and Casper wraps them in a breathable knit cover that improves cooling even further. This cover can be unzipped and removed for cleaning, and it is made out of Lycra, rayon, polyester, and environmentally friendly upcycled cotton and recycled plastic bottles.

Manufacturing

Casper Sleep is based in New York, and its mattresses are made in facilities located in Georgia and Pennsylvania. This is important because it means all of Casper’s mattresses meet product quality and safety standards set by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Factories in some other countries operate under far laxer environmental regulations, which poses a danger to both factory workers and consumers. This is an especially serious problem in the mattress industry because of gases called volatile organic compounds.

VOCs are emitted by many materials, including the foam used to make some mattresses, and they have been linked to serious health problems like nausea, headaches, eye and throat irritation, kidney and liver damage, and even some forms of cancer. Casper Element mattresses all bear the CertiPUR-US certification seal, which means VOCs are not something that you need to worry about. CertiPUR-US is a product safety program administered by an independent nonprofit organization, and materials only receive a certification if laboratory testing shows that their VOC emissions are less than 0.05 parts per million. The CertiPUR-US seal also tells you that the foam Casper uses does not contain any:

• Ozone-depleting substances
• Dangerous flame retardants
• Mercury or lead
• Formaldehyde
• Hazardous plasticizers

Features

The Casper Element’s features were developed by a team of engineers and researchers at Casper Labs, and they work together to create what the company calls 4D sleep technology. The result of this approach to research and development is a range of mattresses that promote good health as well as a good night’s sleep and are endorsed by the American Chiropractic Association. When they designed the Element, Casper’s scientists focused on the following four elements of rest:

• Alignment: Morning pain and stiffness is usually caused by poor body alignment. Casper scientists tackled this problem and improved ergonomics by developing foams that provide support across the entire mattress, including the edges. This means that you will probably wake up feeling great and ready to face the day after sleeping on a Casper Sleep Element mattress, even if you sleep all the way over on the left or right.
• Temperature: Foam mattresses have always been comfortable, but they have not always been cool. Casper avoids the overheating issues that are common in many budget foam mattresses by using breathable AirScape polyurethane foam that contains thousands of tiny holes. This draws heat into the mattress and away from sleepers, and Casper’s deep layer of support foam then retains warmth to prevent nighttime discomfort.
• Touch: Casper makes its mattresses more pleasing to the touch with comfort foams and breathable knit covers. These elements combine to create a very distinctive feel that lulls people to sleep.
• Time: All Casper mattresses go through the company’s Rest Index Testing. These are a series of evaluations that are designed to ensure sleepers remain comfortable and enjoy uninterrupted rest. Motion transfer is one of the most common causes of sleep interruptions, but Casper’s combination of support and memory foam minimizes the disruption caused by tossing and turning. This is a great feature for people who sleep next to restless partners.

Firmness

Casper describes its Element mattress as firm, but most reviewers say it is medium-firm. Either way, Casper has created a mattress with a balanced feel that will provide a sound night’s rest for every kind of sleeper. Back and stomach sleepers will get the support they need from the Element’s deep layer of base foam, and its breathable AirScape foam cradles the shoulders, neck, and spine to soothe pressure points and keep side sleepers comfortable. The Casper Element is a responsive mattress, which means people who lie on it won’t feel stuck, and its edges are robust enough to be sat on without caving. The AirScape foam may not provide enough support for side sleepers who weigh more than 250 lbs., but they can put the Element to the test in their own homes without risk, thanks to Casper’s 100-night sleep trial.

Durability and Price

Casper Sleep is confident that its Element mattress will exceed consumer expectations, but is it a good value and built to last? To find out, let’s take a look at how durable this mattress is and how much Casper charges for it.

How Long Will a Casper Element Mattress Last?

Casper mattresses have been on the market since 2014, and they are rarely returned because they fail to hold up. Polyurethane foam is an inherently resilient material, which means you can expect a mattress made out of it to remain comfortable for many years. The foam also resists the lumps, sags, and creases that can plague innerspring mattresses. Casper backs its mattresses with a 10-year limited warranty, so you can expect them to provide a great place to sleep for at least that long and probably much longer.

Price

Value is one area where the Casper Element really stands out. The mattress is available in sizes ranging from twin to California king, and prices start at under $500. This is a pretty good deal for a mattress made from advanced materials and featuring proprietary technology, and the news gets even better when discounts are factored in. Amazon offers discounts of up to $69.50 on some of the most popular Element sizes, and free shipping in the lower 48 states and most of Canada makes the deal even more attractive. There are cheaper foam mattresses on the market, but few of them offer the kind of features you will find on Casper’s Element.

Convenience

A good mattress at a reasonable price can quickly lose its luster if the buying process is a chore, shipping charges pump up the cost, or deliveries take weeks to arrive. Casper made a name for itself by revolutionizing the mattress buying process, so let’s find out if they still offer the kind of experience that customers crave. Things look good at first glance because Casper mattresses are Amazon Choice products, which means they are very popular, rarely returned, and shipped free.

Shipping

You will have to pay a small amount to ship a Casper mattress to Hawaii or Alaska, but residents in the lower 48 states get free UPS shipping. Consumers who order this mattress can expect delivery in five days or less, and they know when to expect delivery because they are sent tracking numbers. The Casper Element is compressed and wrapped in plastic before being placed in a box, which means gases can build up during storage and transit. The mattress will unfold by itself when it is removed from the box, and then it can take up to 72 hours to decompress completely.

During this time, many reviewers mention noticing a distinctive chemical odor. This is called off-gassing, and it is something that happens with all-foam mattresses that have been wrapped in plastic. The Casper Element is CertiPUR-US certified, which means you do not have to worry about the smell. To reduce off-gassing, you should put the mattress in a ventilated room and open a window if possible. You should also wait until the mattress has decompressed completely before you put any sheets or blankets on it.

Trial Period

A few mattress companies offer a sleep trial, but Casper was the first to give its customers 100 nights to evaluate their products. If you buy a Casper Element mattress, you will have 100 days from the date of delivery to evaluate it in your home. If you are not happy with the mattress, you can return it for a full refund with no questions asked. In the unlikely event that you do decide to return a Caper mattress, you won’t have to worry about getting it back inside the box it arrived in. That is because Casper will send someone to your home to pick the mattress up at no cost to you.

Casper gives its customers such a long sleep trial because getting used to a foam mattress can take a little while for people who are used to sleeping on an innerspring bed. Before you give up on a Casper Element, give it some time to win you over.

Warranty

Casper offers its customers peace of mind with a 10-year limited warranty, which is pretty standard for the industry. Some mattress warranties are shorter, but few are longer. This warranty protects consumers against defects caused by materials or manufacturing techniques, but it does not cover damage or problems caused by accidents, abuse, or unauthorized repairs. If you buy a Casper mattress that is marked “clearance” or “as is,” the warranty will only last for five years.

Casper only warranties mattresses that are used in accordance with its guidelines, which means the right kind of base should be used. You won’t have to worry about losing your 10-year warranty if you buy a Casper mattress as long as you put it on a platform, solid foundation, or a slatted foundation with slats no more than four inches apart. Casper Element mattresses are also flexible enough to use with adjustable frames that have solid supports.

What Are Consumers Saying About the Casper Element Mattress?

The Casper Element is an Amazon Choice product, which means its reviews must be pretty good. Most reviewers remark about how comfortable this mattress is to sleep on, but some people say it felt a little strange at first. This often happens when people who are used to innerspring mattresses sleep on a foam bed for the first time.

Many reviewers who said they suffered from morning stiffness or soreness reported feeling no discomfort after sleeping on a Casper Element mattress, and some mentioned that they were no longer being woken up by a tossing and turning partner. The most common complaint about the Casper Element was the smell that escaped when the mattress was unpacked. This odor is unavoidable with foam mattresses, but it doesn’t last very long.

Overall, the pros and cons of the Casper Element mattress seem to be:

If you still have questions about the Casper Element mattress after reading this review, the following links may provide you with the information you want:

Is the Casper Element Mattress for You?

If you are looking for a comfortable mattress that will last for years and won’t break the bank, the Casper Element could be an excellent choice. The advanced materials in the Element offer a good combination of comfort and support for all types of sleepers, and Casper’s 100-night sleep trial, free shipping, and no-hassle return policy check all the boxes.

That does not mean the Casper Element is right for you. You may not find the mattress provides enough support if you are a side sleeper and weigh more than 250 lbs., and not everyone can get used to the way a foam mattress feels. If you are on the fence about the Element, you may as well just take the plunge, as Casper has taken all of the risks out of buying this mattress.

Why Choose Casper?

Casper Sleep was not the first mattress manufacturer to sell its products online, but it did revolutionize the mattress-in-a-box market segment. When mattresses first started to appear on websites like Amazon, consumers were reluctant to buy them. This was partly because mattresses are quite expensive, but it was mainly because people felt uncomfortable buying a mattress that they had not tested. People also hesitated because they thought returning an unsatisfactory mattress would be a hassle.

Casper changed all of that by offering consumers a completely new buying experience as well as quality merchandise. The company offered to ship their products for free and take them back with no questions asked when their customers were unhappy, and they also offered people who bought their mattresses a 100-night in-home trial.

Offering free shipping and a 100-night sleep trial was a paradigm shift for the mattress industry, and it was not long before Casper was a market leader and other companies were copying its approach. Mattresses used to be sold almost exclusively in stores, but now about half of the mattresses purchased in the United States are bought online.

Casper now makes a wide range of mattresses as well as bed frames, bedding, pillows, and accessories, and they are all considered to be among the best products available for the price

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