Quick Summary
Pros
- Amazing value
- Superior comfort for side sleepers
- Made in the USA
Cons
- Not ideal for heavyweight back sleepers
- Mild to strong smell that lasts up to 7 days
- Some customers may sleep hot
It’s not every day that a mattress really wows me from a comfort perspective, but the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Memory Foam Mattress has done that and more. I truly love the sleeping experience on this mattress, and believe it is the best deal for a memory foam mattress on the market today – especially if you’re a side or stomach sleeper. Great deals come with some sacrifices though, so read on to see if this mattress is a good match for you!
Quick FAQ
The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Memory Foam Mattress is currently being offered at a 20% discount on Amazon for just under $200. This is an ABSOLUTE STEAL.
The mattress is vacuum-sealed in plastic and shipped in a standard box that is 4 ft x 1 ft x 1 ft and weighs around 60 pounds.
The top layer is 2 inches thick and features standard memory foam. It carries a density of 3 lb pcf and has an ILD rating of 6-8.
Comfort is highly subjective. However, given the thickness, density and ILD rating of the mattress, we at Zen Sleeping believe it has a plushy-soft firmness level that will be best suited for side and stomach sleepers of any weight, as well as back sleepers weighing under 220 pounds.
Not at all! The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch is absolutely perfect for side and stomach sleepers.
Yes, the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch comes with a knitted jacquard cover. Note that this is a knitted cover, not a zipped cover; the cover will not come off easily, so if you want to exchange covers it is best to just purchase another cover and place it over the knitted cover.
The majority of customers noticed a mild or strong odor after immediately unpacking the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch; the smell goes away completely within 7 days as long as you air it out correctly (refer to our TIP below).
The majority of customers felt either warm, neutral or cool; however, I still would not recommend this mattress if you are very heat sensitive. This is because 30% of the verified purchasers we interviewed felt hot on this mattress.
We have reviewed this mattress using the Zen Score System, which gives a score out of 100 based on 6 main factors: Unpacking (20pts), Smell (20 pts), Feel & Firmness (20 pts), Durability (20 pts), and Heat Regulation (20 pts) . To supplement my professional review, I have also consulted with over 300 verified purchasers of the mattress to give you very relevant statistics for all these categories.
Contents
Unpacking the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Memory Foam Mattress (16.5 / 20 pts)
The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Memory Foam Mattress is packed in a vacuum-sealed plastic bag which is placed in a standard shipping box that is approximately 4 ft tall x 1 ft wide x 1 ft deep. The total shipping weight of the mattress is 60 pounds, and the mattress itself weighs around 58 pounds.
TIP: We suggest that you place the vacuum-sealed bag containing the mattress in a well-ventilated room that receives a good amount of sunlight before opening. Then when you unpack the mattress, don’t place any sheets over it – just leave it alone in that room for a couple days. Doing this will ensure that any “new memory foam” smells will have completely vanished, and the mattress will have fully risen to its 8-inch thickness.
Where Was The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Made?
The mattress was manufactured in China by Zinus, Inc. We have reviewed other mattresses before from Zinus, so even though the mattresses are produced in China (something we are usually very against), we have done a lot of due diligence and vetting of the quality of these products to be confident enough of their safety and value. If you see a memory foam mattress made in China, make sure you have done your due diligence (such as that in the next point below) or else you run the risk of purchasing a sleeping product made with harmful chemicals like formaldehyde.
Is It Made From Safe Materials?
Yes, the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Memory Foam Mattress s is CertiPUR-US certified, which means their mattresses are :
– Made without ozone depletes
– Made without PBDE flame retardants
– Made without mercury, lead, and other heavy materials
– Made without phthalates regulated by Consumer Product Safety Commission
– Low VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) emissions for indoor air quality
Thickness & Density
The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Memory Foam Mattress is 8 inches thick and contains a total of 3 separate layers.
The first layer featured in the Sleep Master Ultima Memory Foam Mattress is 2 inches thick and contains standard memory foam. I normally recommend a thickness of at least 2 inches, so this is definitely on the lower end of the spectrum. A 2-inch thick layer could mean that it won’t provide enough support for some people (depending on weight and comfort preferences). However, since there are multiple layers in this mattress, the low thickness of the top layer isn’t as big of a deal. The memory foam in this layer carries a density of 3 lb pcf, which is the exact density I normally recommend for the majority of memory foam mattress purchasers.
The density of a memory foam mattress ensures that it will maintain good support and durability over its lifetime, as well as prevent unnecessary sagging, bowing, or other deformities. Look for a density of at least 2.5 – 4 lb pcf.
The middle layer of the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress is 2 inches thick and made from press relieving comfort foam (not memory foam). The middle layer is usually a cheaper way for a manufacturer to provide extra thickness to a memory foam mattress without actually having to use memory foam to do so. As a result, the mattress can tend to not provide as much comfort for heavier individuals or back sleepers, so I’m usually not a fan of 3+ layer memory foam mattresses unless the memory foam top layer is at least 2.5-3 inches thick.
The bottom layer is 4 inches thick and contains high density base support foam. Again, this is a bit low in my opinion, and means that this may not be the best mattress if you are a heavier individual (220 pounds or heavier).
Smell (14 / 20 pts)
The smell that comes with a newly unpacked memory foam mattress is almost completely random. Most of the time there is usually a general trend with how much a certain brand smells at first (either no smell, light, mild etc) but individual experiences can vary greatly. From our experience with the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress, there was a light odor upon first unpacking the mattress. So, the mattress was left in a well-ventilated room that receives sunlight for about 3 days, and by then the smell had vanished completely. 3 days is a pretty standard waiting time, but you may find it takes up to 7 days depending on how strong the odor is.
I left the mattress sit in a room for a total of 1 day before the smell completely disappeared. This is a pretty quick turnaround – you may find it takes between 1-3 days, but even up to 7 depending on how strong the smell is at first. To get a better idea of other customers’ experiences with the smell of the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress, we asked our 300 verified purchasers for their opinions. Here are our findings:
- No smell - 14%
- Light odor, gone in 3 days - 19%
- Mild odor, gone in 5 days - 47%
- Strong odor, gone in 7 days - 20%
In this case, our own experience deviated a bit from that of the majority of customers: 14% noticed no smell, 19% noticed a light odor that went away within 3 days, but then 47% noticed a mild odor that went away within 5 days. Lastly, 20% noticed a strong odor that took a week to go away, which is very high when you consider that less than 35% of our respondents noticed either a light smell or none at all. This means you will most likely experience a mild or strong odor with the Sleep Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress, so prepare accordingly if you decide to purchase it. The important thing to remember is the smell doesn’t last forever, so it’s more of an early nuisance than anything else.
Feel & Firmness (17 / 20 pts)
At a thickness of 2 inches and density of 3 lb pcf, the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress was an interesting mattress to test. While the density is at a perfect level, I thought the memory foam layer thickness would present a problem for more heavyweight sleepers, especially because the mattress is 8 inches thick in total. The heavier an individual is, the more thickness they need in the memory foam layer (and the other layers as well) to feel comfortable without sagging or sinking to the floor. Even with a density of 3 lb pcf which ensures proper support and firmness of the mattress, if you are heavy enough and lay down on a mattress that is not thick enough, you will not feel comfortable at all. Fortunately for the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress, this is not too much of an issue except for very heavyweight individuals. Read on to find out how the tests went!
ILD Rating
The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress has a memory foam top layer ILD rating of 6-8. This means the mattress should have a soft, plushy feel that is perfect for side and stomach sleepers.
Feel & Firmness Test
After sleeping on the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress for 7 nights and recording my experiences regarding feel and firmness, here are my findings:
When sleeping on your back, the mattress has a super soft to soft firmness. I felt like I was sinking a bit too much into the mattress, but overall I felt quite comfortable and didn’t wake up with any soreness issues. I weigh 200 pounds, so I would expect the sinking feeling to be more pronounced if you are heavier than me. In fact, I think this mattress should be perfect for back sleepers who like a soft, plush feel as long as they weigh less than 200 pounds.
Likewise, the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress feels soft when sleeping on your side or stomach. I’m not naturally a back sleeper, but I seriously loved sleeping on this mattress on my sides and stomach. In fact, I swear that on night 4 it took me 5 or so minutes to fall asleep on my side. I think that if you prefer to sleep in either of these two positions, you will have the perfect sleeping experience regardless of weight.
Our Verified Purchasers Weigh In
To get a better understanding of how other users of this mattress found the feel and firmness, I turned to our 300 verified purchasers; here are the results of our study.
- Felt perfect - 76%
- Felt too soft - 21%
- Felt too firm - 3%
76% of customers found the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch to be a perfect sleeping experience; 21% said it felt too soft, and 3% too firm. Among back sleepers, 65% found the mattress to be a perfect sleeping experience, 25% too soft, 10% too firm. Of those who found it too soft, the majority were individuals weighing over 200 pounds, which further reinforces what we said earlier about the “sinking feeling” that heavier back sleepers may experience.
The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch was a home-run with side and stomach sleepers; 94% of them thought it felt perfect, which is the highest percentage to date.
Is the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Too Soft For You?
When a mattress (or any sleeping surface) is too hard, there are some surefire methods to making it feel softer. However, there isn’t much that can be done when a mattress or sleeping surface is too soft. There aren’t really any solutions to firming up a mattress that is too soft; for that reason, I would recommend a completely different mattress altogether if you think the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch is (or could be) too soft for you. Check out the Classic Brands Cool Gel 12-inch Memory Foam Mattress on Amazon, which is firmer and more ideal for back sleepers (but not side/ stomach sleepers). You can see our own review of the Classic Brands Cool Gel 12-inch here.
Durability (19.5 / 20 pts)
A comprehensive look at durability has to include 4 main factors: memory foam density, garment construction, surface / edge abrasion, and stain release. For most of these factors, I will provide statistics gathered from my verified purchasers, who (on average) have owned the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress for 6 months – 1 year.
Density
This refers to the density of the memory foam top layer. As said previously, the density of the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam top layer is 3 lb pcf, which is quite good. A density between 2.5 – 4 lbs is sufficient enough to make sure the memory foam layer maintains its durability and firmness over the lifetime of the mattress. Mattresses that are not dense enough tend to sag just after a few months of use, so its important to purchase a mattress with a high-enough density.
Garment Construction
A memory foam mattress with strong garment construction will be more resistant to tears of the mattress cover or of the actual mattress at the seams, edges or body. For the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch, we turned to our verified purchasers and gathered the following data:
94% reported no tears of the mattress foam, and 99% reported no tears of the knitted jacquard cover.
Surface / Edge Abrasion
Surface and edge abrasions refer to the wearing away of a surface after repeatedly being used over and over. This can especially happen with mattress covers, which are the main points of contact with a sleeper and with the actual mattress. Over many nights of use, a low durability cover will typically show visible abrasions or wearing away of its surface, which is an indication that the product is not very durable. In our case, here is what the verified purchasers said:
99% reported no abrasions of the knitted jacquard cover.
Stain Release
Stain release is pretty self-explanatory; the more stain-resistant a mattress (and its cover) are, the more durable they are over time. Here is what we found out from our verified purchasers:
49 purchasers reported having noticed stains on the mattress at one point or another. Out of these people, 83% of them were able to have the stains removed completely. 10% were able to remove the stains somewhat (but not completely), and 7% were unable to remove the stains. Overall these are pretty good results – the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress uses a knitted jacquard cover which has been marketed as a durable cover, so it is good to see the claim has been proven in the real world.
Heat Regulation (15 / 20 pts)
Since a mattress’s ability to regulate heat depends on a lot of factors – some of which are dependent on the sleeper instead of the mattress – the best way to review for heat regulation is to depend on data gathered from a lot of users. We interviewed our 300 verified purchasers and asked them about how effective the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch is at heat regulation, and here were our results:
- Felt cool - 33%
- Felt neutral - 20%
- Felt warm - 17%
- Felt hot - 30%
Not too great, to be honest. 33% felt cool, 20% felt neutral, and 17% felt warm, which comes out to a majority of sleepers feeling “not hot”, which is OK. However, that still means that 30% of customers felt hot, which is quite a high percentage. For this reason, I will not recommend the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch memory foam mattress to people who are heat-sensitive or tend to “sleep hot”. However, if you typically have no issues with heat regulation, then you will probably have no issues with this mattress either.
Zen Score of the Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch
A memory foam mattress must pass a Zen Score of 70 in order to be recommended by us at Zen Sleeping. The Sleep Master Ultima 8-inch Memory Foam Mattress has been awarded a Zen Score of 82!!
Be sure to leave a comment below if you have any questions or concerns.
