Nolah Evolution 15" mattress review 2023
Nolah Evolution 15 Mattress Review in brief
- Luxury 15" mattress with customizable firmness
- Excellent spinal support (ideal for back sleepers)
- Differing levels of cooling
Nolah is a well-known sleep technology company in the US which crafts premium hybrid bed-in-a-box offerings at more affordable prices. Launched in 2015, the brand has carved out a niche for itself, using the latest sleep technology to design its superior foam formulations, all backed by a lifetime warranty. But how does the Nolah Evolution 15" mattress fare?
Extremely well, we think. Thanks to its thick seven-layer construction, those with bad backs and achy joints can expect a good night’s sleep thanks to its firm-but-supportive layers that slightly contour to your body as you dream the night away. The best way to describe a good night’s sleep in the Nolah Evolution 15” mattress? It feels like you're floating. But this sturdy hybrid bed won’t suit everybody.
Best for: Back sleepers and some front
Type: Mattress in a box
Firmness: Firm (8/10)
Materials: foam and innersprings
Depth: 15 inches
Weight: 70-139 lbs
Sizes: Twin, twin XL, full, queen, king, Cal king
We tested out the Nolah Evolution 15” mattress in ‘firm’ — which is the brand’s firmest mattress offering, measuring in at 8 on the firmness scale. It’s great for those who sleep on their back and it could suit some front sleepers. However side sleepers might find this mattress too firm for their shoulder, hip and knee joints. But one of the best things about this mattress is its customizable firmness options as it’s available in Plush (4-5), Luxury Firm (6-7) and Firm (8).
Motion isolation-wise, we found the Nolah Evolution 15” mattress to absorb movement really well, so it would be perfect for couples. However, despite its cooling properties, we found the mattress ran hot a few times.
Like many of the best mattresses, Nolah offers a sleep trial for all its beds. While you won’t get a full year to try this out, you will get 120 nights to decide whether it’s for you. If you change your mind, you can return the mattress and get a refund, although $99 will be deducted for shipping.
Nolah Evolution 15” mattress review: Price and deals
- The brand’s best-selling mattress
- Mid-range price, although deals with up to $700 off
- Comes with two free Nolah Squishy Pillows worth just under $200
This mattress is the brand’s most luxury bed-in-a-box offering. The usual RRP for a queen size costs $2,299, you’ll pay $2,499 for a king and part with $1,599 for a twin bed. This makes it a mid-range priced mattress, although it does come with many luxury features.
Despite the Nolah Evolution 15” being the brand’s most expensive mattress, it’s also its number one best-selling bed. This could be because of its quality-engrained seven-layer construction, its customizable firmness and the fact the brand offers many seasonal promotions. For some time, Nolah has cut around $500 to $700 off the RRP. And right now, if you purchase the Nolah Evolution 15" you’ll get a pair of its Squishy Pillows for free.
For this price, you can enjoy a 120-night sleep trial, along with a limited lifetime warranty. Or, if you remove the sleep night trial at the checkout, you’ll get $100 off. If you decide to opt for the trial and return the bed before the 120 nights, you’ll get $99 deducted for transportation costs.
Check out the pricing for the Nolah Evolution 15":
- Twin: $1,599 (usually sold at $999)
- Twin XL: $1,799 (usually sold at $1,199)
- Full: $2,099 (usually sold at $1,399)
- Queen: $2,299 (usually sold at $1,599)
- King: $2,499 (usually sold at $1,799)
- Cal King: $2,499 (usually sold at $1,799)
During sales, this pricing makes a Queen around $700 more expensive than a similar mattress, such as the DreamCloud Luxury Hybrid. It also makes it $200 cheaper than the Saatva Classic, which was awarded the best hybrid mattress overall in our guide. So do keep an eye on the best mattress sales to make sure you pick up this bed for the most affordable price.
See the Nolah Evolution 15" mattress from $999 at Nolah
Cooling? Yes. Pressure relieving? Definitely. Supportive? For sure. The innovative hybrid bed-in-a-box keeps your spine aligned during the night thanks to its firm seven-layer construction. It’s ideal for couples and for back sleepers. If you buy, you’ll get 120 nights to test it out, plus a limited lifetime warranty. Or, if you remove the trial you’ll get $100 off. View Deal
Nolah Evolution 15" mattress review: Materials
Just like many of the beds listed in our best hybrid mattress guide, the Nolah Evolution 15" mattress comes with a 7-layer construction, with a mix of foam and innersprings throughout. The first layer is an organic cotton and ArcticTex Cover — which promises to keep you dry while protecting the mattress from damage. It then has a cooling foam layer and a heat escape gusset. Its chunky third layer — called the AirFoamICE — contains graphite-infused foam to accelerate cooling even more so while you sleep, and after that comes its supportive and responsive foam offerings, which make up the fourth and fifth layers. Its sixth layer helps to target motion isolation, thanks to its sturdy 8” support coils, and finally there's a recycled plant fiber foundation layer, which further strengthens its support.
Nolah Evolution 15" mattress review: Firmness and comfort
- A firm (8) mattress
- The seven-layer design comes with pressure relief and spinal support
- It slightly contours to you body without feeling like you are being swallowed
From the very first moment you sit on the Nolah Evolution 15" mattress, your body feels comforted and cradled. We tested out Nolah’s firmest mattress so expected to be greeted by something sturdy, but once you lay down on the bed, comfort, firmness and support combine. We found the seven-layer construction to align the spine, by allowing our pelvis to ease into the mattress, while easing tension through any achy joints.
We know firmness and comfort levels are subjective and can vary from person to person, and differing weights, heights and sleep preferences all have some part to play in this. But our main tester (who is around 5ft5, weighs 132 lbs and tends to switch between sleeping on her back, stomach and side) found the Nolah Evolution 15" mattress to offer unparalleled support when it came to spinal alignment. We also got a second tester (who is 6ft, around 175 lbs in weight and prefers to sleep on his back and side) to try out the mattress. This tester described the mattress as having some sink to it, without it feeling like he was being swallowed whole. However, some side sleepers may find that this mattress doesn’t work for their preferred sleep style, as it could be classed as too firm. Although, as we mentioned, this could depend on your weight and height.
Nolah Evolution 15" mattress review: Performance
- Motion transfer was first class, so ideal for couples or restless sleepers
- Edge support was up to scratch even when sitting on the border
- Fluctuating levels of cooling
We slept on the Nolah Evolution 15" for three weeks to test all major areas of performance, from the pressure relief to motion isolation and edge support to cooling.
We also ranked the Nolah Evolution 15" on its set up, along with its durability. We know a mattress can be a costly purchase, so the durability of a bed-in-a-box is an area we’ve looked into too. Keep reading to find out what we thought.
Setup
Score: 3 out of 5
We received a Queen (double) sized mattress-in-a-box and it weighed 115 lbs. Two people were needed to get the mattress upstairs and into the correct room. Once the box was opened, the mattress was rolled and tightly sealed in plastic packaging. We’ve tested a fair few mattresses and found the levels of packaging to be in line with most other bed-in-a-boxes. However, the hardest part about setting up this mattress was getting it out of its inner wrapping.
Unlike many of the best hybrid mattresses, the Nolah Evolution 15" didn’t come with a handy safe blade to help rid it from its tight air-sealed packaging. So instead, we did so extra carefully with scissors. The only problem was, once our tester started cutting open the plastic packaging, the mattress rapidly started expanding, making it even trickier to extract.
Once all the packaging was carefully cut, the mattress inflated in seconds — it looked almost ready to sleep on. However, Nolah recommends leaving the mattress for a couple of hours to help initial gassing disappear. All in all, the setup took around 30 minutes. But if you're short on time, you could opt for the brand’s ‘white glove service’, which means experts will remove your old mattress and set up your new one.
Off-gassing
Score: 3.5 out of 5
As soon as you remove the outer wrapping and cut into the inner wrapping, you can hear the mattress expanding and a strong off-gassing smell starts to seep out. We think off-gassing can be one of the downsides to a mattress-in-a-box, especially if they do come with a strong aroma. Even though the foam used in the Nolah mattress is CertiPUR-US-certified (which means its low in volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions which are known for their harmless, but otherwise unpleasant scent), we found the off-gassing smell took a few hours to dissipate. So do be sure to crack open a window and let your mattress breathe before adding your mattress protector and sheets.
Pressure relief
Score: 5 out of 5
One of the best things about the Nolah Evolution 15" mattress is the fact you can customize the firmness rating, from Plush (4-5), Luxury Firm (6-7) to Firm (8). We tried out the latter. To show how excellent this mattress is at cradling your body while providing top-tier support, we placed an 8 kg weight in the middle of the bed to test for sinkage. The results show the mattress sank by half an inch, showing it supported the weight with minimal give.
Weights aside, when testing the mattress first hand, we found that this bed-in-a-box offerered total pressure relief. That’s all thanks to the seven layers and years worth of sleep science Nolah puts into its mattresses. Much like the Saatva Classic mattress, the Nolah dishes out consistent pressure relief when you’re lying down. And it comes as no surprise. The mattress has billions of microscopic air bubbles in its Nolah AirFoamIce layer, along with the 8” coil support system, while its foundation layer injects even more stability into the mattress.
It can be uncomfortable when certain body parts dig into the sleep surface. But even when twisting from our fronts, to our backs and even our side, the Nolah mattress seemed to evenly disperse body weight and prevent sore spots.
Motion transfer
Score: 5 out of 5
Motion transfer is particularly important for those who sleep with a partner, especially if one of them tends to toss and turn in the night, or you have different sleeping schedules. Too much motion in the bed can wake the other person up.
To test out the motion isolation, we placed a wine glass on the bed and dropped an 8 kg weight at 25 inches, 10 inches and 4 inches away from it. This helped to reenact a partner tossing and turning, someone getting out of bed and someone shooting out of bed at some force.
When the weight was dropped at both 25 and 10 inches away, the wine glass didn’t tipple or move. While when it was dropped from 4 inches away, it did move and eventually topple. Despite this, we would still say the Nolah Evolution 15” is the perfect match for restless sleepers.
Temperature regulation
Score: 3.5 out of 5
Those who are hot sleepers will know that being too warm to sleep can be a major sleep disruptor. Which is why many hybrid mattresses focus on creating a bed that disperses the heat as you sleep.
And the Nolah Evolution 15”, which has three different layers that work towards cooling, is no different. It comes with a high thermal conductivity euro topper and organic cotton ArticTex cover which draws heat away from the body. Its AirFoamIce layer is infused with cooling graphite. While its breathable border gusset helps to rid excess heat. So it’s fair to say it runs cool to the touch.
But despite sleeping in cotton pyjamas, and using a 12 tog duvet with a cotton sheet, we found the Nolah mattress to run hot a few times. So while we’re confident this mattress lives up to its pain relieving and joint supporting qualities, we wouldn’t say it makes it in our guide to the best cooling mattress. If you’re looking for a firm bed that can keep its cool, check out the Eight Sleep Pod Pro.
Edge support
Score: 4 out of 5
If you sleep on the edge of a bed, you’ll know how important edge support is. Plus, mattresses don’t come cheap. So for the high price tag, you’ll want to be able to use 100% of the bed’s surface, rather than just the middle. Great edge support also enables the durability of a mattress by preventing premature sagging around the perimeters.
Nolah’s edge support was more than adequate, giving you the space to sleep on the full perimeter of the mattress without feeling like you’re going to roll off. This was even the case when sitting on the edge of it. This, however, may differ depending on how firm the mattress is though.
To see the edge support with our own eyes, we placed a 8kg kettlebell on the edge of the bed. Much like when we placed the weight in the middle of the bed, the mattress only sunk by 0.5inches. We think this Nolah mattress is therefore a great bed in a box for edge support, just like the Saatva Classic Mattress.
Durability
Score: 5 out of 5
From the first night to the last night we slept on this mattress, the Nolah Evolution 15” shows no sign of aging. Of course, the best mattress protectors can ensure you prolong the lifespan of your mattress, by keeping it clean. But the Nolah mattress has its top layer, the Organic Cotton + ArcticTex Cover, working with you on this front, too. Although the durability of a mattress can be hard to test for in such a short period of time, we discovered that night after night, the quality of this hybrid bed-in-a-box stepped up to the plate.
Plus, Nolah offers a lifetime warranty on each mattress. So no matter how long you own your mattress for, you’re covered.
Nolah Evolution 15” mattress review: User reviews
One of the best ways to see how a mattress fares, is to head straight to the user reviews. The bed is only sold on Nolah’s website where the mattress scores a brilliant average of 4.9 stars out of 5, with pages and pages worth of reviews.
One particular highlight which kept on coming up amongst users was how good the bed-in-a-box was for joint pains and pressure. Many users said that within a week of using, the mattress seemed to ease pains and discomfort, particularly in the pelvic region and back. While some likened the mattress to sleeping on a cloud of comfort thanks to its supportive but cradled feel.
As to be expected on a brand page, users didn’t highlight many downsides to the mattress. However, a handful claimed they would like this mattress to be a couple of inches thinner, so it would fit their ‘regular’ mattress sheets edge to edge.
Should you buy the Nolah Evolution 15” mattress?
There’s a lot to love about the Nolah Evolution 15” mattress and at points, it left us wondering what exactly were the downsides. If you suffer with joint pains, a bad back or poor spinal alignment, the Nolah Evolution 15” mattress could help you sleep easily. We thought it was second-to-none at offering the correct spinal alignment along with cradling your body, without feeling like you were being swallowed by its plush and comfortable layers.
Plus, if you have a sleep partner, we found the mattress to absorb all motions, while providing a comfortable base to sleep on. And the edge support was more than adequate, giving you the space to sleep on the full perimeter of the mattress without feeling like you’re going to roll off. This was even the case when sitting on the edge of it.
While Nolah claims this mattress to be cooling, we found it to run a little hot a few times. But that’s not to say we didn’t have many peaceful night’s sleep. We’d also highlight that some side sleepers may find this mattress a little too firm. So do make use of Nolah’s offering of firmness levels. Smaller sleepers – along with most side sleepers – may want to consider the plusher version of this mattress, while heavy sleepers might benefit from the firmest option.
If you’re still undecided on this mattress, do consider looking at the Saatva Classic Mattress as both beds have many similarities. It comes with great pressure relief from memory foam layers, a 14.5” frame and three levels of firmness to choose from. But you could also consider the DreamCloud Hybrid Mattress which offers stable motion transfer, excellent pressure relief and cooling gel foam ideal for hot sleepers.
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