This cooling mattress has a secret, NASA-associated fill - is there magic in the mystery?

The TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress is in a league of its own, adapting to your body, relieving pressure points and providing a personalised sleep surface.

Described by some as the best cooling mattress they’ve ever tried, we were keen to get it tested. The mattress has been associated with NASA for its secret technology inside the foam. It's expensive and pretty firm, which makes it the perfect candidate for a thorough review.

Rachel, our tester, struggles with night sweats chronically and has opted not to go for HRT, so is looking for natural ways to tackle hot flushes when she is in "semi-combustible" states in the night (her words, not mine). She's tested the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress for its cooling capabilities as well as looking at whether it helps her shoulder pain and the disturbances that she gets from her partner at night. Here are the results.

TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress: Specifications

How we tested the Tempur Pro® Smartcool™ Mattress

This mattress was put to the test by Rachel Follett, a member of our tester network. Here's a little more about her.

Rachel Follett

Rachel finds herself "hotter than the sun every night", which makes her a brilliant tester for cooling mattresses. Not only does she struggle chronically with night sweats and hot flushes, she had breast cancer last year and is really honed-in on testing products that can help to keep her cool, prioritising the quality of sleep and comfort-levels in her body. She also struggles with chronic back and shoulder pain, so could put the mattress to the test on a number of fronts. On top of that, Rachel shares a bed with her husband, who moves around a lot in the night, meaning she needs a mattress that can keep her coo and still while he moves around.

What's inside the Tempur Pro® Smartcool™ Mattress?

To understand how your mattress works and why it does specific things, it's good to get an idea of what's going on inside your mattress. With Tempur, however, this isn't always easy.

Tempur are a high-tech, science-led brand, which means that they have some secrets under wraps, especially when it comes to their mattresses. What I can say is that this is essentially a memory foam mattress, which feels really different to a pocket-sprung mattress. You'll sink into it and feel it cushion around you more than a pocket-sprung mattress, which often means that you'll need some time to adjust to the mattress. With that in mind, comfort isn't always instant, especially with advanced foams such as with the Tempur Pro® Smartcool™ Mattress.

If you go onto the Tempur site, you'll see that this is listed as being made from "TEMPUR Advance Material" which fewer than 10 people in the world know how to make. This is known as viscoelastic foam, which is designed specifically for pressure relief, something that memory foam does really well.

Memory foam, thanks to its sink-in softness, tends to be quite hot to sleep on. Tempur combat this with a zip-off outer cover. This SmartCool layer is removable, which is great if you want to give it a wash at 40°C, but I think you'll want to keep this on the bed at all times when you're using it. The SmartCool layer is breathable, moisture wicking, and really cooling. We'll get into the details of how Rachel found it to sleep on, but the general consensus is that this is a rare and impressive extra feature to have on your bed.

Who would the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress suit?

There are aspects of the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress that tailor it to specific sleepers. First, the memory foam does a wonderful job of absorbing movement, making this a real winner for couples and light sleepers. Rachel found "very little, if any motion transfer" when her partner turned, shifted, or rolled over in bed.

Naturally, as a foam mattress, it's also brilliant for offering full-body support across different sleeping positions. You'll need to have a dose of patience for letting your sleep style adapt, but your body will thank you for it in the long run. That's why foam is often a choice for those who suffer from joint pains.

Whilst the memory foam is supportive for all sleep positions - front, side, and back - it's best if you're not looking for sink-in softness from day one. Rachel, our tester, sleeps in all different positions and she found it easy to get comfortable regardless of position. However, she did comment that it's a lot firmer than people might expect from a memory foam mattress.

Delivery and unboxing of the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress

Tempur charges £39 for delivery of the mattress, which is more than some brands, who will throw it in for free. However, in this instance, you do get your money's worth. Tempur promises quick delivery and turnaround, which Rachel found translates into real life. Her mattress arrived in ten days and she commented "I was reliably informed of when it was due and they called me half an hour before they arrived at the house. The delivery duo were lovely and super helpful and the mattress arrived in perfect condition." It won't come boxed or rolled, so there's no need to let this breathe or air before getting some shuteye.

Rachel tested this through Bensons For Beds who have a brilliant reputation for their service and delivery. They do offer a 40-night sleep guarantee, which means that if you can exchange the mattress for another if you don't like it. Rachel found "you haven't got quite as long to get used to it as other brands offer, so be mindful of this."

What's the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress like to sleep on?

Tempur mattresses feel initially firmer than other memory foams because they are designed to contour and support rather than to bounce. For Rachel's husband, the shock of such a firm mattress led him to call the bed a "slab". However, he quickly changed his mind.

Rachel found that "over time, the bed has more give, so I was able to find comfort without motion transfer between me and my husband." One of the key selling features of Tempur is the pressure relief that's offered up as the mattress aligns with your body, which Tempur credits to 'Dynamic Support Technology'. Rachel was tasked with testiing this because she has a history of chronic back and shoulder pain, so I was really pleased when she wrote to me to explain that her pain was easing after just a few days. Once she had weeks of sleeping on the Tempur behind her, the back pain was easing almost entirely. Overall, the slow-response technology foam means that you'll have a lot less tossing and turning in the long run. It just takes time to kick in.

Another reason Rachel was keen to test the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress was for its cooling technology. "I was instantly interested in the SMartCool cover," she says "it draws on science and technology to supposedly create the perfect ergonomic platform." It's one that often gets given to women who struggle with night sweats, not as an ice-cold surface, but for a way to manage how much you sweat in the night.

After months of sleeping on the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress, Rachel was pleased. "At first, I wasn't blown away by the cooling effects, but the bed 'holds' you, which gives it the cooling edge. And, when you're glowing in the middle of the night, the thought of being able to wash part of your mattress suddenly becomes very appealing."

No mattress is ever going to cure night sweats, but a breathable, washable extra cover is a really handy element to have working on your mattress. If you're a hot sleeper, it's a good idea to pair your mattress with breathable, cooling bed sheets and a breathable duvet.

Is the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress good value for money?

Whilst the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress is more expensive than some premium hybrid mattresses and pocket-sprung models, it's important to consider Tempur as a brand. They are known for impressing longevity, quality testing, and unique technology. When you consider that this is the mattress you'll be sleeping on for almost a decade (Tempur actually guarantees it for a full year), those kind of touches really come into their own.

After sleeping on it for months, Rachel has her own take. "When you're spending over £2k on a mattress, you want it to do more, and I think this mattress delivers more," she says. "If you had asked me whether this was good value in the first week, I wouldn't have been sure, but after two or three weeks, my answer has changed."

The only alternative that I'd offer up is a more natural mattress. Tempur aren't as transparent as brands such as Woolroom, Button & Sprung, and Naturalmat. These brands use all-natural wools, cottons, and fibres, so you know exactly what you're sleeping on. My favourite natural mattress, which actually sits around this price point, is the Button & Sprung Southdown Mattress. It's a lot like this in terms of minimising motion transfer, maximising breathability, and offering comfort. It's also got brilliant environmental credentials, which you can read more about over on our full review of it.

Should you buy the TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress?

The TEMPUR Pro® SmartCool™ Mattress is perfect for sleepers who want a deeply supportive, motion minimising mattress, especially if you've got the endurance to sleep through an adaptation period of around a week.

It's not one for those who need instant plushness and all-natural, transparent materials, but there's definitely magic in Tempur's mystery. However, as anyone who's an expert in mattresses will tell you, the long term comfort and support on offer here matter more than first impressions.

How we test

At woman&home, how we test cooling mattresses is a little different to some of our other buying guides. We've been working on something called 'The Tester Network', which is a special place we reach out to you. I asked for readers who were suffering from night sweats, because nobody else knows quite what they're like until you've battled through them. These ladies are the best people to talk about cooling mattresses.

When I had volunteers (most of whom were experts at night sweating and writing), I asked them about their sleep needs. Jen described her back pains and sleep needs, and I matched her up with this mattress. Then, I sent her a list of questions to consider while she was sleeping and then gave her a full month to sleep on the bed and then to feedback on it.

Experts generally recommend two weeks, but I was keen to give it a full month to get through a cycle of hormones and general craziness. Jen will continue to test this mattress for us and will keep you updates on how her sleep progresses. She's not being paid or bribed, this is an independent review, so you know everything she is saying is authentic and true.