Tom's Guide sleep experts reviewed the Helix Midnight mattress in 2024, providing an overview of the mattress features and an analysis of the sleepers who will most enjoy the Midnight. You can find the full mattress review here or continue scrolling to read the highlights: 

Tom's Guide Verdict 

The Helix Midnight is a mid-range hybrid mattress that delivers dreamy comfort and excellent support. Side sleepers in particular will appreciate the deep pressure relief and comfortable memory foam cradling, although heavier bodies and stomach sleepers may want to pick something firmer. Strong motion isolation also makes it a good choice for light sleepers who share a bed.

Helix Midnight Overview 

In our Helix Midnight mattress review, we take a closer look at a hybrid that's rated among the best mattresses for side sleepers. We slept on a king-size Helix Midnight for three weeks and also had a chance to visit the showroom of parent company 3Z Brands to run a series of tests. Here, we'll be digging into who this bed would (and wouldn't suit), and how it compares to the rest of today's best mattresses from Brooklyn Bedding, Birch, Bear, Nolah, and Leesa. If you only have time for the highlights, here's the two-minute review...

Helix's USP is that it makes mattresses for 'every body', which means the range includes something for every sleep style and firmness preference combination. The Midnight is the Helix's medium mattress for side sleepers, and alongside the Midnight Luxe – the upgraded version of this model – it's the brand's bestseller.

The Midnight is a hybrid of memory foam, other foams, and coils. Helix rates it a 5-6 out of 10 in terms of firmness, but we judged it to be a little firmer than that – maybe a 6.5 or 7. The upper levels of memory foam provide excellent pressure relief and cushioning that's particularly welcome in a side-sleeping position, and overall the feel is softly supportive. 

Our testers also slept comfortably on their backs, with pressure points well-cushioned and cradled by the memory foam. However, we think stomach sleepers, as well as heavier people, should approach with caution as a firm mattress might work better for you.

We found the Midnight delivered excellent motion isolation, making it a good choice for restless sleepers or anyone who shares a bed with a wriggler. Temperature regulation is also good, but if you want it to be better, you can upgrade to the GlacioTex cover (this wasn't on our review model, but it's a reliably effective cooling fabric, and we have tested it on other beds). 

Our only minor complaint was with the edge support, which was acceptable but not amazing. This might be an issue if you want to be able to sit confidently on the edge of the bed or use it to push off to get up in the mornings. 

How much does the Helix Midnight mattress cost? Well, you can ignore the MSRP, as there's always a Helix mattress sale or deal running that takes this bed into the mid-range bracket, and puts it in line with most of its main competitors.

Helix Midnight Review: Design

The 11.5-inch Helix Midnight mattress is made up of five layers plus a cover. On top you'll find a slightly stretchy, soft-touch cover. It's designed to be breathable, but there's also the option to upgrade to a GlacioTex Cooling cover if you're a very hot sleeper.

Inside, the upper layer is made from Helix's proprietary 'Memory Plus Foam', designed to relieve pressure, provide soft sinkage and deep body contouring, while cradling pressure points along your shoulders, hips and lower back. Beneath that are two transitional layers of responsive, high-grade polyfoam. These define the 'medium' sleep feel, as well as stopping the memory foam from getting too 'sinky'.

All foams are CertiPUR-US certified, which means they meet certain manufacturing, health and environmental standards. All mattresses from reliable brands will have this certification, but it's worth double-checking for. 

Beneath these foams, you'll find a layer of coils. These are individually pocketed to help limit motion transfer, and a firmer coil is used along the sides to bolster this mattress' edge support. The coils boost breathability too, by creating space for air to circulate (even the best memory foam mattresses can struggle with trapping heat on occasion). Finally, a solid base layer lends durability and stability.

There are two upgrade options within the Midnight line. The 'better' version is the Midnight Luxe. The main differences are that this one adds a pillow top, making it a couple of inches taller, and the springs are reinforced in the central third, for extra support in the lumbar region.

The 'best' version is the Midnight Elite – added to the range in spring 2023. On this lofty 16-inch tall model, the GlacioTex cooling cover is included as standard (this is an extra on the other two models), and there are two little mini-coil layers sandwiched between the foams at the top.

Helix Midnight Review: Support 

Helix classifies the Midnight as between 5 and 6 out of 10 on the firmness scale, and describes it as "pretty much smack in the middle – not too soft, not too firm". We think it's slightly firmer than that. Our main reviewer judged it to be around a 6.5. To get an objective view of softness, we also placed a 15lb weight in the centre of the mattress. It sank in 2 inches, which we class as a medium-firm.

However, sometimes a score can be misleading, and of course your exact experience will vary depending on your height, weight and other personal factors. We had a panel of testers try it out to see what it's actually like to lie on; we found the Helix Midnight felt soft and cushy to press on, but firmer and surprisingly supportive when laid down.

The upper memory foam layer delivers some of that slow-moving, body-hugging feel, which is especially welcome when lying on your side. The mattress molds around your hips and shoulders in a dreamily comfortable and soothing way, providing deep pressure relief. Most of our reviewers found it comfy in all positions, but some stomach or back sleepers might find it a little too soft. Indeed, one tester found the Midnight wasn't quite as supportive as they’d typically prefer.

If you don't like the sink-in feel of memory foam, consider switching to one of Helix's models aimed at back or stomach sleepers. These have the same design but swap the memory foam layer for an alternative foam that's bouncier and more responsive. Note that the Dusk, which is officially the same softness rating as the Midnight, is actually slightly firmer in reality.

Helix Midnight Review: Customer Reviews

We highly rate the Helix Midnight mattress, but mattresses are subjective – you’ll have a different experience depending on your height, weight, sleeping style and a range of other factors. So to build a more rounded picture of what this mattress is like to sleep on, we researched hundreds of user reviews online to see what other people say about the Helix Midnight. 

On the Helix website, the Midnight mattress has an average of 4.5 out of 5 stars from over 6,600 user reviews (January 2024) – with over 4,600 five-star reviews. There's no way to filter according to a reviewer's sleep style or body type, but you can input search terms that'll help you find what you need.

Satisfied customers commented that the Helix Midnight mattress alleviated their back and shoulder pains, and praised the bed's cushioned pressure points. Side sleepers were also well-represented among the 5-star reviews, along with back and combination sleepers who were looking for something that could adapt to their movements. We haven't been able to easily find any feedback from long-term users, although those who have owned their Helix Midnight for several months claim it's quite durable.