Up until the IKEA Vagstranda, I have had very little control of my mattress. I slept on the same garage-sale-purchased twin mattress through senior year of high school, and slept on dorm-provided mattresses through college—the blue kinds wrapped in plastic that might as well be slabs of particleboard—and, finally, on a memory foam mattress of indiscernible origin that I bought secondhand when we were hastily being evacuated from campus for COVID.
When the opportunity arose to test a new mattress from the Swedish brand we all know and love for their long-lasting, Euro-designed basics, I jumped at it. IKEA’s Vagstranda mattress is a new release from the super store as of July 2024, featuring an 11-inch pocket spring mattress that is available in three iterations: firm, medium-firm, and plush. The mattress features two layers of pocket springs, distributed in a wave shape for maximum comfort, which support your body no matter what shape it’s in while you rest. The linen is 100% polypropylene, which is a mildew-resistant synthetic that’s easy to clean and resists stains, fading, and water absorption. As someone who not infrequently drinks her coffee in bed, this assurance is a selling point.
I’m not a fussy sleeper—I can sleep anywhere and forever. I am blessed with very little back pain and my sleeping position of choice is more or less diagonal, and I rotate between stomach and side sleeper throughout the night. With all that in mind, I chose the medium-firm queen mattress, fearful that the firm might be hard as rock.
The setup
The delivery was a piece of cake. A delivery team brought it up to my apartment and dropped it off in my room, still roll-packed. I took scissors to the wrapping and was relieved it expanded fairly slowly and didn’t explode à la Pillsbury. Getting the mattress onto my bed was a different story—the queen size towered over my five-foot-three stature, and I had to maneuver considerably to get this 110-pound mattress up onto my (IKEA) bed frame. For the installment, I’d recommend an, at least, kind-of ripped buddy. It takes about 72 hours to expand to its full size but can do so on your bed frame without any discomfort.
The specs
The mattress is made from a medley of recycled polyester, along with viscose, polypropylene, and polyurethane foam to create a mattress experience that considers plushness and durability. In my experience, there was no need for a mattress topper, with the high-quality construction of this mattress and its built-in comfort layer made from polyurethane foam. The mattress has reinforced edges too, so you’re not flopping out of bed or finding yourself thrown to one side or the other with the slightest movement.
The “medium-firm” is perhaps an overstatement; the mattress is fairly soft. Not disappear-into-it soft, but there’s a bit of a give. I’ve also included, on top of that, a down mattress topper from Parachute, which further creates the illusion of sleeping on a cloud. For those who like to sleep on a fairly unforgiving memory foam, medium-firm won’t cut it. I would recommend going up a notch to the firm level.
The verdict
Photo: Julia Harrison
The Vagstranda is built with seven zones of support to respond to your body however you’ve contorted it during the night. I’ve yet to find a position that feels unsupported or uncomfortable on this mattress. In fact, I’ve slept on this mattress for several months without any issue—no back pain for me and no visible wear, slumping or sagging for the mattress. It has retained its shape and comfort over time and, paired with a few Parachute down pillows and a Buffy cloud comforter, has been an absolute delight to return to every evening. If you’re torn between medium-firm and soft, the warranty is 10 years, and the return period is 90 days, or 365 if the mattress is unused and unopened.
