Tom's Guide Verdict
Specially designed for college students, the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper provides a comfort-boosting hygienic layer to dorm beds. It comes in two heights for customised support. We tested the 3" model in a full-size and found it pleasantly plush for side sleeping. Although its cooling cover is refreshing to the touch, it may not be enough for chronically hot sleepers. It may be outside some student budgets — a twin XL is from $319 at MSRP — but we believe it's worth the investment if you can afford it. Plus, with a 5-year warranty, this mattress topper should easily last through your academic years.
Pros
- +
Two heights to choose from
- +
Removable, washable cover
- +
Thick comfort layer for side sleeping
- +
Anchor straps and non-slip base
Cons
- -
Not the most cooling
- -
Too soft for some sleepers
- -
Outside of a lot of student budgets
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Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Mattress Topper: Review in brief
Sleepyhead designs mattress toppers with college students in mind. Its Cooling Copper Topper is made from copper-infused memory foam and features a breathable cooling cover, but does it deliver the refreshing, hygienic comfort and support it promises?
To find out, we slept on a full-size Sleepyhead 3" Cooling Copper Topper for three weeks, evaluating its performance from set-up to the final night.
Mattress toppers are a great, cost-effective way to boost your current dorm bed if you can't get one of this year's best mattresses. Our detailed Sleepyhead 3" Cooling Copper Topper review is below but if you only need the bullet points, here's our review in brief...
Type: Memory foam
Depth: 2" or 3" (we tested a 3" model)
Cover: Polyester
Corner straps: Yes
Trial period: 60 nights
Warranty: 5-year limited warranty
Starting MSRP: from $319 at Sleepyhead
The Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper sits square in the middle of the brand's lineup. It's specially designed to give a hypoallergenic comfort boost to dorm beds, which don't tend to be the greatest mattresses for support or cleanliness. Owing to its copper technology and breathable cover, it's also billed as cooling and antimicrobial.
This topper comes in either a 2" or 3" depth. Aside from the typical dorm-room twin sizes, the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper also comes in full, queen, and king sizes for students and non-students who enjoy a bigger bed surface.
We placed a 3" Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper on a medium-firm latex hybrid mattress with breathable bedding. The mattress was quite firm and didn't have a lot of hug, so we were eager to see whether the copper-infused memory foam would soften it to our liking.
Our lead tester, a lightweight side and back sleeper, was pleased to find that the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper provided the pressure relief that her latex mattress lacked. While she felt it offered a slight body-molding hug when side sleeping, she didn't feel as supported when sleeping on her back.
We were also impressed with the design. It's fiberglass-free and features a removable, washable cover for cleaner sleep. While the mattress topper didn't keep us as cool as some of the more specialist cooling toppers on the market, it was still breathable and cool-to-the touch. The anchor straps helped keep the topper in place during restless nights.
Price-wise, there are definitely cheaper mattress toppers out there, and the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper may be out of a lot of student budgets. At MSRP, a twin XL is now $319 in a 2" model and $419 in a 3" model. By comparison, the best cheap mattresses regularly sell for around $200-$299 for a twin XL in the same size.
Still, the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper is good quality, even if the price is above average for the best memory foam mattress toppers. Students can also get a 15%-20% discount, and all customers receive a 60-night sleep trial, free shipping, and a "good-til-graduation" 5-year warranty.
That's our Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper review in brief. For more information on pricing, materials, and overall performance, keep scrolling to find out how it compares to the contenders in our best mattress toppers guide.
Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Mattress Topper: Price & deals
- At MSRP, a 3" twin XL is $419 while a 2" twin XL is $319
- Students get 15%-20% off; Amazon usually has discounts, too
- Includes free shipping, 5-year warranty, and 60-night trial
The Cooling Copper Topper is one of three Sleepyhead mattress toppers, and it's the middle child when it comes to price. The starting price of the Copper Topper is $319 for a standard twin. This is actually a $20 increase from when we first got our hands on this topper.
Here's the official pricing for the Sleepyhead 3" Cooling Copper Topper in all sizes:
- Twin MSRP: $399
- Twin XL MSRP: $419 (or $319 for a 2")
- Full MSRP: $469
- Full XL MSRP: $489
- Queen MSRP: $519
- King MSRP: $569
At $519 for a queen-size bed, the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper is not cheap, even for a cooling mattress topper. For instance, the average price of a queen cooling topper is $375, while a queen memory foam topper is typically $299.
As for deals, students can get up to 20% off with a student discount upon verifying their status. You can often find discounts at Amazon, where a 3" twin XL topper is $339 after an on-page coupon. However, you may not get the same warranty, student discount, and sleep trial that you'd get when you buy directly from the brand.
Do we appreciate that this is out of a lot of student budgets? Of course, but we also feel the mattress topper is a worthy investment that's built to last throughout the academic years.
This durability is reflected in Sleepyhead's "good-til-graduation" 5-year warranty. Plus, you get 60 nights to try it out before deciding if you would like to return or keep it.
These extras are above average for a mattress topper. When carrying out our Tempur-Adapt Mattress Topper review we were disappointed to find the premium bed topper has no sleep trial. Likewise, the Saatva Graphite Memory Foam Mattress Topper has a relatively short 1-year warranty.
Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Mattress Topper: Design & Materials
- Fiberglass-free design made from copper-infused memory foam
- Removable, washable polyester cover features anchor straps
- 3" in height, but a twin XL is also available in a 2" depth
The Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper has a fairly simple design featuring a slab of memory foam encased in a polyester cover. The foam is infused with copper, which has natural cooling and antimicrobial properties. It's resistant to dust mites and odors, too.
Meanwhile, the "CoolTech Classic" cooling fabric cover features a zip so you can remove it and put it in the washing machine for an easy clean. It also comes with adjustable corner straps and an anti-slip base with raised dots to keep the topper in place.
The combo of an easy-clean cover, fiberglass-free design, and antimicrobial, mite-resistant copper foam makes this topper ideal for students who want to make their dorm bed more hygienic.
Cooling Copper Topper comes in a 3" height for all six of its sizes, but you can get a twin XL in a 2" height for a slight comfort boost.
Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Mattress Topper: Performance
- When unboxed, it expanded immediately
- Provides a thick comfort layer for hard or thin beds
- Breathable and contouring, but not super cooling or plush
We slept on a full-size 3" Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper for three weeks, testing it per our mattress methodology: support and comfort, temperature regulation, and ease of set-up.
Set-up
The Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper is delivered compressed and rolled up in a cardboard box with a nice design. Thanks to its smaller and lighter build, it was much easier to set up than the best mattresses in a box.
However, we noticed that the box didn't contain any set-up instructions. As we've unboxed plenty of mattresses and toppers in our time, we knew the drill of setting up a mattress topper. But if you're a student and this is the first mattress topper you've unboxed, you may find it tricky to set up without instructions.
Once we took the topper out of its box and tore off the plastic wrapping (no need for scissors), it began to expand immediately. Sleepyhead says the Cooling Copper Topper is ready to sleep on once opened, and it can take as little as 30 minutes to expand to its full size. This made the reviewing process a lot quicker from the start, as other foam mattress toppers we've tested have taken 24 hours to expand.
As for off-gassing, we didn't detect anything at first. However, it did become detectable when we re-entered the room in which it was unboxed.
Score: 4 out of 5
Comfort and support
Our main tester is a side and back sleeper who weighs under 130lbs, so she prefers a softer sleep surface. (Sleepyhead recommends the 3" model for those who like a medium-soft bed.) Our lead tester was eager to see if it was soft enough for lightweight sleepers.
On the first night, she did feel a slight hug when sleeping on her side, but it was a little firmer than she expected. However, after the first week, she started to appreciate the pressure relief it provided to her hips and knees, key pressure points when side sleeping.
Lying on her back, she did feel her hips begin to dip into the foam surface. This can be a recipe for lower back pain, so we wouldn't recommend the 3" model for strict back or stomach sleepers.
Be that as it may, Sleepyhead does say that the 2" model provides a firmer surface, but this shorter height is only available in a twin XL.
Overall, our tester confidently recommends the Sleepyhead 3" Cooling Copper Topper for most side sleepers, particularly those looking to add body-contouring comfort and support to hard beds.
Score: 4.5 out of 5
Temperature regulation
The Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper is designed to draw excess body heat away and enhance airflow for a cooler sleep. The topper's temperature-regulating features consist of naturally cooling copper and a breathable polyester CoolTech Classic cover.
When we first unboxed the topper, we were struck by how cool to the touch it felt. We used breathable cotton bedding when sleeping on the topper and were pleased with how cool and comfortable it kept us on most nights.
Although she's not typically a hot sleeper, there were some nights when our lead tester felt like the memory foam trapped heat and made her feel warmer than usual. However, these nights were sporadic.
Overall, if you want a sleep surface that keeps you comfortable throughout the night, the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper should do the job.
However, if you tend to run hot at night or are attending a college in a Sun Belt state, you may want to check out our Molecule CopperWELL Mattress Topper review.
Score: 4 out of 5
Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Mattress Topper: User reviews
In addition to our own experience with the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper mattress topper, we also analyzed verified customer reviews from Sleepyhead.
At Sleepyhead, its Cooling Copper Topper has a 4.9-star rating out of 5 from over 800 customers. The reviews on Sleepyhead let you know which size the verified customer bought, and many users purchased the 2" twin XL
Most of the reviews come from college students (or their parents) who say their sleep has improved after enduring uncomfortable dorm beds.
Should you buy the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Mattress Topper?
Side sleepers are in good hands with the Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper, especially if they want to add body-molding comfort and thick support to uncomfortably hard or thin dorm beds.
There are a lot of features here that will appeal to college students who want to sleep better in their dorm rooms. It provides a hygienic sleep surface for old, germy mattresses, thanks to a washable cover and antimicrobial and mite-resistant copper foam.
Meanwhile, its five-year guarantee signals the thick foam build will last semester after semester. This helps to justify the high price, but those on a budget or in their final academic years may want to check out cheaper options.
Buy it if...
✅ You want to add comfort to a hard dorm bed: The 3" thickness is deep enough to significantly change the feel of any bed and provides a thick protective layer for your mattress
✅ You're a side sleeper: The body-contouring foam provides great relieves pressure in the hips and knees while side sleeping.
✅ You want a cleaner sleep surface: With antimicrobial copper and a machine-washable cover, you can keep your dorm bed germ-free.
Don't buy it if...
❌ You sleep on your front or stomach: The 3" model is designed to add a medium-soft sleep surface to your mattress, which will likely be too unsupportive for back and stomach sleepers. You can try a medium-firm 2" model, but it's only available in a twin XL size.
❌ You experience overheating or frequent night sweats: While the copper-infused foam and breathable cover kept us comfortable most nights, there were instances when it retained heat.
❌You need a topper for a short amount of time: The Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Topper's price tag is above average, so it's not worth investing in if you need a topper for your final year. Some of our best mattresses for college students are available for less.
Sleepyhead Cooling Copper Mattress Topper review: Alternative to consider
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