Helix Midnight Luxe 5-Month Review: My Boyfriend and I Finally Found a Bed We Agree On

Couples know the struggle of finding a mattress that works for both of their sleeping styles, budgets and preferences. When my boyfriend and I moved into our new house, we began looking for a bed that we both enjoyed — or, more accurately, one that I liked more than our current mattress. We had been sleeping on an older Casper Select from Costco, and while it was perfectly within budget and my boyfriend didn’t mind the feel, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the all-foam design.

Fortunately for me, as a mattress and sleep expert, I get to cut corners when it comes to finding a new mattress. I have tested around 80 different beds throughout the years, so I already know the exact type, feel and brand of mattress that I will enjoy. Additionally, in April 2024, I had the exciting opportunity of touring the 3Z mattress factory and testing almost all the beds the company produces. In the Helix showroom, once I laid down on the Helix Midnight Luxe, I said to myself, “This is my next mattress.”

Here’s what I found after sleeping on this bed every night for about five months. 

Read more: We Tested the Saatva Classic Mattress (and Our Marriage) for a Month

First impressions

Like most online mattresses, the Helix Midnight Luxe arrived at my doorstep in a box. The heavy package was dragged into my home, and my boyfriend and I ripped away the cardboard to find the mattress vacuum-sealed and rolled up. We moved our old mattress into a different room (we eventually donated it) and placed the massive cylinder on our empty bed frame. Once we removed all the packaging, we let it rise for a few hours before testing it out. 

While I had seen and tested this mattress before, I was still impressed with the pillow top and cover. You can add an optional GlacioTex cooling cover to any Helix mattress, and since my boyfriend and I are both hot sleepers, we opted to do so. It is truly cool to the touch and feels slick when you drag your hand across it. The pillow top is also especially nice, and a defining reason why I chose the Luxe version of the Helix Midnight. The Midnight Core model is very similar but doesn’t have the pillow top. I love how luxurious this pillow top looks, similar to more expensive models like Stearns & Foster or Avocado. 

Firmness and feel of the Helix Midnight Luxe

Two of the most important factors for finding a winning bed are feel and firmness levels that suit both your preferences and sleeping style. I’m a combination sleeper, meaning that I switch between my stomach and my side throughout the night. I need a mattress that is around a medium in terms of firmness, and I enjoy a feel that is neutral, pillowy and doesn’t make it difficult to move around (such as dense memory foam). Here’s how I found the firmness and feel of the Helix Midnight Luxe. 

Not too soft, not too firm

The Midnight Luxe is a great mattress for couples because it feels around a medium. In other words, the bed is not too soft and not too firm. This middle-of-the-road firmness level can accommodate couples who have different sleeping styles. For example, I sleep on my stomach and my side, while my boyfriend sleeps on his back and his side. This firmness level supports his back and my stomach while still being soft enough to sleep on our sides. 

I think the Midnight Luxe is softer than our old bed, but my boyfriend says it feels the same to him. However, my body feels the difference. Sleeping on my side on this new bed is so much more enjoyable. The mattress provides enough pressure relief for my hips, but I still feel supported. On our old mattress, I tossed and turned, switching from one side to the other and would wake up with sore hips. While my boyfriend didn’t have an issue with this, this can be due to our different sizes and weights. Firmer beds will feel firmer to a lighter individual, as opposed to someone who is average weight. Softer beds will feel softer to heavier individuals. 

The bed’s cushiony, cool feel 

My favorite aspect of this bed, by far, is its pillow top. Sleeping on my side has been a dream (pun intended) because the pillow top hugs my hips with subtle support. It feels as if the bed rises up to meet my body in all the right ways. When I’m on my stomach, my back feels properly supported, and my spine is aligned. My boyfriend says that he has never woken up with back pain from this bed, and I haven’t either.  

The layer underneath the pillow top is made of cradling foam and underneath that is a layer of pressure-relieving memory foam. While there is memory foam within the top of the bed, this mattress has more of a neutral foam, cushiony feel. I sleep more on the pillow top rather than sinking into the middle of the mattress. When switching from my stomach to my side in the middle of the night, I don’t feel the bed resisting me or that stuck-in-the-mud sensation. The last two layers of the bed are its steel coils and support foam. I never feel the coils poking at me, and besides the extra support, I forget that they are even there. 

I don’t heat up as much on this bed as on an all-foam mattress. The cooling cover is an excellent addition, and while we do use an Eight Sleep Pod cover to actively keep cool at night, the cover material does a good job of passively keeping me from getting too hot. It doesn’t seem to hold in my body heat as much as an all-foam mattress with a knit cover. In fact, I noticed that I needed to make my Eight Sleep warmer because my usual settings made me too cold on the new bed. My boyfriend had the same experience. While the cooling sensation isn’t as strong under sheets and bedding, it definitely performs.   

Helix Midnight Luxe performance 

While the right feel and firmness affect how well a mattress will work for you, there are a few more aspects to consider. Here’s how the mattress performed over the months I tested. 

Motion isolation 

Motion isolation refers to how well a bed deadens cross-mattress motion. For example, can you feel the bed move when a partner tosses and turns at night? We have two dogs who like to jump in bed with us in the mornings. I can feel it when one nestles into the other side of the bed. While this bed doesn’t have the worst motion isolation I have ever seen, it doesn’t perform as well as an all-foam mattress. I can sometimes feel my boyfriend turning to his side at night, but that is only when I’m already awake. The movement doesn’t wake me up. If you are a light sleeper, this might be something to consider. 

Edge-to-edge support

At CNET, we always test edge-to-edge support on each mattress we review. We do so by sitting on the side and then lying as close to the edge as possible to see how easy it is to roll off. I think the Helix Midnight Luxe performs well in this category. The edge material is pretty strong and durable, and I can get close to the edge without feeling like I’m going to slip off. This is an important feature for couples. If you are turning away from your significant other and trying to find your own space in the middle of the night, you don’t want to accidentally fall out of bed. 

Temperature

As I stated before, this bed comes with an optional GlacioTex cooling cover. As a hot sleeper, I appreciate the added layer of cool and believe it helps keep me temperature-neutral at night. In other words, it doesn’t necessarily cool me down in the middle of the night, but it helps to keep me from getting too hot. It’s breathable and doesn’t hold onto my body heat like traditional memory foam mattresses.   

Durability

The Midnight Luxe is a hybrid mattress, meaning that it has both layers of foam and a layer of steel coils. In addition to providing more support to a mattress, coils also increase the durability of your bed. All-foam beds deteriorate faster over time due to constant pressure and use. This bed will last you longer than the core Midnight model. 

Who is the Helix Midnight Luxe best for? 

Sleeping position 

The Helix Midnight Luxe is around a medium in firmness, so here’s which sleeping positions this bed best suits. 

Side sleepers: I spend about half the night on my side, and I find this bed to be great for pressure relief on my hips. Most side sleepers will be pleased with the medium firmness and overall support. However, if you are a strict side sleeper who prefers softer mattresses or are a petite body type, I recommend the Helix Sunset Luxe. It is the softest model and feels extremely comfortable on your side. I would have chosen this model if it was solely up to me, but my boyfriend doesn’t like soft beds. 

Stomach sleepers: When I flip from my side to my stomach in the middle of the night, I still feel comfortable and supported. I like that the bed’s pillow top is soft enough for me to lie down on my chest without any discomfort. However, strict stomach sleepers with back pain or those who are heavier should opt for a firmer bed in order to fully support their spines. If you need a firmer bed, I recommend looking at the Helix Dawn Luxe.

Back sleepers: My boyfriend switches from his side to his back and has never experienced back pain on this bed. Sleeping on his back on this bed has been comfortable because, according to him, “the bed is not too soft, and it isn’t too firm.” However, strict back sleepers with back pain or those who are heavier should opt for a firmer mattress. A bed like the Helix Dawn Luxe will better support their spine.

Combination sleepers: The Midnight Luxe is ideal for combination sleepers because it will work for multiple positions. Its firmness is at the perfect level of being comfortable on the hips and supportive enough for the spine. Most combination sleepers will enjoy this mattress. 

Body type

Your body type, or the amount of pressure being exerted on a mattress, will greatly affect how firm or soft a bed feels to you. As a petite to average -size sleeper, the Helix Midnight Luxe felt just a tad firmer than medium to me. To my boyfriend, it felt like a solid medium.

This mattress is suitable for petite to average-size sleepers. While it doesn’t provide the level of support that heavier individuals will need, it holds up well for those in the average weight category. Petite side sleepers might need a softer mattress, and I recommend the Helix Plus Luxe for heavy sleepers.  

Helix Midnight Luxe pricing

You can usually snag a queen size for around $1,700 to $1,900 during sales, such as Presidents Day. The optional GlacioTex cooling cover is an extra $249, but I’ve seen it be as low as $199 during these sales. Helix also offers a 100-night sleep trial, a limited lifetime warranty and free shipping. 

My thoughts after five months 

My boyfriend and I donated our old all-foam mattress in order to switch to the Helix Midnight Luxe. On our old bed, I was waking up with some pain, and I didn’t enjoy the overall feel. I wanted a comfortable pillowtop that supported my joints, and I got just that with the Midnight Luxe.

After all this time, I don’t have many complaints about this bed. It is not too firm and has a plush pillow top and a neutral feel. The added cooling cover provides extra comfort for me as a hot sleeper, and while the steel coils are there for support, I love that I can’t feel them under all the layers of foam. While I, personally, would have chosen a softer mattress, it is great for couples who can’t agree on a firmness level. It is the perfect middle ground.  

We finally found a mattress that we both like or, in reality, a mattress that doesn’t hurt my hips. I was the reason we needed to look for a new bed. My boyfriend is very laid back and probably would have slept on that Casper mattress for the foreseeable future if it was just him. That’s the drawback of being a mattress expert — you become very picky. 

I don’t think this mattress is going anywhere. 

Helix Midnight Luxe mattress FAQs