Nectar Classic vs Nectar Luxe: Which mattress in a box should you buy for aches and pains?

If aches and pains keep you up at night, the comforting embrace of a memory foam mattress may help cure what ails you. Nectar is known for crafting quality all-foam mattresses, but should you go with the budget-friendly Nectar Classic or the premium Nectar Luxe? In this guide, we'll be comparing these these two mattresses to help you decide which is a better fit for your pain relief.

The Nectar Classic features in our best mattresses of 2024 guide as our top-rated memory foam pick. It’s an affordable option that delivers an impressive all-around performance, offering a balance of comfort and support that'll appeal to a broad range of sleepers.

If you crave that typical memory foam hug, the pricier Nectar Luxe may be a better mattress in a box for you. It’s a couple of inches taller than the Nectar Classic at 14" and has a softer touch. It's well-suited for side sleepers and back sleepers who like a mattress that isn’t overly firm.

Our Nectar Classic vs. Nectar Luxe showdown will take a look at the design and performance of each mattress based on our hands-on testing. We’ll also see how they differ in cost — and while this year's Black Friday mattress deals may be over, Nectar mattresses are always on sale.

Nectar Classic vs Nectar Luxe: Price & trial

• The entry-level Nectar Classic regularly costs $649 for a queen
• The premium Nectar Luxe often goes for $1,249 in a queen
• Both come with a 365-night trial and a lifetime warranty

The Nectar Classic is the brand's entry-level design and most affordable model, while the Nectar Luxe is one of the most advanced mattresses in the lineup and the priciest after the Nectar Ultra. Both mattresses come in all-foam and hybrid versions, with the hybrids costing more. (We'll be focusing on the all-foam versions.)

There's always a Nectar mattress sale going on, and the current offer takes up to 50% off across the lineup. For a queen size, expect to pay $649 for the Nectar Classic and $1,249 for the Nectar Luxe. During this year's Black Friday mattress sales, Nectar cut $100 off orders over $1,000, including most sizes of the Nectar Luxe.

All Nectar mattresses come with a 365-night sleep trial with free returns and a full refund if you're not satisfied. Nectar also includes a lifetime warranty that covers manufacturing defects and flaws. Within the first 10 years of ownership, Nectar will replace your mattress free of charge. After 10 years, repairs and replacements are available for a $50 transportation fee each way.

White glove delivery is a lesser-known Nectar perk, but it's not free. For $199, you'll be able to have up to two items delivered to a room of your choice, with each additional item costing $49. You also have the option to have your existing mattress removed. Otherwise, your Nectar matterss-in-a-box will ship free, and you'll need to set it up yourself.

Nectar Classic vs Nectar Luxe: Materials & design

• The Nectar Luxe is two inches taller than the Nectar Classic
• The only difference is the thickness of the top foam comfort layer
• Otherwise, these mattresses are built exactly the same

Side by side, the Nectar Classic and Nectar Luxe mattresses look identical. Both feature a blue and gray shift-resistant bottom cover and a white top cover woven with cooling fibers and treated with an antimicrobial finish. However, according to Nectar, the Luxe boasts twice the cooling prowess of the Classic.

The differences are more apparent beneath the covers. Both mattresses have a top comfort layer made of pressure-relieving memory foam that contours to the body. The Nectar Classic includes an inch of this foam, while the Nectar Luxe has three inches.

See if you can spot the difference between the Nectar Classic and the Nectar Luxe.(Image credit: Nectar)

See if you can spot the difference between the Nectar Classic and the Nectar Luxe.(Image credit: Future)

Beyond the comfort layer, the construction is the same. Both mattresses have a 3" layer of responsive support foam to prevent excessive sinkage and an 8" block of dense foundational foam for motion isolation and edge-to-edge stability. Opting for the hybrid version of either mattress will swap the foam base with an 8" core of wrapped springs plus a 1" foundational foam layer.

The only thing that sets these two mattresses apart is their height — the Nectar Classic is 12" tall and the Nectar Luxe is 14". That's due to the thickness of the top comfort foam layer. This gives the Nectar Luxe a slightly softer surface than the Nectar Classic, as we'll explore in more detail below.

Nectar Classic vs Nectar Luxe: Comfort & support

• The Nectar Classic has a firmer feel than the Nectar Luxe
• For more of that memory foam hug, choose the Nectar Luxe
• The Nectar Classic has a more responsive sleep surface

Nectar designs all of its mattresses to have a 'just right' feel — or a 6.5 out of 10 on its firmness scale. In our Nectar Luxe Mattress review, we found this assessment accurate. According to our panel, it offers a nice balance of sink-in softness and support. The top memory foam layer cradled their pressure points yet they still felt as if they were sleeping on top of the surface rather than sinking too deeply into it.

Strict side sleepers will benefit most from the Nectar Luxe. The 3" memory foam comfort layer prevents pressure buildup in the shoulders, hips, and knees while the dynamic foam directly underneath it promotes a neutral spine. Back sleepers who don’t need a decidedly firm mattress will also like the Nectar Luxe, particularly for the contouring along the lumbar.

However, the Nectar Luxe won't appeal to everyone. Heavier sleepers (over 250 lbs) and stomach sleepers who typically need a firmer surface to keep their midsection from sagging may find it too plush for their liking.

By contrast, the Nectar Classic has a slightly firmer feel than advertised. Our panel rates it a 7.5 out of 10 on the firmness scale, which isn’t surprising given it has two inches less comfort foam than the Nectar Luxe. While this makes the Classic less plush, it's not lacking in pressure relief — it's just more subtle.

As we note in our Nectar Classic Mattress review, this is a versatile option that'll appeal to most sleep styles, although we think side and back sleepers will get on with it best. Combi sleepers, in particular, will benefit from the ease of movement as they're less likely to feel 'stuck' in the mattress. Compared to the cushier Nectar Luxe, we believe the Nectar Classic will be more accommodating for larger sleepers.

Sleepers seeking a typical memory foam sensation may be let down by the responsiveness of the Nectar Classic. The Nectar Luxe is more representative of this experience, offering a deeper sink and slower-moving surface — although there's still a slightly lifted feel to it.

Nectar Classic vs Nectar Luxe: Temperature regulation

• The Nectar Luxe claims to be twice as cooling as the Nectar Classic...
• ...but the Nectar Classic performed better for us in this area
• The hybrid version of either mattress should sleep cooler

Temperature regulation is one area where we were particularly keen to compare these two memory foam mattresses, as the Nectar Luxe purportedly has twice the cooling power of the Nectar Classic. However, Nectar doesn’t specify how the Luxe achieves this. We believe it may be related to the amount of heat-wicking fibers in the top cover, as these mattresses otherwise use the same materials.

In our tests, the Nectar Classic scored higher than the Nectar Luxe in temperature regulation. To our mild disappointment, the Luxe didn’t feel significantly cooler to the touch compared to the Classic — or even compared to other cooling mattresses we’ve tested, for that matter.

One possible theory for this outcome is the thickness of the top comfort foam. The Nectar Classic features a 1" layer of memory foam, which doesn’t contour the body as deeply as the Nectar Luxe, with its 3" comfort foam layer. The hug of the Nectar Luxe potentially traps more body heat, and the cooling cover alone isn't enough to dissipate that.

If you sleep hot, upgrading to the hybrid versions of either the Nectar Classic or the Nectar Luxe may be worth it. Hybrid models generally sleep cooler than all-foam beds as the spaces between the coils can prevent heat buildup. 

Nectar Classic vs Nectar Luxe: Which should you buy?

Buy the Nectar Classic Mattress if...

✅ You're a combination sleeper: Whether you rest on your side, back, or front, you'll feel supported by the Nectar Classic. It also has a more responsive surface than the Nectar Luxe for better ease of movement.

✅ You don't like the typical memory foam feel: The Nectar Classic is less 'gooey' than you'd expect from a memory foam mattress. For those who don't want to feel trapped by their mattress, this is a good thing. Pressure relief is subtle yet effective.

✅ You're on a tight budget: Like the Nectar Original before it, the Nectar Classic represents one of the mattress values out there. You can bring home a queen-size mattress with a one-year sleep trial and a forever warranty for less than $650.

Buy the Nectar Luxe Mattress if...

✅ You deal with regular aches and pains: The Luxe's 3" memory foam comfort layer provides deep pressure relief to ease tension in your joints and lower back. Meanwhile, the support foam maintains a neutral spine, preventing further discomfort.

✅ You’re a strict side sleeper: The Nectar Luxe delivers an excellent balance of comfort and support for side sleepers — contouring vulnerable joints to alleviate pressure while promoting proper alignment.

✅ You’re a back sleeper who doesn't want a firm bed: While the Nectar Classic provides plenty of support for back sleepers, the Nectar Luxe adds that sink-in softness for increased pressure relief, particularly along the lumbar.