If you’re considering buying a used mattress from Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist, you’re not alone. Many people wonder if buying a previously owned bed is safe or wise. You might be suspicious of prices that seem too good to be true, concerned about the mattress’s condition, or worried about how you’d get the bed home.

This guide explains how to get a great deal on a high-quality used mattress. I’ve bought mattresses off of Facebook many times and saved over a thousand dollars each time. My favorite strategy is to find barely used mattresses in like-new condition. These are customer returns that have only been used for weeks but resell for less than half price!

I’ll tell you how to find these deals and what to look for when buying a used mattress. I’ll also tell you the tricks to searching Facebook Marketplace effectively, how to get a mattress delivered, and a few other tips to make getting a used bed a breeze.

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Why should you buy a used mattress?

Buying a used mattress is an easy way to save hundreds or even thousands of dollars. The reality is that a new bed typically loses over half its value immediately after someone’s slept on it. It’s a more extreme version of what happens when you drive a new car off the lot.

You can take advantage of this to buy a premium mattress for a budget price!

For example, I recently purchased a month-old Dreamcloud Premier king mattress on Facebook Marketplace. I paid $600, whereas the retail price of a new one would have been $1,699 + $140 in tax. That means I saved about $1,200 or 66% of the cost of the mattress! (Note that you typically won’t pay sales tax on Facebook Marketplace, which is significant.)

These massive savings are the main reason to buy a used mattress, and it’s well worth your time.

What should you look for when buying a used mattress?

The two main questions to consider when purchasing a used mattress are how much life it has left (structural condition) and how well it’s been cared for (sanitary condition).

Many people are nervous about buying a used mattress, and the tricky thing is we can’t look inside them. However, we can make an educated guess about a mattress’s condition by asking the right questions. When looking at an older mattress, asking questions about its age, expected lifespan, and construction will provide clues about its structural condition. Asking questions about mattress protectors, smoking, pets, and how the previous owner used it will give clues about the sanitary condition. Finally, an in-person inspection also gives you information to make sure you’re buying an excellent used mattress.

I’ll go into more details on evaluating a used mattress below. But there’s a shortcut: buying a like-new mattress!

Great Deal: Finding Returned Mattresses on Facebook

You may have noticed listings on Facebook Marketplace for like-new, barely used mattresses. These are often from brands that sell mattresses online and ship them compressed into a box. What you see on Facebook Marketplace are customer returns.

Here’s what’s happening: It takes heavy industrial equipment to compress a mattress and roll it up for shipping. It’s a one-way journey. If the customer decides they don’t want the product, they cannot recompress it, which means shipping it back to the warehouse is prohibitively expensive.

Online mattress companies give buyers a free trial period. One hundred days is standard, but it’s not unheard of to offer a full year. When a mattress is “rejected” by a customer, they become write-offs for the manufacturer. The company will donate the bed to charity or send a local contractor to collect the mattress and resell it. That’s how they wind up on Facebook Marketplace.

Which brands sell their customer returns on Facebook Marketplace?

Some of the brands whose customer returns wind up on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist are Nectar, Dreamcloud, Purple, Helix, Layla, Bear, and Puffy. I’ve found these brands during my research for this article, and there may be others.

These are some of the most popular and well-reviewed online mattress brands out there! If you don’t know which mattress you want yet, consider starting with this list and research which one might be a good fit for you.

Store-bought mattresses, mattresses that come uncompressed, and even some bed-in-a-box brands handle returns differently. You won’t be able to find a like-new deal for every brand of mattress. That said, you can still find great used deals on other brands, especially premium brands like Tempurpedic.

Why is a returned mattress such a great deal?

These mattresses are in excellent condition, heavily discounted, and sold by people who make the process easy. It’s possible to find ones that are only weeks or months old, and they’ll almost always be perfect.

Going back to my personal example of the Dreamcloud Premier king mattress: I purchased it on Facebook Marketplace from a reseller (learn how to search for them below). Based on the seller’s review scores, I bought the bed sight unseen after a brief conversation. I offered the seller an additional $100 to deliver it to me from their warehouse an hour and a half away. It was fast, convenient, and the mattress was essentially brand new. Exactly as advertised.

Are you sure nothing’s wrong with the mattress?

A returned mattress is almost always simply a matter of customer comfort, which is highly subjective and not a sign of any mattress defect. Keep in mind that the downside to ordering a mattress online is the buyer doesn’t have the opportunity to lie on it until they have it, so some buyers will inevitably decide the bed isn’t right for them. One person’s “medium firm” is another person’s “soft”, for example.

Resellers evaluate returned mattresses for defects and sanitation issues before posting them on Facebook Marketplace. In addition, because the previous owner had only used the bed for weeks or months, the chance of stains or other issues is significantly reduced.

How to evaluate a used mattress

Whether it’s a like-new mattress or an older bed, you want to evaluate two things: structural condition and cleanliness.

If you’re buying a barely used mattress from a professional reseller, you may be content just asking a few of these questions before committing to the deal. In other situations, you will probably also want to inspect the mattress in person.

Questions to ask about the structural condition

The first thing you want to know is how many years of life you can hope to get out of your used mattress. After all, it’s not a good deal if it falls apart on you a year later! Here are some questions to ask:

How old is it? The older a mattress is, the less life it has left.

What’s the expected lifespan? A quick Google search will give you an idea of how long the model typically lasts. You can also get a clue from the manufacturer’s warranty. For example, a Tempurpedic mattress comes with a 25-year warranty, while an entry-level Serta mattress comes with a 10-year warranty. If you’re buying a five-year-old mattress, the Tempurpedic is barely getting started, while the Serta is in the second half of its life. (Note that the warranty coverage probably won’t apply to you as a second owner, but it’s still a good litmus test.)

What’s in the mattress? Many modern mattresses use foams rather than springs. As a general rule, foam mattresses last longer and avoid the problem of sagging, or uneven wear.

Why are they selling? People sell beds for all kinds of reasons. Make sure the seller’s explanation doesn’t sound like “It started having a problem.”

Inspection: The mattress should look uniform, without any dents, depressions, or deformities. Lying on the bed should feel about the same on the left or right side, and you should not feel tipped towards the middle. If it’s a flippable mattress, check both sides.

Questions to ask about cleanliness

The other thing you’ll want to know is whether the mattress was well cared for by its owner. Here are some questions to ask:

Was a mattress protector used? A mattress protector will stop stains, sweat, and other forms of moisture from soaking into the mattress. It’s also a positive sign that the seller took care of their bed.

Smoking and pets? Unless you’re a smoker yourself, you’ll probably find a smoke-scented mattress a deal-breaker. Pets may be a non-issue to one person, but allergies might make it a deal-breaker for another.

Is the cover washable? Some mattresses come with removable, washable covers. If the mattress you’re considering has this feature, it’s one more way you can sanitize the bed. Not every mattress has a removable cover, however, and this isn’t a deal-breaker by itself.

Inspection: Use your eyes and nose to look for stains and smells. It can also be helpful to notice whether the home generally seems clean or dirty, which tells you something about how the owner cares for their things.

How to search for a mattress on Facebook Marketplace

There are a few tricks to make your search for a mattress on Facebook Marketplace more effective.

Start by entering your search terms. You might have a specific brand in mind, or you might only know what size you want. So you might search for queen mattress or nectar queen mattress, for example.

Use the search filters to set your Delivery method to Local pickup. Doing so will eliminate a lot of junk listings.

At this point, you should see a wide variety of results from both individuals and professional resellers. The tips and screenshots below will help if you’re hoping to find a reseller.

Expand your search radius

Set your search radius to 250 miles. The chance of finding the mattress you want will dramatically increase when you do this. For example, I live in Austin, and I’ve bought mattresses from resellers based in Houston (130 miles away) and San Antonio (80 miles away). Don’t worry! See my notes below on getting your mattress delivered.

Look for stock photos

The picture on some mattress listings will look natural – like the seller just took it in their bedroom. That’s likely a casual seller. Other listings will have photos that look staged, like marketing photos. These are typically what the resellers use, so if you’re looking for a barely used mattress, check out those listings.

Check the seller’s reviews

Mattress resellers will typically have a lot of reviews, which should hopefully be five-star. You can click on their profile to pull up more information about these reviews. If you’re buying from a reseller who has positive feedback, you might feel comfortable buying sight unseen, especially if they aren’t nearby.

Check their other listings

Mattress resellers will often have dozens of listings running simultaneously. It’s a good clue that you’re dealing with a business person. You might also find another mattress you like better!

Negotiate with the seller

You may find several sellers offering the brand and size of mattress you want. In this case, it makes sense to message multiple sellers to see who can give you the best price. But be sure to factor in delivery costs, explained next!

How to get your used mattress delivered

Let’s face it: mattresses are big and bulky. But don’t let that deter you. Delivery is an easy problem to solve. Unless you can transport the mattress yourself, expect to spend $50-$100 to get it moved. When you’re buying a premium mattress for half price, this delivery cost doesn’t change the fact that it’s a great deal!

Here are four ways to get the mattress home. Chances are, one of them will feel right to you.

Do it yourself

If you have access to a pickup truck or box truck, this is the cheapest option. Even if you don’t own a truck yourself, you might have a friend, neighbor, or co-worker who would let you use theirs (buy them a beer or some other token of appreciation!) Get one or two people to help, and you’ll have the mattress home in no time. Remember to bring rope or tie-down straps to secure the mattress and use a sheet or tarp to keep it clean.

Ask the seller

The seller may be willing and able to deliver the mattress to you, particularly if they’re a reseller. Resellers habitually transport mattresses and are motivated to make the sale.

It’s reasonable for the seller to ask for an extra delivery fee, especially if it’s a long haul. Of course, this is negotiable, especially if you have multiple options.

The seller may ask you to pay some money upfront to protect themselves if the buyer backs out. After all, they’re committing their time and fuel costs to get the bed to you. A happy compromise is to pay the transportation fee in advance and the price of the mattress on arrival.

Rent a U-Haul

Another transportation option is to rent a small U-Haul truck, van, or pickup for short distances. Once again, you’ll need to get someone to help you move and some items to secure the mattress properly during transit. U-Haul’s primary way of making money is on the per-mile charge, so do the math ahead of time to understand how much this option will cost you.

Hire help

Finally, you can hire somebody else to move the mattress for you. There’s a service called Dolly that will move furniture, and they’ve even started appearing as a delivery option right within Facebook Marketplace. Or, you may be part of a Facebook group in your area where you can post requests for help with odd jobs like furniture moving.

What should you do with your old mattress?

Getting rid of your old mattress is simple. You’ll need to decide if it’s worth selling, worth giving away, or junk.

If you think it’s worth selling, you can create an ad of your own on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist. Provide multiple photographs and a detailed description. Be brutally realistic about what you think your old bed is worth. After all, you’ve just learned that you can buy a nearly-new mattress for less than half price, so don’t turn around and overvalue the one you hope to sell. That said, if your old mattress is in good condition, you might make some money off of it.

An easier option is to offer your old mattress up for free. You could post it on Facebook Marketplace, your local Buy Nothing group, or Craigslist. Alternatively, you can call a local charity or secondhand store in your area and see if they’d like to pick it up. If you’re giving your mattress away, expect immediate interest.

Even if your old mattress is absolute junk, it’s still worth trying to give it away for free (but be honest). If all else fails, you can use your community’s bulk trash service or hire a junk hauler to remove the old bed.

What if you don’t like your new mattress?

One downside to buying a secondhand mattress is you don’t get a warranty or a free trial period. If you’ve already tried out the model you’re buying, you won’t have to worry about whether you’ll like it. However, if you purchase a bed based on reviews and descriptions, there’s always some chance it will turn out to be less comfortable than you’d hoped.

If your new mattress isn’t working for you, it’s a hassle but not a disaster. The solution is simply to sell the bed again yourself. You can list it on Facebook Marketplace and hope to get back what you paid for it. It may take a little time, but chances are you won’t be stuck with it.

I’ve been in this situation myself. I bought a used Tempurpedic mattress (saving $1,100) after reading many reviews about the model. It had seemed like it would be a good fit for me, but it just wasn’t comfortable. I was able to resell it quickly and got back every penny.

What about the rest of the bed?

It takes more than a mattress to make a bed. Depending on the mattress’s requirements and your preferences, you’ll want a bed frame, platform bed, adjustable base, etc. You can buy all of this furniture separately or re-use the furniture you already have.

Many mattress stores offer “bundles” and deals for their platforms and other accessories like sheets or pillows. You might find them tempting, but you’ll still come out far ahead buying a used mattress. Plus, speaking from personal experience, these accessories aren’t always comfortable, durable, or in your style. When you buy the mattress separately, you have more control over these other elements.

It’s worth buying a used mattress

I hope this guide gives you confidence in buying a used mattress. Whether you opt for a barely-used customer return or ask the right questions to vet an older mattress, I believe it’s possible to find an incredible deal on a used mattress in great condition.

I generally advocate for buying used products because they save money. But mattress shopping is a unique opportunity: it’s an expensive item that immediately loses over half its value. When you buy a used mattress, you take advantage of this, and the savings are significant! It’s easy to save a thousand dollars or more on this purchase!