Casper Cooling Select Mattress: An Honest Canadian Review

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Casper was one of the first bed-in-a-box companies to make mattress shopping feel modern. Order online, get a box delivered, unroll a mattress in your bedroom. No pushy salesperson, no confusing showroom, no haggling. The model works, and Casper built a billion-dollar company on it.

The Casper Cooling Select is their budget-tier offering, positioned as an affordable mattress with cooling technology. It is the kind of mattress that catches your eye during a Costco run or while browsing online late at night. The price is right, the "cooling" label sounds appealing, and the trial period removes most of the risk.

But is it actually a good mattress? And does it really sleep cool? We are going to give you an honest answer based on independent testing data and our experience helping Brantford customers find the right mattress since 1987.

What Is the Casper Cooling Select

The Casper Cooling Select is an entry-level mattress in Casper's lineup. It comes in two versions:

Casper Cooling Select (Foam): An all-foam mattress with multiple foam layers. This is the more affordable version and the one most commonly found at Costco Canada.

Casper Cooling Select Hybrid: Adds a pocketed coil support base beneath the foam comfort layers. More expensive but offers better airflow and edge support.

Both versions are marketed with "cooling" technology, which typically means phase-change material in the cover or a gel-infused foam layer designed to absorb and dissipate body heat. The question is how well this technology actually performs in practice.

Specifications and Construction

Layer Breakdown

The Cooling Select uses a layered foam construction that is typical of bed-in-a-box mattresses at this price point:

Cover: A polyester blend fabric with an infused cooling agent (typically phase-change material) designed to feel cool to the touch initially. Phase-change materials absorb heat energy as they transition from solid to liquid state, creating a brief cooling sensation.

Comfort layer: A proprietary foam blend that provides the initial cushioning feel. This layer determines how the mattress feels in the first few minutes of lying down.

Transition layer: A firmer foam that bridges between the soft comfort layer and the support base. This layer affects how deeply you sink and how well the mattress maintains alignment.

Support base: In the foam version, a high-density polyurethane foam base. In the hybrid version, pocketed coils replace this layer, which improves airflow and edge support.

Cooling Claims vs Reality

This is where we need to be straightforward. The word "cooling" in a mattress name sets a specific expectation: this mattress will keep you cooler than a regular mattress. Let us look at what independent testing actually shows.

This does not mean the Casper Cooling Select is a bad mattress. It means the "cooling" label is more marketing than measurable advantage. All-foam mattresses inherently retain more heat than hybrid or innerspring designs because foam restricts airflow. Adding a cooling cover or gel infusion helps at the margins but does not overcome the fundamental physics of sleeping on dense foam.

If you sleep hot and cooling is your primary purchase motivation, here is the honest hierarchy of mattress types from coolest to warmest:

1. Innerspring with natural fibre cover (coolest, most airflow)
2. Hybrid with coil base (good airflow through coils)
3. Latex (naturally breathable, open-cell structure)
4. Gel-infused memory foam (marginal cooling benefit)
5. Standard memory foam (warmest, least airflow)

The Casper Cooling Select foam version sits at position 4 or 5 on this scale, depending on the specific foam formulation. The hybrid version sits at position 2 or 3.

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Who the Casper Cooling Select Works For

• Budget-conscious shoppers. At $550 to $800 for a queen, the Cooling Select is significantly cheaper than Casper's premium models and competitive with other bed-in-a-box brands at this tier.
• Average-weight back sleepers (60 to 90 kg). The medium-firm foam provides adequate support for back sleepers in this weight range without excessive sinking.
• Light side sleepers (under 60 kg). Lighter individuals get enough cushioning from the comfort layer without bottoming out.
• People who want a long trial period. The 365-night trial (or unlimited via Costco) removes the risk of buying a mattress you have never tested.
• Renters and temporary situations. The lower price point makes it practical for situations where you may move or upgrade within a few years.

Who Should Look Elsewhere

• Hot sleepers. Despite the name, the Cooling Select does not sleep notably cool. If you consistently overheat at night, a hybrid or innerspring mattress will serve you better.
• Heavier individuals (over 100 kg). The foam compresses more under heavier body weight, reducing the effective support and potentially bottoming out in the comfort layer. Independent testing consistently notes that the Cooling Select is better suited to lighter sleepers.
• Side sleepers with hip or shoulder pain. The medium-firm feel may not provide enough pressure relief for side sleepers who need cushioning at the hip and shoulder. A mattress with zoned support or softer comfort layers is typically better for this profile.
• Edge sitters or sleepers. The all-foam version has notably weak edge support. If you sit on the edge of the bed to put on shoes, or if you sleep near the edge, you will feel the mattress compress significantly. The hybrid version is better in this regard.
• Couples. The foam version has slower material response, which can create a stuck-in-the-mattress feel that makes changing positions harder. The hybrid addresses this somewhat.

Pricing in Canada

Prices fluctuate with promotions. Casper frequently runs sales (holiday weekends, seasonal events) that can knock $100 to $200 off these prices. Costco pricing may differ from Casper.ca pricing, and the Costco version may be a slightly different configuration than the direct-to-consumer version.

Trial Period and Warranty

The trial period is one of Casper's strongest competitive advantages:

365-night trial when purchased through Casper.ca. This is nearly twice the industry average. You sleep on the mattress for up to a year, and if it is not right, Casper arranges pickup and provides a full refund.

Costco satisfaction guarantee when purchased through Costco. This has no time limit, which is even more generous than Casper's own trial period.

10-year limited warranty covering manufacturing defects and foam degradation beyond specified thresholds (typically visible sagging of 2.5 cm or more). The warranty does not cover normal wear, comfort preferences, or stains.

The trial period is genuinely valuable. Mattress comfort is subjective, and the only way to truly know if a mattress works for you is to sleep on it for several weeks. A mattress needs 2 to 4 weeks for your body to adjust, so a 30-day trial barely gives you enough time. A 365-night trial gives you a full year to evaluate through all seasons.

Edge Support and Durability

Edge support is a common weakness in all-foam mattresses, and the Casper Cooling Select is no exception. Independent testing consistently rates the foam version's edge support as below average. When you sit on the edge, the foam compresses deeply and you feel like you might slide off. When sleeping near the edge, the usable sleep surface effectively shrinks as the edge compresses under your weight.

The hybrid version improves this significantly. Pocketed coils around the perimeter provide more resistance to compression, maintaining a more usable edge. If you share the bed and both sleepers need the full surface area, the hybrid version is the better choice.

Durability depends heavily on body weight and use patterns. All-foam mattresses tend to develop body impressions faster than coil-based designs because foam compression is cumulative. Lighter sleepers (under 75 kg) can expect the foam to maintain its properties longer than heavier sleepers (over 90 kg) on the same mattress.

How It Compares

The Casper Cooling Select sits in a competitive price bracket. Here is how it stacks up against alternatives available in Canada at similar price points.

The Casper wins on price and trial period. The Restonic wins on support structure, cooling, durability, and the ability to try before you buy. For our broader comparison of Casper to other brands, see our full Casper mattress review for Canada.

Our Honest Take

The Casper Cooling Select is a decent budget mattress. It is not exceptional, but at its price point, it does not need to be. It provides basic comfort, adequate support for lighter-weight sleepers, and comes with a trial period that eliminates most of the purchasing risk.

Where we take issue is with the "Cooling" branding. When a mattress is specifically marketed as a cooling product, customers reasonably expect it to sleep cooler than average. Independent testing shows the foam version does the opposite, retaining more heat than the typical mattress. This is not a defect. It is a fundamental limitation of all-foam construction that no cover treatment fully overcomes. The hybrid version is a better product in general and a better cooling product specifically, but it costs $150 to $200 more.

If you are considering the Casper Cooling Select because of the price, we understand. Not everyone can spend $1,000 or more on a mattress. But if your budget stretches to the $1,000 to $1,200 range, a pocketed coil mattress like the Restonic ComfortCare at $1,125 offers meaningfully better support, airflow, edge support, and long-term durability. The coil-based design sleeps genuinely cooler because air moves freely through the coil layer, something no amount of gel infusion in a foam mattress can replicate.

Sources

• NapLab. (2025). Casper Cooling Select Review: 10 Data-Driven Tests. Independent Mattress Testing.
• NapLab. (2025). Casper Cooling Select Hybrid Review: 10 Data-Driven Tests. Independent Mattress Testing.
• Bergholdt, K., et al. (2011). Better backs by better beds? Changes in mattress comfort over time. Applied Ergonomics, 42(1), 91-97.
• Okamoto-Mizuno, K., and Mizuno, K. (2012). Effects of thermal environment on sleep. Journal of Physiological Anthropology, 31(1), 14.

Related: Casper Hybrid Mattress Reviews: Canadian Expert Guide 2026